Level 5 Certificate in Agriculture

Duration:

1 Year full time (26 weeks at Kildalton College and 8 weeks Practical Learning Period on a host farm)

Course Structure and Content:

This course provides the first year of education and training for people wishing to farm on a full-time or part-time basis. It is accredited by Quality and Qualifications Ireland (QQI).
This course consists of a combination of formal course work and a period of practical learning on a host farm. As part of the course, students spend 26 weeks at Kildalton college and 8 weeks completing a practical learning period at a Teagasc registered host farm.
The formal course work is split 50:50 between practical/skills training at Kildalton College enterprises and classroom (theoretical) sessions.
The course consists of a range of mandatory and elective modules. Students must pass all module components, 50% is the pass mark for all modules.
The 8 weeks practical learning period takes place in March and April each year. This course normally starts at the end of August and finishes in mid-May the following year.

Application Process:

Applications should be made on the Teagasc website for Level 5 Certificate in Agriculture. The closing date fro applications to this course is the 30th of June 2023. Applications for this course can be made by clicking here.

Fees:

The fees for this course are €990. Please note, where an applicant is the holder of a major award at Level 6 or higher, an additional course charge of €1,000 is applied.

Entry requirements:

Students who have completed their Leaving Certificate are likley to benefit most from this course, however, the Leaving Certificate is not required to apply for this course. Students applying for this course in 2023 must be 17 years of age by the 1st of January 2024.

What will I study? Core subjects include:

Principals of Agriculture
Farm Safety and Farm Assurance
Soils and the Enviroment
Farm Business and Technology
Grass Production
Safe use of Pesticide Products

As part of this course, students specialise in one of the following subjects:

Dairy Husbandry
Sheep Husbandry
Tillage Crop Husbandry

Progression:

All stduents who successfully complete the Level 5 Certificate in Agriculture are automatically offered a place on the Level 6 Advanced Certificate in Agriculture.

There are three streams to choose from for Level 6, all available at Kildalton College:

Advanced Certificate in Crops and Machinery Management
Advanced Certificate in Dairy Herd Management or
Advanced Certificate in Drystock Management.

Please note that at the end of the Level 5 course, students have not completed the requirements for young trained farmer and stamp duty exemption. Students are required to complete one of the Level 6 Advanced Certificate courses to achieve this status.

All students who successfully complete the Level 5 Certificate in Agriculture can apply through the Higher Education Links Scheme using their QQI Level 5 award to apply through the CAO for a place in the first year of a higher education programme.

Prospectus: Teagasc Course Prospectus (PDF)