Agricultural Careers

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Agricultural Careers Extension Specialist
Dr. Frank Flanders and Anna Burgess Georgia
Agricultural Education Curriculum Office Georgia
Department of Education March 2006
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Job Duties Responsibilities

• Instruct extension workers and develop
  specialized service activities in the area of
  agriculture consumer information
• Plan, develop, organize, and evaluate training
  programs
• Deliver lectures to commercial and community
  organizations and over radio and television
  promoting the development of agricultural or
  domestic skills
• Analyze research data and plan activities to
  coordinate services with those offered by other
  departments, agencies, and organizations
• Conduct workshops for groups such as dairy
  farmers, grain producers, and beef, poultry or
  swine producers
• Coordinate programs for youth through 4-H
• Determine program needs by monitoring
• trends and issues
• Conduct research in specialization area

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Work Environment

• Approximately 70 of work is indoors and 30 is
  outdoors with some travel to state wide meetings,
  most of the work is office based
• Work extensively with others
• Work week is usually 40 hours
• Working conditions are fairly comfortable unless
  visiting a farm or outdoor facility where weather
  might be unpleasant

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Salary

• Salaries of Extension specialists vary greatly,
  generally being based on years of experience,
  highest degree earned, and their skills in a
  specialty area
• The salary for an extension specialist is in the
  range of 30,000-70,000 per year

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Qualities and Skills

• Working well with adults and students is very
  important to building up good relationships with
  the local community members and students
• An extension specialist needs to be able to plan
  and implement programs and interpret research
  from colleges and universities

• Good communication and public relations skills
  are a must
• One should be logical as well as open minded to
  new methods, teachings and possess good
  problem-solving skills

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Education

• Have a minimum of a Masters Degree in a relevant
  discipline with a Doctoral Degree preferred

Other Careers You Might Want to Explore

• Agricultural Education Teacher
• Cooperative Extension Agent
• Consulting Forester
• Crop Consultant

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Career Resources
National Association of Extension 4-H
Agents Internet http//www.nae4ha.org Epsilon
Sigma Phi Internet http//espnational.org Natio
nal Association of County Agricultural
Agents Internet http//www.nacaa.com Joint
Council of Extension Professionals Internet
http//www.jcep.org