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Agriculture, Food & Natural Resources
Job Description: Animal scientists conduct research on the selection, breeding, feeding, and management of farm and ranch animals. Animal scientists work to develop better, more efficient ways of producing and processing meat, poultry, eggs, and milk. They may also be called dairy scientists or poultry scientists. They study the genetics, nutrition, reproduction, growth, and development of domestic farm animals. Some animal scientists inspect and grade livestock food products, purchase livestock, or work in technical sales or marketing. Animal scientists may also advise agricultural producers on how to upgrade animal housing facilities properly, lower mortality rates, handle waste matter, or increase production of animal products.
Duties: Animal scientists may perform some or all of the following tasks:
- Study nutritional requirements of animals and nutritive value of feed materials
- Develop improved practices in incubation, brooding, and artificial insemination
- Determine generic composition of animal population, and heritability of traits
- Crossbreed animals with existing strains or cross strains to obtain new combinations of desirable characteristics
- Develop improved practices in feeding, housing, sanitation, and parasite and disease control of animals and poultry
- Research and control selection and breeding practices to increase efficiency of production and improve quality of animals
- Study effects of management practices, processing methods, feed, and environmental conditions on quality and quantity of animal products such as eggs and milk
For additional information on tasks, knowledge, skills, abilities, work activities, work contexts, job zones, interests, work styles, work values, and related occupations, visit the O*Net Online, a division of the National Center for Occupational Information.
Working Conditions: Animal scientists work for dairy herd improvement associations, cattle ranchers, and/or universities. Local farmers may form their own herd improvement associations and hire scientists to oversee activities. Scientists normally work a standard 40-hour week. Their experiments or investigations may be conducted in modern laboratories. They are often required to work outdoors with ranch or farm animals.
Educational Requirements: A bachelor's degree in agricultural science is the minimum requirement for this occupation. High school students may prepare for this career by taking courses in agriculture, science, biology, and chemistry. The University of Tennessee is a land-grant college that provides agricultural science degrees. A typical undergraduate degree in this area includes business, economics, animal science, physical science, and life science.
Outlook: The estimated number of animal scientists in Tennessee is 90. It is projected there will be an 8 percent increase in this occupation through the year 2012 with only 5 job openings annually. For additional information on this occupation, visit the nationally recognized Occupational Outlook Handbook online.
| 10% | 25% | Median- 50% | 75% | 90% | |
| TN Annual | $27,818 | $33,454 | $42,160 | $55,522 | $71,821 |
| US Annual | $31,540 | $37,930 | $47,800 | $62,950 | $81,430 |
*Some salaries are listed at an hourly rate. Those that include a single dollar amount are considered hourly wage.
Wage and salary data provided by:
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Tennessee Department of Labor website
- TN Department of Labor & Workforce Development website
- Bureau of Economic Analysis website
For an explanation of salary data please visit acinet.org
Last updated on: January 24, 2008