Yes. The course is also open to horse owners and enthusiasts.

If you do not have a formal qualification or professional training background, you should be competent in the safe practical handling of horses, including leading at halt, walk and trot, grooming and basic hoof care.

If you are unsure whether your experience meets the entry requirements, please contact us before enrolling.

The course runs over 12 weeks, combining eight weeks of structured online learning with four weeks of supported independent training.

Weeks 1–8: Guided learning and practical training: During the first eight weeks, you will work through online lectures and practical exercises, progressing from food searches through to multi-container scent searches.

You will also take part in four live Zoom meetings, use downloadable course resources and share your training progress in the student forum, with feedback from Trudi and Christa.

Weeks 9–12: Supported independent training: During the final four weeks, you will continue training your case-study horse independently while sharing your progress in the forum.

You will receive written feedback from your instructors as you work towards your final assessment.

You will need access to at least one horse to train yourself for your assignments.

This is an assessed certificate course. Your final assessment will demonstrate both your understanding of scentwork training and your ability to apply it safely and effectively in practice.

You will complete:

• Written training plans for a case-study equine.

• A practical video submission of up to 20 minutes showing progression through target-odour detection.

• Training of a clear indication behaviour.

• Participation in Zoom discussions and course forum activities.

A mark of 75% or above across the assignments is required to receive the Certificate of Accreditation.

Please note: We provide the materials and guidance to help prepare you for assessment, but we do not guarantee that all students will succeed.

To become an accredited Equine Scentwork Trainer students must complete a final assignment, which includes a written and video element.

Full details are available to enrolled students in the Course Assignment section.

To submit an assignment, click on the assignment in the course contents, upload your file from your device or cloud storage, and then click ‘Submit’.

Assignments are scored according to a rubric which is shown within the assignments.

The pass mark for assignments is 75%.

There are 2 assignments at the end of the course.

A student’s active involvement in the forum will carry 10% of the overall marks.

An overall pass rate of 75% is required to pass the course and be admitted to the Understand Horses directory of Equine Scentwork Trainers.

Students failing or not able to submit a final assignment will be able, at extra cost, to retake the following year.

Active involvement in the forum requires regular responding to questions and discussions posted and sharing of personal training progress. Students not posting video of their training will not pass the course.

Students will not receive detailed feedback on their individual assignments or rubric scoring.

To pass the course and achieve accreditation, students must meet the deadlines published in the Course Assignments section of the course.

Students may apply to have their assignments marked after the end of this year’s course (or after the end of the next course) for an additional non-refundable fee, paid in advance.

FEE FOR LATE/DELAYED SUBMISSION OF ASSIGNMENT £300

These fees are for marking late assignment submissions only and do not include any additional teaching support.

Students must apply for marking of late assignments by email to info@understandhorses.com

To pass the course and achieve accreditation, students must pass both assignments.

Students may apply to retake their assignments after the end of another course for an additional non-refundable fee, paid in advance.

FEE FOR RETAKING FINAL ASSIGNMENT £300

These fees are for marking retaken assignment submissions only and do not include any additional teaching support.

Students must apply to retake assignments by email to info@understandhorses.com

The entire course can be retaken on a future run, if required, for an additional non-refundable fee equivalent to half the price (at the time of purchase) of the next course, payable in advance.

Yes, you are very welcome to take the course and not submit assignments for assessment.

The fee for taking the course is the same, whether you submit assignments or not.

After successfully passing assignments and completing the course, accredited Scentwork Trainers will receive an Understand Horses professional certificate and a certificate of accreditation from UK Rural Skills.

Yes, after successful completion of the course, accredited Equine Scentwork Trainers will have the opportunity download logos for print or online use.

Yes, on successful completion of the course you will be granted access to a private community of accredited Equine Scentwork Trainers.

All course material will be available for 45 days after the course has finished.