Value in an Agricultural Degree?
By Ed Farris on Wednesday, February 15th, 2012 |
There’s no denying that agriculture is important to our local economy. Many people are employed in farm or farm-related jobs, including production agriculture, farm inputs, processing and marketing and wholesale and retail sales.
The most recent Indiana Ag Statistics publication compiled by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) shows that total income from farming was $148, 926,000 for Huntington County in 2009.
So, should anyone question the decision of a young person to pursue a degree in agriculture?
The National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) released a 2012 Job Outlook study. This is a survey of 1000 employers about future job hiring plans. As a result, an article appeared on-line stating that the surveyed employers were not likely to hire individuals with degrees in five areas (http://education.yahoo.net/articles/most_useless_degrees.htm). Three of these areas were animal science, horticulture and agriculture. The author of the article claimed that degrees in these areas were useless based on the report. Needless to say an article claiming that agricultural degrees are “useless” generated feedback from the ag community.
It is important to note that details about the NACE study are only released to individuals who are members of the organization (http://www.naceweb.org/) . Thus the general public is unable to see any information regarding how the 2012 NACE study was actually set up.
In response to the on-line article which shed a negative light on ag degrees, deans from four agriculture institutions submitted an article called, “No limits to the value of an agriculture degree”( http://www.ag.purdue.edu/Connections/NOW/Pages/AgValue.aspx ). The article co-authors included deans from Purdue University, University of Illinois, Ohio State University, and Iowa State University.
One study mentioned by the deans in their article involves the shortage of college graduates to fill need. They refer to the USDA “Employment Opportunities for College Graduates in Food, Renewable Energy, and the Environment, 2010-2015” report that projected
53,500 qualified graduates will be available for about 54,400 jobs annually the agricultural and food systems, renewable energy and the environment.
Another important area to consider is the current trend of increasing placement rate for recent college graduates. Eighty-six percent of May 2011 Purdue University College of Agriculture graduates, found employment, enrolled in graduate or professional schools or accepted an employed internship as of Feb. 1, according to a College of Agriculture survey. That placement rate compares with 85 percent in 2010 and 83 percent in 2009. (See the complete online article: http://www.purdue.edu/newsroom/general/2012/120214FernandezPlacement.html.)
Most importantly college degrees in agriculture cover many majors. Food Science, Agricultural and Biological Engineering and Agricultural Economics are just a few options. Any young person who is interested in pursuing one of these degree options should do their homework and discuss careers with folks who are working in these fields. Young people can then decide for themselves whether or not a science-based agricultural degree has value in today’s economy.
For more information, contact Ed Farris, Agriculture and Natural Resource Educator, Purdue Extension – Huntington County Office, 354 N Jefferson – Suite 202, Huntington by calling 260-358-4826.
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