Recently in colleges Category

Remember Richard Byrne, the agricultural lecturer who blogged for Field Day while he was serving in Afghanistan as a navy reservist?

Well, author Peter Darman read his words and is featuring Richard (left) in his new book, Blood, Sweat and Steel.

Due out this summer, it compiles first-hand accounts from military personnel from around the world, who served in the first Gulf War, the Iraq conflict and Afghanistan.

Well done to the Newcastle University Agrics Club.

More than 20 of them volunteered as drivers for their muckathon which raised over £500 for DebRA, a charity for people suffering with the skin condition epidermolysis bullosa.

They raised the cash by asking people to guess how long it would take to spread a heap of manure, with a prize given for the closest guess. In the end it took 13 hours and 20 minutes.

"It was good fun and in a good cause," said third year student Jack Smith.

It's summer ball season at agricultural colleges. I've never been to the one at Harper but, by all accounts, it's legendary.

Here's a gallery of pictures from this year's event, which happened on Friday and saw 1700 students and ex-students at the Shropshire campus. The theme was 'A Midsummers Knight'.

Agriculture students at Kingston Maurward College have been spreading manure to help keep a life-saving service airborne.

A 96-year-old man has paid a return visit to Harper Adams 75 years after he was a student there.

Guest blogger: Petty Officer Richard Byrne, Helmand Province

I've swapped the green landscape of rural north Shropshire for the dusty and arid landscape of southern Afghanistan.

Helmand is very different to my normal work environment at Harper Adams University College.

I'm out here on a six-month tour with 3 Commando Brigade as a mobilised Royal Navy Reservist. I work as as an agricultural land use advisor as part of the Civil Military Co-operation Group.

Our task is to assist the military and civil authorities in bringing about stabilisation and promoting conditions for reconstruction. I work on a variety of rural projects, many to do with looking at alternatives to growing poppy.

In some respects it's very much like the work I do at Harper - undertaking projects and providing advice - except when I do a farm visit here I have to wear body armor, helmet and carry a weapon.

It shouldn't be forgotten how difficult it is to operate in this country. Not only is it very hot - currently, as we go into autumn, it's still a little under 40 degrees centigrade its also an inherently dangerous place.

While many of the population are friendly towards us and value the work being done here, there are many who seek to disrupt and damage reconstruction efforts.

I've been surprised by the diversity of agriculture here. You see images on the television of barren, arid areas and much is like that, but where the land is irrigated around the Helmand River there is lush growth and some impressive production.

The latest four-legged arrival at Askham Bryan College is a baby possum.

The creature (pictured with Nicky Broadbent) is already making himself very much at home with both staff and students.

Mambo is getting used to campus life as he settles into the Animal Management Centre of the York-based college.

This press release made me laugh.

It's about a Scottish Agricultural College student, Claire Convery, who's been given an award by Lantra, the skills council for the environmental and land-based sectors.

Now that might now strike you as funny in itself but - and maybe this is just my juvenile sense of humour - but what made me smile was reading about one of the previous courses she'd studied. Stud Management.

Anyway, well done Claire for picking up the HE Learner of the Year award.

I'm shocked. This is disgusting.

For those of you who have been following the farm student makeover, you can now watch our short video of the transformation here.

We've now been through the photos of the student makeover - there are 100-plus in this gallery if you'd like to see more.

Look at this motley crew.

They’re students at Kingston Maurward College in Dorset which has a record numbers of students studying agriculture this year.

Had some requests for a few more makeover pictures, so here goes.

Proof, I reckon, that working on a farm doesn't mean you can't be stylish.

Here are our three agricultural students - obviously after their makeover. Respect!

See below for some more before and after shots.

Today’s been brilliant.

It’s probably the only time I’ll ever spend a day with a world-class hairdresser and fashion stylist.

The day, however, was about our three agricultural students who'd won the makeover. They entered into the spirit of it, had their hair totally restyled and were dressed in clothes worth thousands of pounds (no, they didn’t get to take them home - although one did joke about making a run for it, then flogging it on eBay!)

Just off to this posh hair place in London for our agricultural student makeover.

Heard last night that the stylist has worked in the past with a member of the Royal family, top singers and a famous footballer (I'm supposed to be sworn to secrecy, but let's just say the one concerned has a wife called Victoria!)

It's just as well he doesn't have to give me a makeover - I'm sure the poor guy will despair at the sight of me. I know I said yesterday that I very rarely wear a tie, but you'll be pleased to know I have ironed a shirt in preparation for today's proceedings! Will let you know how it goes.

Look at these three. By this time tomorrow, they’re going to look altogether different.

Students at Hadlow, the rural skills centre in Kent, have been vying to get behind the wheel of the college's new tractor.

Machinery buffs will recognise it was a McCormick CX105 XtraShift. Apparently it was chosen because the model is representative of a modern general-purpose tractor used on farms up and down the country.

That's something I've learnt today!

I thought 'blue shirts' were off Hi-de-Hi, but my tv-mad friends tell me they were, in fact, yellow jackets who appeared on the comedy show (inspired by the red coats at Butlins).

Actually, blue shirts are who'll be on hand to show visitors round at the Harper Adams Open Day on Sunday October 14.

It’s that time of year again… students around the country are stepping into the big wide world and starting their new jobs soon.

Scott Crossley is one of the students finishing the Fish Management national diploma at Myerscough College and he’ll be beginning work in an aquatics and garden centre.

He’s obviously found a bit of time to pursue his fishing passion though.