Agricultural Careers Agronomist

1. Agricultural Careers Agronomist By: Dr. Frank Flanders and Trisha Rae Stephens Georgia Agricultural Education Curriculum Office Georgia Department of Education June 2005

2. Job Duties & Responsibilities • Trains and supervises employees in agronomy; may teach classes if employed by colleges or universities • Participates in the planting, cultivating, irrigating, pesticide and fertilizer application, harvesting, and other cultural functions for forage and agronomic crops for research or production • Supervises field layout and construction of the field research or production plots • Prepares herbicide and other pesticide spray programs for care and maintenance of experiment stations, plots, and other land areas • Responsible for the maintenance and repair of production and research equipment • Inspects and monitors research plots and initiates actions to ensure optimum plant growth • Trains and instructs employees in the safe and proper use of a wide range of field and research equipment, chemicals, etc. • Executes experiments or investigations in field crop problems and the development of new methods of crop culture in order to secure more efficient production, higher yields, and improved quality • Maintains records on equipment maintenance, employment information, and activities directly affecting crops (such as pesticide and fertilizer application, rainfall, harvesting, tillage, etc.)

3. Qualities and Skills • Ability to stand for long periods of time • Ability to work outdoors as required • Knowledge of soil types, textures, structure and their production potential along with an in-depth knowledge of plant science. • Supervisory ability, intellectual creativity, and mechanical skills and pays close attention along with a general interest in agriculture is ideal for this career. • The ability to understand and apply the scientific method and work through mathematical formulas in order to collect, evaluate, and analyze information is also needed

4. Salary As with other fields, agronomists’ earnings depend on education, experience, and where they work. Agronomists with Bachelor-level degrees earn the least; those with Doctoral Degrees earn the most. Private firms generally pay the highest salaries. On average, agricultural and food scientists such as agronomists earn moderately high salaries in the $40-70,000 range. Federal agronomists earn an average of $62,000.

5. Work Environment • Depending on their specialization, agronomists work in a variety of settings, including labs, offices, farms, and universities • Many agronomists work in foreign countries on development and research projects • Many agronomists work for federal and state government agencies • Agronomists may work for agrichemical and fertilizer companies, seed companies, research groups, universities or as independent consultants

6. Becoming a Agronomist • In high school students need to take classes that involve agriculture, plant and earth science, botany and biology in addition to the core college prep curriculum. • An internship or part time job in agronomic research or production is a great way to learn more about a career as an agronomist

7. Career Resources American Society of AgronomyCrop Science Society of America677 S Segoe RdMadison, WI 53711Internet: www.agronomy.org/