Animal Husbandry - Animals, Society and Business

Learn to advise livestock farmers, conduct practice-oriented research, develop new policies, or run your own business

The animal husbandry sector is developing rapidly. Steps are being taken to further improve animal health and welfare, and to reduce environmental impact. Would you like to play a part in this? With a degree in Animals, Society and Business, you could become the advisor who helps livestock farmers innovate, or you could conduct applied research, create new policy, or run your own business.

Why choose Animals, Society and Business?

• This study programme offers a balanced mix of courses on animals, livestock business, the sector, and society. It also offers a perfect combination of theory and practice.
• Our students and lecturers are known for their curiosity and open-mindedness, and for being slightly headstrong. Ideal characteristics for working together towards future-proof animal husbandry.
• With its international character, this English-taught programme gives you the opportunity to study with interesting classmates from the Netherlands and far beyond.
• The atmosphere is very friendly and you get lots of personal attention. We are committed to you, your interests, and your personal development.
• Thanks to our large network of companies and living labs (read: real-life experimental environments), you get to learn and work in a practice-based setting right from the start.
• You will make lots of contacts in the industry, which will in turn help you find a great job. And thanks to your broad education, you will be able to choose from a wide selection of jobs in the Netherlands and abroad.

Everything there is to know about animal husbandry

The bachelor Animals, Society and Business strikes a perfect balance between courses on animals, livestock business, the sector, and society, as well as between theory and practice. In the first two-and-a-half years, you take courses on animal health, reproduction and nutrition, as well as marketing and entrepreneurship. You also work with fellow students on group assignments for clients from the professional field. You complete your study programme with a minor, an internship, and a final project. In concrete terms, you learn:

• how the animal husbandry sector works
• what processes take place on a livestock farm, including animal health and welfare, breeding and genetics, land management and feed production, and animal nutrition
• how to design and conduct field trials
• the ins and outs of innovation, entrepreneurship, and general and financial management
• what the challenges are in the field, and how to work with others to find solutions

Animals, Society and Business brochure.

Kastu feedback about the program after the visit

• It’s a business management program, that goes around the animals but those who want to study something like veterinary will not like this program.
• Students are learning about animal’s behavior, nutrition etc. But mostly it’s about how to make the animal happy and productive for the market.
• Students try to include sustainability principles in everything they do. For example, the students have organized a “Happy race”, which was a horse race, but the main criteria were that the horse would really enjoy the race and be healthy and not pushed to win.
• With Equine program, students often work in the stables but they don't ride or do something particular with the horses (unless in their own free time) because they are oriented in the management of the equine business.