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Students come to agriculture to
make a difference
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Jay Akridge |
For the fall semester, we welcomed more than 3,300 new and continuing students to the Purdue campus. Our 2,687 undergraduates make up the largest number of agriculture majors since 1982. Our graduate student population, at 653, has experienced continued growth as well.
The increasing number of students speaks to the increasing job opportunities in the agriculture and agbiosciences sector, including new "green"-related occupations. The career goals of the students featured in this issue reflect the diversity found in the agricultural, food, life and renewable natural resources sectors:
•Meet freshmen who are among the newest members of the Purdue Agriculture community. They came to us with an excellent mix of academic and extracurricular credentials. And they're already involved throughout the university in undergraduate research, student organizations and leadership programs, and intercollegiate athletics.
• A select group of graduate students is part of an innovative program to prepare the next generation of plant breeders. A partnership among Purdue Agriculture, the USDA and the seed industry, the Ph.D. program is addressing the shortage of plant breeders and the need to develop high-yielding crops to feed a growing world population.
Students who are just beginning their educational journey and those well on their way to making important discoveries share a common goal: they all want to make a difference.
As the next generation of agricultural graduates, their leadership will be critical to solving some of the world's greatest challenges in food production, renewable energy and the environment.
Jay Akridge
Glenn W. Sample Dean of Agriculture
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