Career Guidance at Doncaster Equine College

Many of the students joining us are not sure what career they want to pursue, but they have an interest in working with horses. Throughout the academic year, the lecturers will provide the learners with plenty of information about opportunities in training, education, and careers in the equine industry. This includes career discussions about the different pathways that are available, including higher education, apprenticeships, and external qualifications. There are also various trips throughout the year, which provide the learners with experience of different disciplines and positions in the equine industry. For example, some of our current learners visited a rehabilitation centre and a show jumping competition last semester, enabling them to see careers such as competition groom, Event management, professional rider, rehabilitation specialist, yard manager, equine physiotherapist, and more in action. With more trips planned to take place this year.

Alongside the information provided by the lecturers, guest professionals visit the college throughout the year to provide demonstrations and talks to the students. Previous guests have included a saddle fitter, a bit and bridle specialist, and a British Eventing Accredited trainer. There are also specialists who visit the college to provide care for the horses, including Veterinarians, saddle fitters, Dentists, physiotherapists, and farriers. Learners can assist with holding horses, trotting horses up, and asking these professionals questions during their work.

 

Each course has compulsory modules that learners are required to study, however, those on our level 2 and level 3 courses also have optional modules that they can choose to study. This allows them to tailor the course to their interests and gain experience in areas they may not have thought about pursuing. As well as gaining the required knowledge and skills to work in the equine industry, they also gain employability skills throughout their course, which are transferable across careers and industries, such as:

• Good communication, developed through teamwork, working with guest professionals, and group tasks.
• Motivation and initiative, developed through work experience, independent learning, and increased responsibility as they progress through their course.
• Reliability and dependability developed through yard chores and routines.
• Adaptability developed through working with horses.

At Doncaster Equine College we want to make sure every one of our learners is ready to take the next step towards their future, whether that’s gaining an apprenticeship, progressing to the next level of education, or heading straight out into industry once they have completed their qualification with us.