Working pupil in a pickle...?!

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BEUnderTheInfluence

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Hey guys, any advice here would be much appreciated!
I'm planning on leaving school at 16 to persue a career in eventing, i'd like to get cracking with some sort of working pupil arrangement, what i'd like to know is any tips or advice you have and what sort of things would help me get a placement and what does it usually involve? (I know this varies depending on the rider you work for).

Just general help and tips/advice, good people to speak to and things to get on my CV to help me off would be happily munched up :D
 
lots of top riders advertise in H&H for working pupils so always worth checking- Andrew Nicholson is advertising this week.

as long as you can use a pitchfork you don't really need much more on your CV as working pupil = slave labour.

i would make sure that any training offered is in concrete- a lot of places promise lots of training and it ends up as 20 minutes once a fortnight when you happen to be in the arena together and the rest of the time you are hacking.

the first yard i was at was great as the rider set aside 1 hour a day to give us a lesson, everyday.

another thing to bare in mind is that the top riders are away a lot through the season so won't be around to fulfil their end of the bargain- the best placement i had was with someone who had scaled down riding to do more training- she was at home a lot more often, i had lots of tuition, she came to all of my competitions with me etc etc.
 
Agree that working pupil = slave labour!
The best horsey jobs I've had have definetly been on yards where the owner/rider/eventer has stopped competing at a higher level and is more focused on teaching and producing youngsters, as on that kind of yard you'll tend to get more tuition and more horses to ride than if you were working for someone like Nicholson who is still competing at top level.
It all depends on where you go really, but I'd make sure you look at plenty of places before you decide and have a good look on the internet to see what people have said about your potential employers...on here is good for gossip ;) if you get a good job then it can be a really great experience.
If you can get any experience at all working on a yard, competing or riding youngsters then these things tend to make you stand out as a working pupil.

I started out as a working pupil last year, which was ok, but now have a job I absolutely love...feel free to PM me with any questions, I've been to interviews with a fair few eventers, know people who work for people etc so can tell you if somewhere you're interested in is a definite no go :p

yardandgroom.com is a good place to look for jobs, and you can look at other people's CVs to see what kind of things you need to do/say.
 
Unless you have super rich parents - dont do it :D im your age, and i dont have rich parents, and after doing a few weeks work experience on a top yard and finding out what they are paid, you couldnt really survive on just that, let alone compete.. have also been on other yards previously and top yards really dont pay very well at all. I would advise staying on at school for another 2yrs tbh..

I wanted to take your path, but theres not much point imo, very very few working pupils get opportunity to compete other horses and the only thing they gain is experience and something to put on thier CV... then they have to go out and find a 'proper' job to pay for setting up thier own yard if they want to, but they dont have any qualifications to do so..

just my opinion (and trust me, i would do that if i could, but we simply dont have the money for me to be able to! If you do, then great, go for it) :)
 
Bill Levett has a very good reputation for treating his working pupils very well. He has horses there on livery just for the w.p.s to ride and compete, I believe. He's a really nice guy and a great trainer by all accounts.
Lots of riders will charge you though, especially if you want to take a horse with you. As said above, get the amount you're going to be taught in a written agreement, otherwise you can end up being an unpaid groom (as I did!) If you are at a good yard you will get a lot of training in return for your work... if not, you won't. It can be great fun, or slave labour...
 
If BL is as nice to his WPs as he is to his horses, particularly the youngsters, then it must be one of the best placements going!
 
Hi there, last year l went to a very very very (!) well known eventer as a WP for 2 months( long enough!) who promised 5 hours lesson every week for working 6 days a week (7am-7pm). This never, ever happened.....so please get it in writing so if needed you can back up your argument! :)
 
Following on from what Ellie said, there is nothing stopping you doing this in another two years, I want to go in your direction but everyone i know who didn't continue on to 'higher education' have regretted it.
I know you are probably very set on the idea now, but you will have no idea how something like that can change so it is worth taking an extra two years learning all your options, instead of doing something that will restrict you so much in the future now.
I was in the same boat - im 16 too, but i have gone to 6th form and now im not sure which direction i wanna go in!

ETA, more for thought, If it is something going on your CV The bigger the yard the better. Little yards are more helpfull to you but not so much your CV, as the same with any equestrian courses at college (although any work exp is better than those!)
 
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If you are taking your own horse then make sure your employer is able to transport it to events for you. Also if you are only 16 you will have to rely on others/public transport to get yourself out and about. Not sure where you live as it is worth considering doing sixth form. A lot of colleges leave one day a week free in the timetable. I had one friend who used this day and the holidays to work on a yard. She got academic qualifications, improved her riding and passed her driving test at 17, then went on to work full time with horses.
Take care with Yard and Groom as I do know of some eventing yards advertising there who employ mainly overseas staff who can't/won't speak English - not much fun if you are the only English working pupil.

On the plus side if you get plenty of riding it could be a great benefit for both you and your horse. Don't rely on any promises of competing for your employer, even on a local level as this often doesn't come off. I think you will have more fun if there are other working pupils your own age. I agree with Old Git re Mark and Tanya Kyle and also hear good vibes re Bill Levett
 
I was a WP for 6 months and it wasn't what I'd hoped. My advice would be be very careful, get firm commitments - how much will you be riding, what will that riding entail. If you are not happy raise it quickly if it doesn't get resolved leave.
 
bigboyrocky said:
Unless you have super rich parents - dont do it :D im your age, and i dont have rich parents, and after doing a few weeks work experience on a top yard and finding out what they are paid, you couldnt really survive on just that, let alone compete..
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You definitely DON'T need super rich parents- my mum didn't sub me any money and I was self-dependent from 16 with a horse in tow. You need to chose your placements carefully though.

i know where you went for work experience and I'm not sure what he is offering now but when I was with him it was accommodation, full livery and shoes for the horse and wages of £150/week as well as lessons and transport.
I ran a car on that and was out BE'ing every month as well as having a very busy social life so it is achievable.

The first yard I was at I barely had enough money to shoe my horse let alone compete (or buy food! ;)) but the training was so amazing I stayed for 8 months living in poverty but couldn't have done it long term.

Chloa said:
Following on from what Ellie said, there is nothing stopping you doing this in another two years, I want to go in your direction but everyone i know who didn't continue on to 'higher education' have regretted it.
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:) that would be me.

I went straight out as a WP at 16, am now 24, and don't regret it at all.
I got a proper job at 18, mortgage at 19 and now have a lovely job, 2 horses in full livery and not having A Levels hasn't held me back at all so far.
My job had entry level criteria as 'degree level' but I applied anyway and they actually liked the fact I had worked since 16.
 
millitiger said:
You definitely DON'T need super rich parents- my mum didn't sub me any money and I was self-dependent from 16 with a horse in tow. You need to chose your placements carefully though.

i know where you went for work experience and I'm not sure what he is offering now but when I was with him it was accommodation, full livery and shoes for the horse and wages of £150/week as well as lessons and transport.
I ran a car on that and was out BE'ing every month as well as having a very busy social life so it is achievable.

The first yard I was at I barely had enough money to shoe my horse let alone compete (or buy food! ;)) but the training was so amazing I stayed for 8 months living in poverty but couldn't have done it long term.
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Where ever you were a working pupil payed very well then, because the two places i have been have been considerably less!!!!! Reading what you have said though, its extreeemmlly tempting to leave school at 16... If there was a guarentee it woud work like that, then i would have no hesitation in taking that route, but if you dont find the good job like you have, i think it could be problematic :/ Just gonna send you a PM :)
 
BBR, were you paid considerably less or are you refering to WP's who were already on the yard. If it was you i suppose it could be that you are still at school. My daughter has gone to a big yard for a week as a WP, she won't get paid at all but will gain alot of experience, she is in year 11.
 
millitiger said:
i know where you went for work experience and I'm not sure what he is offering now but when I was with him it was accommodation, full livery and shoes for the horse and wages of £150/week as well as lessons and transport.
I ran a car on that and was out BE'ing every month as well as having a very busy social life so it is achievable.
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Crikey.
Well, I waited till after I had finished Uni, went to a well-known eventer, had to pay full livery (of either £120 or £140 a week, can't remember which) for my horse, had my keep and lessons - which ended up being about an hour a week, 2 if I was very very lucky, in return for about 90 hours of my work a week. I took my own lorry, which they used sometimes (for nothing). I didn't get anything like as much out of it as I expected to... I was a paying groom, basically.

So, OP, be very careful who you go to...
 
no i didnt get paid at all - it was work experience... then i went back for a week and a half during summer with my horse... i stayed with thier other WPs, was fed breakfast and lunch, free livery inc haylage and bedding, given help a couple of times on my chap... so for someone as short term as i was, they gave me quite alot really. it was the WPs that got paid considrably less than 150/week :)
 
If you're stuck for anyone to go to, I've heard that Andrew James is very good for his working pupils. He also seems like a really nice guy (although I've only met him personally a couple of times so couldn't say for certain!)

I did a few weeks of 'work experience' with an eventer this summer - not because I want to event for a living (I'm nowhere near good enough for that :p) but because I'm applying for Vet Med. I helped with all the yard duties, hacked a few out each day, went to events (including a three day) and brought my own horse down a couple of times and had a few lessons on him. Enjoyed every moment, but it did really help that we got on okay and were of a similarish age :)
 
if you seriously want to do this, try go to a few event yards, i done a two week trial will an eventer in the south of england, a young eventer but she competes at four star level, when i say young she's just turned 30, and it was like working for the devil, i know it was a trial she would have wanted to push and see how much i could do, but no where in the contract that was written up had anything to do with breaking in young horses, which i had told her i had never done, unless it was ponies which was why it was left out, but her head girl was off sick so i got chucked on and ended up breaking my collar bone, and she still wanted me to do all the mucking out etc, it wasnt untill i phoned a taxi to take me to the hospital once i had finished for the night as she wouldnt, lets just say i got back from the hospital told her the next morning that i was leaving and she screamed and shouted at me telling me how useless to her i was, well i'd hope so as i had a broken collar bone.

i now dont think i will ever work for an eventer again, currently im at uni, decided for an easier life training as a nurse hopefully that will work out better
 
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