ANIMAL SCIENCE

Are you passionate about animals and eager to contribute to the development of the livestock industry? The Animal Science major at top universities in China could be the perfect choice for you. Let's explore the learning and career opportunities this major offers!

Introduction

Animal Science is one of the most challenging and promising disciplines in life sciences. This major primarily studies the basic laws of animal evolution, genetic breeding, growth and development, digestion and metabolism, and livestock product production. It explores the essence of life phenomena and their regulatory strategies. The fundamental task of this major is to provide high-quality animal protein and products for human consumption by understanding and mastering the life laws of animal genetic variation, growth and development, reproduction, nutrition, digestion, and metabolism. 

It aims to cultivate high-level scientific and technological talents engaged in animal science research and modern animal production. Graduates can work in agricultural and pastoral management departments, engage in management, professional technical design, product development and marketing, technical promotion, teaching, and research in animal science, animal nutrition and feed processing, and related fields.

Training Objectives

1. Knowledge Objectives: Possess broad basic knowledge in humanities and natural sciences, master the basic theories of animal genetic breeding and reproduction, animal nutrition and feed science, animal health breeding and safe production, understand the frontier knowledge, technology, and development trends of animal science, and grasp the basic methods of literature retrieval and data query.
2. Ability Objectives: Adapt to the needs of teaching, scientific research, enterprises, and administrative management departments in the field of animal science and related areas, possess the ability to engage in teaching, scientific research, production management, entrepreneurship, technical promotion, and administrative management, and have strong continuous learning, independent knowledge acquisition, information processing, and innovation capabilities.
3. Quality Objectives: Establish correct worldviews, outlooks on life, and values, enhance ideological and moral cultivation, and develop into comprehensive high-quality innovative talents with pioneering spirit and strong practical skills.

Graduation Requirements

Students should proficiently master the basic theories and knowledge of animal science, systematically conduct scientific thinking training, experimental practice operation training, and innovation and entrepreneurship training in basic and applied research. Graduates should meet the following requirements:

1. Moral Cultivation: Have a firm and correct political direction, good ideological and moral qualities, strong teamwork awareness, and a sound personality, with national awareness, legal awareness, and social responsibility awareness, consciously practicing socialist core values.
2. Humanistic Literacy: Understand knowledge in politics, economics, philosophy, and other humanities and social sciences, inherit and promote the excellent traditional culture of the Chinese nation, and possess general knowledge in politics, literature, history, philosophy, ethics, art, aesthetics, law, psychology, etc.
3. Three Rural Sentiments: Understand the excellent thoughts contained in agricultural civilization and rural culture, and have the sentiments of understanding agriculture, loving rural areas, and loving farmers.
4. Scientific Literacy: Possess knowledge in mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, and management, master the basic theories, knowledge, skills, and practical abilities of animal science, and understand the knowledge system, basic ideas, and methods of this major.
5. Knowledge Application: Understand the development status and trends of the livestock industry, possess the ability to apply professional theoretical knowledge, skills, and information technology to analyze and solve general problems in the field of animal science, and have the ability to engage in scientific research, product development, production management, technical promotion, industry operation, and management in the field of animal science.
6. Communication and Exchange: Be able to fully and effectively communicate and exchange with industry peers and the public on issues related to animal science, including writing reports, designing manuscripts, making speeches, and expressing clearly, possessing basic abilities in independent knowledge acquisition and information processing, and having good oral expression and writing skills, able to read and communicate fluently in foreign languages.
7. Problem Analysis and Solving: Master scientific methods for analyzing and solving problems, possess critical thinking abilities, be able to discover, analyze, question, and evaluate phenomena and problems in this major and related fields from multiple perspectives, and propose innovative insights or countermeasures through literature review and research analysis of technical issues in the field of animal science.
8. Team Collaboration: Have team collaboration spirit, be able to undertake roles as individuals, team members, and leaders in multidisciplinary teams, harmoniously coexist and collaborate with team members, and play an active role in team activities.
9. Lifelong Learning: Have the awareness of autonomous learning and lifelong learning, be able to continuously learn, meet social challenges, adapt to social development changes, and achieve sustainable personal development.
10. Global Vision: Pay attention to the theoretical frontiers, application prospects, and development trends of the discipline, reasonably analyze and evaluate the impact of industry-related solutions on society, health, safety, law, and culture, and focus on major issues such as human health, biosecurity, environmental protection, and sustainable development.

Core Courses

• High-tech enterprise development practice in the livestock industry
• Animal genetics
• Animal breeding
• Animal reproduction
• Animal nutrition
• Feed science
• Livestock environmental hygiene
• Feed and feed processing, animal production I (pig farming and poultry farming)
• Animal production II (cattle farming and sheep farming)

Based on employment market demand and personal interests, elective modules in scientific literacy, urban agriculture, and interdisciplinary courses are also offered.

Research Directions

The Animal Science major primarily studies the genetic basis, breed cultivation, physiology and biochemistry, nutritional metabolism, feed formulation, safe products, and processing of farm animals (pigs, cattle, sheep, poultry, etc.) and companion animals (dogs, cats, etc.) to obtain "excellent breeds," "high-quality feed," and "safe products." 

Farm animal breeding is a long industrial chain. "Excellent breeds" rely on breeding, combining conventional selection with molecular biotechnology (such as gene editing) to cultivate better breeds, such as faster-growing pigs and higher milk-producing cows. "High-quality feed" is about providing nutritious, palatable, balanced, and safe feed to animals to meet their needs for rapid growth and efficient production. "Safe products" refer to producing high-quality, safe, and healthy meat, eggs, milk, and other livestock products or healthy and lovely companion animals. 

This chain can extend in many directions. For example, from the front end of the industrial chain, transgenic disease-resistant breeding can make cultivated animal breeds resistant to certain diseases, reducing or eliminating illness; from the end of the industrial chain, producing livestock products with health functions, such as selenium-rich meat, omega-3 eggs, CLA milk, are hot research topics worldwide.

Degree Awarded

Students who complete the required credits and graduation requirements will be awarded a Bachelor of Animal Science degree.

Career Development

Graduates can pursue master's and doctoral degrees in animal breeding, feed nutrition, health and safety production, and related fields domestically and internationally (with cooperation agreements signed with the United States, the United Kingdom, Italy, Japan, etc.). 

They can also work in colleges and universities, research institutions, administrative and enterprise units related to the livestock industry, engaging in livestock management, animal (including companion animals) production, feed management and monitoring, market promotion and development, livestock product trade, livestock product quality inspection, epidemic prevention, etc. 

Employment units include: Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, China National Agricultural Development Group Corporation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing Branch of China Construction Bank Corporation, China Animal Husbandry Association, National Animal Husbandry Station, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Dabeinong Group, Beijing Natural History Museum, Beijing Pig Breeding Center, Beijing Shunxin Agriculture Co., Ltd., Beijing Capital Agribusiness Group Co., Ltd., Beijing Municipal Bureau of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Beijing Huadu Yukou Poultry Co., Ltd., Beijing Animal Husbandry Station, Beijing Lingyu Biotechnology Co., Ltd., Beijing Aquarium, Beijing Zoo, etc.

Related Majors

• Veterinary Medicine
• Aquaculture
• Agronomy
• Biotechnology

Top Universities Offering Animal Science Programs in China

1. China Agricultural University
2. Nanjing Agricultural University
3. Huazhong Agricultural University
4. Sichuan Agricultural University
5. Zhejiang University