My First Year Experience as an Equine Student by Amy Amento

As a high school senior you get asked so many questions like; “Where are you going to college?”, “What did you pick for a major?” and my favorite, “You can go to school for that?” Yes, you can go to school to study horses and I did. I attended a small school smack-dab in the center of New York State, or what my friends liked to call; The Middle of Nowhere. To people like myself, who grew up with more people in their high school than enrolled in the whole college it may seem that way. I am from Connecticut, and going away to college had always been something I wanted to do and it was probably the best decision I ever made. Morrisville State College was a great choice for me and was the best home away from home I could have asked for.

As an Equine Science major, my courses as a freshman were basic, yet challenging and interesting to say the least. They ranged from Equine Stable Management to Judging to Western and English Riding labs (and many more). Yes, riding horses for a few times a week counts as credits and so does cleaning stalls and feeding the lesson horses, which is better known as Barn Duty. These courses, along with their labs, were designed to improve your skills as horsemen and see who could handle the program for the rest of their college career. It baffled me to see how many studentsdid not actually know how to clean a stall, but all- in- all it was a learning experience for everyone. If everyone did not show up to morning or evening barn duty to do their chores then everyone else had to pick up the slack to get the job done, just like in the real world.

Looking back at it, I understand why things were done this way and how relatable they are to real life experience. If you cannot handle waking up early to feed horses, horses that YOU are privileged to ride every week, then maybe this is not the right career path for you. Trust me, I did not have perfect attendance in my weeks of barn duty, but I caught on in my next three years on how important taking on the responsibilities given to you as a student were.

It’s very important to be involved in your school as much you can, and more importantly being involved in a major like this one. Your responsibilities of going to class, going to labs, getting up and going to barn duty are just the bare minimum. If you want to get the most out of your college experience, you need to start your freshman year. Go to the barn when the upper classmen are there, see what you will be doing for the next few years, watch and listen and ABSORB as much as you can! You can learn so much from watching others; other students, other teachers, other professionals. You should never stop wanting to improve.

At the end of my freshman year, my western riding instructor told me she was unsure if I would make the cut to get into the Western Breaking and Training program the next year. It was devastating news, but I grew up riding “English Pleasure,” showing at the 4-h level until my high school career; so I understood where she was coming from since I didn’t even know how to neck rein until my first riding lab with her. Never-the-less, I was determined to make it into our B&T program the following year. So, that summer I went home and took lessons from an AQHA Professional and I leased a horse at a totally different barn. I was constantly riding with my stirrups off my saddle to strengthen my legs and every week I was taking a lesson to improve my horsemanship skills. Failure was not an option to me, and if I had to do it all over again I would have tried even harder.

You learn so many new things your freshman year, the critical criticism you receive this year should empower you to work harder. This is a year for you to try as much as you can and enjoy yourself! Join the riding team, join a club, meet new people, but most importantly have fun! Freshman year is just the beginning of one amazing experience, make sure you make the most of it.

Amy Amento is a recent college graduate with a bachelor degree in Equine Science, as well as, an associate degree in Business Administration. She is currently working as the Marketing Associate for College Riding 101.