collageThose of you seeking the vet schools in texas and top veterinary schools in the world need not look further as the article below gives you all the information you require and more. You will also find related information on vet school requirements on either website here described. A place on a campus intended for your cats is a very desirable place. The more out of doors, the better. It should have a sheltered spot on a sunny day and a cool place on a warm day. It can usually be made more interesting by putting up shelves or scratching posts or adding some toys. Exercise pens (called Catios) also give the cat outdoor access with privacy and protection from predators.
Midwestern University Vet School Ranking
The University of California, Davis, School of Veterinary Medicine has been ranked as the top vet school by all three organizations that rank veterinary schools.
The three organizations that rank veterinary schools are the U.S. News & World Report, Quacquarelli Symonds, and the Academic Ranking of World Universities.
The fact that UC Davis School of veterinary medicine operates a world-renowned state of the art modern animal hospital, has helped contribute to its #1 held spot in all 3 vet school ranking reports.
Cornell University and UC Davis usually hold the top 2 spots year after year. The last time Cornell University vet school was ranked #1, was back in 2008. You can expect the vet school rankings reports to come out every 4 years. The Royal Dick School of Veterinary Medicine in London also gets picked as one of the top 5 worldwide vet schools.
vet schools in texas
Students in Texas interested in earning an education in veterinary medicine or related fields may choose from certificates, associate’s, bachelor’s, or doctoral degrees. Students who aim to become veterinarians must earn a doctorate in veterinary medicine; applicants to such programs must hold a bachelor’s degree, preferably in the same field. Many veterinary schools in Texas have limited admission and competition for entry may be high. Clinical experiences supervised practice with animals, and internships are common in such programs.
Best Veterinary Colleges in Texas
Below are profiles of nine of the best public colleges in Texas that offer veterinary related degree and certificate programs; read on for more information about available programs.
| School Name | School Type and Setting | Veterinary Programs Offered | Tuition (2019-2020) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Texas A&M University | 4-year, public; small city | Doctor of Veterinary Medicine | $6,677 in-state; $18,700 out-of-state (graduate)* |
| Weatherford College | 2-year, public; town fringe | Veterinary Assisting Certificate | $2,710 in-district; $4,330 in-state; $6,100 out-of-state (undergraduate)* |
| McLennan Community College | 2-year, public; midsize city | Veterinary Assistant Certificate, Associate in Applied Science in Veterinary Technology | $3,450 in-district; $3,990 in-state; $3,990 out-of-state (undergraduate)* |
| Lone Star College System | 2-year, public; small city | Veterinary Technology Certificate, Associate of Applied Science in Veterinary Technology | $1,724 in-district; $4,244 in-state; $5,564 out-of-state (undergraduate)* |
| Navarro College | 2-year, public; distant town | Associate of Science in Veterinary Science | $2,742 in-district; $4,452 in-state; $6,222 out-of-state (undergraduate)* |
| Blinn College | 2-year, public; distant town | Associate of Applied Science in Veterinary Technology | $2,928 in-district; $4,296 in-state; $8,136 out-of-state (undergraduate)* |
| Cedar Valley College | 2-year, public; fringe rural | Veterinary Assisting Certificate, Associate of Applied Science in Veterinary Technology | $1,770 in-district; $3,330 in-state; $5,220 out-of-state (undergraduate)* |
| Palo Alto College | 2-year, public; large city | Veterinary Assistant Level II Certificate, Associate of Applied Science in Veterinary Technology | $3,030 in-district; $6,690 in-state; $14,220 out-of-state (undergraduate)* |
| Sul Ross State University | 4-year, public; remote town | Bachelor of Science in Animal Health Management: Pre-Veterinary Medicine | $8,806 in-state; $21,557 out-of-state (undergraduate)* |
Sources: *NCES College Navigator
Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, located in College Station, offers a DVM degree program. Admission to the program requires 62 semester hours of college credits, including courses in chemistry, biochemistry, biology, and microbiology with labs, calculus, animal nutrition and feeding, and genetics. Applicants must also have 40 hours of supervised veterinary experience, as well as knowledge and experience working with animals. The first three years of this program involve classroom education and the fourth year consists of clinical rotations. The school also offers 12-month rotating, veterinary clinical internships.
Weatherford College
Weatherford College’s veterinary assisting certificate program is provided at the school’s Weatherford campus. This is a 31 semester-hour program covering basic equine and small animal knowledge and technical skills necessary to assist veterinarians in clinical practice. The program takes three semesters, including a summer practicum. Graduates are not qualified to sit for the RVT examination, but they will be able to transfer into the veterinary technology program at Cedar Valley College by virtue of an articulation agreement between the two schools.
McLennan Community College
Located in Waco, McLennan Community College offers one certificate and one associate’s degree program in veterinary technology. The certificate program takes one year to complete, covering medical terminology, pathology, and parasitology. The courses cover both small and large animals. The associate’s degree program is competitive and only 30 students are accepted per year. The school provides hands-on training at its 10,000-square-foot animal hospital with specialized veterinarian training facilities.
Lone Star College System
This school’s one-year veterinary technician certificate and associate’s degree veterinary technician programs are offered at the Tomball campus. The one-year certificate program covers courses in medical terminology, exotic animal clinical management, veterinary anatomy and physiology, nutrition, pharmacology, parasitology and food animal clinical management. The associate’s degree program adds coursework in equine, canine and feline clinical management, anesthesia and surgical assistance, radiology and pathology. The associate’s degree core credits are transferable to many colleges and universities towards a bachelor’s degree. Some colleges may accept all 72 credit hours towards a bachelor’s degree in animal science or agricultural business.
Navarro College
Corsica is the location of Navarro College, which offers a pre-veterinarian associate’s degree program. This program is designed to transfer the associate’s degree credits to a bachelor’s degree program in preparation for a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) degree. The school recommends that students consult with the intended four-year program and coordinate the courses for transfer. In addition to the general education courses, students take 8 to 10 pre-veterinarian courses and electives.
Blinn College
Blinn College offers a veterinary technology associate’s degree program in collaboration with Texas A&M University’s College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, providing the first year of the 2-year program at its campus in Bryan. The second year’s clinical training takes place at Texas A&M’s campus in College Station. This is a competitive program and applicants are required to have general animal experience as well as 40 hours of supervised veterinary experience.
Cedar Valley College
Cedar Valley College offers two veterinary technology programs at its campus in Lancaster. The 20-credit hour certificate in veterinary assisting covers veterinary medical terminology and technology, canine and feline clinical management and parasitology. The 2-year associate’s degree veterinary technology program includes the courses in the veterinary assisting programs and adds diagnostic technology, pharmacology, physiology, surgery and assisting and large animal clinical management. This is a technical program with a significant amount of hands-on learning. It is designed to prepare students for entry-level positions as a veterinary technician; therefore, all credits earned are generally not transferable to a bachelor’s degree program.
Palo Alto College
Palo Alto College is the San Antonio campus of the Alamo colleges, offering veterinary assistant level II and veterinary technology associate’s degree programs. Both programs are competitive with limited admissions. Applicants are required to have 80 hours of veterinary clinical experience. The school has clinical pathology, anatomy/physiology and parasitology labs and a surgery suite with prep and recovery areas. The veterinary assistant program is 46 credit hours and focuses on small animal, equine and exotic animal clinical skills. The veterinary technician program takes two years, covering advanced clinical practices, pharmacology, surgery and anesthesia, pathology and food animals.
Sul Ross State University
A member of the Texas State University system, Sul Ross State University’s Department of Animal Science is located in Alpine. The school offers a Bachelor of Science in Animal Health Management with a concentration in pre-veterinary medicine that meets or exceeds the entrance requirements into Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine. Sul Ross’s animal sciences programs utilize the 500 acre Turner Range Animal Science Center which has specialized laboratories as well as facilities for animal health management and more. Pre-veterinary students are encouraged to consult with the Pre-Veterinary Medicine curriculum adviser at Texas A&M to coordinate their curriculum.
top veterinary schools in the world
To give you a better sense of what these best veterinary schools are actually like, here is a closer look at what it’s like to study at the ten best universities for veterinary science in the world.
1. The University of California, Davis (UCD)
The university’s School of Veterinary Medicine is the largest in the US and addresses the health of all animals, with expertise that also encompasses human health concerns.
Among its degree options is a Master of Preventive Veterinary Medicine degree, the first of its kind to be offered in the world.
UC Davis is based in the small city of Davis, which is 15 miles from state capital Sacramento. The city’s large population of students gives it college towns feel, which you will benefit from the proximity to a large, vibrant metropolitan area.
However, you’re unlikely to be bored if you hang around on University, as there are more than 500 student organizations to choose from, plus student-run events such as Picnic Day, the university’s annual open house.
2. Cornell University
Cornell’s College of Veterinary Medicine aims to promote research at molecular, cellular, organismal, as well as population levels to support the understanding of medicine, public health and also policy.
Students of the university’s Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree work with animals from day one and build a strong foundation of biomedical and clinical knowledge, learning from professors who are reinventing their fields every day with knowledge gained from their research.
The college is located on the university’s main campus in Ithaca, New York, situated among the rolling valleys of the Finger Lakes region. The campus’s location on a hill provides beautiful views of the surrounding area.
3. Royal Veterinary College, University of London
A constituent college of the University of London, RVC is the largest and oldest veterinary school in the UK, having been established in the year 1791.
Students at RVC get the best of both worlds as the college has an urban campus in London where you’ll spend the first two years of your veterinary course and also a rural Hawks head school near Potters Bar in Hertfordshire, where you’ll find the Queen Mother Animal Hospital, the Equine Hospital, the 200-hectare Bolton’s Park Farm and other state-of-the-art lecture and laboratory facilities.
The university also owns and manages the London Bioscience Innovation Centre, a business incubator home to more than 50 life science companies.
4. University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge’s degree takes six years to complete. From years one to three you will study the basic veterinary sciences before learning to apply your knowledge in the final three clinical years.
During the vacations of years one or two, students are required to complete at least 12 weeks’ work experience to gain knowledge of animal husbandry.
The final year is lecture-free, so students work through a series of 40 weeks of clinical rotations in small groups at the Queen’s Veterinary School Hospital, providing further opportunities to take on more responsibilities and also gain clinical experience in the diagnosis, management, and care of patients. During the sixth students also complete an elective project in a subject of their choice.
5. Utrecht University
Utrecht is the only university in the Netherlands that offers a veterinary training program, taught entirely in Dutch and it takes six years to complete it is made up of a three-year bachelor’s and a three-year master’s degree.
At the master’s stage of the program, students can tailor their degree by choosing from one of three specialisms: Companion Animal Health, Farm Animal Health, and Veterinary Public Health and Equine Health.
Utrecht itself is a vibrant city in the central Netherlands with an active student and cultural scene, second only to Amsterdam.
The university has over 150 student organizations to choose from, including plenty relating to sports, arts, and other hobbies and interests.
6. University of Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania Vet is the only veterinary school in the US to be developed in association with a medical school.
Its Veterinariae Medicinae Doctoris (VDM) degree takes four years to complete and also offers unique opportunities for teaching, research, and service.
Established in the year 1884, the university’s School of Veterinary Medicine also known as Penn Vet has two campuses, the New Bolton Center Campus and the Philadelphia campus.
Philadelphia is one of the US’ most historic cities and is home to a host of museums, art galleries, restaurants, concert halls, and clubs, as well as having the nation’s first zoo, located on Fairmount Park.
7. University of Guelph
The University’s Ontario Veterinary College (OVC) is the oldest in Canada (founded in the year 1862) and offers a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) degree which takes four years to complete and is widely accredited and respected.
The university is home to a diverse community and also has a broad range of student clubs to get involved within your spare time.
Guelph itself is consistently rated as one of the best places to live in Canada, with low crime rates, a clean environment, low unemployment rates and a generally high standard of living.
8. University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh’s Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, commonly known as Dick Vet, was established in the year 1823 by William Dick, making it one of the oldest veterinary schools in the world.
Students in this Institution can make the most of the school’s excellent facilities at its Easter Bush campus (located around eight miles south of Edinburgh city center) and two miles east is a 250-hectare livestock farm at Lang hill, where you’ll learn animal handling and farm animal medicine.
9. University of Liverpool
The University of Liverpool was the first UK University to offer a veterinary science degree and offers in-depth clinical and research-based training from renowned experts in their fields.
The Institute of Veterinary Science is unique among UK veterinary schools for owning two large working farms which students spend time at from their very first year, as well as two referral hospitals and three first opinion practices.
Veterinary science students at Liverpool also benefit from the high staff to student ratio and are also assigned a personal tutor on entry.
10. Texas A&M University
The university’s College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences was established in the year 1916 and is now a significant educational, medical, and research center.
Its professional Doctor of Veterinary Medicine is a four-year program made up of three years of mixed classroom and laboratory instruction, followed by a final year of clinical rotations in the Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital.
The school and hospital are located in the city of College Station, Texas, which has a warm, dry climate as you might expect for the area.
Students at Texas A&M “Aggies,” don’t get bored as the university has over one thousand student organizations to choose from.
The university’s School of Veterinary Medicine is the biggest in the US and addresses the health of all animals, with expertise that also encompasses human health concerns.
vet school requirements
Undergraduate Course Requirements
Most U.S. veterinary schools require the following college courses (specific Penn State courses are listed in parentheses):
- Two semesters of general chemistry with lab (CHEM 110, 111, 112, and 113)
- Two semesters of organic chemistry with lab (CHEM 202 and 203; or CHEM 210, 212, and 213)
- One or two semesters of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology with laboratory (B M B 211, 212, and 221; or B M B 401 and 402)
- B M B 251: Molecular and Cell Biology is also required by some veterinary colleges
- Two semesters of general biology with labs (BIOL 110, and BIOL 220W, 230W, or 240W).
- Two semesters of physics with lab (PHYS 250 and 251)
- Mathematics–The minimum requirement ranges from algebra and trigonometry to two semesters of calculus and varies with each school. Note that it is a minimum requirement. Most schools do not accept students who have not taken calculus, even if their published requirement is algebra and trigonometry (MATH 140 and 141).
- General education–Penn State students rarely have difficulty meeting this requirement if they meet Penn State’s General Education requirements for graduation.
- The specific number of credits required in each of the above categories may vary among veterinary schools. Thus, it is important to check the specific admissions requirements for each veterinary school.
Essential College Criteria
Criteria that you should accomplish during your undergraduate degree before your application to Veterinary Colleges
- Grade Point Average (GPA): Maintain a competitive GPA, preferably 3.5 or higher. Most veterinary schools examine courses taken in the last 3-4 semesters closely.
- Animal and Clinical Experience: Volunteer with a veterinarian to gain wide variety of animal and clinical experience, and appreciation for the veterinary medical field. This might be an opportunity to find out if veterinary medicine is for you.
- Graduate Record Examinations: You think that you are done after taking SATs or ACTs for your college applications. Not quite! The Graduate Record Examination (GRE) is widely accepted by most veterinary colleges while MCAT is another standardized test that is accepted by some in addition to by Medical Schools. Check each school’s web page for their target standardized test scores.
- Letters of Recommendation: Choose three individuals to provide letters of recommendation. One is required from an academic adviser; one is required from a veterinarian; and the third one can be from an individual of your choice (typically one of your course instructors). It is important to get to know your academic adviser and/or professors during your college education. Some schools may require letters from two veterinarians. The application will give you a choice to waive your right to see letters of evaluation. You also have the choice not to waive that right and therefore request to see the letters after your application has been evaluated. While it is your right to see the letters, our advice is to waive the right to examine the letters. Evaluators will know before they write the letter if you have waived the right to see the letters or not. Some schools will think that evaluators may be hesitant to make negative comments about students do not waive their right to examine the evaluations. This can influence the evaluation of that letter by the admission committee.
- Leadership and communication skills; and co-curricular activities: It is highly recommended that you get involved in student club activities, such as, Pre-Vet club which will provide you numerous opportunities to serve in your community which will provide you to interact with people from all walks of life. Make effort to hold an officer position or to serve on a committee which will provide numerous opportunities to gain leadership and communications skills. Remember admission committee is looking for tomorrow’s leaders.
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