<p>At Weston College, we understand and emphasise the importance of planning your dream career, and helping you take all the steps needed to reach that goal.</p>

<p>Making connections with employers is a great way of securing plans for your future, so creating opportunities for learners to meet guest speakers from the industry is a highly valuable part of the courses, particularly the programmes endorsed by the Career Excellence Hub (CEH). When a course is endorsed by the CEH, it means the qualifications have been developed in conjunction with local and national employers, and they have a proven record of helping students gain relevant jobs.</p>

<p>Our Animal Management learners had a great introduction to employers from the industry, through an Animal Careers Fest, held at the Puxton Park campus. Throughout the day, multiple animal-related professionals met the learners to explain their journey to where they are now, answering questions and giving the inside scoop of how to succeed in the animal industry. Pete, from the Reptile Zone in Bristol, was one of the visitors, who bought along Ali G the alligator, and Frank the chameleon. Staff (and guinea pigs!) from Barnaby’s Bunny Barn also gave talks on their experience, as well as the RSPCA.</p>

<p>The learners fully utilised their time with each professional, asking in depth and detailed questions about how to follow in their footsteps. The professionals all explained their advice, following along the similar mantra of “know your stuff!”</p>

<p>Each learner even had the opportunity to hold and interact with Ali G the alligator, as featured in the photographs, which, though daunting, was the highlight of the day!</p>

<p>Click here if you’re interested in looking into animal management, and <a href="https://www.weston.ac.uk/what-can-i-study/courses-16-18-year-olds/anima… here to find out more about the Career Excellence Hub.</a></p>

<p>Animal Management are delighted to introduce the newest addition to the team: baby Emu, Egbert. Egbert’s carers have been spending lots of quality time with the little chick, in the hopes that he would imprint on them.</p>

<p>This is something that Emus do in the wild in order to learn and identify with their caregivers, in Egbert’s case this is the wonderful Animal Management team.</p>

<p>The incredible staff and students have had great success, with Egbert following them around everywhere and becoming a popular and beloved member of the family.</p>

<p>Emus are native to Australia, and so the students have relished in the rare opportunity to engage in such hands-on experience working with the unique and interesting Egbert.<br />
<br />
Our <a href="https://www.weston.ac.uk/what-can-i-study/courses-16-18-year-olds/anima… 3 Animal Management BTEC Extended Diploma</a> is taught at Knightstone Campus, with practical work based at our Puxton Park facilities, offering students relevant and crucial industry experience.</p>

<p>This course provides learners with the opportunity to work with a wide range of animals while gaining detailed academic knowledge of animal science, behaviours and management.</p>

<p>Our brilliant tutors cover topics such as animal health, nutrition, welfare and breed development as well as supporting learners to interact with amazing animals like Egbert.<br />
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Our Animal&nbsp;department&nbsp;increases career-boosting benefits through the creation of the <a href="https://www.weston.ac.uk/career-excellence-hubs">Animal Management&nbsp;Career Excellence Hub</a>.&nbsp;</p>

<p>These innovative subject specific hubs allow for students at Weston College to have access to exclusive opportunities such as this.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Endorsed by employers from within the industry, this enables for better integration with the sector to make sure class content is relative and opens doors for learners, so they leave college with more than just a qualification.</p>

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<p><a href="https://www.weston.ac.uk/what-can-i-study/courses-16-18-year-olds/anima… you want to start your career working with animals, click here to take a look at our courses in Animal Management!</a></p>

<p>Animal Management is a hugely important industry, which is worth over £2 billion to the UK economy. We have launched our Animal Management Career Excellence Hub to meet the need of careers within the sector, with over 59% of households having pets, the need for vets and animal specialists is rapidly increasing.</p>

<p>The Career Excellence Hubs have been created to get our learners to reach their ultimate career goals by focussing on future employability and developing the skills that they will need to have a successful career!</p>

<p>Our Animal Management Career Excellence Hub is focused on providing our learners with the right learning environment to help them to reach their potential. Lecturers provide concepts and ideas through their own industry experience which is valuable to the students as it provides them with 21st Century employability skills and ‘real world learning’ through employer briefs and real-life case studies and scenarios. The course is co-designed with local endorsers which include Noah's Ark Zoo, North Somerset Agricultural Society and Puxton Park. Through our endorsers we offer enhanced work experience and provide unrivalled exposure.</p>

<p>They will get to study in state-of-the-art learning spaces at Puxton Park which enables them to develop industry-specific skills working within the park’s extensive farmland, facilities and wide range of farm and domestic animals. This gives our learners the opportunity to gain a valuable hands-on experience and prepares them with all the tools they will need to succeed in their educational journey to their chosen careers.</p>

<p>With the Animal Management campus being in the heart of Puxton Park, it gives the learners the opportunity to gain a valuable hands-on experience and preparing them with all the tools they will need to succeed in their educational journey to their chosen careers. Animal Management is an exciting and varied industry with many career paths our learners can take, these include zoologist, veterinary nurse, and animal physiotherapist.</p>

<p>For more information on how to apply to Weston College and join our amazing Career Excellence Hub for Animal Management, <a href="https://www.weston.ac.uk/what-can-i-study/courses-16-18-year-olds/anima… here</a>.</p>