Animal courses for teens - limited places
Wednesday 7 March 2012
Applications for ZSL Zoo Academy 2012 are now closed.
© zSL
Exclusively for 15-17 year olds, Zoo Academy at ZSL Whipsnade Zoo is an eight-day course which includes study sessions on different exotic species and more than 20 hours practical experience.
Students will get hands-on with zoo life including handling invertebrates and reptiles, cleaning out white rhinos, preparing food for different animals, making enrichment for large carnivores and carrying out a behaviour study of ring-tailed lemurs.
The courses, which were piloted in 2011, have been a huge success with great feedback from the students:
"I thoroughly enjoyed the experience and found it really inspiring. I've got all 5 of my university offers to study zoology - I think that Zoo Academy helped to make my personal statement stand out! I'm sure that the next people to do it will find it as useful and fun as I did." Catherine, 17
Zoo Academy is designed to enable young people to gain practical experience in a zoological collection. Supported by the education and keeping staff, students will complete an evidence portfolio of their work and receive a certificate and reference statement from ZSL Whipsnade Zoo to help their future career working with animals.
On the final day of the course, family and friends of the students are invited to attend their Zoo Academy graduation at ZSL Whipsnade Zoo.
Applications are now closed.
