Studies & Degrees in Animal Science
Animal Science Study Programs
Animal science is the study of the biology and management of the animals that people keep: farm livestock and poultry, horses, companion animals and, in some departments, laboratory and aquatic species. The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State) defines it as the study and integration of the biology and management of animals, built on nutrition, physiology, reproduction, genetics and behaviour.
Students take chemistry, mathematics and statistics alongside animal biology, followed by anatomy and physiology, nutrition, genetics, immunology, behaviour, welfare and health, as well as the management, economics and marketing of animal production. Work with live animals on a university farm is part of most programmes. Animal science is not veterinary medicine. It does not qualify graduates to treat animals, although several departments have a pre-veterinary track for students who plan to apply to veterinary school afterwards.
Qualifications and levels
- Two-year programmes. Community colleges in the United States teach animal science as a two-year programme centred on livestock production. At Northeast Community College in Nebraska it takes 2 years (69-70 credits) and puts the emphasis on the selection, breeding, feeding and marketing of livestock. The University of Connecticut has both two-year (AAS) and four-year (BS) degrees.
- Bachelor's degree. A Bachelor of Science in the United States is planned over four years; at Penn State it requires a minimum of 120 credits. Students usually choose a specialisation. The Ohio State University has four (Animal Biosciences, Animal Industries, Nutrition and Veterinary Technology), and Penn State has a Science option and a Business/Management option. In Europe the bachelor's degree can be shorter: the BSc Animal Sciences at Wageningen University & Research in the Netherlands is a full-time programme of 3 years taught in English.
- Master's degree. The master's in Animal Sciences at Wageningen takes 2 years. Ohio State offers a course-based professional master's that can be completed in as little as one year, next to research-based MS and PhD programmes that end with a thesis or dissertation.
- Doctorate. The PhD is the route into research. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), a PhD may be required for some research positions in specialised topics.
- Spain. Bachelor's degrees (grados) at Spanish universities have 240 ECTS credits. In vocational training (FP), the higher-level qualification Técnico Superior en Ganadería y Asistencia en Sanidad Animal has 2,000 hours of training, according to the ministry's TodoFP portal.
Where to study animal science
SpainExchange lists 51 active schools for animal science. More than half of them, 27, are in the United States. The United Kingdom has 4, and Spain, Australia, the Netherlands, Ethiopia and Ghana have 2 each. Canada, Nigeria, New Zealand, Slovenia and Denmark are among the countries with one school.
In the United States the subject is typical of the public land-grant universities, which run their own farms. Examples on the list are The Ohio State University, Penn State, Purdue University, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the University of Florida and the University of Connecticut, together with the University of Maryland. Purdue's Department of Animal Sciences has about 700 undergraduate students, and the University of Connecticut's department has more than 400. At Penn State, the sheep, beef, dairy, swine and poultry barns are a short walk from the centre of campus. Community colleges on the list include Northeast Community College, which has a 500-acre college farm.
Outside the United States, the list includes the University of Bristol and The University of Sheffield in England, Utrecht University in the Netherlands, The University of Tokyo, the University of Ghana and the University of Cape Coast in Ghana, Obafemi Awolowo University in Nigeria and Mekelle University in Ethiopia.
Most of the listed schools teach in English. Elsewhere, check the language of each programme with the school before applying.
Careers
The BLS describes animal scientists as researchers who typically work on livestock: they explore animal genetics, nutrition, reproduction, diseases, growth and development. Agricultural and food scientists typically need at least a bachelor's degree in animal science, food science, plant biology or a related field, and employers may prefer or require a master's or doctoral degree. The BLS counted about 3,400 animal scientists among 37,400 agricultural and food scientists in the United States in 2025, and it projects employment of the whole group to grow 6 percent from 2025 to 2035.
Research is only one of the outcomes. Penn State lists careers for its graduates in biomedical or agricultural research, food safety, technical service, sales for feed and pharmaceutical companies, agricultural finance, farm management, animal care at zoos and shelters, and food quality assurance. Others continue to veterinary school or to graduate study.
Frequently asked questions
Is animal science the same as veterinary medicine?
No. Animal science covers the biology, nutrition, breeding, welfare and management of animals. Veterinary medicine is a separate professional degree. Wageningen states that its bachelor's does not focus on veterinary medicine or veterinary skills.
How long does a degree in animal science take?
A US bachelor's degree is planned over four years (120 credits at Penn State), and community college programmes take two years. The bachelor's at Wageningen in the Netherlands takes 3 years, taught in English, and its master's 2 years.
What jobs can I get with a degree in animal science?
Graduates work in livestock and poultry production, animal nutrition and feed companies, pharmaceutical sales, food safety, farm management, zoos and shelters, government service and research. Research posts often require a master's degree or a PhD.