ALL ABOUT TRACTORS By PAUL WALLEM With the right education, the world of Precision Farming/Digital Agriculture needs you! The largest farm equipment manufacturers are advertising job openings on their websites with annual salary estimates. Here are a few: cybersecurity specialist ($110K), digital product customer support specialist ($147K), strategic product manager ($148K). John Deere, CNH, AGCO and others all have current openings for specialty careers. Agricultural colleges are reporting that 100 percent of their graduates in mechanized agriculture are receiving job offers. Different groups of employers are competing for you once you have your education. In recent years, many farm equipment dealers have merged into groups of from 10 to over 100 locations. These organizations have a growing need for specialists, as tractors and farm equipment become more automated. Job openings are increasing rapidly for remote diagnosis of equipment failures in the field. A specialized education will prepare you for these careers. Let me describe my own education in mechanized agriculture that led to a long career, and I could do the same for you: In 1921, the University of Illinois created a department of agricultural engineering. Through the years, many machinery courses were added. In 1956, a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in agricultural mechanization was approved. Two students had completed the required courses and received their degrees in 1956. One was hired by Deere & Co. The other was me, and I was hired the week after graduation by International Harvester Company, a career that lasted 31 years. Today, the College of Agriculture is known as ACES (College of Agricultural Consumer & Environmental Sciences). Within that structure are a variety of mechanization degrees: - Digital Agricultural Certificate (Online) - Major in Engineering Technology & Management for Agricultural Systems - B.S. degree in Agricultural & Biological Engineering (ABE) - M.S. degree in Engineering Technology & Management for Agricultural Systems. (ETMAS) You can learn about these online at: digital.illinois.edu and abe@illinois.edu. The University of Illinois and many other colleges can prepare you for a career in the rapidly growing field of mechanized agriculture. You can expect to have a choice of locations, the size of the employer, and the type of career. There are far more job opportunities now than when I started. The world of precision farming and digital agriculture brings a huge demand for those with a passion for it and the willingness to prepare for that kind of career. Would you like to be part of a future that includes autonomous machinery? Visualize a farmer operating his combine from home, using an iPad. He moves his combine to the field and begins harvesting the crop. He directs the auger cart to the moving combine, unloads the grain bin, and moves the auger cart to the semi waiting at the road. Meanwhile, the combine continues harvesting. This is not somewhere in the future. It is happening now, throughout the country. You could be part of this fascinating industry by preparing yourself to join a manufacturer, a large dealer group, or even a large farming operation. Learn more about precision farming and digital agriculture by going on YouTube and entering “Precision Farming - Digital Ag with Paul Wallem.” If you are in middle school, there are summer camps that tour dealerships and manufacturers and also have sessions describing engines, transmissions, and other critical elements of tractors, combines, etc. If you are an FFA member, your adviser can be a big help as you search for a career that fits you. Start looking now. Paul Wallem was raised on an Illinois dairy farm. He spent 13 years with corporate IH in domestic and foreign assignments. He resigned to own and operate two IH dealerships. He is the author of THE BREAKUP of IH and SUCCESSES & INDUSTRY FIRSTS of IH. See all his books on www.PaulWallem.com. Email your comments to pwallem@aol.com. |
