Department Welcome

Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics

from Ben Rashford, Department Head and Associate Professor

Welcome to the home page of the Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics. We hope our web pages provide you with helpful information about the Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics at the University of Wyoming. Please email, call or visit if you feel that we can be of service to you.

The Department embraces three missions. The first and most important is undergraduate and graduate education of students on campus. The second is educational outreach to the people and communities of the state. The third is solving problems in agricultural and rural economies through our research programs. The melding of these three missions in our Department has produced vital and synergistic programs. We believe you will agree as you investigate our department in greater depth.

The Department offers one Bachelors of Science degree program with three distinct options. The largest option is Agricultural Business. This program provides training in marketing, management, finance, sales, law and other business oriented courses tailored to agricultural products and the business of agriculture. We also offer an option in Farm and Ranch Management, which provides training in commodity marketing, production and financial management, finance, law, natural resource management and other farm and ranch related courses. This option also requires course work in production agriculture. Finally, the department offers a degree option in International Agriculture. This program can be focused towards either international agricultural business or international agricultural production management. Along with business and management courses, the option includes training in international trade, international finance, international agriculture and international relations, as well as a foreign language. Employment opportunities have been excellent with any of these three degree options. Virtually all graduates get jobs related to their specialty interests. Currently, about 130 students are enrolled in these programs at the University of Wyoming.

The Department also offers a Masters of Science in Agricultural and Applied Economics. This degree is oriented toward those who wish to enter the work-force upon completion but also serves as preparation for Ph.D. programs. Employment opportunities have been excellent for our Masters graduates. Currently the department has 12 students enrolled in its M.S. program.

Our undergraduate and masters programs provide small classes and close working relationships with faculty. Our students have a unique opportunity for collegial relationships with the faculty and staff. This interaction with our capable faculty and staff results in very high quality, but individualized educational experiences for our students. More information on our degree programs is available in the undergraduate and graduate program pages. The faculty are introduced in the faculty page.

The department's outreach to the State is primarily through our Cooperative Extension program. Outreach education is an important goal of the department. In fact, about 40% of our resources are devoted to State-wide outreach. The department currently has outstanding outreach programs in community and rural economic development, integrated ranch and farm management, agricultural and rural legal issues, livestock marketing and business and retailing management. If you have an interest in any of these I would encourage you to examine them in more detail in the highlighted programs pages.

About a third of our resources are dedicated to applied and basic research. A strength of our research program is the extensive interaction of our faculty with other colleagues in the life sciences and on multidisciplinary research teams. Our faculty are working for solutions to some of the most complex agricultural and natural problems of today. We are working on better ways for agriculture to be more profitable and enhance the environment. We are looking at ways rural communities can improve their economies. We are examining the impact of environmental and other public policy of rural people and communities. Just to name a few.

I hope you will take the time to view the highlights of our research programs on the highlighted programs pages. The students, faculty and staff of the Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics at the University of Wyoming are proud of their Department and their College, the University and its accomplishments. We hope that you will enjoy taking a look at us. If you have a question or would like to learn more please email or call!

Best Regards,
Ben Rashford, Associate Professor and Head

phone: 307-766-2386
fax: 307-766-5544
email: brashfor@uwyo.edu