Veterinarian

In American and Canadian English, a veterinarian (from Latin veterinae, "draught animals") is an animal doctor, a practitioner of veterinary medicine. The equivalent term in British English is veterinary surgeon, and both terms are often shortened to vet. The word veterinarian was first used in English by the doctor Sir Thomas Browne (1605–1682).

Education

More than 3800 veterinarians in the USA currently work at veterinary schools, teaching student vets what they need to know to graduate — so teaching is another career path.

Related Topics:
Teaching - Career

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Admission into veterinary medical school is competitive. According to the US Department of Labor, 1 in 3 applicants was accepted into a veterinary program in 2002. (Compare this with human medical school statistics of 1 in 2 applicants accepted). Prerequisites for admission include the undergraduate studies listed under veterinary medicine and extensive veterinary experience (typically about 500 or more hours) in private practice or other veterinary environment. The average veterinary medical student has an undergraduate GPA of 3.5 and a GRE score of approximately 1800.

Related Topics:
Veterinary medicine - GRE

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There is some reciprocal international recognition of veterinary degrees. For example veterinarians with degrees from the UK or New Zealand are immediately allowed to practice in Australia whereas vets with degrees from other countries are usually required to pass a set of qualifying exams before being allowed to practice. Australia currently has 5 Universities offering veterinary degrees - University of Sydney, Murdoch University, Melbourne University, University of Queensland, and Charles Sturt University. A sixth University is preparing for its first intake of vet students at the end of 2005 - James Cook University

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