Agronomy

Agronomy is the science of managing plant production. It concerns all aspects of plant production relating to the production of food and fibre, and to the protection of the environment.

The University of Sydney Agronomy group is part of the Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources. We maintain close contacts within our profession, and take pride in ensuring our graduates are competent scientists with special knowledge of rural Australia, and capable of contributing to the communities they work in. We maintain personal connections with international colleagues to ensure our graduates have a sound understanding of international agriculture, and can travel and participate in agricultural production globally.

Agronomists are employed as: consultants to government and community groups; farm managers; natural resource managers; scientists in research and development companies. Agronomists also work with purchasing and marketing divisions of food and fibre companies, and with international aid organisations. There are opportunities to live on farms, and work in country towns and capital cities in Australia and overseas.

The Agronomy group is involved in Cooperative Research Centres for Sustainable Production of Cotton and Rice, a Wheat Quality CRC, and several other collaborative agricultural research projects. These provide many contacts and opportunities for experience in research and production sectors of many industries.

An Agronomist is a specialist Agricultural Scientist. You must complete a degree in Agricultural Science with a major or specialisation in plant production. The Faculty of Agriculture teaches introductory Agronomy in first year and offers units of study in second and third years which lead to a fourth year specialisation/major in Agronomy.

First Year
In first year you study Agricultural Science 1 which provides an opportunity to study the Australian rural landscape from the coast to the red sands of Central Australia. We examine productive plants and the weeds which compete with them and introduce the process of farming to produce foods and fibres. Units of study in biology, chemistry, biometry and economics are also studied. There are six one day excursions to our field station at Camden and a one week excursion down the length of the Macquarie River Valley.

Second Year
In second year you study the anatomy and physiology of plants. You learn how plants sense and adapt to their location, turn sunlight into energy, and respond to changes in daylength. You also conduct experiments to learn more about how plants grow and develop. Other units of study include agricultural chemistry, animal science, biometry, genetics, and plant protection. We offer a voluntary excursion to northern NSW each year.

Third Year
Agronomy 3, Irrigation Science and Agricultural Systems are units of study specially designed for agronomy students. Agronomy 3 provides a chance to study the rural landscape. You examine a valley of your choice, with total catchment management and the sustainable management of the landscape as a principal theme.
Irrigation Science deals with scientific principles of crop water management and irrigation. Agricultural Systems introduces you to the potential of computers as tools of management and scientific inquiry. Many optional units of study in agricultural science and economics are available including units in agribusiness management, marketing, horticulture and soil science. An excursion to Southern NSW is offered annually.

Fourth Year
In Agronomy 4 we consider a selection of major agricultural industries and the sustainability of their systems of production. These studies extend from the scientific basis of on-farm production methods for selected crops, to the broad scale professional management of the natural resource base of the districts where they are produced. You will visit the Liverpool Plains to examine native pastures and study the cotton industry along the Namoi Valley. A personal research project (& thesis) is half of your fourth year program. You can select from a wide variety of topics.