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Can someone give me an overview of the Animal Care BTEC? And also just enlighten me i

Hey! :h:

I was looking at GCSE and BTEC options just out of curiosity, and I saw that there was an Animal Care one! I am aiming to become a vet or do something related to working with animals in the future, so do universities/colleges like to see this BTEC or does it make no difference?

Also, what’s the course like? Is it relatively time consuming, what’s the material like etc.

Where/how can I get this done? I’m not too sure how BTECs really work but I’m sure my school doesn’t offer it.

When is a BTEC really done? I’ve heard of people doing them after GCSEs and during them.

What’s it like revising for this topic? Is the learning or technique comparable to other subjects?

And also, what’s the deal with the levels? (Level 1,2,3)

Sorry if a few of these are obvious, I’m only in year 8 but I like planning and looking at my future! :biggrin:

Thank you very much to anybody who responds to this! (This is my first question on TSR)
(edited 4 years ago)
Reply 1
Avatar for L.E.A.H
L.E.A.H
12
I did a level 3 BTEC in Animal Management and Care when I left school back in 2012 but whilst I was in school I did a level 2 BTEC in horse care and both experiences were pretty similar. Within school we got send to a college or to a stable one day a week to get taught the course. For both courses It was entirely coursework based so no exams needed. I knew a few people that have gone on to be vetinary assistants or vets from doing the college level 3 course and following on to uni. Universitys and colleges don't mind what qualifications you have as long as you have some. BTECS are very useful for this sort of career path as it gives you in depth knowledge as well as first hand experience which will look great on a uni application form. The different levels are the difficulty level so to say on a course, level 2 is traditionally gcse level whilst level 3 is college level, there are six levels in total to get up to your full degree then more you you go on to postgraduate study which I belive you need to have to become a vet.


Hope this helps.
Reply 2
Avatar for FossilGeek
FossilGeek
OP
4
Original post by luc-the-moose
I did a level 3 BTEC in Animal Management and Care when I left school back in 2012 but whilst I was in school I did a level 2 BTEC in horse care and both experiences were pretty similar. Within school we got send to a college or to a stable one day a week to get taught the course. For both courses It was entirely coursework based so no exams needed. I knew a few people that have gone on to be vetinary assistants or vets from doing the college level 3 course and following on to uni. Universitys and colleges don't mind what qualifications you have as long as you have some. BTECS are very useful for this sort of career path as it gives you in depth knowledge as well as first hand experience which will look great on a uni application form. The different levels are the difficulty level so to say on a course, level 2 is traditionally gcse level whilst level 3 is college level, there are six levels in total to get up to your full degree then more you you go on to postgraduate study which I belive you need to have to become a vet.


Hope this helps.

Thank you very much!

So, how would one find a way to get into the course or to start doing it? What year can you do it in and would you do it early or alongside your GCSEs/A-levels?

And would you need all 6 levels for them to consider it or could you just do up to level 3 and show that?

Finally, since there’s no official exam how can you show what you’ve done?

:biggrin:
Reply 3
Avatar for L.E.A.H
L.E.A.H
12
Original post by FossilGeek
Thank you very much!

So, how would one find a way to get into the course or to start doing it? What year can you do it in and would you do it early or alongside your GCSEs/A-levels?

And would you need all 6 levels for them to consider it or could you just do up to level 3 and show that?

Finally, since there’s no official exam how can you show what you’ve done?

:biggrin:


I would look into doing it at school first and then ask them about any progression available as they should be able to point you in the right direction but if they can't once you finish school look into colleges that offer the course by simply typing in into Google, also once you get to year 10 or 11 school may start to give careers advice on colleges and jobs so why don't you start there.
hi!I'm currently doing my second year of level 3 animal care so I'm still doing to 2010 spec (100% coursework). it's quite time consuming but I think keeping 'to-do' lists and generally keeping track of assignments really helps the most. at my college in the first year we did animal behaviour, nutrition, animal training, wildlife studies, husbandry, zoological heath/husbandry and we were split into two classes for the second year. we were allowed to choose what path we wanted to take (i.e. a more vet-ty, science-y class or a more zoological kind of class). in the science-y class we do biochemistry and microbiology, chemistry, anatomy, biology and animal inheritance. in the first year, we also did a lot of practical skills with animals and had a full day a week to help keepers take care of animals (a lot of feeding, grooming, general health checks, enrichment). I found that this BTEC gave me a lot of freedom and it gives you the opportunity to choose your own method of study and you don't have to really rely on anyone (although teachers are always there when you need them!) i attend college three days a week, giving me two days days to complete assignments. lessons are done in lecture format, preparing you for university and I think teachers are understanding of this and will usually stop and explain things if you have a question. if not, they're always there to email. also, I know a lot of colleges upload PowerPoints onto portals such as Moodle which you can use whenever you need to go over anything. I am hoping to be a vet and I am planning to start at rvc in September, and to be brutally honestly, I found that with vet med, most unis tend to not accept btecs, although you still have time and this could change. a level 3 BTEC extended diploma is worth three alevels and is taken over two years. any level three qualification (i.e. levels, BTEC level 3) can be taken after gcses. BTEC level 2 is gcse level and some people can choose to take this in place of a gcse (I know some people did BTEC health and social care instead of a gcse option such as history). some colleges also offer level 2 animal care and this allows students which may not have obtained 5 gcses with an opportunity to go onto level 3 studies. I'm not really sure how level 1 works tbh, sorry :') good luck and I hope this helps! x

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