This year, there has been an increase in liberal arts students heading to the country to get their hands dirty this summer. University professors and farmers say there has been an increase in the number of students seeking agricultural internships for the summer.

Some students dream of running their own farm one day. Others want to make a difference and help amend government food policy. Others have no farming experience whatsoever and are simply looking for a unique challenge, one that doesn’t involve paperwork and sitting in an office cubicle.

Andrew Marshall has been responsible for arranging internships for the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association since 2003. Normally he receives approximately 75 applications a year. This number has increased greatly this year, with over 200 applications received already and more expected along the way. Katherine L. Adam, who is in charge of the National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service, says that 1,400 farms are advertising for interns this year. This figure is almost triple what it was two years ago.

The realities of working on a farm though are not what some students anticipated. Students are not used to the type of accommodation and facilities on offer, and complain about the minimum payment and being overworked.

For farmers, it can be more hassle than help. Students who have no farming experience can break manure spreaders, remove carrot shoots instead of weeds, and often struggle to wake up on time. Some students think they are more politically correct and knowledgeable than their employers. In Florida, an intern wanted to inform authorities about her organic farmer employer giving antibiotics to a sick sheep. The intern was unaware; however, that this is legal so long as the sheep is removed from the herd.

For a lot of students, being able to intern on a farm mirrors their interest in helping to grow locally raised food. There is a growing worry in society over food safety and the effect agriculture has on the environment.

Alex Liebman, 19, is currently undertaking a biology degree at Macalester College in St. Paul. He has taken a year off from school to work at Full Belly Farm.

“I’m not sure that I can affect how messed up poverty is in Africa or change politics in Washington,” he says, “but on the farm I can see the fruits of my labor.”

Liebman goes on to say that, “By actually waking up every day and working in the field and putting my principles into action, I am making a conscious political decision.”

It’s not just government food policy that is receiving interest. Indeed, culinary schools are becoming more and more popular. Students are more aware of how important a balanced and stable diet is and want to learn the techniques of making good, healthy, nutritious food. The increase in cooking has a lot to do with the popularity of food programs, food networks and cooking magazines.