How to Become an Agricultural Engineer?

Agricultural Engineering is the discipline of engineering that deals with the design, development, and improvement of farm machinery and equipment. Agricultural Engineers make use of various disciplines like Mechanical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Food Science Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Software Engineering, etc. to improve the farming techniques or to help agri-related businesses. Agricultural Engineering gained traction after the introduction of tractors and other farming equipment. As farming became more mechanized, the field was formalized to make equipment to increase agricultural efficiency.

Courses	Diploma, B.Tech, B.E., M.Tech, MS, Postgraduate Diploma, PhD
Agricultural Engineering Jobs	Senior Agricultural Supervisor, Farmland Designer, Agronomist, Researcher, Seed Specialist, Soil Inspector, Crop Inspector etc.
Salary	India– Starting salary is Rs 2.5 Lakhs to 4 LakhsUSA – Starting Salary is around $80,000 (INR 70 lakhs)
Duration	B.Tech – 4 YearsM.Tech/MS – 2 YearsPhD – 3 to 5 Years

What is Agricultural Engineering?

Agricultural Engineering is a branch of engineering that deals with the creation, design, and construction of agricultural machinery and equipment. It is the science of integrating technology into agriculture. It develops, for example, more productive new and improved farming equipment. 

Agricultural Engineering Syllabus

Agriculture Engineering courses are available under various engineering degrees. The syllabus will depend on the course you choose and your college as well. Mentioned below are examples of the syllabus.

Postgraduate 

M.Tech Agricultural Engineering

Semester I	Semester II
Food Chemistry and Microbiology	Process Instrumentation and Control
Nursery Technology	Food Engineering –I
Principles of Analytical Chemistry	Refrigeration Engineering
Applied Mathematics	Crop Physiology
Fundamentals of Information Technology	Agricultural Microbiology
Fundamentals of Agricultural Meteorology	Principles of Agricultural Economics
English for Effective Communication	Engineering Properties of Biological Materials

Semester III	Semester IV
Biomass Utilization and Renewable Energy Management	Livestock and Aquaculture Food Products Processing
Commercial Production of Spices and Plantation Crops	Fundamentals of Soil Science
Fundamentals of Entomology	Industrial visit I (Fruit, Vegetable and Floriculture Industry)
Food Preservation Technology	Principles of Biotechnology
Principles of Seed Production and Quality control in agricultural crops	Seed production technology of agricultural crops
Livestock and Poultry Production Management	Fundamentals of Agribusiness Management
Farm Power and Machinery	Applied Statistics

Undergraduate

BTech in Agricultural Engineering

Semester 1	Semester 2
Engineering Chemistry 1	Engineering Mechanics
Engineering Drawing	Mathematics 2
Engineering Mechanics	Physical Chemistry
Mathematics 1	Science of Soils

Semester 3	Semester 4
Basic of Agricultural Engineering	Engineering Physics 2
Engineering Physics 1	Horticulture and Field Crops
Agricultural Process in Industries	Farm Machinery
Surveying and Labelling Methods	Soil Mechanics

Semester 5	Semester 6
Biotechnology	Soil Physics
Statistical Methods	Unit Operations in Food Technology
Air Conditioning and Refrigerating	Operation Research
Environmental Studies	Tractors and Power Units

Semester 7	Semester 8
Tools and Control of Machines	Bio-Agricultural
Open Elective	Crop Processing Engineering
Renewable Energy	Agricultural processing Technology

Agricultural Engineering Eligibility

The eligibility criteria varies from university to university. Also, some countries have lower requirements. The basic eligibility is summarized below:

• PCM in 10+2 with a minimum of 60%.
• A GPA of 3 out of 4 is required by most colleges for Master level courses. 
• An IELTS score of 6.5+ is required.
• A SAT score of at least 1200 is required.
• Statement of Purpose and Letter of Recommendations are required as well.
• Entrance in engineering courses is competitive. Good academics and good scores in SAT/ACT/GRE will help the application.

How To Become an Agricultural Engineer

• Clear 10+2 with PCM
• Get into a university with agricultural engineering specialization.
• If you are pursuing any other engineering course, you can shift to agricultural engineering in the second year as well via transfer programs at various universities.
• Complete the coursework and all the practicals.
• Apply to companies for work experience.

 Documents required

• College Transcripts – A statement of grades supplied by the education board after previous academic qualifications have been completed.
• Financial documentation demonstrates the student’s financial position.
• A letter of recommendation identifies who recommended the student for the degree programme.
• Statement of Purpose – A student’s statement of purpose is an essay or other written statement presented as part of the application process.
• A resume or curriculum vitae (CV) is a summary of a student’s work experience and talents.

Application Process 

Abroad

The application process is as follows:

• Fill in the application online
• Appear for ACT/ SAT and English Proficiency Tests (IELTS/ TOEFL).
• Submit academic transcripts along with the letter of recommendations and statement of purpose.
• For graduate programs, a GRE score might be needed as well although it is not compulsory for some colleges.
• If the profile is shortlisted, some colleges might conduct an interview.
• If you are selected, pay the first semester tuition fee and apply for visa.

India

• Admission is based on a student’s performance in either the 12th grade or the entrance exam.
• Shortlisted candidates are invited to an interview phase, following which admission is granted.
• Candidates are admitted based on their performance in the entrance exam as well as the university’s final interview stage.

Agricultural Engineering Fee Structure

Following is the average fee structure for an Agricultural Engineering course.

Particular	Undergraduate	Postgraduate	Doctoral
Minimum Fees	Rs. 40,000	Rs. 1,00,000	Rs. 50,000
Maximum Fees	Rs. 1,20,000	Rs. 3,20,000	Rs. 4,00,000

Top Institutes Abroad

QS Ranking	Name of University	Location
#1	Wageningen University & Research	Wageningen,Netherlands
#2	University of California, Davis	Davis,United States
#3	Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences	Uppsala,Sweden
#4	AgroParisTech	Paris,France
#5	Cornell University	Ithaca Campus, Ithaca United States

Top Institutes in India

NIRF Ranking	Name of University	Location
#1	IIT Madras – Indian Institute of Technology	CHENNAI
#2	IIT Kharagpur – Indian Institute of Technology	Kharagpur, West Bengal
#3	Bannari Amman Institute of Technology, Erode	Erode, Tamil Nadu
#4	Integral University, Lucknow	Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh
#5	IISc Bangalore – Indian Institute of Science	Bangalore, Karnataka

Future Scope of an Agricultural Engineer

Agriculture is without a doubt the backbone of the Indian economy. The country is a farmer’s paradise with plenty of opportunities for farming due to its fertile topography and soils. The government has recently launched programmes to promote agriculture and related technology. Agriculture Engineering has emerged as a distinct science as a result of this. Many agricultural institutions in India provide students interested in agriculture and its applications a high-quality education. 

Job Profiles & Salary 

Job Profile	Starting Salary per annum (in INR)	Mid Level Salary per annum (in INR)	Senior Level Salary per annum (INR)
Agricultural Engineer	2,39,808	5,50,000	11,40,000
Agricultural Inspector	2,94,791	5,81,748	12,20,838
Farm Shop Manager	1,01460	4,71,665	8,28,514
Food And Beverage Supervisor	1,74,181	2,40,644	4,15,365
Survey Research Agricultural Engineer	2,44,493	6,64,431	15,34,082

FAQs

If you want to understand how to apply to top Universities and realize your dream of becoming an agricultural engineer, take the help of Leverage Edu experts to guide you to your dream university.