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Agricultural Production

Types of Degrees Agricultural Production Majors Are Earning

People majoring in Agricultural Production can earn degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Certificate	481
Associate’s Degree	1,176
Bachelor’s Degree	666
Master’s Degree	1,237
Doctor’s Degree	35

What Agricultural Production Majors Need to Know

Programs in Agricultural Production develop a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that Agricultural Production graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

This major prepares you for careers needing Agricultural Production emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Education and Training — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 5.3 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Biology — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Customer and Personal Service — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.
• Administration and Management — Importance 3.5 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.

^{Importance is rated 1–5; level is 1–7. Source: ONET Online — weighted across related occupations.*}

Skills

The skill set built by a Agricultural Production program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Active Listening — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Speaking — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.
• Critical Thinking — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Writing — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.

Abilities

The cognitive and physical abilities most relevant to Agricultural Production careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.3 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Speech Clarity — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Deductive Reasoning — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Agricultural Production graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.3 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.2 / 7
Getting Information	4.2 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.2 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	4.2 / 7
Communicating with People Outside the Organization	4.2 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.2 / 7
Training and Teaching Others	4.1 / 7
Scheduling Work and Activities	4.0 / 7
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events	3.9 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Agricultural Production professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	—
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	✓
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	—
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
SAP software	Enterprise resource planning ERP software	—
ESRI ArcGIS software	Geographic information system	✓
Geographic information system GIS software	Geographic information system	—
Microsoft SharePoint	Document management software	—
Microsoft Internet Explorer	Internet browser software	—
Image editing software	Graphics or photo imaging software	—

^{Source: ONET Online technology skills, weighted across related occupations.*}

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Agricultural Production graduates include:

• Adjunct Instructor
• Agriculture Consultant
• County Agent
• 4-H Youth Educator
• Farm Agent
• Smart Home Expert
• Farm Services Consultant
• Extension Specialist
• Feed Advisor
• Cooking Instructor
• Feed Management Advisor
• Home Economics Extension Worker
• Extension Service Specialist
• Farm Consultant
• Technology Education Teacher (Tech Ed Teacher)

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to Agricultural Production graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Master’s degree	46.2%
Doctoral degree	17.3%
Bachelor’s degree	13.6%
Post-doctoral training	6.8%
High school diploma or equivalent	4.7%
Postsecondary certificate	3.2%
Less than a high school diploma	2.9%
Post-baccalaureate certificate	2.5%
Some college courses	1.3%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	1.0%
Post-master’s certificate	0.3%
First professional degree	0.1%

^{Source: ONET Online education / training / experience requirements.*}

Who Is Earning a Degree in Agricultural Production?

Gender Distribution

This field has a relatively balanced gender distribution: 57.7% women and 42.3% men among Agricultural Production graduates.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	2,081	57.7%
Men	1,527	42.3%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of Agricultural Production graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	2,461	68.2%
Asian	50	1.4%
Hispanic or Latino	648	18.0%
Black or African American	104	2.9%
American Indian / Alaska Native	31	0.9%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander	1	0.0%
Two or More Races	112	3.1%
Race Unknown	127	3.5%
International Students	74	2.1%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Agricultural Production Graduates Earn?

Federal data tracks median earnings of Agricultural Production graduates 1, 4, and 5 years after completion. Earnings tend to climb steadily as graduates gain experience and move into mid-career roles.

Years Out	Median Earnings
1 year	$38,195
4 years	$41,174
5 years	$47,624

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $47,624 — roughly 25% above the 1-year mark.

^{Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, field-of-study earnings tracker.}

Online Agricultural Production Programs

Distance learning is reported by IPEDS for Agricultural Production. The table below shows how many graduates earned at least some of their coursework online (Distance-Ed Available) versus completing the entire program online (Distance-Ed Only).

Award Level	Distance-Ed Available	Distance-Ed Only
Associate’s	5	10
Bachelor’s	4	7
Master’s	5	3

^{Distance-Ed Only = degrees completed entirely online; Distance-Ed Available = degrees including at least some online coursework. Source: IPEDS Completions by Distance Education status.}

Is a Degree in Agricultural Production Worth It?

Strictly by the federal earnings tracker, Agricultural Production graduates earn a median of $41,174 four years after completion — roughly 8% above the national median for workers with only a high school diploma (~$38,000).

^{ROI estimate compares the program’s 4-yr median earnings against the 2023 BLS CPS median earnings for high-school-only workers. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard + BLS Current Population Survey.}

Related Programs

You may also be interested in these closely related fields of study:

Program	CIP Code
Agriculture Ag Operations	01
Agricultural and Domestic Animal Services	01.05
Agricultural and Food Products Processing	01.04
Agricultural Business and Management	01.01
Agricultural Mechanization	01.02
Agricultural Public Services	01.08
Agricultural/Animal/Plant/Veterinary Science and Related Fields, Other	01.99
Agriculture, General	01.00
Agriculture/Veterinary Preparatory Programs	01.13
Animal Sciences	01.09
Applied Horticulture and Horticultural Business Services	01.06
Food Science and Technology	01.10

References

The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students and international students. This number is then divided by the total number of students to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• National Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS)
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard

More about our data sources and methodologies.