Not an opinion, I’m watching it play out in Canada. If you want a job as a head grower they aren’t hiring black market dudes. They’re hiring people that have degrees that don’t have experience with cannabis. So we need to educate ourselves to be able to get these jobs
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Losing a ton of money hiring the degrees over the black market guys!
Although in fairness they have hired black market guys also and lost a ton of money also
Yeah I’ll just bow out. We don’t have much common ground. Very different perspectives.
Any way, my dude. Was not intending to offend you at all. I’m heading out for a while but you have yourself a great day and good chat.
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I’ve been turned down by 3 Licensed producers even though I’ve been growing for 25 years because I don’t have the credentials. My resume says I’m a chef lol
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I can see that. My lawyer at my last charge actually told me my record was my resume!
It’s also a challenge to scale up for production that most people have not done.
Maybe try a lesser position to get in the door
Also the degree doesn’t teach certain aspects of cannabis farming that your 25 years do.
I’m watching it as hemp farmers transition in cannabis.
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I smoked a cannabis cigarette once so I’m an expert.
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My cousins friend grows hydro. So I got the hook up
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Maybe you could rebrand as a weed sommelier type. Using your cooking background to your advantage. Pair strains up with wines and sell out to the ponytail Millenials.
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A field environment and a classroom environment are two completely separate entities. Not trying to disparage anyone; both are very important.
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absolutely. having a degree in i t has made me a much better tech and that is why i am going to pursue one for my endeavors with hemp. that is mainly for the chemistry and other stuff i may not know instead of the paper but that will be useful as well.
like the field of infosec i was so close to entering. started mainly with self taught folks and criminals or government types because there were no degrees in it. jail time was good on your resume. kevin mitnick is a good example of that. now there are colleges that teach it and it is respectable. some companies hire based on the paper and not the skills. but you can still get as much skill on your own. it’s been 20 or so years since infosec began as a field on it’s own, so if you want to see how degrees vs. self taught skills will probably go, look there. of course there are differences, but it’s a start.
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Much can be said on both sides of the argument. If weed breeding is art, well no, most people who get art degrees are not the ones making money professionally in art, science is measured so ya it can push weed further, but I can’t think what that would look like. it comes in all strengths and flavors now, if science can take out the growing process I am down.
the funny thing about degrees is, if everyone has a degree, well the next metric is experience and talent again. so you know lots to say on both sides. like a guy with a business degree may want to hire an old famous hippy with street cred to run his grow for brand recognition. on the other hand, if you want to scale up, you may want a group of people all trained the same way, performing the same protocol. lot’s to be said.
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In most industries where a range of skillsets and knowledge areas are necessary (not speaking of highly specialized professions or trades where degrees are required, but more regular small business life), the answer to the question “is a degree helpful?” is typically that it can be, but that it isn’t necessary.
Many professional musicians and artists have benefited from getting a degree even though most of us can quickly think of the most amazing musicians and artists who never got a degree.
Many of the most successful entrepreneurs did not get a business degree. But the large businesses they run typically have business school grads somewhere in the mix.
Some large farms will have a salaried agronomist as part of the team, and most farmers large or small frequently consult with degreed extension agents or experts in soils and pests.
Hydroponic vegetable farms typically have trained head growers with degrees, many from the Netherlands, as there are fairly standard approaches which degree programs specifically cover. But someone can work directly under such a grower and within a few years work up to being a head grower with comparable levels of knowledge.
Professional artists who did seek a masters in fine arts will say that the main benefits of a degree were not technical art skills, but rather being exposed to criticism, being challenged, and the amount of time in a degree program where the focus was art. The network and the opportunities presented by the network of a program are other value centers.
But the real issue with a degree is not whether it could be helpful, but whether it is worth it. The equation of debt is shifting. Unless a degree is absolutely necessary for a profession, and even when it is, it may not be worth a huge debt load. That is the issue- the debt.
Back to weed, the larger the scale, the more specialized the product, the more degrees are needed in the mix, whether as direct hires or as technical consultants.
An older farmer friend told me once: I got two PhD’s: Post Hole Diggers!
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Ding ding ding. And a good reading list.
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perfect explanation. i almost flagged it though, too off topic. kidding of course, i just got done with my bowl and am amusing myself. it was great though.
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University was effectively dealing with criticism, in a nutshell. And a good reading list.
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most people don’t know what a dead skunk smells like…rks threads 
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people give me dirty looks because I choose to drink out of a water fountain or the spigot instead of their bottled water lol.
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@Spitfire I’ll take my freshly scrubbed and bleached stainless bottle or Nalgene with some fresh tap water in it any day, extra points for one of those cool water bubblers with the bottle filler and filter built in
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I particularly like putting my mouth on the tap with no flow pressure. Refreshing.
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