Equine Summer Study Abroad Programs in Scotland

This was a great experience. I love how hands on they were. The lesson horses were wonderful. I definitely would recommend the program to anyone that loves the horse. I enjoyed the outings that they scheduled and I adored the people that ran the program. My favourite part was going to the Scottish Borders to the Floors Castle Stud Farm. All around it was a wonderful trip. I would definitely come back if I had the chance.

The UK has always been one of my favourite places in the world that I had never been to, until now. I found this program by simply doing a google search for equine study abroad in Europe. I knew I wanted a study abroad in Europe working directly with animals. When I found this study I knew it was the one. It has been everything I wanted and so much more. The Scottish people are so very nice and welcoming and so much fun to get on with. The horses were great and so well taken care of. Exploring castles, the countryside, hiking, everything has been the most fun I have had in my entire life. I have wanted to move to Europe for a long time, and now Scotland is a huge consideration for the place I might move. When trying to find somewhere to go or figure out how to get there, all of the people at the college, as well as around the towns, were always ready and willing to help us in any way they could. Louise has to be one of my favourite people here. She is such a nice sweet lady and so much fun to talk to. She instantly me feel welcomed and at home the moment I met her at the airport. I have felt completely at home in this whole country, more so than I do in the States. I absolutely recommend this program and would even do it again myself if I could!

The past four weeks in Scotland has been very enriching, and the courses have been very interesting. Through this program, I have improved my English riding technique, had the opportunity to do small jumps, and dressage work. The instructors for riding will give you many critiques as well as encouragement. There are a variety of horses (and with that, temperaments) here at the stables at the Oatridge campus. The equine anatomy and physiology course has been interactive and hands-on. When we were learning about the muscles and bones of the horse, we had the chance to stick labels on live horses and see where these structures were on the actual animal. We learned about the major organ systems in the class. There was an overview of each system and some details about the types of cells in each system. The equine fitness class has taught me more about the different disciplines that you can train a horse for. I haven't competed with horses while growing up, so this has been a great introduction into eventing, dressage, polo, and other areas of competition. I've also liked getting to see how different muscles and skills are necessary based on the discipline. Overall, I have learned quite a bit from this program from riding to the fitness required for different levels of horse competitions. I have not been a big fan of the food here. The options are different than what I'm used to eating back home. There are usually more options with curry and ALWAYS chips (fries) offered with every meal. However, there is always at least two options for food and supplementary food can be purchased from the nearby "Walmart" (ASDA), which we frequent on a weekly basis for supplies. The landscape of Scotland is truly the rolling green pastures with some mountains in the distance. It's simply gorgeous, and the locals are very friendly. I've also learned more about the culture (including common Scottish lingo) and met people from a wide variety of horsie backgrounds.

I really enjoyed my experience at Oatridge in the Study Abroad program. The classes were very informational and gave me lots of practical knowledge about aspects of horses I hadn't known about. Everyone was so friendly and the activities were very interesting and fun to experience with the girls I met here. I really enjoyed riding the different horses at the yard because they were all different but very well trained. Overall, my experience was phenomenal and I would recommend anyone interested in any kind of Equine profession to come have this experience.

I very much enjoyed my experience abroad at Oatridge College. The instructors and workers at Oatridge were all very warm, welcoming, and helpful! They tried to learn our names as quickly as they could, kept up to date with how we were feeling, and if we needed anything they tried to accommodate us as best they could.

The classes were decently fast paced, but as long as I studied a bit after the class and before the assessments, I did fine.

We also got to ride a lot over the course of the program, and by the end of the four weeks everyone was able to do dressage tests and jumping over small jumps, so the lessons were really quite thorough!

I loved the extra trips we made, especially the trips to Loch Lomond and Perth Races.
There were also plenty of hiking places around the college with amazing views, provided you were willing to climb for them.

This trip has been fantastic! Between the hands-on class work and the riding classes, this has really been a once in a lifetime experience. It's the perfect amount of time, not too short that you don't get to learn anything about the country and not too long that you get home sick.
The teachers here were fantastic, friendly and very knowledgeable. I would definitely recommend this program to any equine science student looking for a study abroad program.

This program was a lot of fun. I really enjoyed getting to ride and the instructors were so nice and motivating. All of the horses were awesome, well trained and very well taken care of. We got to go to the local Walmart 1-2 times a week to buy anything we needed. I bought a lot of food items to make my own breakfast and sometimes dinner. There is a fully equipped kitchen with everything you need. Meeting the Scottish students living there and studying at oatridge was a great experience. Everyone is so nice and welcoming. I felt at home from the very beginning. I would recommend this program to any equine student looking for a great month of new experiences, learning from a different culture and wanting to have fun.

The most unique experience at Oatridge college are the riding classes that take place where the Scottish Equestrian Team rides. I really appreciate all the instructors advice and time. Louise, Sam, and Jillian were extremely helpful to accommodate our stay and make us feel at home. Overall, it was an amazing experience. I wish I had an extra week to visit the Scottish highlands. Edinburgh is about 30 minutes away making it simple enough to take a train or taxi. Additionally, once a week the group was taken to ASDA "Walmart" and you could purchase anything. My only issue was the food options ere limited because there was a lot of carbohydrates and not many vegetables.