Chris Bennett: Knowledge from beyond agriculture is an asset
Chris Bennett © Johnny Houston It will soon be 10 years since I left university and began my farming journey. I find myself asking, if I could go back and do it all again, would I still choose to go to university and would I study agriculture?
My degree was in physics, but I have since studied for a postgraduate diploma in agriculture.
See also: Chris Bennett – where has all the BPS money gone?
About the author
I’ve worked on three farms so far – my family’s in Lincolnshire and two in New Zealand.
When applying for the jobs in New Zealand, I put my school and university grades front and centre on my CV.
In both cases, my experience was of far more interest and my education largely irrelevant.
The most recognition it had was: “Chris, you’re good with numbers, how many silage bales are in that stack?”
Who can blame an employer for valuing experience?
If I were looking to employ a farmworker I’d want somebody who wasn’t going to back a trailer through my shed wall, rather than someone who knew the orbital dynamics of Jupiter.
However, the value of education is likely to increase as a career progresses.
If you become a farm manager or business owner, some of the learnings may become more tangible. At least that is what I tell myself when the Student Loans Company takes their cut of my wages.
You may be surprised when things you learned outside of agriculture come in useful.
I was recently rewriting the website for our self-catering diversification and there is no way I would have attempted that had I not learned about computer programming at university.
Agriculture needs diversity in all its forms. We need people who have had careers in other sectors and with knowledge of different subjects.
These are the people with different points of view who will innovate and bring new ideas.
When it comes to education, my advice would be to study whatever you’re passionate about and, if you find a passion for agriculture further down the line, bring the skills you’ve learned with you and you’ll become an asset to our industry.