Do you want to become an engineer? Well, there are different disciplines of engineering, each focusing on a specific field. If agriculture is a subject you find fascinating, then you are in the right place. This article is about an agricultural engineer salary and the problem they solve.
Professionals in this discipline solve agricultural problems relating to power suppliers, machinery, and structural facilities. Too, they address issues affecting the environment like pollution and others. They also advise on how to store and process agricultural products.
What Kind of Work Does an Agricultural Engineer Do?
Their primary goal is to resolve problems and improve agriculture as a whole. They also focus on biological discoveries and adopting new farming practices like the on-farm energy method. Plus, the new uses of agricultural waste make crop yield food and new byproducts as well.
Too, the project domain can vary from forestry, food processing, aquaculture to farming. As an agricultural engineer, you can work on refrigeration efficiency and increasing capacity. They may also develop controls that are likely to improve animal production. Others include animal waste disposal and introducing automatic harvesting machines.
What’s more, they test the reliability and safety of tools. Change environmental factors affecting the production of crops and animals. And as usual, they work with other engineers, consultants, contractors, and clients.
How to become an Agricultural Engineering
First thing, you must have a bachelor’s degree in agriculture or biological engineering. The program must receive accreditation from ABET.
Students wishing to pursue this discipline should prepare while still in high school. They should pass in all prerequisite subjects, which includes math and science. In university, they will take advanced courses in calculus, biology, and chemistry. Other extra courses are economics and business public policy.
Even an entry-level job in this engineering requires a bachelor’s degree. These programs, agricultural engineering or biological engineering, include a lot of hands-on components. They revolve around science, math, and of course, engineering principles.
Furthermore, universities and colleges usually encourage learners to gain practical experience. They can opt to either volunteer or take part in relevant competitions. Such initiative helps students design equipment and try to solve real-life problems.
Do Agricultural Engineers have a Bright Future?
Several factors dictate how the future looks for an agricultural engineer. Yet, the mains are efficient in agricultural production and reducing environmental damages. As it stands, demand for workers in this field is on the rise. The estimated growth rate is two percent, according to the employment of agricultural engineers. Although this is below the average rate in all other occupations, there is a need for more engineers.
Moreover, agricultural engineers can work on alternative projects. These include biofuels, irrigation technologies, spraying, and harvesting. They can also do exploration, where they discover new space to grow food for the future.
Engineering projects likely to maintain demand are irrigation, worker safety systems, and storage. But more importantly, the growing population will generate global competition. Thus, industries will need efficient means of product, which raises agricultural engineers’ demand.
Average Agricultural Engineer Salary
In the United States, an agricultural engineer earns an average salary is about $70,912. This is according to the latest report released on 29th January 2021. But on a broader perspective, salaries range between $56,750 and $87,776. The variance depends on various factors. This may include education, certifications, additional skills, and years of experience.
Entry Level Agricultural Engineer Salary
Like any other engineering discipline, a fresh graduate enjoys a good salary. For example, in the United States, an entry-level agricultural engineer salary is $54,506 per year.
Though other reports indicate a high annual salary of $108,500, and $20,500 is the lowest. It further states that most entry-level agricultural engineers earn a salary range of $35,500 and $97,500 per year. Similarly, the variance is attributed to several opportunities and advancement. They include skill level, location of work, and tenure.
Is Agricultural Engineering a good career?
Like other engineering disciplines, successful graduates enjoy more opportunities with lucrative salaries. On top of that, agricultural engineers attract wealth, respect and knowledge, and are eligible for a retirement benefit.
In short, it’s a good career with three major prospects:
- machinery and power,
- irrigation engineering, and
- soil and water conservation engineering.
They are not limited to this field, which means graduates can seek alternative prospects outside the agricultural sector.
Necessary skills
An agricultural engineer should possess core skills like non-technical abilities, knowledge, and understanding. This set of core skills helps navigate, interact, as well as solve problems.
With that said, all aspiring agricultural engineers should master the following skills:
- Process improvement
- Ability to research
- Business conscious
- Project management
- Role awareness
- Giving feedback
- Interpersonal skills
- Listening skills
- Math skills
- Analytical thinking
- Communication skills
- Physic knowledge
- Grooming and appearance
Advancement of Agricultural Engineering
Graduates work under the supervision of senior and experienced engineers. This way, they gain experience and knowledge before moving to difficult projects. The arrangement raises their confidence in solving problems, developing designs, and in decision making.
After gaining experience, an agricultural engineer may become a supervisor. He or she will head a team of junior engineers and technicians. Others become engineering managers while another lot end up as sales engineers.
Conclusion
Agricultural engineers play important roles in our society. Without them, food and animal production would go down. There will be no enough food, which might lead to a crisis such as food shortages. Not only that, the environment may suffer negative impacts that will take a while to reverse. Society at large depends on their skills in recognizing problems and finding solutions.
On the flipside, agricultural engineers improve farming methods. Sometimes they make headlines with breakthroughs such as cloning and genetic engineering. To succeed in this engineering, you must have a knack for science and technology. Remember, a bachelor’s degree in either agricultural or biological engineering is what you need. Upon joining this elite career, you will enjoy a lucrative agricultural engineer salary, among other opportunities.
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