Get an Online Master's in Agriculture: The Complete 2023 List

Are you considering getting an online master’s in agriculture? There are many great options to advance your career and improve the world through innovative management and science in agriculture.

Is there a more important industry than agriculture? This industry feeds the world, supplies energy, and creates millions of jobs in the United States and abroad. With a master’s degree in agriculture, there are many exciting careers to pursue where you can support sustainable practices, improve food safety, manage the business and legal aspects of farming, or educate the next generation of farming experts.

Schools offer a good deal of online agriculture master’s programs with specialties in varied areas of the industry. Advanced training can lead to a career teaching agriculture or any one of numerous industry positions. For example, you might qualify to work in government or extension programs, food industry positions in plant or animal management, forest service and land management agencies, or run your own operation in agribusiness. This wide-ranging and vital industry offers numerous options for those with special knowledge and skill in agricultural specialties.

But can you study online for a master’s degree that will give you the proper credentials? That is the question we will answer for you in this article, looking at the best careers for people with an online master’s degree in agriculture.

ARTICLE NAVIGATION:

• Can an Online Master’s in Agriculture Meet Licensing Requirements?
• How to Choose the Best Agriculture Master’s Programs Online
• Types of Online Agriculture Masters Degrees
• Online Master’s in Agriculture Admission Requirements
• Accreditation for Agriculture Master’s Programs Online
• How Much Is an Online Master’s in Agriculture?
• Careers and Salaries for Online Master’s Agriculture Graduates

There are many possible career outcomes from online agriculture programs. Some jobs require a license to become a professional, but others just need the knowledge and skill to enter the field. Here are some of the areas you may be interested in pursuing with your master’s degree:

Agricultural Education/Extension

If you want to combine your love of soil, plants, and animals with your urge to teach, you may need a teaching license. To teach in K-12 public schools, you need a teaching license, usually in career and technical teaching education. Each state has requirements for teaching licensure, but since there is a teacher shortage, especially in agriculture, many states offer reciprocity. Many education master’s programs will include all the training to prepare you for licensing exams, but check with your state to ensure your online program will meet requirements. For other types of teaching, such as becoming an extension agent to conduct training with farmers, 4-H groups, and others, a master’s degree is all that is usually required.

Food Safety and Policy

Keeping our nation’s food supply safe from pathogens starts on the farm. At every step of the way, seeds, soil, crops, livestock, packaging, and food handling must meet requirements. Setting policies and regulations for food safety is complex, and employees in this field need advanced knowledge to manage safety operations. There are many types of credentials related to food safety, but most workers can gain on-the-job experience to advance toward higher levels or gain specialty certification from the Institute of Food Technologists.

Farm Management and Agribusiness

Experience in the farming industry plus a master’s degree will make you an outstanding candidate for managing a farm operation. You may also pursue the Accredited Farm Manager credential, but it is not a requirement. State agriculture departments may also have requirements to practice specific types of professions, such as Farm Products Dealer certification. If you work on the business side of agriculture, you may wish to pursue certificates or training in specific software, project management, or accounting functions. You can obtain these credentials after you finish your master’s degree.

Agriscience, Engineering, and Biological Fields

Jobs will be open to you with your master’s degree in many scientific disciplines within agriculture, in state or federal government, nonprofit, company offices, or labs. As you progress in your field, you might also seek credentials such as those from the American Society of Agronomy, the American Society of Agricultural & Biological Engineers, the American Registry of Professional Animal Scientists, or the Soil Science Society of America.

For your agriculture master’s, you need to carefully examine the curriculum of each school with the degree program you want. Because you have experience working in or studying agriculture, you have some knowledge of your interests to help guide you to programs that most closely match your goals. Some topic areas you might choose include:

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• Seed science
• Animal behavior and welfare
• Pest management
• Food safety regulation
• Agribusiness
• Agricultural education
• Conservation and natural resources
• Forestry management

Most of these online master's programs are 100% online to accommodate working adults. However, since these are applied degrees, doing hands-on internships or research as part of your program is common. Many students choose to do their thesis or capstone within their local area or professional position. Many programs let you work with an advisor to develop a plan specific to your academic and professional goals, taking electives that will serve you in your career. Master’s programs usually take two years to complete, though some can be longer or shorter depending on your ability to take classes and complete your final project.

There are many types of online master’s degrees in agriculture, and even if you know the topic you want to study, you may still find various degree names available to you. The two most popular degrees are the Master of Science and the Master of Agriculture. Both can also have a specialty, such as soil science or leadership and communications. Yet there are also degrees with names like Master of Food Technology, Master of Agribusiness Management, or Master Professional Studies in Turfgrass Management. Plus, you might see a Master of Education (MEd) in Agriculture or a Master of Business Administration with a focus on Agriculture.

When you choose a degree program, as long as it has “master’s” in the name, it will be at an appropriate graduate level for you to get the advanced training to help enhance your career. Most people who choose to get a master’s in agriculture have an undergrad degree in agriculture or a related subject and have been working in the field (no pun intended!) for a few years. The master’s degree helps you learn more specialized knowledge, research methods, and hands-on techniques to further your interests in a particular area of agriculture.

Requirements for admission can vary among schools, but these are the most common items needed:

• Application form
• Transcripts
• 3.0 or higher GPA (though conditional admission is often available for those with lower grades)
• Statement of intent
• Reference letters
• Resume

Some programs require relevant work experience and may request proof of work history. Exams like the GRE are usually optional. However, applicants who are not native English speakers may be required to submit language proficiency exam results.

Institutional Accreditation

Getting a degree recognized by employers, other academic institutions, and professional licensing bodies is vital. Therefore, your master’s program should be from a school with accreditation— external assessment and approval—from a recognized accrediting agency. There are two types of institutional accreditors who look at the school as a whole: regional and national.
The U.S. Department of Education recognizes regional accreditors covering each area of the U.S., including the Middle States, New England, North Central, Northwest, Southern, and Western. National institutional accreditors can cover universities and colleges anywhere in the U.S. Some schools choose to get accreditation through one of the nationwide agencies rather than the regional bodies, but either type is acceptable.

Programmatic Accreditation

Beyond accreditation for the university as a whole, there is sometimes programmatic accreditation for a particular subject and degree program. In agriculture education, there is no overall programmatic accreditation agency, and no programmatic accreditation is required, but some types of programs may optionally have this. Programmatic accreditation is done by specialized accreditors who know what education is needed for the exact profession. When these groups evaluate a program, they look at the specific curriculum taught. Some accreditation agencies for agriculture include:

• ABET: ABET looks at programs in applied and natural sciences, computing, engineering, and engineering technology. Within ABET, the American Society of Agricultural & Biological Engineers (ASABE) works with agriculture and biological engineering master’s programs.
• Association for the Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care International (AAALAC): This agency offers voluntary accreditation to agriculture programs that use animals in experimental settings.
• Society of American Foresters (SAF): Forestry and natural resource management programs can choose to obtain accreditation by SAF.
• Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP): Some agriculture education programs may be accredited by CAEP, especially if the program leads to state licensure to teach in K-12 schools.

The cost of your degree can vary widely depending on the program you choose. The lowest cost option for the degree is $7,347.50 tuition for in-state students at North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University. The highest tuition price for this degree is $45,320 at Johns Hopkins University. No matter what school you choose, you may pay much less for your degree with grants, scholarships, or employer-sponsored education benefits.

There are many possible jobs for graduates with a master’s degree in agriculture, with wages that can vary greatly. The positions in the table below may be open to people with less than a master’s degree, so those with a graduate education will likely command higher salaries than the median. The following table includes data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics:

Agricultural experts who can manage sustainable development, global resource management, agriculture technologies, and other special areas can command salaries well over $100,000. In our changing climate, we increasingly need people with expertise to advance food and energy production, manage resources, and maintain safety. Policy and purchasing operations are more concentrated in urban centers like Chicago, New York City, Washington DC, and state capitals. Scientific and applied professions in agriculture tend to be located near crops and livestock operations, such as Texas, California, the Midwest, and the south, but they exist in every part of the nation.

With an increasing need for specialists in our food system, you may expand and clarify your career goals as you work with mentors during your master’s degree. For example, if your plans are to make a high salary, then employment in larger companies or farm operations will help you achieve those goals. On the other hand, if you want to spend more time working in nature, forest management and farm production jobs may pay lower—but still good—wages while allowing you to “get your hands dirty.” There are farming careers available across the country, so wherever you are, you can advance your career if you plan your online agriculture master’s degree to specialize in the right areas. Use the resources on GetEducated.com to find the perfect online master’s degree in agriculture for you.