Number of Agriculture Students Woefully Inadequate

new-zealand-first-party

Mon Feb 09 2015 13:00:00 GMT+1300 (New Zealand Daylight Time)

Number of Agriculture Students Woefully Inadequate

Monday, 9 February 2015, 9:33 am
Press Release: New Zealand First Party

Number of Agriculture Students Woefully Inadequate

A campaign to encourage students to study the agricultural disciplines at university is being called for by New Zealand First.

“Primary industries drive the wealth of New Zealand yet only 1.1 per cent of university students are studying it according to the recent Ministry of Education report, Profile and Trends: New Zealand’s Tertiary Education Sector 2013,” says Primary Industries Spokesperson Richard Prosser.

“The National government is once again not getting behind our vital primary sector which contributes about 70 per cent of New Zealand’s exports.

“It is about much more than just farming - its high-tech, cutting edge and global.

“Our brightest young folk are unaware that high-flying careers and very good incomes are available.

“To many the glamour has gone - a campaign would illustrate just how exciting agricultural-based careers can be.

“Our kids need to see that the primary sector really is a case of the world being their oyster.

“The Government needs to do more than throw money at research intensive areas which has clearly not translated into more students studying agricultural-based disciplines.

“New Zealand First wants to see more students and schools using the Vocational Pathways guidelines for the primary industry sector and we want to see more students graduating from university with agricultural-based degrees.

“The government should be pushing this. It would be short-sighted and potentially putting a significant contributor to the economy at risk not to,” says Mr Prosser.

ENDS

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading

a.supporter:hover {background:#EC4438!important;} @media screen and (max-width: 480px) { #byline-block div.byline-block {padding-right:16px;}}

Using Scoop for work?

Scoop is free for personal use, but you’ll need a licence for work use. This is part of our Ethical Paywall and how we fund Scoop. Join today with plans starting from less than $3 per week, plus gain access to exclusive Pro features.

Join Pro Individual Find out more

Find more from New Zealand First Party on InfoPages.