The purpose of this paper is to present issues that are relevant to pursuing an academic career in the chosen discipline of each student. The application will be a general case study of agricultural economics. The analytical model will be used to evaluate options for Ph.D. graduates in a supply and demand context. The first issue presented is a review of demand for economics instructors in academic settings. The next section focuses on "change" within academic institutions including the role of Internet courses, funding and tenure, all of which may affect the supply (quality of life and costs) of the chosen discipline. Section three describes the skill sets required with the academic profession, agricultural economics in this case study, with particular emphasis on positioning oneself for an academic career. The audience envisaged for this paper and its conceptual model include all students considering an academic career or in this application, agricultural economics graduate students and their mentors.