How long does the Certificate in Sheep & Farm Management take?

About 200 study hours, self-paced. Most students finish in 10–15 weeks part-time, and you have 12 months' access, which leaves room for lambing and shearing. You can apply for an extension of up to 12 months if you need it (an extension fee may apply).

What does a station hand do, and will this course help me get the job?

A station hand is a general worker on a large grazing property: mustering, yard work, lamb marking, drenching, fencing and checking water. SEEK notes qualifications aren't essential for farmhand roles but may be an advantage, and suggests a driver's licence. This course shows an employer you understand the work, but no course guarantees a job. Our certificates are non-accredited short courses focused on practical, job-relevant knowledge. They're not nationally accredited VET qualifications (such as a Certificate III).

What's the difference between Merino and prime lamb production?

Merino production is mainly about wool: Merinos are bred for fine fleece, and most income comes from the wool clip, with surplus sheep sold for meat. Prime lamb production is about meat: ewes, often Border Leicester × Merino first-crosses, are joined to meat-breed rams such as Poll Dorset or White Suffolk to produce fast-growing lambs sold for slaughter. Many farms run both. The Breeds, Wool and Meat Production units cover each system.

Does the course teach shearing?

No. The Wool unit covers wool production and handling, but shearing is a hands-on skill learned in the shed. Australian Wool Innovation funds practical shearer and wool handler training around Australia. This course covers where wool fits in the enterprise.

Livestock & Farm Management Courses

Certificate in Sheep & Farm Management (Online)

Build a sheep enterprise that pays, whether you run wool or lamb.

This sheep farming course covers the flock from joining to market, for wool, prime lamb or both, plus the planning, budgeting and staff skills that turn a flock into a profitable farm business.

100% online
2 core modules
approx. 200 study hours
12 months' access
Tutor support 6 days a week
Certificate + transcript

Download the brochure Speak to a course consultant

What is the Certificate in Sheep & Farm Management?

The Certificate in Sheep & Farm Management is a self-paced online sheep farming course about running a profitable sheep enterprise. Across two modules (Sheep Farming and Farm Management) you'll learn breeds and breeding, lambing, nutrition, flock health, handling, wool and prime lamb production, plus farm planning, budgets, staff and WHS. It suits station hands, sheep farmers and successors.

Course overview

Run the flock and the farm as one business

Wool, prime lamb or both: which makes the most sense for your country and your bank balance? Good stockmanship keeps sheep alive and growing. Good management decides whether the enterprise makes money. This course gives you both, so you can plan a breeding program around a target market and then check that the numbers stack up.

Breed for the market you sell into – Compare sheep breeds and what they're used for, and plan selection and mating programs to suit wool, meat or dual-purpose production.
From lambing to the saleyard – Manage lamb husbandry, nutrition and feeding, then prime lamb and mutton production, transport and getting product to market.
Healthy, well-handled sheep – Prevent and treat common health problems, use low-stress handling, and plan yards, infrastructure and equipment.
The business behind the flock – Build farm and business plans, budgets and cash-flow forecasts, choose a business structure, and manage staff and WHS.

Ready to make better calls about your flock and your farm?

Who this course is for

Station hands and farm hands on sheep properties who want to move up to overseer or manager.
Family-farm successors taking on a wool or prime lamb enterprise and planning for succession.
Small-acreage owners wondering whether a handful of sheep could become a commercial flock that pays.
Career changers heading into the sheep industry, from farm work to stock and station roles.

What you'll study

You'll begin with a short Student Induction module that sets you up on the learning platform and introduces your tutor. Then you'll complete two core modules: the flock, then the farm business.

Module 1: Sheep Farming (approx. 100 hours)

Commercial sheep production for wool and meat, worked through the sheep year. You'll learn the husbandry that underpins every profitable flock, ending with how the sheep enterprise is managed.

Breeds – sheep breeds and what each is used for.
Breeding – selection and mating programs.
Lamb Husbandry – lambing, and caring for and rearing lambs.
Nutrition and Feeding – nutritional needs and feeding systems.
Health and Disease – common conditions, prevention and treatment.
Handling – low-stress handling, yards and routine husbandry.
Infrastructure and Equipment – facilities and equipment for a sheep enterprise.
Wool – wool production and handling.
Meat Production – producing prime lamb and mutton.
Transport and Logistics – moving stock and getting product to market.
Farm Management – running the sheep enterprise.

Module 2: Farm Management (approx. 100 hours)

The business half of the course. You'll take the flock decisions from Module 1 and test them against a farm plan, a budget and the land you graze.

Farm Planning – SMART goals, action plans, and state planning and zoning rules.
Business Planning – whole-farm and property management plans, and planning stock and resources.
Financial Management – records, lenders, leases and contracts, budgeting and forecasting.
Human Resource Management (HR) – recruiting, inducting and supervising farm staff.
Operational Management – supply chains, weather, scheduling and risk.
Farm Business Structure – business types, family farms, succession, and ABN and GST registration.
OH&S – duty of care, chemicals, machinery, PPE, safety audits and insurance.
Land Management – buildings, animal shelter, natural vegetation and tree regeneration.
Water Management – water sources, storage, irrigation, water quality, salinity and drought.
Soil Erosion – erosion types, acidification and erosion control.
Farming Practices – grazing, lot-feeding and cropping systems, and energy and waste.
Future Success – diversification and measuring how the business is tracking.

How you'll learn and be assessed

Online, in your own time – log in 24/7 from any device, and fit study around lambing, crutching and shearing.
Quizzes after every unit – short online quizzes check your understanding as you go.
Tutor-marked assignments – assignments cover the flock (breeds, health, handling, wool and meat, management) and the farm (planning, operations, structure and WHS, land and water, establishing a working farm). Each comes back with personalised feedback.
Competency-based, with support – if an assignment needs more work, you resubmit after feedback. Tutor support is available 6 days a week by phone, email or video call. No exams to sit in a centre.

Tailor your course with add-on modules

Any certificate can be tailored with add-on modules from our catalogue, so you can pick up extra skills that match your property, business or career plans. Ask a course consultant about adding modules at enrolment or during your studies.

Pasture Management

Grow more feed from the same paddocks: pasture plants and species selection, soil and water, pests and weeds, machinery, establishing new pasture and managing grazing. More feed per hectare can mean more sheep, or better-finished lambs, from the same country.

Beef Cattle Farming

The full beef enterprise: breeds, breeding and calving, low-stress handling, nutrition, health and disease, production systems and feedlots, through to transport, records and supply chains. A natural addition if you're weighing up running cattle alongside the flock.

Horticulture 3 – Health & Welfare of Plants

Diagnose and manage plant health: pests, diseases and weeds, natural and chemical controls, integrated pest management, environmental impacts and safe work practices. An unusual but practical pairing for graziers: it treats pastures and fodder crops as plants with health problems of their own, covering weeds, pests, integrated pest management and safe chemical use on grazing land.

Animal Health

Recognise and respond to illness in livestock: signs and symptoms, how diseases are classified, caused, diagnosed and treated, and how animals heal. Builds on the flock-health unit with a deeper look at how disease develops and how animals recover.

Animal Feed and Nutrition

Understand what's in a feed and what it's worth: feed components, digestibility, feed classes and step-by-step ration calculations. Handy when you're supplementary feeding through a dry season or finishing lambs and need to cost the ration.

Ask a course consultant about adding modules when you enrol.

Career pathways and earning potential

Sheep husbandry plus business skills are useful on family farms, larger stations and in the services around them. Roles graduates often explore include:

Farm hand or station hand (sheep) – mustering, lamb marking, drenching, yard work and feeding on a sheep property. Station hand: advertised average $67,500 (most common $65k–$75k), Jora.
Overseer or farm manager – planning the sheep year, managing staff and keeping the enterprise on budget. Farm manager: advertised median $105,000 (typical $95k–$115k), SEEK.
Livestock agent (trainee) – helping assess, market and sell sheep and lambs for producers.

Figures are advertised salaries (SEEK, Jora) or median full-time earnings (Jobs and Skills Australia), accessed October 2026. Pay varies with experience, location and employer. Figures are a guide only.

Course details

Study mode: 100% online, self-paced
Core modules: 2 (plus Student Induction)
Study time: approx. 200 hours at your own pace (most students finish in 10–15 weeks)
Access: 12 months
Support: tutor support 6 days a week
You'll receive: Certificate of Completion, Certificate of Attainment and transcript
Payment: upfront or interest-free payment plan

Download the brochure Speak to a course consultant

Download your Certificate in Sheep & Farm Management brochure

See all 23 units, the assessment plan and your payment options in one brochure.

Frequently asked questions

No. You don't need land, a flock or any prior study. If you already work with sheep, you can apply each unit to the flock you handle. If you're starting out, you can base assignments on a property you can visit or research.