With enrolments in most Telford courses up, the primary industry training centre's new director is hoping to make big changes this year.
The number of enrolled students in Telford's rural diploma course increased from 22 students last year to 29 this year, which the division's director Prof Charles Lamb attributed to a "general upswing" in the economic fortunes of the primary sector.
The number of pupils enrolled in the certificate in equine course had also increased, with 20 students this year, up from 12 in 2011.
George Warren (19) and Trudy Robertson (21) both returned to Telford this year to study for a diploma of rural business after completing certificates in agriculture.
Mr Warren said he was always interested in farming and machinery, making Telford the obvious choice for his studies.
Miss Robertson said she wanted to start her own Dexter cattle stud, and studied at Telford to learn how farming industries worked, particularly the dairy industry.
Prof Lamb took up the director's position on October 10 at the former rural polytechnic.
On January 1 last year, Telford Rural Polytechnic - which was founded in 1964 as a farm training institute - became Telford, a division of Lincoln University.
Prof Lamb (58) was an associate professor and head of department of Lincoln University's business management, law and marketing department before taking up the post at Telford.
He said the Lincoln connection had given Telford students access to a wider range of teaching resources, and academic support for teaching staff.
"Overall, Telford is now better resourced than it has been in the past. It's also been a bonus for Lincoln, making land-based training more centralised."
Prof Lamb said it was business as usual for the division, but after five months in the top job, he had several ideas about how to improve courses and campus life.
Random drug and alcohol testing of both staff and students would begin, and Prof Lamb said he was looking into the possibility of having a licensed bar on campus, open limited hours and days.
"It would be open to our students aged 18 and over and to locals. If we did it right, it would be a show-stopper."
He was also working with Clutha Mayor Bryan Cadogan's task force for jobs programme with the possibility of running full-time courses to help train unemployed youth and get them jobs.
Prof Lamb also hoped Telford would offer more training in the use of bigger farm equipment such as diggers and perhaps offer heavy vehicle licence courses.
The campus now employed a full-time nurse, the hostel had been split into junior and senior sections, and two Telford students were representatives on the Clutha District Youth Council for the first time.
