Student Profile: Q&A with Joshua Schwartz
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EmailQ&A with Joshua Schwartz, Freshman, Agricultural Operations, Institute of Agricultural Technology Internship: Assistant Supervisor at Gro Alliance; Howe, IN
Q&A with Joshua Schwartz
Freshman, Agricultural Operations, Institute of Agricultural Technology
Internship: Assistant Supervisor at Gro Alliance; Howe, IN
Q: How did you choose your internship?
A: Having worked as a detasseling (the tassel is the top most part of a corn plant, detasseling is the removal of that part of the plant) inspector for two years at Gro Alliance, the decision to take up an internship here made perfect sense. Although I have more responsibility now, I’m still working with the same people, at a company I’m familiar with.
Q: Summarize what you are doing this summer at your internship.
A: As an assistant supervisor, I basically assist my area supervisor in managing around 1,100 acres of seed corn. After planting is over, I’m usually busy taking stand counts and scouting; but once detasseling season hits, I’m in the fields all day taking counts, monitoring crew progress, collecting samples of fields coming up, and much more. After that, I’ll still have yield estimates to take and some late season scouting to finish up before harvest.
Q: What is the most important thing that you have learned from your internship?
A: Besides the valuable experience I have gained as a field scout, I believe that the most important lessons I’ve learned involve time management and organizational skills.
The fieldwork definitely serves as a great experience, but working with my supervisor has shown me the importance of planning ahead, and spending time on tasks that really matter.
Q: What will you miss the most when your internship ends?
A: Working in the seed corn industry definitely has its upsides and downsides. One thing that I’ve come to appreciate is the amount of flexibility we interns have with the work schedule. Unless I’m assigned to something urgent, most of the day’s tasks can be completed on my own time.
Q: What was the biggest hardship, adjustment, or challenge of this internship?
A: Although I work a lot of 11 or 12-hour days, not all that time is spent in the field. Finding ways to fill time and slow down a bit was probably the biggest change from I was used to.
I was used to having a set schedule and working quickly to finish the tasks. Things operate very differently here at Gro Alliance; because our work often follows detasseling crew passes.
