This programme is designed to provide you with an in-depth specialist understanding of wellbeing of the horse through study of the principles underpinning health and nutritional management.

You will utilise our excellent laboratory facilities, including nutritional analysis equipment, to become confident and capable in conducting a breadth of protocols in preparation for working in scientific and research settings with equine and animal industries as well as wider areas. The inclusion of Immunology, Molecular Biology, and Equine Sport Injury and Diagnostic Technologies further ensures that you have in-depth scientific knowledge and practical competency in relevant scientific disciplines.

The potential threat of various infectious equine diseases to our UK shores and the international nature of the equine industry is of key focus; our programme explores disease monitoring, biosecurity control and preventative technologies to prepare graduates for such roles. The inclusion of Equine Clinical Nutrition in your final year allows the combination of health and nutrition to give you an independent opportunity to review case studies with regards to nutritional management of clinical disorders and is a chance to experience industry practice in a supportive setting.

The programme seeks to provide you with a stimulating and challenging experience in order to promote health, welfare and optimise nutrition of the equine athlete, ensuring sound research and analytical skills are developed to apply scientifically informed processes.

**What will I study?**
Year 1:
- Academic, Employment and Professional Skills

- Equine Health & Husbandry

- Grassland Management and Forage Conservation

- Equine Anatomy & Physiology

- Introduction to Research Skills

- Scientific Principles and Laboratory Skills

- Introduction to Nutrition

- Cell Biology

Year 2:
- Research Methods & Analysis

- Equine Exercise Physiology

- Equine Ration Formulation and Micro-Nutrition

- The Nutrition Industry

- Enterprise and Entrepreneurship

- Equine Infectious Disease

Year 3:
- Dissertation

- Equine Sport Injury & Diagnostic Techniques

- Immunology

- Equine Clinical Nutrition

- Molecular Biology

- Advanced Nutritional Biochemistry.

**Learning and Teaching Approach**
This programme is delivered with a variety of learning and teaching approaches, utilising excellent onsite resources and extensive industry links for applied aspects. For all modules, there are theory lectures delivered, aimed at providing the core content and underpinning knowledge. Lectures are used to convey the basic concepts, and facilitate further expansion of such concepts by the students, through independent study. To complement the theory lectures, students have group seminars that are used to reinforce those concepts delivered theoretically. This programme has a focus on practical ability in a laboratory setting, therefore many modules will have theory content supported by active development of laboratory skills utilising specialist equipment.

**Contact Time**
Contact time includes approximately 13 hours a week to include lectures, seminars, practical's and tutorials.

Students are also expected to carry out a significant amount of independent study in addition to contact time (approximately 25-30 hours a week). Independent study includes reading around the subject, preparing for tutorials and seminars, preparing for, and completing, module assessments and revision for examinations; forming an essential part of a student’s learning journey.

**Career Opportunities**
Students graduating from this programme could follow careers within the equine industry or wider biosciences. Examples of these careers include: independent nutritionist; nutritional adviser; assistant or operative in an equine health and welfare setting; laboratory technician or feed analyst.