Education & Library
Agricultural Sciences Teachers, Postsecondary
Also called: Agriculture Instructor, Agriculture Professor, Agronomy Professor, Animal Science Professor
US median pay
$98,700
per year, 2025
Job growth 2025–35
+2.9%
about average or slower
Openings a year (US)
800
10,900 employed
Typical entry education
Doctoral or professional degree
Preparation 5/5 · Extensive preparation
What this job is
Teach courses in the agricultural sciences. Includes teachers of agronomy, dairy sciences, fisheries management, horticultural sciences, poultry sciences, range management, and agricultural soil conservation. Includes both teachers primarily engaged in teaching and those who do a combination of teaching and research.
What they do day to day
- Keep abreast of developments in the field by reading current literature, talking with colleagues, and participating in professional conferences.
- Advise students on academic and vocational curricula and on career issues.
- Supervise undergraduate or graduate teaching, internship, and research work.
- Supervise laboratory sessions and field work and coordinate laboratory operations.
- Conduct research in a particular field of knowledge and publish findings in professional journals, books, or electronic media.
- Prepare and deliver lectures to undergraduate or graduate students on topics such as crop production, plant genetics, and soil chemistry.
- Collaborate with colleagues to address teaching and research issues.
- Prepare course materials, such as syllabi, homework assignments, and handouts.
- Evaluate and grade students' class work, laboratory work, assignments, and papers.
- Maintain regularly scheduled office hours to advise and assist students.
Skills and knowledge that matter most
Skills
- Instructing4.4/5
- Judgment and Decision Making3.8/5
- Complex Problem Solving3.6/5
- Coordination3.5/5
- Time Management3.4/5
- Systems Evaluation3.1/5
- Social Perceptiveness3.1/5
- Systems Analysis2.9/5
Knowledge
- Biology4.3/5
- Education and Training4.1/5
- English Language4.0/5
- Administration and Management3.9/5
- Customer and Personal Service3.6/5
- Food Production3.5/5
Importance rated by people working in the job (1 = not important, 5 = extremely important).
Education and preparation
Preparation level 5 of 5 — Extensive preparation. Usually a graduate degree (master's, PhD, MD, JD) and extensive experience.
Typical entry education (BLS): Doctoral or professional degree.
Highest education of people in this job:
- Doctoral degree55%
- Post-doctoral training27%
- Master's degree14%
Who this job suits
Mostly Social
Helping, teaching and caring for people
Investigative
Ideas, research and solving problems
Realistic
Hands-on work with tools, machines, plants or animals
Based on the Holland (RIASEC) interest profile for this occupation.