International Agriculture

Types of Degrees International Agriculture Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many international agriculture graduations there were in 2018-2019 for each degree level.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Bachelor’s Degree	69
Master’s Degree	59
Basic Certificate	10
Graduate Certificate	3

What International Agriculture Majors Need to Know

In an O*NET survey, international ag majors were asked to rate what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important in their occupations. These answers were weighted on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the most important.

Knowledge Areas for International Ag Majors

According to O*NET survey takers, a major in international ag should prepare you for careers in which you will need to be knowledgeable in the following areas:

• Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
• Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
• Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.

Skills for International Ag Majors

The following list of skills has been highlighted as some of the most essential for careers related to international ag:

• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.

Abilities for International Ag Majors

As a international ag major, you will find yourself needing the following abilities:

• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
• Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.

What Can You Do With a International Agriculture Major?

People with a international ag degree often go into the following careers:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Agricultural Sciences Professors	7.9%	$84,640
Food Scientists and Technologists	5.9%	$65,300

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in International Agriculture?

This is a less frequently chosen undergraduate major. Only 69 students graduated with a bachelor’s degree in international agriculture in 2019, making it rank #287 in popularity. This major is dominated by women with about 80% of recent graduates being female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of international ag majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	1
Black or African American	5
Hispanic or Latino	7
White	42
International Students	1
Other Races/Ethnicities	13

Geographic Diversity

International Ag appeals to people across the globe. About 1.4% of those with this major are international students. The most popular countries for students from outside the country are:

• China
• Mexico
• Japan
• South Korea
• Chile

How Much Do International Agriculture Majors Make?

Bachelor’s Degree Starting Salary

The U.S. Department of Education found that students who graduated in 2015-2017 with a bachelor’s degree in international agriculture made a median starting salary of $28,400 per year. During this timeframe, most salaries fell between $28,400 (25th percentile) and $28,400 (75th percentile).

It is possible that some of these people may have taken positions that were not related to international ag.

Salaries According to BLS

Average salaries range from $72,570 to $90,890 (25th to 75th percentile) for careers related to international ag. This range includes all degree levels, so the salary for a person with just a bachelor’s degree may be a little less and the one for a person with an advanced degree may be a little more.

To put that into context, according to BLS data from the first quarter of 2020, the typical high school graduate makes between $30,000 and $57,900 a year (25th through 75th percentile). The average person with a bachelor’s degree (any field) makes between $45,600 and $99,000. Advanced degree holders make the most with salaries between $55,600 and $125,400.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to International Agriculture

Some careers associated with international ag require an advanced degree while some may not even require a bachelor’s. Whatever the case may be, pursuing more education usually means that more career options will be available to you.

How much schooling do you really need to compete in today’s job market? People currently working in careers related to international ag have obtained the following education levels.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	0.7%
Bachelor’s Degree	37.9%
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master.	2.1%
Master’s Degree	17.0%
Post-Master’s Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Master’s degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees at the doctoral level.	0.4%
Doctoral Degree	30.5%
Post-Doctoral Training	12.9%

Online International Agriculture Programs

In 2018-2019, 13 schools offered a international ag program of some type. The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level	Colleges Offering Programs	Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year)	2	0
Certificate (1-2 years)	0	0
Certificate (2-4 Years)	0	0
Associate’s Degree	0	0
Bachelor’s Degree	1	1
Post-Baccalaureate	2	0
Master’s Degree	5	1
Post-Master’s	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Is a Degree in International Agriculture Worth It?

The median salary for a international ag grad is $72,570 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

This is 82% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $653,400 after 20 years!

Majors Related to International Agriculture

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to international ag.

Major	Number of Grads
Agricultural Economics & Business	8,910
Animal Science	7,814
Horticulture	4,451
General Agriculture	3,551
Agricultural Production	3,536
Plant Sciences	3,278
Food Science Technology	2,222
Agricultural Mechanization	1,537
Animal Services	1,070
Agricultural Public Services	774
Other Agriculture	551
Soil Sciences	434
Food Processing	244

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• College Scorecard
• National Center for Education Statistics
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020
• Image Credit: By {} under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.