While the agricultural sector continuously rallies for student placement opportunities and celebrates work-integrated learning (WIL) as a vital stepping stone for young agripreneurs, a closer look into actual farm placements reveals a complex reality.
For many agriculture students, transitioning from lecture halls to real-world agricultural operations brings practical growth, mental strain, steep learning curves, and lifestyle adjustments.
This dual reality is captured in a 2025 study published in the South African Journal of Agricultural Extension by Reward Mathebula, Elliot M. Zwane, and Ernest M. Letsoalo.
Evaluating 73 postgraduate government interns in Mpumalanga, the research revealed a complex sentiment: out of 35 evaluation statements, 19 drew negative responses regarding structural gaps like poor pay and delayed employment, while 16 drew positive feedback regarding skill acquisition and practical exposure.
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Host farmer sees growth, but notes skill gaps
Sinethemba Gebashe, host at Ithuba Lamahlavula Farming, describes hosting interns, including students placed through the department of agriculture, as a highly rewarding experience that builds young people’s confidence.
“Some are very confident with the theory but are not yet comfortable with the hands-on work. I deal with this by working closely with them, showing them how things are done and giving them responsibilities that allow them to learn while doing the work,” Gebashe said.
On Gebashe’s farm, interns assist across core operations, including layer production, poultry management, record keeping, cleaning, and general farm activities.
The knowledge exchange goes both ways. He noted, “They have also brought new ideas and knowledge from their studies, so it is not only the students who learn from the experience; I also learn from them.
“It is about sharing what I have learned, giving young people an opportunity and hopefully helping some of them see agriculture as a career and a business they can build for themselves.”
Harsh reality of farm life vs university expectations
Mabongi Ndabandaba, a third-year Sol Plaatje University student completing her diploma in agriculture under the mandatory WIL module, described her experience as “bittersweet”.
“The biggest challenge I have faced is forming interpersonal relationships with people from different backgrounds and ambitions.
“Sometimes cooperation breaks down between a facilitator and a student during day-to-day operations. Conflicts will occur, and it is up to you to resolve them to keep the workplace non-toxic.”
University student Mabongi Ndabandaba
Ndabandaba highlighted the sharp contrast between university life and intensive farm operations, noting how the physical and mental demands differ from academic routine.
“The farm lifestyle is very different from university life. There are no lecturers, and you are expected to show your best even when production demands are intense. For example, poultry production requires you to be productive all day, waking up at 6:00 am to feed and staying up until 8:00 pm for an evening check-up,” she said.
She added that unlike university, where skipping a lecture carries no immediate penalty, farm work leaves no room for disengagement.
“At university, students can skip lectures without consequences, but working on a farm requires you to be mentally prepared for anything that might go wrong, such as livestock mortality.
“People may not realise that working on a farm requires following strict routines and giving your all, which can drain you mentally.”
Preparing mentally and physically
Looking back, she noted that living on a farm full-time limits personal freedom and requires sacrificing parts of one’s lifestyle. She also stressed that academic theory must adapt to practical constraints on the ground.
“As much as you want to demonstrate what you spent two and a half years reading about, you need to make room for farm reality. You can make a difference, but you should not hold overly high expectations given the farm’s resources and capabilities.”
The disparity between academic preparation and farm expectations can sometimes lead to early exits. Ezile Mdliva, a former agricultural intern from the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT) who was placed at a dairy farm in the Eastern Cape, ended up quitting his year-long internship in his eleventh month.
“The problem is that some of the interns do not regard themselves as interns when going into their internships and do not think they should put in the same work as general workers and get overwhelmed and shocked when they are given work,” Mdliva observed.
He also pointed out that tertiary institutions are not doing enough to prepare students for the world of work. By placing students on farms only in their final year of study after years of purely theoretical learning, institutions leave students unprepared.
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