Many students go through college wondering how they are
going to pay for their books or everyday expenses. The College of Agriculture here at the
University of Kentucky has plenty of opportunities for students to earn money
through work-study. I was hired on at
the University’s Oran Little Research Farm in Woodford County at the beef research center when I was
a sophomore. I didn’t know it at the
time but it was the beginning of many opportunities that I never knew I would
have.
Working at
the Beef Unit at the farm in Work days start at 6:30am (if it
works with your schedule) and normally end around 3:30 pm. When I first started
I thought working so early was terrible because I wasn’t used to getting up quite
that early. Once I got in the routine of
getting to work at that time making any 8:00am class was easy, and I feel like
I get so much more accomplished during the day when I get up early. For
those who can’t make it to work this early they are very good about working
around school schedules because they know that academics come first.
Versailles for three years has really changed my
life.
Not only has it impacted my life in
this fashion, but also working at the beef unit has taught me a whole lot more than
I could have ever learned in a classroom.
I grew up on our family farm and thought I knew the ins and outs about
cattle, but I was wrong. Working at the
university’s farm has helped educate me about different feed rations, genetics,
cross-breeding, reproduction, etc. and has given me the chance to work first
hand with the animal research professors. I have been able to take things that I learn
at work home and practice them on my own farm.
One thing that most college
students find hard is being organized and meeting deadlines. Having to prioritize my working schedule with
my school schedule and all the other extra curricular activities I am involved
in has helped me prepare for the real world after graduation. Being responsible and having time management
skills is two key components when being successful in a career and I feel like
my experience working through college farm has helped me develop these two
skills. One other thing that my
administrators really push is for me to take initiative and do things before
I’m told to, and I know this will help me be successful once I enter my career
field.
Working at the beef unit at the Woodford County farm has introduced so many new
opportunities to me that I never would have had otherwise. I have met great people who have become some
of my best friends, made several good contacts for future references, I’ve also
learned an incredible amount about beef cattle, grown as an adult, and best of
all I got paid to do all of this. As a
student entering the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture I would
strongly recommend trying to find employment at one of the research farms. There are a variety of different positions
such as mine working at the beef cattle unit to working with dairy cattle and
even poultry, and of course being in Kentucky we cannot forget about the horses.
If your thinking about coming to UK
and don’t want to leave the farm, don’t be worried there are plenty of
opportunities to get back to the farm and be involved with the university at
the same time. Hopefully you won’t let
the thought of moving away from home scare you because there are tremendous
opportunities and people here at the University of Kentucky.
Cody is a senior graduating with a double major in Agricultural Economics and Community & Leadership Development. 
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