Requirements

Farmer - requirements

As a farmer, you’ll be an agricultural expert and businessperson, dedicated to growing, harvesting and selling plant or animal-based products. Read on to learn more about careers in this field, find out what your day-to-day job will involve and what you should study and do to get a role.

Know what you'll need to land a job below.

What qualifications do you need to be a farmer?

Employers in this field will usually look for a degree or HND in one of the following subjects:

Your technical skills and practical working experience will be central to getting roles and progressing as a farmer. Work experience may be valued above qualifications in some cases and you could build your career as a farmer without higher qualifications if you want.

Please note this is a beta version. We'll continue to improve our suggestions here so that we show you the most relevant subjects.

Do you need a postgraduate qualification to be a farmer?

You’ll need a postgraduate level qualification if you want to get into agricultural research or work in agricultural academia.

You could consider taught or research master’s level degrees such as:

Agriculture
Rural estate and land management
Crop production
Horticulture
Environmental management for agriculture

What skills do you need to be a farmer?

Organisation and business management skills, along with enthusiasm and a passion for outdoor work, will be helpful in this career.

Hard skills usually include:

Agricultural techniques
Animal husbandry techniques
Irrigation and engineering
Using machinery
Environmental practices
Logistics and record-keeping
Accounting and auditing

Soft skills include:

Management skills
An eye for detail
Leadership and managing people
Sales and marketing
Communication skills
Being motivated
Planning skills

Do you need work experience to be a farmer?

Work experience is needed in most cases to get professional employment on a farm or in an agricultural setting, especially for management or specialist positions. You might build experience before your studies begin through work experience and holiday roles, during your studies with industrial placements and sandwich years or through a graduate scheme or internship after you graduate.