‘What is that?’: Woman’s job title leaves interviewer baffled

A woman has left many Aussies baffled after revealing what she does for work that sees her earning just shy of six-figures every year.

A woman earning just shy of six figures has left many Aussies scratching their heads after revealing what she does for work.

The Queensland woman was stopped on the streets of Brisbane for an interview with Getahead, a jobs app that matches users with companies and roles.

“What do you do and how much do you make?” the interviewer asked, with the woman informing him she is an agronomist.

Now, if this is a title you have never heard of, then you are not alone. The answer left the interviewer clearly baffled, even after the woman repeated her answer.

“What is that?” the man asked.

The woman explained she is a “cropping consultant” and earns $98,000 a year helping farmers crow a range of different crops.

According to the University of New England website, agronomists are “plant and soil scientists who develop innovative farm practices and technologies that not only boost crop yields but also control pests and weeds and protect the environment”.

The woman explained that she predominantly works with cotton crops, but also deals with wheat, barley, canola, sweet corn, beetroots, pistachios and almonds, among others.

And she isn’t doing all this from behind a desk, revealing she works in the field most days.

According to job search platform, SEEK, the average annual salary of an agronomist in Australia ranges from $85,000 to $105,000.

However, this can be higher depending on where you are based, with agronomists in the Wagga Wagga and Riverina regions, for example, earning an average of $110,000 each year.

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The worker explained that, to get into the field, she went to university where she studied agriculture.

“Someone will come to you with a farm and then you go on the farm and you monitor the plant growth, health, whether it needs water, fertiliser, spraying weeds or pests, or whatever,” she said.

“I just get to grow plants every day. I think it is pretty cool and helps to feed Australia and the world.”

The interview was shared on the Getahead TikTok page, where it has gained more than 300,000 views and dozens of comments.

The interviewer wasn’t the only person who apparently had never heard of such a job, with multiple users questioning how her job was different to that of a farmer.

“Please correct me if I’m wrong but is that not just a fancy word for farmer?” one person said.

Agronomists are plant and soil scientists. Picture: John Carnemolla/Australian Picture Library

The commenters who did know of this job shared their excitement at seeing the little-known field reaching a wider audience.

“Literally have never heard of another agronomist in an interview before! Half the people I talk to don’t even know what that is,” one person said, to which multiple commenters agreed.

Others were just plain impressed by the role, and the pay that went along with it.

“So you’re saying if I could actually get plants to grow, I could be making a ton of money?” one person said.

Another said: “Cool job. Doing something truly important for the world.”

Originally published as ‘What is that?’: Woman’s job title leaves interviewer baffled