CORE PURPOSE OF JOB

The Natural Resource Science & Management Cluster at the George Campus, Nelson Mandela University needs your talent, passion and commitment to strengthen our teaching, research and engagement in Agricultural Management practices.

The purpose of this academic post is to enhance learning and teaching as well as research at the interface of agricultural management and the application of farm practices to optimize the scarce resources of the farming unit. The post requires a person who has the ability to teach and research across disciplines within the Agricultural Management diploma and degree programs with specialisation in Agricultural Economics/Management and a focus on Plant Production/Horticulture. Learning and Teaching in the Department takes place at the following levels: Diploma, Advanced Diploma, Honours, MSc and PhD. The candidate should be able to teach at undergraduate level and postgraduate level. Our department engages in a diversity of basic and applied research activities and the candidate will be expected to support research programmes. We encourage multidisciplinary research and the building of national and international collaborative networks, and therefore the candidate should feel comfortable engaging in teaching and research activities with multi-disciplinary teams. We also strive to remain close to and build a strong relationship within the agricultural, forestry and conservation industries through engagement and through our undergraduate work-integrated learning program. Each staff member is expected to contribute to this effort, as we prepare the students to make a valuable contribution to the unique agricultural landscape surrounding George.

The George Campus (https://georgecampus.mandela.ac.za/) is a satellite campus of Nelson Mandela University. It is uniquely situated on the outskirts of George, between the Outeniqua Mountain range and the Indian Ocean. (https://www.gardenroute.com/george-garden-route-information_content_op_view_id_27 ).

If you have what it takes to serve the needs of our students, our campus and the South African agricultural sector and your credentials meet the requirements of this position, we invite you to join our team at the George Campus.

KEY PERFORMANCE AREAS

• To teach undergraduate Agricultural Management students in the fields of applied agricultural financial planning and analyses, regenerative agriculture/resource management and any other courses assigned to you by the Head of the Department.
• To facilitate student learning at a post-graduate level in the broad disciplines of Agricultural Management/Agricultural Economics.
• To initiate research within the Agricultural Management/Agricultural Economics fields and publish research findings.
• To engage and build networks within agriculture and the broader natural resource management industry and academia.
• To facilitate academic engagement with stakeholders to the benefit of students and the department.
• Perform administrative and management functions in the Agricultural Management Department as required by the Head of Department, which includes managing work-integrated learning of diploma students, managing post-graduate students, sourcing of grant funding/AgriSETA, offering of short learning programs, facilitating practical excursions of students, student recruitment, etc.

• To undertake curriculum development for new courses and participate in regular re-curriculation of modules and programme reviews.
• To initiate community engagement projects and engage in professional development activities.

CORE COMPETENCIES

• An ability to understand agriculture as an integrated system and to work across disciplines within the agricultural business and natural resource management milieu.
• An ability to apply theoretical agricultural management/agricultural economic concepts in commercial agricultural practice.
• An ability to develop course/educational material and be able to conduct teaching and learning in the context of Agricultural Management.

• An ability to supervise students at Honours, Master and PhD levels.
• An ability to publish research findings in accredited journals.

• An ability to network with agricultural practitioners and researchers in industry.
• An ability to engage with diverse industry stakeholders, students and work with other people to achieve results beneficial to society.
• An ability and aptitude for teamwork and working with groups of diverse people to achieve shared goals of the department.
• An ability to be creative and innovative in the workplace.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills in two of the three official languages of the Western Cape.

REQUIREMENTS

• A PhD in Agricultural Economics/Farm Management with a focus on horticulture/Plant production
• 5 years of relevant work experience, with at least two years experience within the agricultural industry and with additional service in academia to make up the 5 years
• Proven track-record and experience in farm-level financial planning and financial analyses, regenerative agriculture/resource management of commercial farm enterprises.
• Demonstrated ability to conduct research in a cross-disciplinary context in agriculture.
• A track record of publications relevant to the field of Agricultural Management/Economics
• Leadership roles in related fields within agriculture will be an added advantage.
• A significant record of engagement with industry stakeholders within the wider agricultural community