Agribusiness professionals interested in an additional degree to enhance their careers but unable to take time away from their current job now have a new option at their disposal, thanks to Purdue University.
The school’s fully online Professional Masters Degree in International Agribusiness program is accepting applications until July 1 and is slated to begin in August, with an estimated duration of 18-24 months. The program focuses on analytics, data analysis, and data-based decision making.
The program is accessible completely online but the curriculum has been in place for a decade through the Purdue Department of Agricultural Economics. In addition to the main courses, students will choose either Spatial Data Science or Biotechnology Quality and Regulatory Compliance as a graduate certificate that will comprise 12 of the 36 credits required for the degree.
There are seven core courses offered: Applied Quantitative Methods for Decision Making, Economics for Food and Agribusiness Managers, Communication and Issues Engagement for Agricultural Professionals, Problem Solving and Project Management for Decision Makers, Quantitative Managerial Decision Making, The Macroeconomic Trade and Policy Environment of the Food System, and Strategic Food and Agribusiness Management.
The program also doesn’t require a thesis for completion: the final capstone course requires an analytic paper, which can be work-focused or academic. Applicants for the course do not need to have an agricultural degree, said Nicole Widmar, professor and associate head of agricultural economics at Purdue and the graduate program chair – but a prior knowledge of qualitative methods is recommended.
She added that the program is geared toward professionals who want to complete the program at their own pace.
Interested participants can apply here.
