There’ll be crop cultivars and the latest tractors, but Cal Poly agriculture students will be mostly into networking at the 45th Annual World Ag Expo, today to Feb. 16 in Tulare, Calif.
The agriculture industry is different from other industries when it comes to finding jobs, environmental horticulture science senior Jeffrey Hillman said. Agriculture thrives on networking. Since agriculture is smaller than other industries such as business, it’s easier to have connections with almost everyone.
“Agriculture is a really tight industry; everyone knows everyone else,” Hillman said.
Students also look for different vendors and certain companies to connect and learn more about the industry, bioresource and agriculture engineering department head Richard Cavaletto said.
Agriculture students can prepare résumés and business cards to exchange with agriculture businesses, Hillman said.
Most students don’t bring their résumé and will mostly collect business cards, Hillman said.
A good personality is just as important as collecting contact information from businesses, though. Hillman said a positive personality is extremely important when connecting with sales representatives and vendors. He also said students can receive deals on products or meet more important people if they make themselves memorable enough.
Networking early on provides more opportunities down the road for students’ careers, too. Being memorable can result in an internship or even a job after college, Hillman said.
“If they remember you, they’ll give you connections to more people in the industry,” he said.
Keeping up with the change in agriculture is just as important as knowing more people in the industry, Hillman said.
“Agriculture is constantly changing with new technology and new products, so knowing people who develop products, you can stay ahead of the curve,” Hillman said.
Cal Poly is represented in more ways than just the students experiencing the World Ag Expo. Cal Poly has a booth in the career and education center, along with the other agriculture schools, to attract future students and people who are interested in what the schools’ programs are about. The booth is occupied by faculty and used to showcase Cal Poly, Cavaletto said.
Faculty can meet prospective students and provide information about Cal Poly’s agriculture program and its different departments. Pamphlets and brochures are handed out to educate and interest prospective students and families.
The future and past is brought together as the faculty gets the opportunity to meet with Cal Poly alumni as well. The faculty benefits Cal Poly’s College of Agriculture just as much as the students as they bring back what they learn about new products and technology to keep the program up to date in the classrooms, Cavaletto said.
“The World Ag Expo brings together all major vendors, producers and information; it’s just a great storehouse of information all in one location,” Cavaletto said.
The International Agri-Center trade show covers 2.6 million square feet. The site holds 1,600 exhibitors displaying new technology and equipment. It can easily take all three days of the trade show to see all the vendors, Cavaletto said.
It is the largest annual agricultural show of its kind, according to its website. The World Ag Expo receives an annual average of 100,000 visitors from 70 countries each year.
“The World Ag Expo is a great way to see all that the agricultural industry has to offer: from tractors to dairy production to new crop cultivars — it’s an amazing display,” Hillman said.
It also provides students with the opportunity to learn more about different areas of the agriculture industry, environmental horticulture science senior Andy Klittich said.
“Going to the World Ag Expo allows me, as a college student, to see the new technological advances that are being made and also learn more about other sectors of the industry that I may not be a part of currently,” Klittich said.
Cal Poly students and faculty have attended the World Ag Expo for more than 30 years. Some students are required to go to complete class assignments. Other students have been attending yearly to see what the World Ag Expo has to offer this year.
The Cal Poly’s bioresource and agriculture engineering department is a part of American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE). The society holds meetings each year at the World Ag Expo for the California-Nevada section.
The society’s annual meeting this year is on Feb. 15 in conjunction with the World Ag Expo. Cal Poly students also participate in the student poster competition where they compete against other schools to display and describe their senior projects, Cavaletto said.
“Students see the diversity and vastness of agriculture and the support system of vendors and producers; it’s eye-opening,” Cavaletto said.
This article was written by Alexis Dela Cruz.