Agricultural Business
Agricultural business involves the application of business and economic principles to farming and ranching and related sectors of the general economy. Training in agricultural business includes courses in agricultural firm management, marketing farm products, farm credit and finance, agricultural prices and outlook, agricultural policy, management science, agricultural law, technical agricultural and the business aspects of industries serving agriculture.
Many employment possibilities are open to students with training in agricultural business. Positions are available with businesses which process and market agricultural products, and with the large number of businesses that sell products and services to farmers and ranchers, such as fertilizer companies, farm machinery companies, banks, and farm credit institutions. Also, opportunities exist to operate and manage farms and ranches. In addition, federal and state governments employ persons with training in agricultural business. The agricultural business degree program is administered by the Department of Agricultural Economics and Economics.
Agribusiness Management Concentration
The sector of the economy which produces and sells goods and services to farmers and ranchers on one hand, and processes and markets agricultural commodities on the other, has given rise to an area of study called agribusiness management. Emphasis is on training for management, finance, sales work, and accounting in agriculturally-related businesses and industries.
Farm and Ranch Management Concentration
Farming and ranching have become commercialized, specialized businesses. The large investment and complicated business aspects of farming and ranching require training similar to that needed for other industries. The farm and ranch management option provides the necessary training and emphasizes the economic and business aspects of farming and ranching.
Curricula in Agricultural Business
- Agribusiness Management Concentration
- Farm and Ranch Management Concentration
- Minor in Agricultural Business
AGRIBUSINESS MANAGEMENT CONCENTRATION
| Freshman Year | Credits | |
|---|---|---|
| ARNR 100--Intro Animal Science | 3 | |
| CHEM 121--Intro Gen Chemistry | 4 | |
| ECON 101--Econ Way of Think | 3 | |
| ECON 102--Macro & Intntl Econ | 3 | |
| WRIT 101W--College Writing I | 3 | |
| PS 102--Plnt Sci,Res,& Envir | 3 | |
| Take one of the following: | ||
| MATH 170--Survey of Calculus | 4 | |
| MATH 181--Calculus & Anl Geom I | 4 | |
| Take one of the following: | ||
| AGED 251--Leadership Dev for Agr | 3 | |
| COM 110--Public Communication | 3 | |
| University Core and Electives | 4 | |
| 30 | ||
| Sophomore Year | Credits | |
| AGEC 341--Farm & Ranch Management | 3 | |
| AGEC 345--Ag Fin & Cred Anl | 3 | |
| BUS 221--Principles of Acct I | 3 | |
| BUS 222--Managerial Accounting | 3 | |
| ECON 201--Intro Micro Theory | 3 | |
| LRES 201--Soil Resource | 3 | |
| Take one of the following: | ||
| BUS 201--Managerial Communication | 3 | |
| ENGL 221--College Writing II | 3 | |
| ENGL 223--Technical Writing | 3 | |
| Take one of the following: | ||
| AGED 105--Microcomputers in Agri | 3 | |
| CS 150--Computer Literacy | 3 | |
| University Core and Electives | 6 | |
| 30 | ||
| Junior and Senior Year | Credits | |
| AGEC 321--Econ of Ag Mktg | 3 | |
| AGEC 337--Agricultural Law | 3 | |
| AGEC 451--Econ of Ag Policy | 3 | |
| ECON 301--Intermediate Micro | 3 | |
| ECON 302--Intermediate Macro | 3 | |
| ECON 309--Managerial Economics | 3 | |
| STAT 216--Elementary Statistics | 3 | |
| Take one of the following: | ||
| ACCT 325--Acct Info Systems | 3 | |
| ACCT 425--Income Tax Accounting | 3 | |
| ACCT 433--Cost/Mgmt Acct I | 3 | |
| Take one of the following: | ||
| AGEC 421--Advanced Agricult Mktg | 3 | |
| AGEC 445--Agribusiness Management | 3 | |
| University Core and Electives | 33 | |
| 60 |
*ECON 250 (Honors Economics, 4 credits) may be substituted for the 3 course sequence ECON 101, ECON 102, and ECON 201.
University Core and Electives Must Include:
| One course in Ag, CS, or I&ME | 3 |
| Fine Arts | 3 |
| Humanities | 6 |
| Social Sciences (excluding AGEC/ECON) | 6 |
| One additional course from Fine Arts, Humanities, | |
| or Social Sciences (excluding AGEC/ECON) | 3 |
Graduation Requirements:
Farm and Ranch Management students must receive a grade of C or better in Econ 101S, 102SG, 201, 301, 302, and Math 170 or 181 (or their equivalents) to meet departmental graduation requirements. All other ECON/AGEC elective courses counting toward departmental graduation requirements must be graded C- or better.
Farm and Ranch Management students seeking a second major in Economics must complete an additional 15 credits at the 300 level or above in ECON/AGEC electives over and above all requirements for graduation with a major in Agribusiness.
A minimum of 120 credits is required for graduation; 42 of these credits must be numbered 300 or above.
FARM AND RANCH MANAGEMENT CONCENTRATION
| Freshman Year | Credits | |
|---|---|---|
| ARNR 100--Intro Animal Science | 3 | |
| CHEM 121--Intro Gen Chemistry | 4 | |
| ECON 101--Econ Way of Think | 3 | |
| ECON 102--Macro & Intntl Econ | 3 | |
| WRIT 101W--College Writing I | 3 | |
| PS 102--Plnt Sci,Res,& Envir | 3 | |
| Take one of the following: | ||
| MATH 170--Survey of Calculus | 4 | |
| MATH 181--Calculus & Anl Geom I | 4 | |
| Take one of the following: | ||
| AGED 251--Leadership Dev for Agr | 3 | |
| COM 110--Public Communication | 3 | |
| University Core and Electives | 4 | |
| 30 | ||
| Sophomore Year | Credits | |
| AGEC 341--Farm & Ranch Management | 3 | |
| AGEC 345--Ag Fin & Cred Anl | 3 | |
| BUS 221--Principles of Acct I | 3 | |
| BUS 222--Managerial Accounting | 3 | |
| ECON 201--Intro Micro Theory | 3 | |
| LRES 201--Soil Resource | 3 | |
| Take one of the following: | ||
| AGED 105--Microcomputers in Agri | 3 | |
| CS 150--Computer Literacy | 3 | |
| Take one of the following: | ||
| BUS 201--Managerial Communication | 3 | |
| ENGL 221--College Writing II | 3 | |
| ENGL 223--Technical Writing | 3 | |
| University Core and Electives | 6 | |
| 30 | ||
| Junior And Senior Years | Credits | |
| AGEC 321--Econ of Ag Mktg | 3 | |
| AGEC 337--Agricultural Law | 3 | |
| AGEC 451--Econ of Ag Policy | 3 | |
| ARNR 320--Animal Nutrition | 4 | |
| ECON 301--Intermediate Micro | 3 | |
| ECON 302--Intermediate Macro | 3 | |
| ECON 309--Managerial Economics | 3 | |
| STAT 216--Elementary Statistics | 3 | |
| AGEC 421--Advanced Agricult Mktg | 3 | |
| AGEC 445--Agribusiness Management | 3 | |
| Take 5 credits from the following and supplement the balance with courses from AOT, ARNR, CS, PS or LRES. | ||
| Take: | ||
| ARNR 101--Prin of Rnglnd Mgmt | 3 | |
| ARNR 102--Prin of Rnglnd Mgmt Lab | 1 | |
| or | ||
| PS 242--Crop Identification | 1 | |
| Univ Core and Electives | 24 | |
| 60 |
University Core and Electives Must Include:
| Fine Arts | 3 |
| Humanities | 6 |
| Social Sciences (excluding AGEC/ECON) | 6 |
| One additional course from Fine Arts, Humanities, | |
| or Social Sciences (excluding AGEC/ECON) | 3 |
*ECON 250 (Honors Economics, 4 credits) may be substituted for the 3 course sequence ECON 101, ECON 102, and ECON 201.
Graduation Requirements:
Agribusiness students must receive a grade of C or better in ECON 101, ECON 102, ECON 201, ECON 301, ECON 302, and MATH 170 or 181 (or their equivalents) to meet departmental graduation requirements. All other AGEC/ECON elective courses counting toward departmental graduation requirements must be graded C- or better.
Agribusiness students seeking a second major in Economics must complete an additional 15 credits at the 300 level or above in ECON/AGEC electives over and above all requirements for graduation with a major in Agribusiness.
A minimum of 120 credits is required for graduation; 42 of these credits must be numbered 300 and above.
MINOR IN AGRICULTURAL BUSINESS (NON-TEACHING)
A student must receive a grade of C- or better in all Agricultural Economics and Economics courses required for the minor.
| Departmental Course Requirements | Credits | |
|---|---|---|
| AGEC 321--Econ of Ag Mktg | 3 | |
| AGEC 341--Farm & Ranch Management | 3 | |
| AGEC 345--Ag Fin & Cred Anl | 3 | |
| ECON 101--Econ Way of Think | 3 | |
| ECON 102--Macro & Intntl Econ | 3 | |
| ECON 201--Intro Micro Theory | 3 | |
| ECON 301--Intermediate Micro | 3 | |
| Plus six upper division AGEC/ECON elective | 6 | |
| credits (no seminars, 470's or 489/490's)** | ||
| 27 | ||
| Supporting Requirements | ||
| BUS 221--Principles of Acct I | 3 | |
| Take one of the following: | ||
| MATH 170--Survey of Calculus | 4 | |
| MATH 181--Calculus & Anl Geom I | 4 | |
| STAT 216--Elementary Statistics | 3 | |
| 3 credits of 200+ (ACCT, BUS, FIN, MGMT, MKTG) courses | 3 | |
| 13 | ||
| Total | 40 |
* ECON 250 (Honors Economics, 4 credits) may be substituted for the three-course sequence: ECON 101, 102, and 201.
** Students cannot use both AGEC 337 and BUS 361 to meet the requirements of the minor.
*** "P" grades may be accepted at the discretion of the department only for courses transferred from outside the Montana University System.
