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Why CAFRE

CAFRE

Discover the possibilities

If you are looking for a course which offers hands-on learning to give you the best preparation for work in the industry – CAFRE is for you. We’ve invested in our buildings, equipment and resources so you can get the most out of your time with us. Get ahead of the competition with the practical skills you learn on our courses.

WHY CHOOSE CAFRE?

Specialist educational facilities
You’ll go far to find better educational facilities at which to study for courses in Agriculture, Food, Horticulture or Equine. With continuous investment, we keep our educational facilities up-to-date to benefit not just our students but also people from industry who continue their professional development through our short courses.

Practice makes perfect
If you’re a hands-on type of person who doesn’t want to be stuck behind a desk all day, then our courses and the careers they lead to are perfect for you. Relevant practical experience, in modern specialist, educational facilities, is a part of all our courses.

Industry links
CAFRE has excellent links with businesses and organisations, many of which employ our graduates. They show their support by providing work placements, guest lecturers and real-life course projects. Companies also donate generous bursaries to help our Higher Education students fund the cost of getting a degree.

Great job prospects
Students study at CAFRE because they are passionate about following a career in their chosen area of study. Our results speak for themselves – over 95% of our graduates gain employment or progress onto further education within six months of completing their course.

Focused Campuses
You are treated as an individual at CAFRE as staff get to know the 1,700 students on our three campuses. Staff are friendly and approachable and ensure that you are supported both personally and academically to achieve your potential.

Financial support
With competitive Higher Education fees and accommodation costs, you’ll find that studying with CAFRE is not as expensive as you thought. Our full-time Further Education courses are funded by the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs and most students are eligible for that funding. Companies and organisations throughout Ireland support students through the donation of bursaries.

University life
If you’re studying on our Foundation or Honours Degrees validated by Ulster University, you can become an ‘Associate Student’. You’ll get a Student Card, access to Ulster University’s libraries and Sports Centre membership to name a few of the perks. Students studying on the Honours Degree in Agricultural Technology are Queen’s University students and can gain access to the University’s resources.

Experienced staff
CAFRE is an ‘Access Partner’ of the Higher Education Authority which allows the college to utilise their resources to enhance, inform and improve teaching by providing additional staff development opportunities.

Still not finished?
On completion of a degree you can apply for the Master’s course in Business for Agri-Food and Rural Enterprise. This is a Queen’s University Belfast postgraduate degree delivered at Loughry Campus, Cookstown.

95%
of our graduates

Gain employment or progress onto further education within six months of completing their course.

1,800
students

You are treated as an individual at CAFRE; we have approximately 1,800 students at our three campuses.

45+
bursaries

Our industry partners donate over 45 bursaries to support first year degree students.