The Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture (TIA) is offering a mid-year intake and online, flexible study options for its highly regarded Masterclass in Horticultural Business.
The industry-focussed program is the first of its kind in Australia and provides practical business and leadership skills for horticulture managers across the country.
This year, even more members of the industry will have the chance to boost their skills, with the online course offering flexible study options to cater to participants needs.
TIA course coordinator Dr Mark Boersma said the masterclass had been tailor-made for industry, with the online delivery now more important than ever.
“The Masterclass in Horticultural Business is in its fourth year, and feedback from participants indicates that it continues to play an important role in the development of business leaders within the horticultural industry,” Dr Boersma said.
“The course is designed to deliver practical learnings, skills and insights that participants can immediately use to improve their business. This includes development of a personal business plan that is reviewed by a panel of experts from both the education and professional sector.
“The new online delivery, mid-year intake and flexible study options ensures the course is accessible to as many people as possible from around Australia.”
Brigette Ryan, from Costa in Tasmania, participated in the 2019 masterclass and said the course gave her practical business and financial skills to implement into her role as an agronomist.
“The masterclass helped me make better informed decisions and implement new ideas which combine business and agronomy perspectives to overcome the everyday challenges we face today in the horticulture industry,” Ms Ryan said.
“The course also created new friendships with horticulture leaders from across the country.”
Beth Cotterill, from Dicky Bill Farming in Victoria, was also a 2019 participant and said the course was invaluable for her business.
“The learnings from the masterclass have been invaluable for myself within our business Dicky Bill Farming,” Miss Cotterill said.
“The skills learnt are very applicable to my role and now influence a lot of the decisions I make on a day to day basis. I highly recommend the course.”
The course has already produced award-winning graduates, including the 2018 Victorian Young Grower of the Year and the 2018 NAB Vegetable Exporter of the Year.
Applications are now open for students wishing to commence in July 2020. People working in a variety of horticultural sectors are encouraged to apply for industry-supported scholarships worth up to $10,000 each.
The masterclass was developed with expertise from the University of Tasmania, Wageningen Academy in The Netherlands and New Zealand’s Lincoln University. It is supported with funding from Horticulture Innovation.
