Applied Animal Behaviour (Top-up)

What makes UCS special?
Our staff and graduates are highly regarded by industry. The lecturers’ experience, knowledge and industry links can give you the head start you need.

We are an accredited member of the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums (BIAZA) and work closely with them. We have also worked with the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA) on a funded project to define a competence framework for zoo keepers, which is at the heart of our National Zoo Academy. Sparsholt is the hub for the industry recognised professional zookeeper qualification, the DMZAA (Diploma in the Management of Zoo and Aquarium Animals).Our lecturers bring their expertise to your learning from their work with world‑leading zoos and nationally‑recognised organisations. They also advise research committees, welfare groups and awarding bodies within the industry. We have strong links with a range of wildlife, conservation and commercial organisations, allowing you to access work placements and to carry out industry relevant research that can feed into your career.

What makes this course unique?

• Full or part-time blended top‑up degree course – attend on site for 6, week‑long block weeks and follow additional activities to continue your learning remotely in between.

• Our living collection – use our extensive facilities to carry out innovative research as part of your course on a wide range of industry‑led projects including novel species ethological studies, cognitive and human‑animal interactions research. Students can utilise the state‑of‑the‑art kennels which are licensed for up to 40 dogs on a day care or full board basis and our cattery for practical training and behaviour observations, as well as our fully licensed zoo, the Animal Health and Welfare Research Centre which is home to a variety of small mammals and exotic species to widen the range of species to work with

• Delivered by staff who are active in the field, as clinical animal behaviourists, ABTC assessors and members of the relevant behaviour and clinician societies, publishing regularly on topics of animal cognition, behaviour and welfare.

What will I learn?
You will gain a critical evaluation of animal ethology, health and welfare, learning theory, law and ethics and clinical practice.

Practical learning to ensure you graduate with career confidence:

• Behavioural observations of a variety of species

• Safe training practices with different species

• Conduct welfare assessments

• Contribute to live research projects, such as goat animal interactions, canine communication comprehension and feline cognition.

How will I be assessed?
Our assessments mirror the challenges you will face in your career, combining academic depth with practical application:

• Research dissertations that address real‑world animal science problems

• Field‑based assignments allow you to showcase your skills to employers

• A range of presentation types and written assignments that develop key graduate skills such as communication expertise.

Focused on Your Future:
This degree opens doors to diverse career paths in a rapidly growing sector, such as behaviourist or animal trainer in rescue and animal welfare charities and will allow you to progress on to gaining the practical competency to gain the Clinical Animal Behaviourist title.

How our graduates are shaping the future:

• Working with charities such as Dogs Trust and Blue Cross

• Undertaking animal care and welfare research for wildlife charities and laboratory institutes

• Self‑employed as feline/canine behaviourist

• Pushing the frontiers of animal behaviour research by working in postgraduate education such as Master’s and Doctoral level degrees.

Course Modules*

Dissertation and data analysis

Ethology, ethics and legislative application

Human psychology and clinical practice

Mechanisms of behaviour, communication, learning and training

*subject to change

Professionally accredited courses provide industry-wide recognition of the quality of your qualification.

• Animal Behaviour and Training Council (ABTC)