Hi everyone! I'm a rising high school senior who just accepted my offer of admission to go to Iowa State next year! I'm super excited! I'm trying to choose between regular business(finance or accounting) and an agriculture major(agribusiness or a double of agribusiness and Econ/finance or maybe an agricultural science since those sound interesting and also play into my strengths and interests of business and science both) especially since ag is so good at ISU. My question is though, can someone who grew up in a city and knows nothing about farm life whatsoever succeed and fit in in agriculture? Or what specific parts/majors could I do and not do? Thanks for your help!
ISU Agriculture Question
- Thread starter ericyates50
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I can't help you on the Ag Business stuff but I can say that the ISU College of Business is growing and is extremely successful placing students after school (97% I want to say). I graduated with a degree in Supply Chain Management and am doing extremely well post college. SCM is one of the smallest majors in the college of business (might be the smallest) yet it has 100% job placement and 2nd or 3rd best average salary among the college of business. You don't have to decide yet. They make you be a "prebusiness" major first anyways where you take the intro course of each college of business major. After that, then you can declare. Hope this helps!
P.S. A friendly tip: At destination Iowa State they are going to give you a white ISU t-shirt and a lanyard. Don't be a freshman and wear them your first week of class :smile:
P.S. A friendly tip: At destination Iowa State they are going to give you a white ISU t-shirt and a lanyard. Don't be a freshman and wear them your first week of class :smile:
no reason you can't get involved with Ag just because you didn't grow up on a farm. Could even be a strength that helps you look at things differently vs. "that's what we always did".
Don't suppose you have an interest in statistics?
Don't suppose you have an interest in statistics?
This. However, I cut off the sleeves and wore it working out or playing basketball at Lied. Or you could use be "an ISU freshman" for halloween with the lanyard and all. That is always an ISU classic halloween outfit you see every year.
Here's a tip from a college senior. It's a free shirt. Where it whenever the **** you want. Your in college and nobody really gives a ****. Except the first week, don't where it then.
Back on topic. I am a year away from graduating with a degree in construction engineering and I went in with no construction experience. You might have to work a little harder than others, but you do it.
Anymore, farming is just as much a business as anything else. If you are schooled in business you will do fine. I don't know the ag business curriculum or anything but you can pick up a lot of things you need to know about "farm life" through the various ag classes that ISU offers. Check out some of the Beef, Swine, Soils and other classes.
As somebody that is working in a family farm operation, I would much prefer somebody that knows the business side of farming if that is what I'm looking for help in. In other words, if I'm coming to you to help set me up a budget or plan, or seeking marketing advice, I couldn't care less if you know how to drive a tractor or sort cattle. That's the stuff most farmers know how to do and don't need help with. They need help with management and profitability. If you know your **** in your field of expertise and you can help me make more money, I'm coming to you and I'll keep coming back.
As somebody that is working in a family farm operation, I would much prefer somebody that knows the business side of farming if that is what I'm looking for help in. In other words, if I'm coming to you to help set me up a budget or plan, or seeking marketing advice, I couldn't care less if you know how to drive a tractor or sort cattle. That's the stuff most farmers know how to do and don't need help with. They need help with management and profitability. If you know your **** in your field of expertise and you can help me make more money, I'm coming to you and I'll keep coming back.
I do have an interest in stats! I'm taking AP stats this upcoming year and both like and am good at stats. Calculus however is not a big strength of mine, although I did take AP calc already so would have a little experience and hopefully would get better
Thanks everyone for their help! And don't worry I won't wear the shirt especially not the first week
As a town kid who is now an agronomist, my advice would be to start out in ag business but most importantly spend your summers
A) Interning for a company related to what you are considering doing
B) If you can't get an internship, try to get work at a local coop and learn how things work that way
Honestly, you might even want to work a summer at a coop before any internship no matter what.
That would allow you to kind of get into that world of farming and what goes into it, along with invaluable experience that comes along with everything that cooperatives do.
PM me if you have any other questions.
A) Interning for a company related to what you are considering doing
B) If you can't get an internship, try to get work at a local coop and learn how things work that way
Honestly, you might even want to work a summer at a coop before any internship no matter what.
That would allow you to kind of get into that world of farming and what goes into it, along with invaluable experience that comes along with everything that cooperatives do.
PM me if you have any other questions.
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Also, if you need a map of campus, ISU Dining gives away little fold up maps of campus with everything labeled highlighting dining areas.
If you are ever lost you can sneak off into a corner and pull it out and have a full map to look at.
Better yet, there is an online map here http://www.fpm.iastate.edu/maps/ if you have a smartphone.
If you are ever lost you can sneak off into a corner and pull it out and have a full map to look at.
Better yet, there is an online map here http://www.fpm.iastate.edu/maps/ if you have a smartphone.
Ag Business is a great program to go into at ISU. There's lots of great people within it (as far as advisers, professors, etc) and it's almost like it's own little community. And it sounds like the curriculum (lots of Econ) is kind of what would suit you. There were definitely kids that grew up in the city in the freshman class last year and they seemed to do fine. I recommend the Ag Bus program to anyone and everyone that is interested in going into agriculture. It offers you a wide variety of opportunities for a future career.
The "mystate" app is great. It has the map of the campus right in the app along with several other helpful tools. Was definitely handy freshman year.
And coop jobs aren't hard to find around the state and midwest, you just have to show them you are willing to work hard.
You kids and your smartphone apps. In my day, I had to memorize my routes and spent that Sunday before freshman classes "on a run" through campus that happened to follow my intended path the next day.
if you take that stats and bio interest and put it toward something like genetics (especially if you go on for a master's or phD), you would be a hot commodity in the animal science world. Probably agronomy as well.
Just something to think about if you have interest in that field.