Agricultural Economics Curriculum
The curriculum for the B.S. degree in Agricultural Economics is designed to prepare
graduates for a wide variety of jobs in agriculturally-oriented business firms and
agencies. Several changes to the curriculum become effective for all students
entering the Department in and after September 2004, representing efforts by the
Department of Agricultural Economics to provide a broad, diversified set of options
and course offerings for the B.S. degree in Agricultural Economics. These enhancements
are intended to improve the job-readiness of Agricultural Economics graduates for a
wider array of careers and professional opportunities. Faculty, students, former
students, college administration, and prospective employers provided support and
input to the revisions in the degree curriculum.
The B.S. degree in Agricultural Economics has four options designed to respond to
students' demand and to provide increased flexibility in course selection and to more
closely correspond with career choices available to Agricultural Economics graduates:
The revised Agricultural Economics curriculum and associated specifications of these
options build on the strengths of the previous curriculum, adding increased flexibility
to better prepare students for a broader potential set of professional careers and/or
post-graduate experiences. Each of the four options is intended to prepare students
for specific sub-sectors of the agricultural industry and related professions. Both
major and non-major directed electives are incorporated to strengthen the foundation
of the B.S. degree in Agricultural Economics for the targeted professional careers
and/or post-graduate educational programs.
The added flexibility in course selection and the accompanying changes in Agricultural
Economics courses should enable students to conclude their degree in a more efficient
and timely manner and to simultaneously realize an enriched educational experience that
better prepares them for post-college life. The reduced number of specific courses
allows for more free and directed electives in the curriculum. As a consequence, there
are improved opportunities for sequencing prerequisite courses and those courses that
may be offered only once per year. Similarly, there are increased possibilities of taking
a broader set of courses, contributing to a more robust, eclectic academic program.
The curriculum in Agricultural Economics is designed to provide both the traditional and
contemporary dimensions of academic instruction essential for motivated and intellectually-capable
students to assimilate and be proficient in a broad array of skills and competencies valuable
to professionals in the agricultural and related industries. The options create greater
clarity and integrity within the Agricultural Economics degree, serving as recognizable
landmarks corresponding to students' interest areas and identifiable career-preparation
curricula tracks. The University Core Curriculum and the Agricultural Economics core courses
will continue to provide a basic foundation in general learning, along with the essential
principles and concepts required to succeed in the upper-level courses comprising the options.
The clarity of the published degree plans and the integrated course work encompassed in the
options' respective curricula will be beneficial to students, faculty, academic advisors,
departmental advisors, and prospective employers.
The B.S. degree in Agricultural Economics requires 132 hours of course work. The following
sections detail the University Core Curriculum, the Agricultural Economics core, and the
Agricultural Economics options components of these 132 hours.
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