The Royal Agricultural University (RAU) is the oldest agricultural college in the English speaking world and has been at the forefront of agricultural education since 1845. It provides leadership regionally, nationally and internationally, through education, research and consultancy, to the agriculture, equine, food, drink, property and landdbased industries. RAU is a Landex member.
The RAU offers programmes to 1,100 students from over 40 different countries. Subjects include business and management, agriculture, food supply, agribusiness, equine, international rural development, wine business management, property and rural land management. The University farms, a total of 491 hectares (1200 acres), are based at two main locations, both with very different farming conditions. They are run on a commercial basis with students benefiting from access to physical and financial data. The farms also provide a field laboratory for students and staff, and are used for farm classes and projects in practical animal and crop husbandry, conservation and farm woodland management, farm buildings, equine enterprise diversification and rural business management. The mix of enterprise across our farms consists of dairying (in partnership with other businesses), sheep, pigs, horses and arable.
RAU carries out an active programme of research and consultancy often in association with other national and international academic and research centres. we have a track record of working with government, institutional and private sector clients.
The Rural Skills Centre is the leading provider of professional rural training courses in Gloucestershire, delivering courses in Forestry, Pesticide Application, Vehicle Maintenance and Health & Safety.
The Business Development Centre has many years of research and consultancy experience in the United Kingdom and overseas, with a focus on government and private sector capacity building, food industry development, regulatory and private standards evaluation, benchmarking and development and further education extension training.
The University provides scholarships and bursaries so that everyone who could benefit from a RAC qualification is able to.
The School of Business offers unique MBA programmes, which combine traditional MBA study with specialist focus modules and vocational training to ensure graduates have the practical knowledge needed in a range of professions. The MBAs range from Business Management in the Global Food Industry to Wine Business.
There are two Masters programmes that focus on either rural estate management or international real estate providing students with the necessary skills and knowledge for professional practice in either sector. The Masters programmes are suitable for people already in the workplace and for undergraduates looking to further their career prospects or change direction. Programmes allow students to focus solely on general business or select focus modules on wine, food, equine, agriculture or international business, in order to tailor the programme to their needs.
