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E. K. Buttrey, C. S. Darroch, 108 No, I'm Not a Veterinarian! Increasing Student Awareness of Career Diversity within the Animal Sciences, Journal of Animal Science, Volume 95, Issue suppl_1, December 2016, Pages 53–54, https://doi.org/10.2527/ssasas2017.0108
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Abstract
The question is simple enough. “What do you do”? The answer is simple enough. “I teach animal science.” More often than not the comeback is “so, you're a vet.” The general public has long been uninformed about the breadth of careers available in the animal sciences (ANSC). However, fewer students raised in production agriculture coupled with more students raised in suburban and urban areas have resulted in many uninformed undergraduate ANSC majors as well. Animal science faculty members at the University of Tennessee at Martin recently developed four new program-wide student learning outcomes (SLO), one of which reads, “Students will identify interests in animal science careers, and identify courses and experiential learning opportunities that are needed to attain the career of their choice in the regional, national, or global community.” To assess this SLO, students (n = 56) enrolled in 1 of 2 sections of the introductory ANSC course during the spring 2016 semester were administered a pre- and post-survey during the first and last week of class, respectively, to gauge their awareness of ANSC careers. A monthly seminar series was developed in which ANSC professionals were invited to campus to speak about their respective industries and career paths. Additional guest speakers and faculty were also invited to speak during regular lecture periods. With regards to the pre-survey, 56 students (100%) responded. Of those, nine (16.1%) were unsure of their career goal, 19 (33.9%) could list 5 ANSC careers, and 26 (53.6%) listed at least 1 ANSC course related to their intended career. Only 36 students (64.3%) completed the post-survey. Of those, five (13.8%) were unsure of their intended career, 29 (80.6%) were able to list 5 ANSC careers, and 22 (61.1%) listed at least 1 ANSC course related to their career goal. Thirty-four students (94.4%) stated they were more aware of career opportunities as a direct result the seminar series and guest speakers. Based on survey results and student responses, ANSC faculty members will continue to host an industry speaker seminar series and keep students aware of current issues and career opportunities.
