Online Horse Racing Industry Business Certificate

Horse Racing Industry Business Certificate Highlights

• Gain functional knowledge of horse racing operations, marketing, law, communications, analytics, and leadership.
• Acquire expertise and marketable skills fashioned for the horse racing industry.
• Learn at your speed, on your schedule—100% online format with access anywhere, anytime, and on any device.
• Experience an enhanced online learning environment with class segments taught by corporate fellows, integrated case studies, and guest speakers.
• Connect and network with other professionals from across the industry.
• Get a jump start on your MBA—credits earned in the certificate program apply to your UofL MBA, offered online and on-campus (you must apply separately to the MBA).
• Receive a Credly badge upon program completion as a token of your skills and knowledge - add it to your signature, communications, social media, resume or personal branding materials.

Prepare for an education that will allow you to take the next steps towards a career in the horse racing industry, with curriculum taught by industry experts!

Horse Racing Industry Business Certificate Outcomes

Fast-paced and global in scope, the horse racing industry's complexities and challenges define the need for leaders who meld innovation, technology, and character into a strategy for the future.

UofL's online Horse Racing Industry Business Certificate was developed to immerse students into the horse racing industry through business strategies that focus on innovative approaches to managing business operations. The curriculum was created using input from numerous focus groups, comprised of industry leaders from a wide variety of stakeholders involved in horse racing.

Students participating in this program will graduate with an in-depth knowledge of the issues that challenge the industry and insight into solving them with innovative business approaches.

This certificate provides students with the knowledge and understanding necessary to manage business operations in the horse racing industry. The curriculum focuses on the increasingly important area of issues and crisis management, communication, business ethics and responsibility, management, leadership, operations, racinos, racetrack and sports analytics, as well as legal and regulatory issues.

Graduates will have the education they need to advance their career in horse racing management positions.

Start Your Application

Please note, some courses may not be offered during a specific term. Please talk to your advisor for more information.

Admission Requirements and How to Apply

• Completed online application
• $40 application fee
• Bachelor's degree from a regionally-accredited college or university
• Request official transcripts certifying an undergraduate degree earned from an accredited institution.
  • Electronic (recommended):
    gradadm@louisville.edu
  • Physical Mail:
    University of Louisville,
    Graduate School
    2211 S Brook St, Houchens Bldg, Rm 105
    Louisville, KY 40292;
• Minimum cumulative undergraduate GPA of 2.5 (on a 4.0 scale)

Note: GMAT/GRE scores are not required for admission to the online Horse Racing Certificate program.

Contact our team to request more information

Horse Racing Industry Business Certificate Courses

The online Horse Racing Industry Business Certificate consists of 6 courses (9 credit hours). Courses are 100% online, and asynchronous, in 5-week terms. You can take the courses in any order.

The Horse Racing Industry Business certificate curriculum was designed in close partnership with industry experts to ensure the curriculum meets current business needs. Industry professionals have been involved in identifying industry needs, building the preliminary curriculum, and refining the final curriculum.

Certificate students have two format options depending on their time availability and workload. EQIN 610, 650, & 630 are offered in the fall, while all classes are offered in the Spring. Therefore student may take one class at a time over two semesters (Fall and Spring), or two classes at a time and finish the entire certificate in the Spring semester.

Course Descriptions

EQIN 610 Horse Racing Industry Overview

An overview of the horse racing industry. Topics include: auctions, breeding farms, stallion stations, training centers, racetracks, affiliated companies, and aftercare. This course is designed to be a look into to the working components of the horse industry. The stakeholders, the economic drivers, industry motivation, and current issues the industry faces will all be covered in this comprehensive overview of the industry.

EQIN 620 Strategic Communications for the Equine Industry

Effective communication is critical to implementing business strategy in today’s dynamic, interactive media environment. This course will introduce students to the purpose and practice of strategic communications (i.e., public relations) in the equine industry. Key topics include communications planning and evaluation, media and government relations, and crisis communications.

EQIN 630 Management and Leadership of Equine Enterprises

An overview of the concepts of organizational structure, management practices, employee motivation, communication, decision making, and problem solving from a leadership perspective; to provide the tools to effectively enact positive change and provide meaningful influence within a racing operation and to leadership groups that will determine the future of the horse racing industry.

EQIN 640 Racetrack Operations and Related Activities

An overview of the operations of a racetrack and its related business channels.

EQIN 650 Equine and Sports Analytics

A broad overview of the concepts and methods used in sports analytics as well as how to apply them. Key topics include but are not limited to betting systems for horse racing and other sports, data.

EQIN 660 Regulatory Law in the Thoroughbred Industry

The Thoroughbred industry must navigate a complex and pervasive maze of regulations imposed by federal, state, and local governments and by private organizations. Success on the race track, at the farm, and at the sales requires at least a basic understanding of the rules and regulations that govern the sport. This course will focus primarily on the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act of 2020, scheduled to take effect on July 1, 2022; regulation by state racing commissions; and regulation by The Jockey Club and is a required component of the Equine Industry Program’s MBA Certificate initiative. The course also may be taken as a standalone option for anyone interested in an in-depth look at regulatory law in horse racing.