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Experts on veterinary medical education emphasize that it is highly rigorous, but they say the vet school workload is manageable for hardworking, bright students.
Dr. Carmen Fuentealba, dean of the Long Island University College of Veterinary Medicine in New York, says students who have done well in college and high school should not fear vet school since they have already proven themselves academically.
“There is not going to be any reason why you shouldn’t succeed when you go to vet school,” she says.
Veterinary school typically lasts for four years and veterinary students usually have a bachelor’s degree, which means that the journey into the veterinary profession is a long one. Aspiring vets can expect to devote about eight years to their higher education if they spend four years in college and four years in vet school earning a doctor of veterinary medicine, or D.V.M., degree.
Further, people who wish to specialize within a particular field of veterinary medicine such as surgery or pathology often seek extra training after vet school through veterinary internship and residency programs. For those individuals, over a decade of education after high school is typical.
“Advanced training programs such as internships and residencies are not required,” Collins explains. “Residency programs allow veterinarians to receive advanced training and certification in a clinical discipline.”
Successful completion of an internship is a prerequisite for most residency programs, Collins adds.
Although someone can become a vet without completing a veterinary internship or residency, he or she must have a license.
“Graduates of accredited U.S. veterinary colleges must be licensed in the state(s) in which they intend to practice, through an application process determined by that state,” Collins says. “The most important requirements for licensure are successful completion of the veterinary degree and a passing score on the North American Veterinary Licensing Examination,” or NAVLE, he adds.
How Many Years To Become A Veterinarian
What to Expect in Vet School
“Within the veterinary school curriculum,” Solomon wrote in an email, “classes include the anatomy and physiology of many species (cats, dogs, horses, cows and exotic species), nutrition, microbiology, infectious diseases, internal medicine and surgery. Elective courses are also offered in areas of aquatic and zoo animal medicine, conservation of endangered species, rehabilitation medicine and Eastern medicine such as acupuncture.”
Krull describes the amount of material that vet students need to absorb as “astronomical,” since students must gain an understanding of multiple species and learn about both male and female animals. “Being a veterinary student is extremely difficult but rewarding,” she says.
Vet school involves not only science classes but also clinical skills training, experts say.
“Throughout, students must learn to diagnose and treat diseases in a wide range of species that go beyond dogs, cats, cows and horses, including birds and exotic pets such as reptiles and amphibians,” Collins says.
Collins describes veterinary education as “a full-time job” and says students can expect to spend significant time in classes, labs and study sessions.
“Having said that, our students are involved in many extracurricular activities, most of which are clubs related to the veterinary profession,” he says.
Steps to Take to Become a Vet
Experts on veterinary medical education emphasize that it is highly rigorous, but they say the vet school workload is manageable for hardworking, bright students.
Dr. Carmen Fuentealba, dean of the Long Island University College of Veterinary Medicine in New York, says students who have done well in college and high school should not fear vet school since they have already proven themselves academically.
“There is not going to be any reason why you shouldn’t succeed when you go to vet school,” she says.
Veterinary school typically lasts for four years and veterinary students usually have a bachelor’s degree, which means that the journey into the veterinary profession is a long one. Aspiring vets can expect to devote about eight years to their higher education if they spend four years in college and four years in vet school earning a doctor of veterinary medicine, or D.V.M., degree.
Further, people who wish to specialize within a particular field of veterinary medicine such as surgery or pathology often seek extra training after vet school through veterinary internship and residency programs. For those individuals, over a decade of education after high school is typical.
“Advanced training programs such as internships and residencies are not required,” Collins explains. “Residency programs allow veterinarians to receive advanced training and certification in a clinical discipline.”
Successful completion of an internship is a prerequisite for most residency programs, Collins adds.
Although someone can become a vet without completing a veterinary internship or residency, he or she must have a license.
“Graduates of accredited U.S. veterinary colleges must be licensed in the state(s) in which they intend to practice, through an application process determined by that state,” Collins says. “The most important requirements for licensure are successful completion of the veterinary degree and a passing score on the North American Veterinary Licensing Examination,” or NAVLE, he adds.
Is Vet School Worth It?
The educational pathway to a veterinary career is not only lengthy and strenuous, it’s also pricey.
According to the AVMA, the average educational debt among 2019 graduates of U.S. veterinary schools who found full-time employment prior to graduation was about $150,000. Their average entry-level starting salary was significantly less, slightly under $85,000.
Experts on the veterinary profession say that money is not typically the primary motivation for entering this field. “Money can be a touchy subject, especially since we work in a caring profession and generally prefer to tackle medical rather than financial challenges,” DeMarco says.
“Honestly, the salary-to-debt ratio is poor,” DeMarco says, but veterinarians “donโt usually enter the field because they expect it to be lucrative.”
It’s important for vet school hopefuls to understand that veterinarians typically earn far less than physicians. According to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median annual salary for U.S veterinarians was $93,830 in May 2018 while it was $208,000 or more for physicians and surgeons within human medicine.
The BLS predicts that the number of U.S. veterinary jobs by 2028 will be 18% higher than in 2018. That is much better than the norm among U.S. professions, since the average projected growth rate across all fields is only 5%.
Dr. Katie Woodley, a Colorado-based general practice veterinarian who incorporates holistic treatment methods into her practice, says one of the advantages of the veterinary profession is that there are many types of jobs within the veterinary field. Vets, then, can choose the path that suits them.
The career path that most people imagine when they think of veterinarians is the role of a general practitioner who takes care of personal pets, Solomon says, but vets may treat small animals, food animals or exotic animals.
Additionally, although a majority of vets work in private practice, that isn’t true for all vets. “Veterinarians can also be found in research, public health, the military and regulatory medicine (such as the CDC, EPA and FDA),” Solomon wrote in an email, referring to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Environmental Protection Agency and Food and Drug Administration, respectively.
DeMarco says the job outlook for vets is positive. “There are many potential career paths, from small animal doctor to state health inspector, and from researcher to relief vet.”
Plus, according to the AVMA, there are 22 types of veterinary specialists, vets who have pursued veterinary training beyond vet school, developed expertise within a particular area of veterinary medicine and passed an exam in that field.
For example, poultry veterinarians are experts on caring for turkeys, chickens and ducks, and theriogenologists concentrate on animal reproduction.
Though the veterinary field is diverse and includes many types of jobs, one thing that nearly every veterinary specialty shares in common is an abundance of intellectually demanding work. Krull notes that the veterinary field is a challenging one “with long hours, tough cases, lots to know.”
What Bachelor Degree Is Needed For Veterinary School
Being a veterinarian requires a great deal of commitment. One-third of full time veterinarians spend 50 or more hours a week on the job. As with on-call physicians, their free time is often interrupted (typically even more so than physicians, since there are fewer vets serving any one area). There is sometimes a great deal of driving involved. Veterinarians must often work out of doors, in all kinds of weather, and with all kinds of animals.
Educational Requirements
In order to practice, a veterinarian must meet the following educational guidelines:
- Bachelor of Science or Bachelor of Arts degree in chemistry, physics, biochemistry, biology, animal biology, or zoology
- Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM or VMD) degree from an accredited college of veterinary medicine
In order to be accepted into a veterinary medical college, students should have a minimum undergraduate GPA of a 3.0 and prior experience working with animals. Students may be required to take some or all of the following standardized tests: GRE, VCAT, or the MCAT.
Becoming a veterinarian requires the same amount of academic commitment one finds in the fields of dentistry and medicine. There are 28 colleges in the United States that meet accreditation standards established by theย Council on Education of the American Veterinary Medical Associationย (AVMA). Because there are so few accredited veterinary colleges, educational spaces are limited and competition can be quite intense.
While in veterinary college, students receive academic instruction in basic sciences for two years. The remainder of their academic time is spent focusing on clinical procedure, such as treating and diagnosing animal health issues, and performing surgery. During this time students perform laboratory work in medicine, anatomy, and biochemistry. At most veterinary colleges, students have the option of simultaneously earning both a DVM degree and a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree.
Veterinary graduates who want to work with particular animal populations often choose to pursue additional education in one of 20 AVMA-recognized specialties, such as radiology, pathology, surgery, or laboratory animal medicine. This continuing education typically takes the form of a two-year internship. Interns often receive a small salary or stipend; however, these specializations typically lead to higher-paying jobs in the future. Veterinarians seeking board certification in a specialized field of veterinary science must also complete a three- to four-year residency program in their area of focus.
In order to practice as a veterinarian, you must be licensed by your state. The majority of states also require potential veterinarians to pass a state jurisprudence examination covering state regulations and laws.
How Much Does Vet School Cost
Veterinary school graduates learn diagnosis and treatment of disease for large and small animals. Graduates of veterinary school may apply for state licensure to practice as a veterinarian. A Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree is required nationwide.Typical costs: |
A Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree typically costsย $28,000-$54,000ย per year for in-state tuition and fees (resident rate) orย $41,000-$66,000ย per year (for four years) for out-of-state tuition and fees (non-resident rate). In general, tuition costs are higher for non-residents attending a state school. For example, the University of Pennsylvaniaย offers a D.V.M. forย $32,450ย per year for residents orย $41,460ย per year for non-residents. The University of California, Davisย charges tuition and fees ofย $53,000-$62,000ย per year for California residents orย $65,000ย to 74,000 per year for non-residents. Doctorate programs in veterinary medicine are also offered at private universities. For example, Tufts University, a private school in North Grafton, MA, offers a D.V.M. forย $40,528ย per year for residents andย $42,640ย per year for non-residents. |
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