Equine Sciences Certification

Earn industry-recognized credentials in equine studies, management, and business.

This program provides hands-on training and practical knowledge across core areas of equine care, management, and business. Whether you’re just starting or advancing your career, each course builds essential skills for working confidently in equine industries.

Complete a series of six courses over three quarters to earn:

• Equine Sciences Certificate (full program)

• Quarterly certificates and digital badges for each pair of courses

Courses can be taken individually or as a full series.

Click below to regsiter for the Equine Business, Sales, & Marketing Course for spring quarter (3/31/26 - 6/12/26)

Click below to regsiter for the Equine Sciences Course for spring quarter (3/31/26 - 6/12/26)

Winter Quarter (1/6/26 - 3/20/26) – Equine Management Certificate

• Basic Horse Care and Nutrition (3 PDCs)

• Equine Facilities Management (3 PDCs)

Spring Quarter (3/31/26 - 6/12/26) – Equine Business Certificate

• Equine Sciences (3 PDCs)

• Equine Business, Sales and Marketing (3 PDCs)

Summer Quarter (6/22/26 - 8/21/26) – Equine Studies Certificate

• Intro to Equine Studies (3 PDCs)

• Basic Horsemanship (5 PDCs)

•$400 for 3-Professional Development Credit courses and $650.00 for the 5-Professional Development Credit course

• $2,650.00 for full 6-course certificate

Courses can be taken for non-credit, or you have the option to purchase professional development credits on top of the course fee. Each PDC will cost an additional $55 per credit.

SHADOW COMPONENT

Students are required to independently coordinate their shadowing hours and placement locations.

COURSE DETAILS 

Winter Quarter – Equine Management Certificate and Badge

• Basic Horse Care and Nutrition (3 PDCs)

• Objectives: 

  1.  Gain a basic understanding of equine anatomy and physiology. 
  1.  Demonstrate an understanding of equine digestion and metabolism. 
  1.  Identify equine nutritional strategies for a variety of needs.   
  1.  Explain how equine nutrition can prevent injury and disease. 

  Students will gain a basic understanding of equine anatomy and physiology, nutrient digestion and metabolism, nutrition requirements, and feed management.  Clinical nutritional strategies as well as veterinary care or physiological training principles will be applied to improve equine performance and prevent disease. 

• Equine Facilities Management (3 PDCs)

• Objectives: 

  1.  Discover different needs and challenges related to a variety of equine facilities. 
  1.  Identify income and expenses related to a variety of equine facilities. 
  1.  Demonstrate an understanding of bookkeeping practices for various equine facilities. 
  1.  Collaborate with at least two different equine professionals. 
  1.  Develop a safety plan for a potential equine facility. 

  This is an internship style course where students will be placed with an equine facility and instructor to learn about safety, organization, accounting, liability, and best practices in a specific field. 

Spring Quarter – Equine Business Certificate

• Equine Sciences (3 PDCs)

• Objectives: 

  1.  Demonstrate techniques to test equine soundness. 
  1.  Practice basic farrier services. 
  1.  Collaborate with an equine reproductive facility. 
  1.  Identify best practices for equine dentistry. 
  1.  Construct cost analysis and challenges related to equine reproduction and veterinary care. 

  Students will develop methods for analyzing equine conformation, footcare, dental practices and gain an understanding of how these impact training and performance.  Students will familiarize themselves with equine reproduction as well as the management of a breeding facility. 

• Equine Business, Sales and Marketing (3 PDCs)

• Objectives: 

  1.  Create an equine sale catalogue. 
  1.  Build a sale website for equine professionals. 
  1.  Prepare for an equine competition at a professional facility. 
  1.  Practice professional photography for selling horses. 
  1.  Demonstrate how to host an equine sale preview. 

  This hands-on course will allow students to prepare for the marketing of horses in a business and personal sense.  Students will prepare a sale facility, host a sale preview, create a sale catalogue with professional pictures of each equine suited for the web and print, and facilitate a horse show for sale equines as well as outside participants.  Horses from the program will be sold in this course. 

Summer Quarter – Equine Studies Certificate and Badge

• Intro to Equine Studies (3 PDCs)

• Objectives: 

  1.  Identify current market trends for the equine industry. 
  1.  Interview with at least three equine professionals from different disciplines. 
  1.  Compare and contrast a variety of equine professions. 
  1.  Differentiate breeds and competitions for each. 
  1.  Analyze comprehensive management techniques for a variety of equine professions. 

  This course covers a broad overview of the program as well as the entire equine world of opportunity.  Intro to Equine Studies analyzes the evolution of not only the horse and a variety of breeds, but also the evolution of diverse disciplines, horsemanship, and the diverse careers within the equine field.

• Basic Horsemanship (5 PDCs)

• Objectives: 

  1.  Practice basic horsemanship with their assigned horse. 
  1.  Identify confirmation of strengths and weaknesses. 
  1.  Assess a variety of horsemanship programs and beliefs. 
  1.  Develop a training plan for a variety of horses. 
  1.  Demonstrate a variety of horsemanship techniques. 

  Students are introduced to their animals for the first time and begin learning horsemanship and training principles and are assigned the animal they will be working with throughout the program.