Networking with industry professionals is a crucial step to success for any undergraduate student. It is especially important for students studying poultry science at Auburn University, as the broiler industry is Alabama’s top agricultural commodity. Making connections and learning from those already in the industry is an invaluable experience.
This is why the Department of Poultry Science invests in networking experiences for its students. Recently, seven poultry science students traveled to the Aviagen Research and Training Center in Albertville, a community in northeast Alabama.
Aviagen is a global poultry breeding company that develops pedigree lines for the production of commercial broiler chickens. The company is based in Huntsville, Ala., but has operations across the United Kingdom, Europe, Turkey, Latin America, India, Australia and New Zealand, in addition to other locations in the United States.
The opportunity to learn about the research conducted by a global company like Aviagen allows poultry students to contemplate career options they may not have previously considered. During the trip, students spoke with Aviagen employees about their day-to-day work, learned about the different research areas at the center, and toured several facilities on the property.
The students visited the Derek Emmerson Education Center, the on-site processing plant, and the hatchery. Both the processing plant and the hatchery are used solely for research purposes, not commercially. During the tours, students were able to ask employees questions about the facilities and the research being conducted there.
“It was great to see all the new technology advances to improve overall bird performance,” said Chandler Pyron, a senior in the poultry science production option and president of the Poultry Science Club. “I am super excited for the future advances to come in the industry. I am very thankful for the opportunity to tour this facility.”
Whether it is trips to visit industry facilities or bringing in industry professionals to Poultry Science Club meetings, students in the department are offered many opportunities to learn from those in the industry and discover the many different paths a poultry science degree can take them.
