Becoming a professional show jumper?

[showjumper4444]

Hi everyone,
This will probably be a bit of a useless post. However let me explain my situation. I am 18 years old and am in my final year of A levels. I am predicted to get very good results and have offers from very good unis. However this is not what I want to do. I have NEVER enjoyed studying I have always been outdoorsy and sporty. I have been riding all my life and while the majority of my teenage years so far I have spent eventing, in recent years I am now show jumping and have jumped up to fox and am schooling round 1.40 courses at home. I currently have an amazing jumper I bought as a 5 year old. I am at the most amazing yard however it is pricey so I can only afford to keep one horse however I have the ride on another who is jumping 105/110.

Long story short I want to be a professional show jumper. I am not unreasonable and saying I want to jump in the olympics however I want to compete at a high level at some nice shows but I do not have the money to just do that anyway. To persue this career what do I do now. I am not affraid of hard work as long as I reach my main goal.

 

[AdorableAlice]

Find a position on a professional yard riding their young horses and if you are good enough they might give you more opportunities.

 

[Daiquiri]

There are a whole load of horse mad kids who aren't afraid of hard work that have been beaten down by the industry. Hard work is not guaranteed to help you reach your goal, there's never really any guarantees but money makes more of a difference. Unless you have significant financial help from your parents I'd suggest deferring your uni place and spend a gap year as a working student. Maybe you love it and can stick it out, maybe you discover working with horses isn't for you.

 

[scats]

Get yourself on a pro yard and start at the bottom.
That’s really the only way to do it if you don’t have the financial backing from the start.

 

[Trot_on]

If I were you, I’d take a gap year and work for a professional - really work hard to master your craft and learn everything you can.

Then I’d enrol in the open university or study part time/remotely and continue to ride for people alongside it to make sure I was getting some decent qualifications in case horses don't work out. This way you can build up two potential careers alongside each other.

Beware, if you choose to work with horses, it’s rare you’ll have the income or time to afford your own, so you may need to make some sacrifices early on in your career. I once applied for a riding job for a 5* event rider where I’d have ended up paying them £30 a week to work there full time, once accommodation and livery were taken off

 

[Equi]

Yup as said get on a yard. However don’t discount uni or college for a related career..one bad fall and you may never jump again and it will be good to have something to have in the pot. Physios, dentists and vets are always in demand.

 

[horseyyy321]

working pupil is probably the way to go

 

[Bobthecob15]

Have you got a lot of money?

If not then working for a good yard is probably your best option!

There are lots of other jobs out there that don’t involve studying as such, particularly apprenticeships… but in your situation I’d find the best SJ yard you can and work your socks off x

 

[Bonnie Allie]

As others have said - do a gap year and see the reality of the industry.

Studying at school is not a lot of fun. It’s a one size fIt’s all effort. Uni however is an amazing experience where you will love to love learning.

Consider getting your degree, have fun and then sit down and consider your career choices.

 

[Kirstineridesagain]

As a mum of an 18-year-old I would say don’t dismiss uni, especially if you’ve got into a good one. Students tend to have some time to do other things - is there a good showjumping yard nearby? Then you could possibly combine the two, and if the showjumping takes off () then you could postpone your studies?

 

[showjumper4444]

Thank you guys so much for all the replies so far!
Yes my basic plan is deffer uni for a year (even though I am NEVER going!!) I was thinking working student was the route to go. However affording and having time for my own horse would hopefully not be an issue as he would stay at my current yard as I love my team and my trainer. I was wondering if anyone has any reccomendations of who to work for or if I should stay in the UK or go abroad. I know a girl who went to Wellington florida. Without revealing to much personal info, my parents are pretty well off and will finace part of my horse as long as I am working if this makes sense. However (quite rightly) they would never buy me a ready made super expensive horse. I am very lucky that my trainer is amazing and is well known and has plenty of connections!

 

[showjumper4444]

As a mum of an 18-year-old I would say don’t dismiss uni, especially if you’ve got into a good one. Students tend to have some time to do other things - is there a good showjumping yard nearby? Then you could possibly combine the two, and if the showjumping takes off () then you could postpone your studies?

Thank you for the advice!! This is what my mum says! Of course I will not give up my uni and will postpone for a year just incase however I really cannot imagine my self doing any study!

 

[HopOnTrot]

Have you tried having rich parents? That’s probably the best way into it.

 

[Kirstineridesagain]

Have you tried having rich parents? That’s probably the best way into it.

Not all rich parents would be happy for their offspring to go into an uncertain career that may not pay very well and could decide not to support that financially. But if they had a trust fund they could do what they liked anyway.

 

[MuddyMonster]

If your trainer has plenty of connections, they are probably better placed than any of us to recommend someone to base yourself with for a gap year.

Good luck

 

[Birker2020]

If it were me looking for such a position I'd create a CV outlining my experience and recording my wins and placings, jumping decent sized tracks and well known centres, include some photos, empasise you're willing to start and the bottom and work up, you're hard working, reliable and most of all not afraid of unsociable hours. Then send it to those you're interested in working for.

Seems the most sensible approach.

You can glean most of the SJ trainers addresses from the BS rule book from distant memory or the internet.

 

[LadyGascoyne]

I went over to Denmark to work and ride after school, and pretty quickly realised that I would need to be prepared to do things to horses that do not sit well with me, if I expected to succeed in that world. I then went to university.

In your shoes, I would take a year, spend it in the world you think you want to be in, and then go to university, do an undergrad degree with a good basis for running horses.

A decent business degree is something a lot of semi-professional or professional riders could desperately use. If you think about how much contracting, investment, sales and marketing goes into being a professional rider, having a degree behind you puts you in a much better position for people to take a risk on you with their investment.

A sports science degree could be very useful too, from a reputable university. Something where there is a focus on the human development, physiology and psychology required for top sport. That would also help if you're coaching in the future.

I would be careful with equine sciences degrees because I have had two grooms here with them, who have not really had the skills they need to work with horses but have an equine sciences degree.

You can ride while you're at uni, and it will provide a better foundation for a career in sport and managing the business of being a sportsperson than purely riding for someone else until you find your way up the ranks.

If you're not aiming at Olympic level then you also need to consider whether you're ever going to make enough money to support yourself, and whether you're the kind of person who really would be happy to live off the bank of mum and dad forever. That can be very depressing after a while and even after a gap year and degree years, I struggled with self-worth and the feeling that someone else 'owns' you, and I have was desperate to stand on my own to feet.

I now, in my mid-thirties, have a couple of horses for pleasure and will be looking to buy and produce a few sports horses in the near future to as high a level as possible, but I'll be able to do it under my own control to my own ethics.

 

[Birker2020]

TRAINING AVAILABLE

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Is this any good for you?

It's the same place Lari originated from, the horse in my Avatar.

 

[LEC]

If you want to stay in the UK email Billy Stud. They are the one place in UK which has a huge number of horses where you will have production from foal to Grand Prix plus outstanding training from William and Pippa. Shane Breen would be another in UK or Richard Howley at HK horses.
You are going to have to start at the beginning and graft.
Places like Karlswood (Cian o’Connor) will mean you cannot take your horse but the international experience you would get in dealing horses and top class production would probably be worth it. Personally think big for your year and go to some of the best in the industry and not a small time yard.
If you are really resilient and tough then look to go to Schockemohle as again huge production with top riders. But you will need to be tough as the machine moves with pace and you will either be eaten or come out better for it.
Whatever happens you will come out better educated with a proper insight into the industry.

 

[ROMANY 1959]

Brendan stud are another one who produce horses to GP standard. They like young riders who can be taught their way

 

[Goldie's mum]

Hi everyone,
This will probably be a bit of a useless post. However let me explain my situation. I am 18 years old and am in my final year of A levels. I am predicted to get very good results and have offers from very good unis. However this is not what I want to do. I have NEVER enjoyed studying I have always been outdoorsy and sporty. I have been riding all my life and while the majority of my teenage years so far I have spent eventing, in recent years I am now show jumping and have jumped up to fox and am schooling round 1.40 courses at home. I currently have an amazing jumper I bought as a 5 year old. I am at the most amazing yard however it is pricey so I can only afford to keep one horse however I have the ride on another who is jumping 105/110.

Long story short I want to be a professional show jumper. I am not unreasonable and saying I want to jump in the olympics however I want to compete at a high level at some nice shows but I do not have the money to just do that anyway. To persue this career what do I do now. I am not affraid of hard work as long as I reach my main goal.

Get yourself to uni & get a good degree. Pick a course that has a big practical side at a Uni known for sports teams. You may be pleasantly surprised how little sitting in rows being talked at is involved, compared to A levels!
You are fortunate to have the opportunity and this is the easiest that will ever be for you. Going back into education when you're older & out of practice, not in synch with the other students & maybe got a relationship or even kids, is doable of course but much harder. It takes a really small slice of your life & once you have a qualification it's yours forever & you can trot it out for a new career when you're fifty & the old injuries are starting to hurt.
Meanwhile get on the university show jumping team, travel the country with them, make contacts. Spend the long Uni holidays at the most prestigious yard that will take you.
Good luck.

 

[ester]

Hmm you don’t just plop into a new career just because you got a degree in something a few years ago. TBH with fees as they are I wouldn’t be going unless I knew I a) wanted to, b) knew what I wanted to do. At the time it felt friends and who took 2 gap years because of b were really pushing it, it’s not really made a difference longer term .

It is possible to keep a horse running while doing a degree if you have the financial backing (my friend was doing newcomers/fox) I also did my degree with Vitoria panizzon.

I went back to academia for a bit but even I’m not sure I would definitely go the degree route now, financially.

 

[ester]

Oh I did also know someone doing vet who spent the hol/her placements living out of her lorry (with her horses) on whoever she knew’s yard close by . Need the right friends for that!

 

[Orangehorse]

OP, absolutely no one has said "don't do it." The replies have been encouraging and given you very good advice about where to go and how to present yourself.

But they have also given you great advice about doing that uni course. I think you will find that many young riders have been to university and got the degree, this also pleases parents.

By all means do the gap year, work at a really top yard and see how you get on, but don't forget the degree. Universities have riding clubs and inter uni competitions and there are a whole lot of other things going on. I would also agree about not doing an equine science degree.

It is very hard when doing A levels, my children and their friends went through it too. You are fed up with school, studying, there are hovering parents and teachers who want you to continue studying and you just feel "I'm fed up, give me a break." Stick with it, get your results and then have that gap year.

 

[SO1]

This is what I would recommend as a 52 year old. University is big financial investment and unless your parents are paying for it you will come out with a lot of debt so you need to be sure that you will benefit it from it and ideally enjoy the experience.

I would suggest you look at working at a local yard close to home 4 days a week and spend one day a week doing online study for an AAT accountancy qualification. This will be good if you end up being a SJ and running your own yard plus it will give you back up for an alternative employment in a role that could primarily be home based.

This may sound morbid but your parents may need support when they become old as people are living longer but with more health conditions. If you have a qualification that opens up opportunities to work from home it makes caring responsibilities much easier be that if you have children or elderly parents. Enjoy your freedom and youth whilst you can but at the same try and plan for the future. Most of my university friends have had to take time out of work due to caring responsibilities and having something

My YO does some book keeping alongside running the yard.

 

[Surbie]

Hmm you don’t just plop into a new career just because you got a degree in something a few years ago. TBH with fees as they are I wouldn’t be going unless I knew I a) wanted to, b) knew what I wanted to do. At the time it felt friends and who took 2 gap years because of b were really pushing it, it’s not really made a difference longer term .

It is possible to keep a horse running while doing a degree if you have the financial backing (my friend was doing newcomers/fox) I also did my degree with Vitoria panizzon.

I went back to academia for a bit but even I’m not sure I would definitely go the degree route now, financially.

I absolutely agree with this. A lot of my day job is recruitment and a good portion is focused on early careers advice, ie working with undergraduates and recent graduates. So many have gone to uni because it was expected of them and now have a huge financial millstone together with a degree that isn't going to help them much.

If I were looking for a uni course now I would be very picky about the institution, how well it ranks and the job outcomes for the course as well as the uni overall.

Deferring for a year isn't going to make much difference in the grand scheme of things, sounds really sensible and there is some very good advice about finding relevant work from other posters.

 

[scats]

This may sound morbid but your parents may need support when they become old as people are living longer but with more health conditions. If you have a qualification that opens up opportunities to work from home it makes caring responsibilities much easier be that if you have children or elderly parents. Enjoy your freedom and youth whilst you can but at the same try and plan for the future. Most of my university friends have had to take time out of work due to caring responsibilities and having something

My YO does some book keeping alongside running the yard.

I understand that you have a situation that involves having to care for your elderly parents but personally I really don’t think that that’s something a young person should be worrying about at this stage.

My parents would be utterly mortified if me or my brother had to give up/adjust our lives to care for them when they are older. They would be doing everything in their power to ensure that didn’t happen. My mum has already said if she becomes a burden she’ll be off to Switzerland… and I know she means it!

 

[ester]

I absolutely agree with this. A lot of my day job is recruitment and a good portion is focused on early careers advice, ie working with undergraduates and recent graduates. So many have gone to uni because it was expected of them and now have a huge financial millstone together with a degree that isn't going to help them much.

If I were looking for a uni course now I would be very picky about the institution, how well it ranks and the job outcomes for the course as well as the uni overall.

Deferring for a year isn't going to make much difference in the grand scheme of things, sounds really sensible and there is some very good advice about finding relevant work from other posters.

I always encourage people to do a year in industry if they can science wise.
I am surprised so many people are still going to uni just because/it’s expected. Colleagues kids are basically haemorrhaging money.

I didn’t know what I wanted to do (failed vet entry) so just picked what I was good at (biology) which leaves your options open for a variety of things but also doesn’t specifically qualify you for anything either. I did 3 years earning very little, I started the PhD as a fixed term contract was ending, it was 2008 so the crash hit and at 12k a year and no council tax I had the same amount of take home as in my 16.5k job and was guaranteed for 3 years, most of those things are not reasons to do a doctorate

 

[gallopingby]

Lots of useful advice. A gap year is usually very beneficial if you have a plan in place for the start of Uni. A general science degree at a well ranked university will get you further than an equine science one at a newer place.
My advice would be to spend your gap year getting as much experience as possible and maybe a starter teaching qualification - the PC run a scheme for older members. You can then use that at uni to earn some extra £££s if required. Going to most yards as a ‘starter’ unless they employ people just to muck out, is likely to involve lots of hands on basic stable management, someone has to do it and it’s likely to be you, but making contacts UK and wider in the jumping world would be good.
If you’re hard working, polite and reliable it’s very likely there will be opportunities to succeed. The equine world is small and aspiring competent riders are sometimes lucky to be offered opportunities others could only dream of.
The standard of riding in some of the uni competition teams is high so maybe worth finding out which are best and the facilities they have access to. Good luck.

 

[showjumper4444]

If you want to stay in the UK email Billy Stud. They are the one place in UK which has a huge number of horses where you will have production from foal to Grand Prix plus outstanding training from William and Pippa. Shane Breen would be another in UK or Richard Howley at HK horses.
You are going to have to start at the beginning and graft.
Places like Karlswood (Cian o’Connor) will mean you cannot take your horse but the international experience you would get in dealing horses and top class production would probably be worth it. Personally think big for your year and go to some of the best in the industry and not a small time yard.
If you are really resilient and tough then look to go to Schockemohle as again huge production with top riders. But you will need to be tough as the machine moves with pace and you will either be eaten or come out better for it.
Whatever happens you will come out better educated with a proper insight into the industry.

Thank you for this advice. I will look into all these places. Just out of interest why would I not be able to take my horse to karlswood. Aditionally does anyone know what the situation is with livery/pricing if I were allowed to bring my horse with.