Every college student is faced with finding a job in their field after graduation. While many graduates continue to struggle finding good jobs, those students who major in Agriculture often get multiple job offers. This is especially true for Ag Education Majors.
Speaking recently at the National FFA Convention in Indianapolis, Ellen Thompson, with the National Teach Ag Campaign, says every year hundreds of Ag teaching positions go unfilled due to a shortage of qualified teachers.
Nationwide, there are nearly 12,000 Ag teaching positions, and annually there are about 1,000 openings due to retirement and teachers changing careers, but Colleges with Ag Education programs only graduate about 700 new teachers per year to fill those 1,000 positions.
Ag teachers leave the profession for other opportunities at a higher rate than most teachers due to higher paying opportunities in agri-business for people with degrees in agriculture.
