Postgraduate Diploma in Management- Agriculture - Careers, Salary, Jobs, Scope

Postgraduate Diploma in Agriculture Management: Brief Summary

Why PGDM Agriculture?

Post Graduate Diploma in Agriculture Management (PGDMA) is designed for people who wish to build a career in the raw material and agriculture sector. It helps students to surmise the future requirements and developments in this sector so that they may chart out new ideas about marketing of the agricultural products.

New opportunities are explored in the field of assimilation, production and sales of farm produce to maximise profits and cultivate environment friendly produce. This specialisation increases the chances of a candidate to score a good post in government offices, as new policies and plans are being created for the benefit of farmers and agriculturalists.

Food Production, Marketing, Retail commonly recruits graduates of this stream. Companies like ITC ltd., Excel Crop Care ltd. and a number of others recruit candidates from this field as Research Analysts, Marketing Managers etc.

Here’s a list of top of the colleges offering PGDMA course–

• Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad
• Faculty of Management Studies, Banaras Hindu University
• AIMS Institute of Management, Pune
• Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana
• Chaudhary Charan Singh National Institute of Agricultural Marketing, Jaipur

The average fee charged by these colleges is upto Rs 2.8 lakh per annum. The job, although, would include a good amount of travelling, dealing with production houses, spending time in agricultural warehouses, farms, research labs etc. The work would demand of the candidate to spend 8-10 hours of work depending upon the job profile.

PGDMA Jobs and Careers

Once a candidate had chosen this field he or she can work in India or abroad, because it’s a course related to the daily needs of the population, hence its popularity and need in the current scenario of global warming and chemical fertilisers.

The following job profiles can be considered by the aspirants-

• Agricultural Manager
• Bioterrorism Consultant
• Farm Property Appraiser
• Agricultural/Livestock Analyst
• Crop Producer
• Agribusiness Office Assistant
• Accounting Manager
• Market Research Analyst
• Alternative Resources Consultant
• Quality Control Officer

Agricultural Manager

Agricultural Managers are responsible for the stocking and welfare of farm produce, machinery, flora and fauna on commercial farm lands, to be sold to private or other low scale retailers. Resourcefulness and communication skills are an essential asset for jobs like these. They are usually employed by commercial farm estates.

Agro-production companies also recruit such candidates such as RKR Milk and Agro Products Pvt. Ltd., Tamil Nadu Board of Rural Development, Janatha Fish Meal and Oil Products etc.

The average salary for this post ranges from Rs 2-4 lakh per annum.

Farm Property Appraiser

Farm Property Appraisers use their foresight and analytical skills to gauge the value of an agricultural piece of land. He or she brainstorms about the development possibilities, financial gains, tax ratios, environmental support attached to a particular farmland.

This job requires thorough research work. Farm credit companies, real estate companies hire people for this post, such as Eros Group, Bharti Realty etc.

The average pay received by Farm Property Appraisers for their jobs is upto Rs 9.0 lakh per annum. It can increase subsequently with experience.

Agricultural/Livestock Analyst

Agricultural or Livestock Analysts have to monitor changing trends in Livestock and Agricultural spheres.

This job involves data collection, research work, developing resourceful utilisation techniques, gauge the amount of endemic disease outbreaks in future, modelling flow charts to be aware of the transformations and create farm friendly policies.

The average salary of an Agricultural/Livestock Analyst is about Rs 4.5 lakh per annum. Bajaj Capital Ltd., Creative Agri Solutions etc. hire them.

Market Research Analyst

Market Research Analysts of this field are needed to forecast the market and sales trends for agricultural outputs. A lot of data collection related to consumers’ inclination, competitive industries, future tendency of products and its value.

A thorough knowledge of computers and excellent communication skills are needed for this field. Wholesale, Import-Export, Manufacturing, Scientific, Technical and Finance industries recruit these people.

Some of the names common in this field are of HCL technologies, CVENT India Pvt ltd., Mindshell Infotech Pvt Ltd etc. Average package of a Market Research Analyst is about Rs 2.8 lakh per annum.

Quality Control Officer

A Quality Control Officer is recruited to supervise the production standards, survey the test labs, check the final product and give his/her recommendation, create data for products prepared within deadlines and deliver the facts to the heads.

A Quality Control Officer in the Agricultural sphere, would check if the product meets the standards set by national and international quality checking agencies.

The are recruited by cosmetics, food, and other daily needs production companies like JIVA Ayurvedic Pharmacy Ltd., Shahnaz Hussain Group, Acme Fasteners Pvt. Ltd. etc. Their average pay annually amounts to Rs 2.8 lakh per annum.

PGDM Agriculture: Salary

The salary trend in this sector depends upon the job profile the candidate is selected for. The average salary received by PGDMA graduate is about Rs 7.2-8.1 lakh each year. The table below shows the salary distinctions on the basis of experience-

Farm property appraisers, Alternative Resources Consultants and Agricultural and Livestock Analysts have a greater chance of bagging higher pay scales than other comparative profiles, due to its predictive nature and lack of experts in this field.

Recruiters for PGDMA

As it is a raw materials and manufacturing sector industry, number of government, private, public agencies, Regional Rural Banks, Foreign banks etc. recruit candidates for required posts. Some of these are listed here-

• National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD)
• National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange Limited (NCDEX)
• Pricewaterhousecoopers (PwC)
• Agriculture Management Company
• Big India Farms
• IndiaMart
• Aibono
• Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare
• Agrivi
• AFC India

Specialisations Offered

A Post Graduate Diploma in Agriculture Management is a specialisation in itself but for added benefits and to target a specific area under this category, students can pursue these additional qualifications-

Agriculture Management and Forestry

Agriculture Management and Forestry is a course designed to conduct research in the areas of agronomy and conservation of natural resources. This course is an overall package of geocentric practices. From accumulating data, to production of materials and conservation of natural resources, a nature enthusiast can direct his or her efforts towards the development of agrarian future.

Agriculture Management and Horticulture

Agriculture Management and Horticulture students learn to take care of farmlands, evaluate land quality, calculate statistics, maintain livestock, deal with production of raw materials, and maximise profits with the farm produced goods.

Agricultural Management and Rural Development

Agricultural Management and Rural Development is much suited to students wishing to partake in countryside ventures. Most of India’s GDP depends upon agricultural success, mostly situated in rural and suburban areas. This specialisation, teaches students to strategically formulate rural development plans which focuses on the unique problems of rural areas such as farm loans, crop produce, soil type, organic farming, biomass production etc.

Agriculture with Supply Chain Management

Agriculture with Supply Chain Management deals with production of farm material and its processing by the employment of planning, sourcing, operations and logistics. It is based on Efficient Consumer Response (ECR) and the application of resourceful production methods and consumer based marketing strategies.

Syllabus

The subjects taught under the course of Post Graduate Diploma Agriculture Management is as follows-

• Innovation Management
• Marketing Management
• Cost Accounting
• Rural Dynamics
• Agri Finance Management
• Rural Marketing
• Social Entrepreneurship
• Agri Price Risk Management
• E-commerce
• Management of Agri Input Industry
• Strategic Management

Popular Colleges Offering PGDM Agriculture

Requirements for PGDMA

To be a part of the course students must complete the following eligibility criteria-

• Graduation degree with passing marks from a recognised university
• CAT/MAT/XAT/ATMA/CMAT/GMAT/GRE entrance exam score
• Group Discussion
• Personal Interview

Institutes like NAARM (National Academy of Agricultural Research Management), requires the candidate to have at least a 4 year bachelor’s degree in Agriculture, Agriculture Engineering, Agri-Business Management, Agricultural Marketing & Cooperation, Dairy Technology, Energy & Environmental Engineering, Food Technology, Veterinary Science or similar discipline.

Should You Choose PGDM Agriculture?

India is an agrarian economy with being the largest producer of veggies, spices and more. A PG Diploma in Agriculture Management, also known as, Agri-Business Management can come with its own perks.

PGDMA course makes one aware of the agrarian reality, which is a major issue these days. Students learn to predict the future of farm yield and land revenue; plant protection; production, storage and subvention of the products.

According to a report by International Food and Agribusiness Management Review, Agribusiness is the field to be in because Indian agrarian sector is getting globalised with incoming ultra modern irrigation, fertilisation, and other production techniques.

The job profiles are varied and numerous like product analyst, commodity broker, loan officer, marketing researcher and specialist in addition to those mentioned above. In India as in abroad, this is a field based on the general demand-supply chain, hence it’s risk-free and worth the resources.