Agriculture Business
Certificate School of Agriculture and Industrial Technology · Merced College · 2026-2027 Catalog
School of Agriculture and Industrial Technology
With a raw product value in excess of three billion dollars, agriculture is Merced County’s number one industry and is the county’s largest employer. Production agriculture employs a fifth of the county’s residents.
When you include food processing, agriculture employs about a third of the workforce. Dollar-wise, Merced is the fifth most important ag county in the state and the nation.
Agriculture is a vital component to our local, state and national economies and offers many exciting employment opportunities. The Agriculture Business program is designed to prepare students for immediate employment in Agribusiness and transfer to four-year colleges/universities to pursue advanced degrees in agriculture.
A Certificate of Achievement in Agriculture Business will be awarded upon satisfactory completion of the curriculum listed below, with a minimum grade of “C” (or P) in each course in the certificate and maintains a 2.0 GPA.
Program Student Learning Outcomes
A. Analyze the core concepts of various agriculture business disciplines.
B. Analyze local, state, and national agricultural issues and trends.
C. Examine economic principles with respect to the production and distribution of agricultural products and services
D. Develop communication and problem solving skills to work effectively, respectfully, ethically, and professionally with people of diverse age, gender, ethnicity and culture in agribusiness.
E. Combine team building skills and collaborative behaviors in the accomplishment of group goals and objectives.