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Placement opens 'many new doors' for student's future career

Posted 26 May 2023

The value of a Harper Adams placement has been underlined by a veterinary bioscience student who believes her experience ‘opened many new doors for me.’

Chloe Rodriguez, from near Cheltenham in Gloucestershire, has been working with agricultural ventilation specialists Galebreaker for the past year on her industrial placement, developing the company’s work on a series of farms as a Ventilation and Animal Welfare Analyst.

She said: “Galebreaker exists to enable agricultural businesses to perform at their best in any weather or climate.

“I have undertaken a role carrying out farm case studies, looking at the benefits of our products in terms of animal health and welfare and the overall value of our product to the farmer.

“My main areas of focus are calf housing and ventilation, heat stress in both housed dairy and beef cattle, and pig production assessing ventilation and air quality. This placement stood out to me straight away as I knew I wanted to work with livestock but I didn’t want to just be on a farm.”

Chloe secured her placement via a Pig Industry Scholarship, supported by AHDB Pork – one of the many opportunities made available to Harper Adams students by the University’s Development Trust.

Having spoken with Galebreaker while preparing to apply, she knew she wanted to secure the Scholarship – and the role with the company – if possible.

Since taking up her placement, Chloe believes she has been proved right.

Chloe Rodriguez has joined us from as a placement student where she is studying .
She'll be helping our research and development team study the impact of Galebreaker products on animal welfare and performance.

— Galebreaker (@GalebreakerUK)

She added: “So far, it has been amazing.

“I have expanded my knowledge so much and it has driven me to think about what career I want to pursue. Galebreaker has been a welcoming business to work for and they have given me incredible opportunities.

“My role was completely new for the company and they have let me develop it in my own way. I have attended many work events, conferences and business exhibitions and met many different people including farmers, vets and academics.

"I have been around the country on a variety of farms, assessing different systems and housing. I have had the opportunity to speak at farm talks and I will also be speaking at the National Youngstock Conference in July 2023.

“This placement opened many new doors for me and will hopefully be invaluable for my future career.”

Chloe is now hoping that this future career will involve an extension of the work she is currently undertaking – enabling her to keep developing ways to boost animal welfare on UK farms.

She added: “Once I complete my degree, I hope to return to Galebreaker and continue the drive on the importance ventilation plays in animal health and welfare and how this links into sustainability.”

Chloe’s lifelong love of animals not only led to her choice of placement – but also her initial decision to come to Harper Adams.

As she began to look at degree courses, Chloe – who competed in the U18 and U21 British Eventing teams - knew she wanted to pursue a subject where she could find out more about boosting animal health and welfare.

She added: “Before starting Harper, I did some work experience at Corner House Equine Vets and I was lucky enough to stand in on a variety of operations and procedures, which I found fascinating.

“This is what drew me to my course, as I wanted to study a subject looking into the science behind animal health and welfare but that also left many doors open, as I was still unsure on what career path I wanted to take.

“When I was starting to look at going to university, I visited Harper on an Open Day and knew straight away that it was the place for me.

“Harper Adams has been a great university for me personally; the smaller environment suited my learning, and the facilities on offer made the practical side of the course engaging.

“Over my three years of being at Harper, I have met some great people and created incredible memories. I know that after my final year I will come away with friends for life.”