Who is an agriculture artisan?
An agriculture artisan is a worker skilled in general agriculture or closely related field. Agriculture is both a science and art of cultivating crops, plants as well as rearing livestock. A general agriculture provides learners with a foundation skillset in all types of agriculture. An agriculture artisan may be involved in performing practical duties required to produce farm crops as well as breeding and tending to livestock.

Other closely related title(s)

1. Agricultural worker
2. Farm worker

 What is the work environment?
Agriculture artisans spend most of their time working outdoors under various weather conditions.

 Some important skills to have
To work effectively, agriculture artisans need to have some important skills and qualities such as;

1. Ability to work with other workers/ interpersonal skills
2. Able to listen to instructions from supervisors/ listening skills
3. Ability to communicate with other workers/Communication skills
4. Able to perform laborious duties repeatedly/ physical stamina
5. Ability to lift heavy objects/ physical strength
6. Ability to operate farm equipment
7. Ability to work with hands
8. Among other skills and qualities

What are some career opportunities?
Agriculture artisans can find work in various places such as; crop production companies, animal production companies, greenhouse farming companies, plant nursery production, aquaculture companies, forestry companies, agricultural products marketing, education institutions, research organizations, other businesses and government departments among other areas.

Agriculture artisans can also use their creativity and start their own profit making ventures (self-employment).

Becoming an Agriculture artisan

Admission requirements
To pursue a career as an agriculture artisan right from high school, a Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE), mean grade E is required.

 Training & Study options
With a KCSE mean grade E, you can proceed to a Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) college and enroll for an appropriate artisan course. Artisan courses are also offered within Vocational Training Centers (VTCs) within your region.

So what course(s) can you pursue in TVET colleges?

1. Artisan in general agriculture
2. NVCET in modern methods of agriculture (agribusiness development)
3. Or other similar/ related courses

Education Progression
After a successful completion of an artisan course, you can advance your education upward (in a relevant field) up to university level if that’s your goal. How is this possible?

1. Get an artisan certificate
2. Advance to craft certificate, (in a relevant field)
3. Advance to diploma certificate, (in a relevant field)
4. Advance to degree certificate, (in a relevant field)

How to Join TVET College.
There are two ways you can follow to join training institution(s) in pursuit of your career of choice. The majority way is applying through the Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service (Kuccps). This is a state owned agency that admits/ places government sponsored students to TVET colleges and universities. One of the advantages of applying through Kuccps is that, upon successful placement, you will pay subsidized fee as a government sponsored student.

To be placed through Kuccps you must have attained a certain pass mark required for various education levels such as degrees, diplomas, certificates and artisan courses. For an artisan course, you need a KCSE mean grade E. For more details on placement criteria, visit Kuccps website. The second approach is applying directly to training institution of your choice. Students who opt to apply this way do not get government fee subsidy and are therefore self-sponsored.

How to fund your post-secondary education.
If you are a needy student, upon application, you can get education loan from Higher Education Loans Board (HELB), a state owned institution that gives education loans to students joining technical colleges and universities. You can also access education bursaries from your local Member of Parliament (MP) or the County Government among other sources.

 Always remember this!
Information provided on this website is for career awareness only, and not for any other purpose.

We know career life will take a significant part of your life journey, and your career choice will greatly influence how that journey unfolds. Therefore, before you make any career choice, before you commit yourself to any career or study option, be sure of what you are doing. It is advisable to seek professional advice from career advisors to navigate this very important process.

Need more information? We can provide you with additional career and education related information to meet your individual needs.