About Us

Career-oriented describes the curriculum of this associate degree program. Courses are designed and developed to give students the knowledge and hands-on experience needed to pursue a career in Applied Agricultural Management or Landscape and Turf Management. Intensive career training is at the heart of the program. A student learns the how-to of a particular occupation while learning how to begin and progress in a career. 

Work experience is gained through an internship normally completed between the first and second year of classes. Students choose a job that suits their interests and work for a minimum of 10 weeks. This opportunity provides valuable work experience that enhances a resume. The internship also helps students solidify career goals and helps determine what they truly like or dislike about the job.

Program graduates obtain great jobs. Industry demands individuals with training beyond the high school level. Graduates fulfill this need with a practical education, enabling them to hit the ground running when they begin their careers.

Salaries are competitive with those offered to four-year graduates. Students may also receive comprehensive benefits packages, which often include health insurance, housing, use of a vehicle, as well as other perks. 

Hands-on experience is what former student Christopher Kite was looking for. He says,“My experience here has been positive. The hands-on experience is an excellent way to gain knowledge about a subject and the instructors are outstanding.”

The Agricultural Technology Program incorporates labs and hands-on instruction throughout the program. Students are able to go outside the classroom to install a landscape they designed, conduct soil tests and plant tissue analyses, calibrate sprayers, artificially inseminate cattle, or analyze a business enterprise. This experience enhances the classroom assignments and provides a more interesting learning environment.

Small classes are an important element of the Agricultural Technology Program. The average entering class has 60 students, resulting in a small-town feel at a large university. Classmates become some of the best friends you will make in your lifetime and add greatly to your professional network. 

The average class size of 24 permits extensive interaction between the faculty and students. Relationships developed between faculty members and students often last beyond the classroom into the professional career of the student.

Virginia Tech has over 900 student clubs and organizations that are open to all students. Involvement in these extra-curricular activities is an excellent way for students to make the most of college life and meet others with similar interests. 

Students can participate in the collegiate chapter of the Virginia Farm Bureau Young Farmers, as well as other clubs, including Block and Bridle, Dairy Science, Horticulture, Minorities in Agriculture and Natural Resources and Related Sciences (MANRRS), Turf, Agronomy, and the Agricultural Economics/National Agricultural Marketing Association just to name a few. 

Agricultural technology students have the same rights and privileges as other students at Virginia Tech except they cannot participate in NCAA sports or in the Corps of Cadets.

• Jeffrey Estienne, a 2020 graduate of the Applied Agricultural Management option and the 2020 Agricultural Technology Outstanding senior, had served 4 years in the United States Marine Corps and worked at the Virginia Tech Tidewater Agricultural Research and Extension Center prior to entering the program. He excelled academically with Dean's List recognition while serving the university and his community during his time as a student. 

• Roger Walker, a 1994 graduate of the Landscape and Turf Management option, was tired of spending most of his time away from his family driving 18-wheelers across the country. He decided to enroll in the program to pursue his interest in landscaping and hopes to open his own business some day.

• Tom Wilson, a 1992 graduate in the Landscape and Turf Management option, never found true satisfaction in his work after graduating from college with a bachelor's degree. Today, Tom is extremely pleased with his new career working as a national sales representative for a large company and is making more money than he used to.

Students who complete the Agricultural Technology Program with a minimum 3.2 GPA and the required high school coursework may qualify for automatic acceptance into a four-year degree program in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences provided there are spaces. The articulation agreement allows students to transfer credits toward a four-year degree. The number of credits transferred is up to the individual department where the student is transferring. Approximately 10 percent of the graduating agricultural technology students elect to continue their education by entering a four-year program immediately after graduation.

This is an excellent opportunity for students who gain academic confidence and experience success in the program. It is important to note that once a student begins the Agricultural Technology Program, he or she must complete the degree before being successfully admitted to a four-year program through the articulation agreement. Students will not be considered after one year of course work. This policy is necessary to protect the program’s primary mission to provide an applied education that is significantly different from traditional academic course work in a four-year program.