New Zealand Certificate in Animal Care (Level 3) - Companion Animals
Course details
About the course
This course can open you up to a world of animal care and help you take the first steps towards a fulfilling career working with and helping a range of companion animals.
If you have a love of animals and want to follow your passion into a career, or even just want to learn to take care of the animals in your home and community, then this is the course for you.
What You Will Learn
This programme is an entry-level course that covers a wide range of animal care standards and practices, including health, hygiene, behaviour, and handling. It can help you step into a role in settings like rescue centres, pet shops, groomers, kennels, catteries, and animal training and breeding facilities. Or it will give you the skills you need to become a responsible and skilled pet owner.
You’ll develop knowledge and skills to care for companion animals including, dogs, cats, rabbits, rodents, reptiles, and birds.
This course can also give you a strong foundation in animal care and a pathway to higher-level study such as Zookeeping or Veterinary Nursing.
How Will You Learn
This course is run in conjunction with Unitec.
The course will be delivered via blended learning, online, block courses and work experience are all undertaken. This will consist of:
- Online course work taught by Unitec
- 2 compulsory 5-day block courses in Whangārei at the NorthTec campus
- A minimum of 40 hours of work experience in an approved external facility
This is a full-time course which runs for one semester from June to November.
Entry requirements
All applicants must:
- be at least 16 years old at the time the programme commences.
- be able to read, write, and communicate in English at a basic level.
- be physically able to complete the programme-specific outcomes.
Access to a computer and internet is required.
Applicants for whom English is not a first language must have an IELTS score of 5 with no band score lower than 5; or an accepted international equivalence.
About the provider
Based in Hamilton, the Waikato Institute of Technology (Wintec), is one of the country’s largest institutes of technology. We deliver high-quality education across vocational (technical) and professional fields of study to approximately 13,000 students, across over 130 different courses.
At Wintec students are educated in a way that builds their confidence and gets them work-ready. We differ from other types of tertiary providers in the way students get the chance to put their theoretical learning into practice from the very start. You will get to work on real-life projects based on relevant topics and themes as if you were in the workplace. You will also get involved in work placements. This means that by the time you graduate, you will be confident in your skills and knowledge, and know-how to apply your learnings. Our academic staff have years of industry experience between them, which means they can guide you on your journey.
Wintec maintains collaborative relationships with local industry and iwi to identify the needs of the region and community. Fostering strong networks that our students and graduates benefit from is a high priority for us. Understanding the needs of local industry, what type of graduates they need now, and what they will need in the future is critical to assisting industry and our graduates.