Kentucky’s connection to horses goes back hundreds of years, as Native Americans—many likely on horseback—used the land that now is the Commonwealth as hunting grounds, and then pioneers came through the Cumberland Gap into Kentucky.
While people used the strong four-legged beauties for transportation and agriculture, some also raced their horses, whether for bragging rights or a friendly wager. It has long been believed that Kentucky’s limestone-filtered water and lush pastures were responsible for the development of fine racehorses. Historical accounts of horse racing in the streets of Lexington as early as the 1780s tied the sport to the Bluegrass State.
The University of Kentucky found that the Commonwealth today is home to about 450 horse farms, and more than 100,000 residents have jobs related to the horse industry. The half-million horses that live here create a $3 billion economic impact. Several Kentucky colleges and universities offer programs that teach all things equine, preparing students for positions in horse health care, racing, farming and business aspects of the industry.
Asbury University
Asbury University, a private liberal arts college in Wilmore, offers majors in equine studies, equine assisted services, and a pre-veterinary program in equine science. The equine program has been around since the late 1970s, but, according to founding director Harold Rainwater, the course of study, facilities and even students have changed quite a bit over the years.
Originally, the program was known as equestrian studies, and students went to nearby farms and horse-related events to learn about horses. Then, Asbury acquired three retired racehorses, which Rainwater kept at his farm. In 1997, the university acquired 343 acres about a mile from campus, and that is when the program really took off.
“We have both indoor and outdoor training facilities, 72 stalls, 6 miles of trails and 80 horses,” he said. “And we have more than 100 students in this major.”
Students choose Asbury’s equine program for an assortment of reasons and career goals, but one of the biggest hooks, said Rainwater, isn’t listed in the course catalog. “You can bring your horse to school,” he explained. “So many of these students don’t want to leave their horse at home while they go to college, and they can board them at Asbury.”
Asbury is known nationally for training police mounts and has placed horses with police departments all over the country.
“It takes about four years to prepare a horse for this, so every freshman in the program is assigned a baby horse to train,” he said. “And by the time they graduate, the horse is also ready for its career, and it graduates, too.”
Bluegrass Community and Technical College
With a one-semester certificate or a two-year associate’s degree in applied science in equine studies, Bluegrass Community and Technical College (BCTC) prepares students for careers in the horse barn and on the track. After completing two foundational courses—one in equine care and one in training principles—students can tailor their program to match career goals.
Dixie Kendall, equine studies program coordinator, has been with BCTC for 12 years. Her primary focus is racehorse riding, but along the way, she has taught everything from physiology to equine bloodstock.
She explained that every student, no matter what their career goals are, must take the foundational lab classes at The Thoroughbred Center in Lexington.
“[The students] are going to spend three to four hours a day, four days a week, hands on in the barn,” she said. “They will learn all the basic skills needed to walk into a barn and be employable at entry level.”
Internships are not a requirement, but the lab classes are necessary for students to be eligible for one.
“This is a very popular part of our program,” Kendall explained. “We have an almost 100 percent employment rate out of our internships.”
BCTC is selective regarding the farms and companies with which it collaborates for internships. Students and graduates can be found all over central Kentucky at employers such as WinStar Farm, Spy Coast Farm, Godolphin and Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital.
Kendall said BCTC is not competing with Kentucky’s universities but acts as more of a steppingstone for someone who might want to transfer credits and work toward a four-year degree.
A Kentucky resident can complete the two-year program for around $11,000. Many of the equine courses are online, so students can work while getting their degree. Out-of-state students can take the online classes for in-state rates. Currently, the program has about 60 students, and the mix is half out-of-state and half Kentucky residents.
Kendall said the school is best-known for its racehorse riding program, which is highly selective, accepting only six students per year. She explained that a large number of graduates are licensed exercise riders and jockeys, but many more are in non-riding careers.
“Our program is not just about riding or even just about racing,” she said. “A student can come here and be prepared for almost any career path in the equine industry.”
Midway University
Midway University in central Kentucky offers equine science, equine management and equine rehabilitation majors. The school also has a master’s in business administration degree with a concentration in equine management. Midway has offered horse-related courses for 50 years.
The university’s 160-acre farm is part of the main campus, just a few minutes’ walk from the dorms. It has indoor and outdoor riding arenas, dozens of stalls, and one barn even has an equine classroom. The proximity enables students to be close to the horses yet still on campus.
The program is ever evolving, said Ellen Gregory, Midway’s vice president of marketing and communications. An online equine business and sales program launched in 2022. Gregory explained that the main program is hands on, but the equine business and sales program enables Midway to take equine education to a larger audience since it does not require direct hands-on horse care.
Currently, 150 undergraduate students and 35 MBA students are pursuing degrees in the equine program. Gregory said Midway students are highly sought after for internships and go on to careers in rehabilitation and farm management. Others continue to graduate or veterinary school.
Morehead University
The equine program at Morehead State University is located at the Derrickson Agricultural Complex, a 350-acre farm about 10 miles from campus. Students who plan to go on to veterinary school can follow the pre-vet track that includes radiology, surgery, endoscopy and reproduction technology, all taught at the farm.
Students pursuing the bachelor of science in agriculture with equine science track usually find careers at horse farms, in equine pharmaceuticals or with breed associations. Morehead’s equine program has about 40 students, which enables more hands-on experience and a low student-teacher ratio.
The farm has about 40 horses, a 2,000-seat indoor arena, an outdoor arena and several barns with stalls. The equine program began breeding Quarter Horses about five years ago. Katie Kaufman, Ph.D., an assistant professor of equine science, explained that this breed of horse is multidisciplinary and excellent for lessons.
By breeding the Quarter Horses on the farm, Morehead ensures the equine program continues to have young stock as horses age out. A bonus is that students can participate in the entire breeding cycle.
“They learn about handling the stallions, breeding, foaling the mares, training of the foals, and even the aspect of preparing for their sale,” Kaufman said.
Morehead students typically live in campus dorms or apartments around town. But agriculture science majors can apply to live on the farm, which accommodates 48 residents. The sought-after farm lodgings are six-person apartments, each with three bedrooms, three baths, and communal living, kitchen and laundry areas. About half of those students can choose to work on the farm 10 hours per week and pay half price for their lodging.
“A lot of our students come from a family farm,” Kaufman said. “By living here, it gives them the familiar feeling of home.”
Murray State University
In far western Kentucky, Murray State University offers a bachelor of science in agriculture degree in animal/equine science. Less than a mile from the main campus is a working farm that is home to the university’s 45 horses.
Murray has an indoor arena, a dressage ring, a turnout lot and a rodeo arena. The farm has 100 horse stalls, and students are allowed to board their horses on campus even if they are not majoring in equine science.
Shea Porr, Ph.D., the associate dean of Murray’s Hutson School of Agriculture and department chair of animal/equine science, has been with the university for 10 years. She said the program has about 75 students.
“Students can do, not just watch,” she said. “We work hard to give students experience and hands-on opportunities.”
Students can pick a focus based on their interests and career goals. With a degree concentration in equine business management, graduates can run a farm or a horse-related business. A degree in animal agriculture provides students the base for careers in nutrition, pharmaceuticals and reproductive health.
Murray’s newest and fastest-growing focus is a pre-chiropractic degree, similar to pre-med.
“This major is for the student who doesn’t want to do pre-vet but wants to work in animal healthcare,” Porr said.
After graduation, students can continue their studies at another institution and obtain a doctor of chiropractic degree that allows them to treat both animals and people. Porr said one alum visits racetracks and treats both horses and jockeys.
Murray has an equestrian team and a rodeo team, and both compete nationally.
Another way for students to get involved in an equine activity is with the school mascot—not a student in a wacky cartoonish costume but an actual horse that was born and bred on the Murray farm. Known as Racer 1, the mighty Quarter Horse runs a lap of the stadium when the Murray State Racers football team scores a touchdown at home games. The jockey is a student, but the program requires a team of students to take care of the horse, help out at public appearances, and handle public relations and marketing.
A version of Racer 1 has been running the celebratory loop since 1976. The current Racer 1, a beautiful gray that also goes by the name Vegas, appeared at 37 events last year.
University of Kentucky
The University of Kentucky’s Ag Equine Programs, which began in 2005, is in the Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment. The school owns about 400 horses that can be found grazing on the university’s thousands of acres of farmland spread over three farms—two in Lexington near the Kentucky Horse Park and one in Woodford County.
About 325 students are enrolled in the UK Ag Equine Programs, which has three tracks: equine science, equine management and industry, and communications and leadership.
The university also is home to the Maxwell H. Gluck Equine Research Center. A separate entity from the equine program, it is the only facility in the United States conducting clinical research full time on equine diseases and health.
“As a land-grant university with a core mission of research, teaching and extension, we share our findings for the betterment of horses,” said James MacLeod, DVM, director of UK Ag Equine Programs.
The equine program is well known nationally, and nearly 80 percent of students come from out of state, which is the highest percentage of any major in the university.
MacLeod explained that, compared to other states, Kentucky offers not just education but many horse-related career paths. Although all tracks of the program include mandatory horse labs—which study horse husbandry, nutrition and anatomy—only one-third of graduates go on to work directly with horses.
MacLeod said most graduates find employment in equine tourism, equine shipping, and equine law or positions that require knowledge of the horse but may not exactly be considered the horse industry.
“They can work for an architecture firm that designs barns or study soil science for horse pastures … A huge growth area is data and computer science,” he said. “It’s all here in Kentucky.”
University of Louisville
The University of Louisville’s Equine Industry Program is a track within the College of Business that leads to a bachelor of science degree in business administration. Amy Lawyer, Ph.D., department chair of equine administration, said it is the only business school with an equine program in the U.S.
Students pursuing this degree follow the core business classes and add 27 hours of equine-related and event management classes.
“We give students skills for a career in the horse industry,” Lawyer said. “We don’t focus on care and training but on business acumens like marketing and customer service for a long-term career.”
This combination prepares students for business positions in the horse industry such as management, insurance, breeding and simulcasting.
“Our program is small, but that is intentional,” Lawyer said. “The College of Business has higher acceptance requirements than others, so not all students who apply get in.”
This selective process, paired with the university’s close proximity to Churchill Downs racecourse, results in students having access to industry professionals and the opportunity for internships on both the front and backside of the track.