
Animal Management
Animal Management
STUDYING ANIMAL MANAGEMENT AT WESTON COLLEGE
You will get the chance to work with an exciting new range of animals thanks to our partnership with Puxton Park, including domestic, farm and exotic animals include tortoises, parrots, reindeer, owls, marmoset monkeys, meerkats, donkeys, goats, ponies, rare pigs, alpacas, cattle, emus, stick insects and more ...
You will be based both at Knightstone Campus and Puxton Park, where you will benefit from:
- A bespoke animal management campus.
- Weekly experience within an outstanding zoo farm.
- The opportunity to study and work with a wide range of animal species from insects to primates.
- Teaching from industry specialists.
- Opportunities to undertake meaningful and substantial work experience.
- Trips to animal establishments.
- Guest lectures from a wide range of industry specialists
Use this page to discover your perfect course, and apply direct right here.
Careers in Animal Management
Here are just a few examples of job titles that have shown to be the most popular listings in the South West region within the last year.
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Animals are extremely important to our lives and there is a huge variety of careers in the animal care sector. The animal care industry is worth £1 billion to the UKs economy. It has 13,000 businesses, 78,000 employees and lots of volunteers.
We've bundled the best education in the area with career boosted benefits - and are leveraging our contacts as one of the largest Colleges in the country to give you the best possible chance of success.
Our qualifications have been developed in conjunction with local and national employers and have a proven record of helping students gain animal management related jobs and onto relevant degrees.
Our programmes are endorsed by:
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The Animal Care Land Based Studies Certificate is an ideal starting point for animal lovers seeking a career in the animal care industry. The comprehensive course combines theoretical knowledge with hands-on practical work to equip you with the necessary skills and experience for working with animals. Throughout the course, one day per week wi...
Click HereThe Animal Care Technical Certificate is ideal if you have little experience of working with animals. It combines theoretical knowledge with practical activities and projects. The course emphasises hands-on training – you will develop practical animal handling skills and gain an understanding of the basic care of a wide range of animal speci...
Click HereThe Animal Care and Management T Level is a vocational qualification created to provide students with the skills and knowledge necessary for a career within the animal sector. The course involves a significant amount of theory and science. Our experienced tutors are dedicated to teaching you the necessary theory to complement your practical kn...
Click HereThe Animal Care and Management T Level is a vocational qualification created to provide students with the skills and knowledge necessary for a career within the animal sector. The course involves a significant amount of theory and science. Our experienced tutors are dedicated to teaching you the necessary theory to complement your practical kn...
Click HereThe Animal Care BTEC Extended Diploma is an ideal choice for animal lovers who aspire to develop their animal care skills and work in the industry. While physically demanding, this course offers immense satisfaction as you will see the positive impact you can have on animals' lives. The course provides a balanced blend of theory and practica...
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OUR ANIMAL MANAGEMENT VIDEOS
Courses after College
Your journey to University Centre Weston starts here...
Our link with Puxton Park
The College has joined forces with Puxton Park, which will enable you to develop industry-specific skills working within the park’s extensive farmland and facilities, with a wide range of farm and domestic animals, which will significantly enhance your employability skills for the future.
The link will also allow you to gain broader experience in your customer service skills, by engaging with tourists, families and school parties; all helping to prepare you for the world of work.
Taken straight from our virtual open evenings, Charlotte (one of the lecturers) gives us a guided tour of our Animal Management facilities!
MEET THE TEAM
Latest news
THE FACILITIES
You will get the chance to work with an exciting range of animals thanks to our partnership with Puxton Park, one of the region’s top visitor attractions.
Your classroom lectures will come to life as you carry out practical sessions at the park, enabling you to develop industry specific skills working with the park’s specialist facilities and animals.
Puxton’s range of domestic, farm and exotic animals include tortoises, parrots, reindeer, owls, marmoset monkeys, meerkats, donkeys, goats, ponies, rare pigs, alpacas, cattle, emus and stick insects.
The partnership will also allow you to gain broader customer service skills, by engaging with tourists, families and school parties - all helping you prepare for the world of work.
You will be based both at Knightstone Campus and Puxton Park, where you will benefit from:
- A bespoke animal management campus.
- Weekly experience within an outstanding zoo farm.
- The opportunity to study and work with a wide range of animal species from insects to primates.
- Teaching from industry specialists.
- Opportunities to undertake meaningful and substantial work experience.
- Trips to animal establishments.
- Guest lectures from a wide range of industry specialists.






Occupations related to Animal Management
WHAT OUR STUDENTS SAY
Animal Management, Level 3 Extended Diploma
Level 1 & 2 Animal Care
LATEST NEWS

<p>This week we welcomed back former Weston College learner, Ellie, to share her inspiring journey with our animal management students.</p><p>Ellie's journey began during her time at Weston College, where she seized the opportunity to secure an industry placement at Puxton Park, laying the foundation for her career in animal care. From there, her path led her to being offered a role as an animal keeper—a testament to her commitment and skill in the field.</p><p>However, Ellie's dream is to work with monkeys, and she is currently on a sabbatical, which included a 3-month voluntary placement in South Africa.</p><p>For two months, Ellie lent her expertise to Monkey Helpline, contributing to the rehabilitation of wild primates. This hands-on experience allowed her to witness first hand the challenges and rewards of primate conservation efforts. Subsequently, she spent a month with International Primate Rescue as a primate care assistant, playing a crucial role in rescuing primates from the perils of the pet trade.</p><p>During her spell volunteering, she has been offered a full-time job, showcasing the fantastic work she has been doing.</p><p>Subject Area Manager for Animal Management, Laura Link, said: “It was great to see Ellie, who shared all about her fantastic experiences with our students.</p><p>“She only had one-week back in the UK, during her sabbatical, so we were very lucky that she came to visit before heading back to South Africa.</p><p>“Ellie has been on an incredible journey, and her passion really shines through, which our learners found really inspiring. It showed that through studying Animal Management, you can achieve your dream career, and work anywhere in the world.”</p><p>This guest speaker forms part of the Animal Management Careers Excellence Hub; Weston College is committed to preparing learners for success in a rapidly evolving job market which is reflected in our offer via our bespoke Career Excellence Hubs, which form an integral part of all college programmes.</p><p><a href="https://www.weston.ac.uk/what-can-i-study/courses-16-18-year-olds/anima… can find out more about our Animal Management courses, by clicking here.</a></p>

<p>I was already a massive fan of the work that <a href="https://wildwelfare.org/">Wild Welfare</a> does years before I started working for them. I’d never come across another charity doing anything like what they were doing, and particularly in the way they were doing it. The problem of poor animal welfare within captive animal facilities such as zoos, aquariums and sanctuaries is widespread and incredibly challenging. Instead of condemnation, Wild Welfare collaborates, working together to drive forward welfare improvements for animals in facilities across the globe. Providing training to animal care staff ensures they have the tools they need to better understand animal welfare and positively impact it through their care practices. The training we provide has proven very effective at achieving this outcome over the 11 years we have been active and being a part of the journey has been phenomenal.</p>
<p>A typical day for me involves a lot of desk work which was a significant change from the years I spent working as a zookeeper, but the impact I know I can have, and the animal welfare issues I am hugely aware of are my driving force. Typical days in the field, however, look very different. We might have meetings with project partners in Vietnam, give presentations at a conference in Indonesia, or conduct welfare audits and make recommendations on where improvements might be made in a facility in Japan. Of course, taking a moment to say hello to the animals is an essential part of the process. The animals make everything worth it but, surprisingly for me, they didn’t turn out to be the best part of my role. Instead it’s the people, and the changes we create within them. Meeting people who are so passionate about the animals under their care, and giving them opportunities to learn more about how to improve animal welfare is intensely gratifying. You can make friends for life, despite the language barriers.</p>
<p>In this line of work it’s not all about the qualifications. Particular personality traits also hold significance. Patience and level-headedness are two critically important attributes because the changes we are creating take time and the sights we sometimes see aren’t pleasant. Reacting in anger or impatience is a sure-fire way to destroy a collaborative relationship which might have taken years to build.</p>
<p>I recently journeyed to Weston College to give a lecture to the students about the differences between animal care and animal welfare, something I had struggled to comprehend myself when I was a keeper. It was fantastic to connect with the students and I hope what we discussed will help with their animal management practices in the future. It was also very encouraging to witness the fundraising efforts which Weston College had initiated. We are a charity after all and cannot create positive changes for animals without financial support so we were hugely grateful to everyone who chooses to get involved with our work via donations to its continuation.</p>
<p><em>Sarah Bonser-Blake, Animal Welfare Field Manager, Wild Welfare</em></p>
<p><a href="https://www.weston.ac.uk/what-can-i-study/courses-16-18-year-olds/anima… you would like to follow Sarah's footsteps, and work with animals, you can discover our animal management courses, by clicking here. </a></p>

<p>Working with animals can be a dream for many people, and one way in which you can achieve this, to become a vet.</p>
<p>In the UK there are over 29,000 veterinary positions, with vets earning an average salary of £47,000 a year!</p>
<p>You might now be wondering how you can become a vet… we’ll tell you how.</p>
<p>In order to become a vet, you will need to complete a veterinary degree approved by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS).</p>
<p>Entry to these courses is highly competitive, so it is important that you stand out from the crowd, with great results and relevant work experience. Here are some of the options that you can take, to progress onto an approved degree.</p>
<p><strong>Animal Management</strong></p>
<p>Animal Management is perfect for animal lovers who want to develop their animal care skills to work in the industry.</p>
<p>Animal Management courses offer a balance of practical work and theory, that will provide you with the opportunity to work with a wide variety of animals. You will gain detailed academic knowledge and understanding of all aspects of animal science, management, behaviour and husbandry through theory-based and practical sessions.</p>
<p>You will also have the opportunity to gain valuable work experience, working with a local organisation to build your knowledge and practical skills.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.weston.ac.uk/what-can-i-study/courses-16-18-year-olds/anima… here to view our Animal Management courses.</a></p>
<p><strong>A Levels</strong></p>
<p>A Levels are the most common route to university. They offer a more academic route, but thanks to our Career Excellence Hub, you will have unrivalled access to employers, where you can gain work experience, attend masterclasses and hear from industry insiders.</p>
<p>The subjects that universities will want you to study varies, but typically the science-related subjects are required.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.weston.ac.uk/what-can-i-study/courses-16-18-year-olds/level… here to view our A Level courses.</a></p>
<p><strong>Access to Higher Education</strong></p>
<p>Access to Higher Education (HE) is a great way for people over the age of 19 to gain the qualifications needed to progress on to a degree.</p>
<p>At Weston College, we offer an Access to HE Diploma in Animal Science, which is taught flexibly over 10 hours, per week.</p>
<p>The course is a great way to gain the qualifications needed for university and covers a wide range of topics, such as: zoo enclosure management, behaviour, exotic animal husbandry, vet nursing, welfare, conservation, behaviour, biology, chemistry.</p>
<p>All learners receive tutorial sessions and also complete independent study units in study skills sessions.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.weston.ac.uk/what-can-i-study/courses-adults/access-higher-… here to view the course details.</a></p>
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<p>If you'd like to find out more about a career in animal management,<a href="https://www.weston.ac.uk/news-and-events/events?utm_source=main-menu&am…; come along to one of our open evenings and chat to the team</a>, they will be more than happy to help!</p>