Farmer
Job Description
Farmers are the driving force behind Australia’s agricultural industry. If you get into arable farming, you will spend your life in the great outdoors tending to crops. If you pursue a career in pastoral farming, you will focus your efforts on rearing animals. Farmers are responsible for managing farm workers, looking after the administrative side of running a farm, monitoring budgets, and devising strategies for harvesting or breeding.
Careers Ladder
Hours
Farming is more of a lifestyle choice than a career. This isn’t your average nine-to-five office job. Farmers are required to be ‘on-call’ 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This doesn’t mean you’ll be out in the fields at midnight every Saturday. It does, however, mean that if there’s a problem, you will have to deal with it quickly and effectively.
A farmer’s working hours are also dictated by the seasons. For instance, when it comes to harvesting, you may find yourself working between 15 and 18 hours a day.
Qualifications
Aspiring farmers need to gain experience of working on a farm and acquire the technical and practical knowledge that goes with it.
Formal qualifications may be helpful in this industry, search these courses below to assist:
- Agriculture
- Animal care
- Countryside management
- Land management
- Wildlife management
- Animal management
- Agricultural engineering
- Organic horticulture management
- Agri-business
- Crop management
- Rural business management
You can also enter this line of work via an agricultural apprenticeship.
Attributes
- Cooperative
- Dedicated
- Dependable
- Efficient
- Energetic
- Initiative
- Innovative
- Organised
- Passionate
- Perceptive
- Practical
- Problem Solving
- Quick Learner
- Resilient
Key Skills
- Mechanical and Repairing Skills
- Time Management
- Administrative
- Decision-making skills
- Crop and Animal Management Skills
Future Prospects
You may like to think about moving on from this career, some transferable skills can be utilised in roles such as;
- Agricultural Consultant
- Environmental Engineer
- Sustainability Consultant / Officer