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Agricultural Science |
The Degree…
When the Department of Agricultural Education at Texas A&M University first
began, we served one purpose—to prepare future Secondary Agriculture Teachers. Now,
our department has grown in scope and size. With two majors, Agricultural Science
provides the foundations for students to earn a degree along with teacher certification
in Secondary Agricultural Science.
Coursework…
Coursework for the Agricultural Science major is diverse. Students choose coursework
from four general areas: Animal Science, Plant and Soil Science, Agricultural Systems,
and Agricultural Economics. Students may then select coursework throughout the College
of Agriculture and Life Science such as additional coursework in the above areas
or Wildlife, Range and Ecology, etc. These technical agriculture courses are then
paired with courses that prepare students to work with diverse student environments
in an agricultural setting. Courses include Educational Psychology, Special Populations,
Educational Technologies, Instructional Design, and Program Planning in Agricultural
Science. The highlight of the Agricultural Science degree is student teaching. This
full-semester experience occurs the semester of graduation. Student teaching allows
students to gain practical experience in scientific agriculture, professional education,
and classroom management. The first phase of student teaching occurs on campus for
four weeks during which students prepare lessons and activities to be used in the
second phase. The second phase consists of actually teaching at an assigned student
teaching center for eleven weeks under the supervision of both an outstanding agricultural
science teacher and a faculty member in the Department of Agricultural Education.
Opportunities…
Though coursework is still aimed at creating the finest agricultural science teachers,
other career areas often benefit from this training in “technical agriculture” and
“people”. Students typically accept positions in a variety of areas including agricultural
science teaching, but expanding beyond into sales representatives, insurance specialists,
juvenile officers, breed organization directors, county extension agents, as well
as other agricultural communication positions.
Information…
For more information on Agricultural Science, contact:
Dr. Julie Harlin—979-862-3014 j-harlin@tamu.edu
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