'The feeling of pride to be at the start of a foal’s journey is something that just can’t be put into words'

My passion for equine sports led me to complete a university degree in Equine Science with Business. During my degree, I reached out to Hickstead and was taken on as a summer intern where I worked on their renowned summer events, after which I was subsequently offered my current role as commercial assistant at Hickstead.

Seeing horses at the top-level competing is a huge privilege, but I could never shake my desire to delve more into the thoroughbred world and learn about a different type of equine athlete.

As a lifelong racing enthusiast, I had been aware for some time that the National Stud has run courses, but, as I didn’t want to leave my current role, it wasn’t feasible for me to do the full-time course. When I read about the part-time course, however, it presented the perfect opportunity to pursue my passion while maintaining my position at Hickstead, with all the transferrable commercial skills and experience that I am gaining there.

The course started with hands-on yearling prep and involvement in the sales. I loved the atmosphere and excitement of the sales and was fortunate to gain work experience at Tattersalls by approaching Matthew Prior, Tattersalls'  associate director, after his evening lecture at the National Stud.

This first stage of the course included a number of visits to Newmarket’s leading establishments, including Banstead Manor Stud, Cheveley Park Stud and Dalham Hall Stud, as well as the the Jockey Club Rooms, and Carlburg Stables, the home of trainer Roger Varian. 

Just before Christmas, we headed to Ireland, the highlight of which was meeting Willie Mullins, who personally introduced us to each of his yard superstars.

After a short break, in January we went straight into the foaling season, sitting up in the foaling unit watching over the mares. Foaling my first foal is an experience I will never forget, and that foal being none other than the first Stradivarius colt is a huge privilege.

The feeling of pride to be at the start of a foal’s journey is something that just can’t be put into words, and I can’t wait to follow them through their careers on the racetrack.

After the foaling unit, I spent some time working on the stallion unit, which provided a unique opportunity to handle the stud’s esteemed group of stallions, and being hands-on in the covering shed.

All of this was complemented by sitting in the stud office, the nerve centre of the farm, seeing how the whole operation is run and being able to learn from ultimate professionals in this industry.

The course has truly provided everything and more that I could have hoped for in terms of hands-on experience and knowledge of the academic/ commercial side of the industry, and I believe that I'm speaking on behalf of my whole cohort of students, who having completed the course, can now look ahead to future careers within the industry with confidence.

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'A key highlight so far was looking after the first Stradivarius foal' - a student's take on her National Stud education course