When Sara Ross ’08 told her friends that she was going to Johnson & Wales University in Providence, R.I., they assumed she was studying to be a chef. “But everyone in the equine world,” she told a reporter for the Providence Journal,” knows about the Johnson & Wales equine program.”
Beth Beukema, the director of JWU's Center for Equine Studies at Rehoboth, Mass., points out that the equine studies degree programs focus on training students to learn how to run an equine business. This might include managing a barn or horse farm or instructing riders, or perhaps joining an equine-related businesses, such as equipment sales or equine events or even equine insurance. Some students decide to operate and manage horse shows.
Sarah Ross was hired by SmartPak, an equine nutiritonal food company, even before she finished her degree. "I use what I learned in the equine nutrition classes every day at work," she said.
The JWU equine studies program was established in 1980 and is part of the College of Business. The program offers two BS degrees: one in equine business management and the other in equine business management with an concentration on riding and riding instruction.
Rebecca Yu '09, from Colorado, liked the program precisely because of its business component. In her opinion the JWU program seemed the best-rounded equine program available. “There are courses on [horse] nutrition, lameness, but also marketing and accounting. It’s not strictly equine. I think that’s important.”
Every spring JWU hosts an equine career night at their Rehoboth facility, where students can meet and connect with representatives from riding schools and equine-related business.
For more information about career night or about the equine program, contact Beth Beukema at the Center for Equine Studies.