IAA Students
COLLEGE PARK, Md. – The University of Maryland expanded its undergraduate Certificate of Applied Agriculture program by introducing a new concentration in Agricultural Leadership and Communication. Housed in the Institute of Applied Agriculture (IAA), the new concentration is accepting incoming freshmen for the Fall 2017 semester. Information about the application process is available at www.iaa.umd.edu/apply. This new academic track is part of a revered certificate program that boasts a job placement rate of more than 90% for program graduates.
“True to our land-grant mission, we focus on meeting the needs of today’s agriculture industry in Maryland,” said Glori D. Hyman, director of the Institute of Applied Agriculture. “The Agricultural Leadership and Communication concentration was created in response to the many students who wanted to be involved with and promote agriculture and natural resources, but couldn’t picture themselves on the production side.”
The new concentration is designed for students who want to develop their leadership and communication skills in addition to learning how to manage various agricultural enterprises and ecosystems. It brings together knowledge from multiple disciplines, including animal science, plant science, business and communication. Over the course of two years, students complete 60 credits that prepare them for careers in agricultural public relations, advocacy or marketing; agribusiness start-up, management and consulting; or management of agriculture-related associations and nonprofits.
“Students who earn a Certificate of Applied Agriculture are well-prepared for successful careers,” added Hyman. “That’s why more than 90% of our students have jobs in their fields of study by the time they graduate from the program.”
The Institute of Applied Agriculture was established in 1965 to meet Maryland’s need for a post-secondary, hands-on, career-oriented education program that was less time consuming than a baccalaureate program.
About the Institute of Applied Agriculture
The Institute of Applied Agriculture is a professional education institution housed in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources at the University of Maryland. The institute offers eight 60-credit academic certificate concentrations that provide students with the entrepreneurial, technical and leadership skills needed to manage profitable agricultural enterprises, including farming operations, golf courses, sports fields, horticulture businesses and landscape companies. For more information about the Institute of Applied Agriculture, visit www.iaa.umd.edu.
