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N.C. Plant Sciences Initiative

Careers in Ag Data Science

Help Improve Farm Outcomes

Farmers are fast adopters. They are quick to invest in new technologies that can improve efficiency in day-to-day farm operations and enhance profitability. Collecting and analyzing agricultural data is no exception.

In fact, Insider Intelligence predicts nearly 12 million agricultural sensors will be installed globally by 2023. These collection sources include plant and soil sensors as well as drones to obtain detailed maps of field topography and variables such as acidity and soil temperature, climate forecasts and weather patterns — all of which are accessible in the cabs of their farm equipment, or their tablets and smartphones.

Infographic shows graphically results of technology used to improve farming-based decisions. From the left text reads: Collected data plus N.D.V.I., N.O.R.E., S.A.V.I, N.D.V.I.G., plus Response mapping, plus Management, Input, Treatment, Practice, leads to better decisions.

Ag data collection and analytics can help farmers remotely monitor their equipment, crops and animals, obtain data, and even run statistical predictions for their crops and livestock, all while tracking food movement to ensure the safety of the food supply.

A Growing Market

Compared to healthcare, retail and finance, there are tremendous growth opportunities in agriculture for the integration of data science and data analytics. A recent report from Markets and Markets estimates the global agriculture analytics market could grow from $800 million in 2020 to $1.4 billion by 2025.

Ag data science professionals will be in high demand for years to come. Those with data management and analysis skills, computer science and statistical training and understand the processes of data mining and artificial intelligence will be essential in addressing issues and opportunities in agriculture, food and the life sciences.

Career Opportunities

NC State’s graduate certificate in Ag Data Science will enhance candidate qualifications for those pursuing the following career areas among others:

  • Animal Science and Nutrition
  • Agricultural Consultant
  • Agricultural Data Scientist
  • Agricultural Researcher and Scientist
  • Agriculture Sustainability Analyst
  • Computational Biologist
  • Data Analyst
  • Data Scientist
  • Data Quality and Governance
  • Environmental Analytics Scientist
  • Farm and Agribusiness Management
  • Field Analytics Scientist
  • Genomics Data Scientist
  • Plant Biology and Breeding
  • Poultry Science

What You Can Expect

Ag Data Certificate Tracks

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