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Wisconsin colleges enrolling more agriculture students
Enrollment in agriculture-related college programs has nearly doubled in Wisconsin over the past decade.
UW-Madison Associate Dean at the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences Heidi Zoerb tells Brownfield they’ve seen a significant increase in students taking ag-related majors, and one reason is the growing interest in food and food systems. “Many of our students, regardless of what kind of community they grew up in, have a strong interest in learning more about food,so that’s definitely driven enrollment increases in some of our more production-agriculture majors.”
She says the UW’s College of Agricultural and Life Sciences includes genetics and bacteriology that contribute to careers in both human and animal health.
Zoerb says there are many available career paths, and she encourages all K-through-12 students to explore all of them before deciding what they want to do. “A lot of students know that being a veterinarian is a job opportunity, but that’s actually not the only way that you can work with animals in your profession, so if that’s something that is of interest to a student, I think they should think broadly about the kinds of jobs and opportunities that would let them do the things they like the most.”
The Madison campus isn’t the only one seeing ag program growth. UW-Platteville, with its new Dairy Science major, and UW-River Falls are also drawing more students.
Very good..