The Value of an Agricultural Degree

There has been much discussion the past few days about the value and worth of a degree in agriculture.  A popular website ran a piece in its Education section detailing a listing of “useless college degrees.”  Many of our alumni, faculty, staff and students responded with their views on the true worth of a degree in agriculture.  We applaud the agriculture community for coming to the defense of the sector.

Agriculture careers make up one in four jobs in the United States.  As many know, the agriculture industry is as widely diverse as the people in this country.  Nearly every aspect of daily life has a connection to agriculture and it is one of the career tracks where there is always opportunity to adapt.  Reports  like the “Employment Opportunities for College Graduates in Food, Renewable Energy, and the Environment, United States, 2010-2015” (http://www.ag.purdue.edu/usda/employment/pages/default.aspx), put out by the United States Department of Agriculture, paint a different picture than the article in question did yesterday.  At the UK College of Agriculture, 90 percent of our graduates reported they had a full time job, part-time job or were pursuing an advanced degree in the 2010-2011 exit survey.

The University of Kentucky College of Agriculture supports students going to college and earning their degree, whether that be in agriculture, human environmental sciences, or any program in the country.  There has never been a better time for students to step up to the challenges of an increasing world population, economic recovery, or simply to make a difference in their community than now.  Agriculture needs students who can rise to these challenges and commit to making a difference.  Colleges of agriculture around the country are the perfect places for young minds and young leaders to enroll and begin making the difference today.  The jobs are there, as are the opportunities. 

Dr. Scott Smith                                                          Jason Headrick

Dean                                                                          Director of Student Relations

University of Kentucky                                               University of Kentucky

College of Agriculture                                                College of Agriculture

The College of Agriculture: A One Stop "Shop" for Students

What are you interested in?

Business? 

Design? 

Food? 

Families? 

No matter what you’re interested in, the College of Agriculture is likely to have a major to suit your interest.  Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine I would end up as a student in the College of Ag, but here I am a senior preparing for graduation, and I couldn’t be more pleased with my major. It’s amazing what can happen when you venture into the unknown. 

As a high school senior, I was certain that I wanted to be an interior designer.  Naturally, I enrolled into the university’s interior design program. As a freshman, I was excited about my choice during my first semester. My future looked bright, so I could not wait to complete my journey through the design program in the hopes of landing a job as an interior designer.  To my dismay, I realized that, although the university’s program was doing an exceptional job of preparing me for a career, interior design simply wasn’t for me.  

Upon realizing that wasn’t the path for me, I began searching for a new major. I knew I wanted to serve people, so I researched majors that would equip me to do just that. I considered majors such as psychology, sociology, and gender and women’s studies, but none of them seemed to be the perfect fit. Finally, after weeks of agonizing, I settled on family science- a major I had absolutely no experience with. In fact, I barely knew what the major was, all I knew is that it sounded interesting, so I was willing to give it a try. An advisor in the School of Human Environmental Sciences (this school is within the College of Ag) familiarized me with the program and helped me select courses to get started. After just the first weeks of attending family sciences courses, I was thrilled and convinced that I had found my fit at UK. Not only did I like the classes I was taking, but I also liked the warmth of the advisors, professors, and students I encountered.

Family science can be best described as a mix between sociology and psychology, with a special emphasis on family relationships, as well as on how the individual functions as apart of the family unit. Within this program, I’ve taken courses in child development, family diversity, adolescence, mate selection, family resources management, human sexuality, and helping. All of these courses have allowed me to gain a more thorough understanding of how people function, and how the family shapes the individual throughout life and across cultures. 

The family science program at the University of Kentucky is through the College of Ag, however, it is housed within the college’s School of Human Environmental Sciences (HES). This school also houses programs such as dietetics, human nutrition, HMT (hospitality, tourism and management), and MAT (materials and textiles).  So why are these majors in the college of Ag? Although these majors are not “traditional” agricultural programs, they fit into the college’s focus on food, fibers, and families. 

So, what can one do with a degree in family science? I believe you can do almost anything with a degree in family science—especially careers that involve a great deal of interaction with people.  Some of the post popular career paths taken by family science majors include social services, non-profits, child advocacy, human resources, counseling (master’s degree required), child life, Cooperative Extension, and early childhood education.  When I selected family science as my major, I had the intentions of becoming a school counselor, however, I am now uncertain, but am leaning towards Cooperative Extension. Either way, my goal is to make an impact in the lives of youth and family’s alike.  

With all of that being said, as a prospective student, or even as a freshman or sophomore, I would recommend that you keep your options open during your first two years of college.  If you find yourself unhappy with your current major, don’t be afraid to explore other options—you should enjoy your college experience. In the midst of this exploration, I would strongly encourage you to consider the College of Ag. The College of Ag has a wealth of opportunities, not just majors, but also scholarships, internships, student organizations, and even study abroad opportunities.  No matter what you’re interested in, there’s something in the college that will tailor to your interests! 

If you are interested in learning more, check out the University of Kentucky’s family science program,.  

- Porsha B., Family Science Senior

The College Bound wAGon Rides Again

With the holidays approaching, everyone is talking about two things: the desserts and your college search.  Let’s head them off at the pass and have you ready to take on the tough questions. 

The last post (http://ukagstudents.blogspot.com/2011/10/college-bound-wagon.html) mentioned a few tips about prepping for the ACT and SAT and hopefully made you think about why you are going to college and why planning is so important in the process.  Hopefully you have also had time to get that planner, or at least learned how to use the calendar function on your phone.  

I want you to now to open a new word document on your computer and type your name on the top.  Then type 12^th grade, hit enter on your keyboard.  Type 11^th grade, hit enter.  Type 10^th grade, hit enter.  Type 9^th grade, hit enter.  Now you are ready to roll.  You are about to create a working high school resume.  This will save you tons of time in the future and will help you fill out college applications and scholarship applications.  Here’s a video to help you understand…….

Less than 20 seconds....

OK- now that your template is set up, start filling in each grade level with clubs you were in (BETA, 4-H, FFA, NHS, Math League,  etc.), awards you may have received (honor roll, perfect attendance, speech contest winner, etc.), sports or band activities, leadership activities, conferences or conventions, and any community service you may have participated in or planned for a group.  

(community service - a service that is performed for the benefit 

of the public or its institutions.)

This may take you awhile to complete, but will save you tons of time in the future.  Instead of thinking about each time you collected canned goods or what office in the science club you held sophomore year, the work is done for you.  You can get your applications filled out quicker and easier and it frees up more time for you to catch up on your reading.  I highly suggest this blog.  And The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald.  

As far as applying, many students choose to do so online via the university of their choice’s website.  Others may complete the Common App (https://www.commonapp.org/CommonApp/default.aspx), which allows you to apply to several schools at once.  Still others may seek out the paper form of the application.  Whichever you choose, take your time on it.  Make sure all parts are filled out.  You’d be surprised how many times students forget things like filling out the essay or not signing the application, which makes it incomplete.  Each university can vary slightly on admissions requirements so make sure you know what is expected.  

How do I pick a major?

Picking a major (what you are going to study in college) can be a hard decision, but it’s not something you need to lose sleep over at this point.  Go in with an open mind and learn about non-traditional majors that exist on campuses.  Most student change their major two to three times when they get on campus so doing a little research beforehand can help you stay on track to a four-year degree.  http://www.careerpath.com/ actually offers a quick quiz that was pretty accurate for myself.  

Let’s say you want to be a medical doctor.  Most schools have a pre-med program, but that only means this is a selection of classes that you have to take in order to apply to medical school.  Most students will pair this with a major.  Most schools have a chemistry or biology program and most students will go this route.  Let’s use some forward thinking and think about ways you can make yourself stand out in the medical school admissions process.  Most students will be the aforementioned bio or chem majors.  By selecting a major that is different from everyone else’s, you make yourself stand out major wise from most of the pack.  For example, at UK, students can consider either Human Nutrition or Agricultural Biotechnology for the med school track.  Each of these majors varies slightly in their coursework and opportunities (including an undergrad research project for ABT majors).  Other schools may offer biochemistry or physiology.  

The point is look around at your options and make the decision that’s best suited for you.  Never assume that because a major says something like “agricultural” in front of it it’s for farmers.  Chances are it’s a very strong science or science-based major. (Note: Agriculture is a science.) Also, check out your scholarship opportunities and also the level of opportunities for students in those majors.  Ask questions about trips, conference, leadership activities, etc. when you visit campus or in email interaction with college representatives.

Speaking of email interactions, that’s a good place to stop for this post and to put in a teaser for next time.  You would be amazed by the emails I get and how poor the grammar and spelling are in them.  I’ll give some examples and give some real world communications advice to help make you look like the prodigal student and shine above your peers.  Share the blog with your friends and family via Facebook and Twitter and other avenues you may use.  

In the meantime,  send your questions to me at Jason.Headrick@uky.edu.  I’m glad to hear your questions or get your feedback on this and other posts.

Jason

Director of Student Relations, UK Ag

“Like” us Facebook at UK Ag Academic Programs!

Follow us on Twitter at @UKAgStudents!