POULTRY SCIENCE TRAINING - WHAT INDUSTRY NEEDS

The growth and maturation of the poultry industry has shifted some of the skills and competencies required of its employees. Additional training in problem solving and increased emphasis on human resources and management skills will be required in both graduate and undergraduate programs in poultry science. Exposure to contemporary issues and the processes whereby these are addressed will be valuable. Industry needs well-trained scientists for research and technical support in many disciplines but favored are individuals who have demonstrated inquisitiveness about and knowledge of how their discipline interacts with other facets of food animal production, and business management skills. To be most effective in future positions, graduates need greater awareness of the effects of global economies and the international technology base on the domestic poultry industry. Industry and academia must find new forums for the exchange of needs and must cooperate in training in order to develop the new leaders and managers who will sustain the dynamic growth of the poultry industry well into the twenty-first century.