The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies
Royal Dick School of Veterinary Studies Bicentenary

Equine nutrition MOOC open to more online learners

An equine nutrition course that attracted 24,000 online learners when it was launched by the University of Edinburgh in the summer is to be repeated in January 2014. A second MOOC in Animal Behaviour and Welfare will be run for the first time in July.

Student using laptop to access online course

The free, degree level course in Equine Nutrition, which is organised by the University’s Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, will begin its second five-week run in January.

Participants from across the globe took part in the course first time round. Topics covered include anatomy and physiology of the equine digestive tract and equine nutrient sources.

There are also modules on dietary management for different kinds of horses and ponies, particularly those with nutrition-related disorders.

There will be lecture videos and quizzes to work though each week and an opportunity for participants to share their thoughts and ideas with others on the course.

Assessment will take place at the end of the course with a series of multiple choice questions.

We were delighted with the response to the first course and hope that many more people will sign up this time round. If anyone wants to take part, all they need is internet access and a keen interest in equine nutrition.

Dr Jo-Anne MurrayDeputy Director Postgraduate Taught

The equine nutrition course was one of six free courses for online students to be launched by the University of Edinburgh with it first running in January of 2013.

This year the Dick Vet will be running at least two MOOCs with its second, in Animal Behaviour and Welfare due to start in July.

These Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) have been delivered via the Coursera partnership - a network of leading international universities which offer short undergraduate-level online courses free of charge.

If you are interested in the School's MOOCs, more information can be found on the Coursera website where you can also sign up for the courses.