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Record enrollment in ag and natural resources at Michigan State

The new Dean of the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources at Michigan State University says enrollment is the highest it’s been in over 40 years.

Ron Hendrick tells Brownfield more than 5,000 students enrolled for this fall semester.  “Job opportunities still continue to outpace enrollments so that’s one of the things we very much try to promote—the strong employment opportunities for students who graduate from our college.”

Hendrick says more than 90 percent of students shortly after graduation have accepted positions in the workforce or in graduate programs.  “Starting salaries this past year were about $48,000 overall.”  He says, “Some will graduate and go on to make a little bit more than that, some will make a little bit less.”

He says as MSU’s overall student body has grown, so has the college.  Hendrick also attributes the record growth to “purposeful” recruitment; more emphasis on food security and safety, the environment and energy; and the growing trend of millennials wanting to “make a difference” and choosing food, ag and the environment as the pathways to make a global impact.

AUDIO: Interview with Dean Ron Hendrick