Royal Agricultural University
UCAS Code: W631 | Bachelor of Science (with Honours) - BSc (Hons)
Entry requirements
GCSE/National 4/National 5
Essential: five subjects at GCSE grade C/4 including English Language and mathematics
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
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About this course
If you aspire to have a career in the thoroughbred or sports horse industry, our specialist Bloodstock and Equine Performance Management course will teach you all you need to know about training, breeding, racecourse management and enterprise.
Industry experience is at the heart of this degree with a work placement in Year 2, and visits to leading racing businesses. Our graduates have secured high profile positions in the racing industry, including organisations such as Godolphin, Juddmonte, The Jockey Club, Weatherbys and The National Trainers Federation and you could join them.
**Course structure**
This degree course with a foundation year incorporates an extra year of study at the start of your course, so that you can progress with confidence. It will develop the skills you need for your later studies. It is particularly suitable if:
You don’t have the grades for immediate entry onto a three-year course
You have non-traditional qualifications or experience
You’re starting university after some time away from education
You’re looking for more support during the transition into university study
YEAR 0-Foundation
YEAR 1
YEAR 2-(15 week work placement)
YEAR 3
In Year 0 of your four year programme you will be developing your academic and team-working skills and gaining confidence in written work; handling numerical and statistical data, and ICT. You will be introduced to a range of rural land use topics including, learning about the agricultural year; mapping; laboratory skills, and you will have the opportunity to gain competence in a range of practical skills. The year will help you to make the transition to being an independent learner, and perhaps an entrepreneur. Successful completion of the foundation year will allow you to proceed onto Year 1 of the course.
Gain a solid grounding in all aspects of the horse racing industry through lectures, seminars, visiting speakers and field trips. Modules will be assessed through a range of methods including examinations, reports, business plans, case studies and presentations.
**Work placement**
You will complete a 15-week work placement in YEAR 2 of the course. Students have completed placements at prestigious companies such as Highclere Stud, France Galop, Arena Racing Company, Colin Tizzard Racing and the Event Rider Masters Limited.
The Research Project is an integral part of the course and provides essential experience in both design and execution of a piece of research. You can choose to focus on either science or business and you could also see your Research Project featured in one of the many academic journals that regularly publish our students’ work.
N.B. The Integrated Foundation Year is suitable for applicants who have taken level 3 qualifications (A-levels, BTEC etc.) in the UK. Overseas students who have not studied in the UK and completed their secondary education in their country, should look at taking an International Foundation Programme in order to meet the entry criteria for the degree programmes offered by the RAU.
Modules
For up to date module information, please see our website: https://www.rau.ac.uk/courses/undergraduate
Assessment methods
The programme has a variety of assessment styles to encourage the application of knowledge in ways appropriate to the industry or to develop core graduate skills. Many of the assessments occurs via coursework or practical assessment rather than traditional examinations. Coursework exercises include (but are not limited to) written essays and reports, practical application of skills, reflective portfolios and oral presentations which may also include using audio visual media. Where examinations are utilised, these are generally ‘seen’ scenarios whereby the paper is made available to students 2 weeks before the assessment date or open book where students can take their course notes into the exam room. The open book or seen exams are looking for students to analyse, evaluate and apply, rather than just to retain knowledge.
Tuition fees
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The Uni
Royal Agricultural University
Department of Equine (CL)
What students say
We've crunched the numbers to see if the overall teaching satisfaction score here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.
How do students rate their degree experience?
The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.
Animal science
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
Agriculture
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
After graduation
The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.
Equine studies
What are graduates doing after six months?
This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.
Top job areas of graduates
These stats refer to the prospects for graduates from both general animal studies courses and those for particular animals (such as equine science). Graduates don't generally get jobs as vets when they graduate; much the most common jobs tend to be roles caring for animals, such as veterinary nurses. Some of these jobs are not currently classified as professional level occupations, but in reality, you need a degree to get these jobs (and probably always have done), and graduates in them report that they got the jobs that they wanted. So the stats you see might not completely represent just how useful these degrees are for getting into animal care careers.
Animal management
What are graduates doing after six months?
This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.
Top job areas of graduates
About 70% of the UK's land area is given over to agriculture, so this is a subject representing an important part of the country's economy. Typical starting jobs for graduates in agriculture include agricultural science, farming and farm management, but graduates also go into other areas, such as the horticulture trade, auctioneering and conservation. Agriculture graduates are also in increasing demand for one of the hardest-to-fill jobs in the country - surveying. Jobs for agriculture graduates are often in rural areas - in 2016, areas like Essex, Lincolnshire, Staffordshire, Suffolk, Yorkshire and Kent were all important for agriculture graduates.
Animal science
What are graduates doing after six months?
This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.
Top job areas of graduates
These stats refer to the prospects for graduates from both general animal studies courses and those for particular animals (such as equine science). Graduates don't generally get jobs as vets when they graduate; much the most common jobs tend to be roles caring for animals, such as veterinary nurses. Some of these jobs are not currently classified as professional level occupations, but in reality, you need a degree to get these jobs (and probably always have done), and graduates in them report that they got the jobs that they wanted. So the stats you see might not completely represent just how useful these degrees are for getting into animal care careers.
What about your long term prospects?
Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.
Animal science
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£23k
£26k
£28k
Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.
Agriculture
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£23k
£26k
£28k
Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.
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Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):
We've received this information from the Department for Education, via Ucas. This is how the university as a whole has been rated for its quality of teaching: gold silver or bronze. Note, not all universities have taken part in the TEF.
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This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).
This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.
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This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.
You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.
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Post-six month graduation stats:
This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.
It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.
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Graduate field commentary:
The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show
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The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.
While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?
Have a question about this info? Learn more here



