A career as a vet?
Vets are healthcare professionals for the animal kingdom. They work to diagnose and treat sick animals and are also involved in managing disease outbreaks, to protect both animals and humans. It’s a profession full of variety and the opportunities are diverse.
A veterinary degree not only gives you the opportunity to work in clinical practice, but can also be a passport to a range of other careers. You could end up in scientific research, the pharmaceutical or animal nutrition industries, travelling abroad on wildlife projects or working in government to maintain biosecurity in the UK.
Qualifications required
A university degree is essential. There are currently seven universities in the UK that offer a veterinary degree course that’s approved by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS). These are Bristol, Cambridge, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Liverpool, London and Nottingham.
Each of the veterinary schools asks for slightly different qualifications. The general guide is AAB at A-level, or AAABB at SCE (usually including Biology and Chemistry). For applicants who do not have the standard qualifications, a one-year pre-degree course or a six-year vet degree is available from selected universities. Applicants are expected to demonstrate their commitment by carrying out relevant work experience, for example, in a veterinary practice, on a farm, in kennels or at a pet rescue centre.
Attributes
Applicants will need to be self-confident and self-motivated, with good communication and motor skills. Students are expected to have an understanding of the positive and negative aspects of a veterinary career and have an awareness of current important issues and developments in veterinary medicine and science.
Put yourself in the picture... Case study: Jessica Mole
Jessica, 22, is currently in her fourth year of a vet degree at the Royal Veterinary College (RVC), London University’s veterinary school.
Why did you want to become a vet?
Everyone always asks this question and it is so difficult to answer. I’m not really your typical vet student. I wasn’t naturally good at the sciences or maths and had to work really hard to get the grades I needed to apply for veterinary medicine. Before I came to the RVC I was a dancer and did some filming and theatre work, but I always knew that I was going to be a vet.
What do you enjoy most about the course? I love the constant challenge. The course has allowed me to travel to some amazing places for work experience and meet some really interesting people. It isn’t easy. I’ve never had to work as hard as I have over the last four years, but the opportunities it has provided have been second to none.
What are you hoping to do when you qualify? I think I’m probably going to end up working with small animals. I like the equine and farm work but I would miss the surgery involved with small animal practice. I am really keen to work in Australia and make the most of being in a profession that allows me to travel.
What’s your advice for a budding vet? If you really want to be a vet then go for it, but you’ve got to be prepared to put in the work. You spend a lot of time studying and work long hours, but the partying is equally as good! You don’t have to be a genius to be accepted on the course, you just have to show that you are determined.
Veterinary
Science...for all Walks of Life
• Does science inspire you? • Would you like to be your own boss? • Fancy the outdoors as your office? • Would you like to be a surgeon? • Would you like to work with animals?
Vets come from all walks of life and a veterinary degree is a passport to a huge range of careers, from clinical practice, through research, to government or conservation work. Many vets own businesses too. Visit our website to find out which veterinary career might suit you!
For more information:
www.walksoflife.org.uk or
www.youtube.com/vetcareers full on! 7
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24