NC Countryside Management

This course offers the skills you need for a career in countryside services, for example estate maintenance, environmental projects or working with wildlife organisations.

Locations: Oatridge, Elmwood
Study mode: full time (1 year)
Start date: September 2025
Duration: 1 years
Agency code: CMT1

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Course overview

This course is designed for anyone interested in a career in any aspect of countryside services, like estate maintenance, environmental projects, or wildlife conservation.

It also gives you the skills you need to work with community-based or voluntary countryside and environmental projects.

You'll learn about conservation management and sustainability, ecology and wildlife identification, habitat protection and access to the countryside.

You'll also learn a variety of skills you can use in any working environment, like good communication and team as well as communication and team working skills.

Virtual Experience

Take a look around the SRUC Virtual Experience for lots of great student videos and examples of what it’s like to study our courses, along with campus and facility tours.

SRUC holds open days regularly. Visit our listings page for details of our up-coming events.

Entry requirements

Minimum of three National 4s, including English.

What you'll learn

This course involves a wide range of standard learning and practical and field-based studies.

All class-based learning is supported by visits to nature reserves and recreational sites run by Ranger Services and organisations like RSPB, Scottish Natural Heritage and National Trust For Scotland.

Example modules include:

Countryside Recreation and Access
Geodiversity and Landscape in Scotland
Practical Conservation: Habitat Management in Scotland
Ecology and Wildlife Identification
Principles of Biodiversity Conservation

Student experience

Jenny Paterson graduated in 1998 with an Arts and Social Sciences degree. She worked a variety of office-based jobs, but after being made redundant, she began considering a career outdoors. She joined SRUC.

“The course covered so much," she said. "Land and its uses — agriculture, recreation and conservation, archaeology, bird identification — and that's only a few of the subjects."

These days, Jenny's in her dream job — Conservation Manager for the grounds of Cameron House and the Carrick golf course at Loch Lomond.

Jenny is grateful to SRUC for helping make her career change possible.

Practical skills

Field-based studies

I owe a huge amount to Elmwood, because of the course structure and the lecturers and rangers who mentored me along the way.

Jenny Paterson

Meet the lecturer

Claire Donaldson

A lecturer since 2012, Claire holds an MBA, a PgCert in Higher Education and a BA in Tourism Management.

Claire teaches on the Rural Business Management and Countryside Management programmes, leading 12 modules across the four years. 

Her main expertise and passion lies in tourism, and after gaining a degree in the subject, Claire worked on the QE2 and on the Orient Express Luxury Canal Barge.

She also set up her own catering business, trained in advanced food hygiene, and became a food hygiene trainer for an FE college before joining the team at SRUC.

View Claire's Pure profile

Ian Lewis

Ian is based at Oatridge and occasionally our Ayr campus. Before teaching at SRUC he studied Countryside Management at Oatridge and spent six years rangering with Historic Environment Scotland.

Ian is mostly interested in Heritage and Interpretation, communicating and inspiring engagement in nature, but also biology, and wildlife identification.

View Ian's Pure profile

Catherine Seeds

Programme/Team Leader – Wildlife and Conservation Management (Ayr and Barony Campus)

Cath has been with SRUC for 9 years both as a teacher and programme lead.

When teaching, her focus is on biodiversity conservation, habitat management, marine ecology, community projects and conservation site management. Cath is interested in how emerging technology can improve the research and work in conservation, especially in the fields of remote sensing, drones and GIS in support of landscape scale conservation.

Teaching is a wonderfully rewarding role and Cath enjoys supporting students on their journey through the programme and on into industry to have fulfilling careers.

View Catherine's Pure profile

Course Funding

Full-time students of NC Countryside Management can apply for a Further Education Bursary.

Once you’ve accepted a place, we’ll email the bursary funding online application. Complete the application and return it along with any required documents. You should apply even if you're still waiting for exam results.

Tuition fees are waived for students who qualify for a bursary.

More information about funding your course

Find out more about your payment options for this course in our fees and funding section

Fees & funding

Other possible routes to funding

Care experienced bursary: Any care experienced students studying full time can apply for a bursary of around £202.50 per week. Find out more from our student funding teams at registryfunding@SRUC.ac.uk
Education Maintenance Allowance: Students between the ages of 16-19 who meet specific criteria may be entitled to an EMA. This means-tested allowance depends on the income of the home the student stays in.
Discretionary Fund
Childcare