HRH The Princess Royal launched new equine school at the RAU

HRH The Princess Royal officially opened the Royal Agricultural University’s (RAU) new School of Equine Management and Science (SEMS) at a special launch event on Monday 15 September.

HRH The Princess Royal officially opened the Royal Agricultural University’s (RAU) new School of Equine Management and Science (SEMS) at a special launch event on Monday 15 September.

To celebrate the new School, the University held a conference with invited guests and industry experts including RAU alumni on ‘Education, Research and the Horse Industry for the 21st Century’, which was chaired by Mike Tucker, well-known equestrian television commentator and Chair of the SEMS Advisory Board.

The conference was attended by HRH The Princess Royal who gave a presentation from her personal perspective. Princess Anne expressed her pleasure that the RAU now has a defined school for equine science and management. She congratulated the University on its portfolio of relevant equine degrees; developed over the past twenty years (since 1992). Her Royal Highness also spoke of her keen interest in equine management and welfare, and the importance of degree courses that teach students the information and knowledge required to lead the equine industry into the future.

The conference included presentations by Tim Hadaway, FEI Director of Games and Championships and former student; Dr Emmeline Hill, co-founder of Equinome; Dr Meriel Moore-Colyer, Dean of the School of Equine Management and Science; Dr Andrew Hemmings, Principal Lecturer in Equine Science; and Peter Morris, Senior Lecturer in Law and Equine.

Dr Meriel Moore-Colyer took to the stage to welcome guests, and spoke about how the RAU courses are tailored to the ever-evolving needs of the industry, producing talented and uniquely skilled graduates, for which she thanked those present for their input in driving the degrees forward.

Tim Hadaway, the man widely credited for the success of the equestrian events in the London 2012 Olympics, spoke of the rapidly growing world of equine sport and entertainment, and the increased expectations and welfare standards that go alongside this. He touched upon the explosive growth of technology, and the fantastic opportunities this opens up worldwide for RAU alumni.

Dr Emmeline Hill spoke about her fascinating research into genealogy and behavioural traits, followed by Dr Andrew Hemmings who spoke about the University’s ongoing behavioural and nutritional research, focusing primarily on brain functions and its relationship to equine behaviour.

Chairman Mike Tucker closed the conference with praise for the new school and the enthusiasm of its lecturers. He professed his excitement for the project, and his hopes that the impeccably high graduate employability rate of 97.5% would be maintained and that the next twenty years will be even better.

The creation of new School of Equine Management and Science is an exciting new development that will focus and enhance our undergraduate and postgraduate courses. It will also provide a clear identity for our research specialisms in nutrition, genetics, health and welfare and further enhance our USP in applied equine research.

For more information please contact shelly.hampshire@rau.ac.uk on 01285 652531.