20 January 2026

The Royal Agricultural University (RAU) is holding a special drop-in information evening for local people who might be interested in studying on any of the many Postgraduate courses it offers.

The university, which celebrated its 180th anniversary last year having been founded in 1845 as the first agricultural college in the English-speaking world, offers a wide range of study options and subjects, with the opportunity to study either full or part time.

Daniella Miles, Head of Student Recruitment at the RAU, explained: “At the RAU we offer the chance to study for Postgraduate Certificates and Diplomas as well as a full Master’s degree – and almost all our courses can be studied part time which means that, in most cases, you can study alongside your day job.”

Postgraduate courses include Business, Agricultural Technology and Innovation, Real Estate, and Bloodstock and Performance Horse Management, as well as subjects like Conservation and Management of Historic Buildings, Cultural Heritage, Archaeology, Agroecology, and MBAs in both Food and Agriculture and Water Management.

For a full list please visit https://www.rau.ac.uk/courses/postgraduate/postgraduate-courses

Daniella added: “Lots of people assume that, as an ‘Agricultural University’, we only offer courses related to farming and land management but we offer a whole range of different courses. Our postgraduate courses can appeal to anyone – those who have just left university or those who have been working for a while but are keen to re-enter education and gain more qualifications.”

The RAU was awarded a Silver award in the latest Teaching Excellence Framework - a national Office for Students’ scheme to encourage higher education providers to improve and deliver excellence in the areas that students care about the most: teaching, learning, and achieving positive outcomes from their studies – with both its student experience and student outcomes being commended as being of “typically very high quality”.

Thanks to positive feedback from RAU students, the institution won Silver in the small specialist university category at last year’s What Uni Student Choice Awards – the largest exclusively student-voted awards body in the UK – and it was also short-listed for “Best UK University Employability Strategy” at the National Graduate Recruiters Awards 2025 which “recognise institutions that go above and beyond in preparing students for the world of work”.

The Postgraduate Information Drop-In Evening will take place from 5pm to 6.30pm on Wednesday 11th February in the Boutflour Hall at the University’s Cirencester campus (GL7 6JS). Everyone is welcome and there is no need to book.

Daniella added: “You’ll have the chance to meet programme leaders and talk to current students, as well as hear about the many different bursaries and scholarships we have available, and get admissions and recruitment advice. It’s a great opportunity to find out more so why not come along and see for yourself?”