Requirements to Become a Veterinarian | Veterinarian Colleges

Requirements to become a Veterinarian | Our TOP Recommendations
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• Nature of the Work - Veterinarian's careers are centered around the health and well-being of pets, livestock, race animals, and animals in zoos and laboratories. Some veterinarians use their skills to protect humans against diseases carried by animals and conduct clinical research on human and animal health problems. Others work in basic research, broadening our knowledge of animals and medical science, and in applied research, developing new ways to use knowledge.
• Online Veterinary Degrees - Prospective veterinarians must graduate with a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM or VMD) degree. This education is a 4 year program obtained through an accredited college of veterinary medicine. There are 28 colleges in 26 States that meet accreditation standards set by the Council on Education of the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA).
• Licensure - All States and the District of Columbia require that veterinarians be licensed before they can practice. The only exemptions are for veterinarians working for some Federal agencies and some State governments. Licensing is controlled by the States and is not strictly uniform, although all States require the successful completion of the DVM degree—or equivalent education—and a passing grade on a national board examination, the North American Veterinary Licensing Exam. This 8-hour examination consists of 360 multiple-choice questions covering all aspects of veterinary medicine as well as visual materials designed to test diagnostic skills.

Requirements to Become a Veterinarian | Veterinarian Colleges

The requirements to become a veterinarian vary. Many programs do not require a bachelor’s degree for entrance, but all require a significant number of credit hours—ranging from 45 to 90 semester hours—at the undergraduate level. However, most of the students admitted have completed an undergraduate program and earned a bachelor degree. Those applicants who do not possess a degree will likely face a more difficult task in gaining admittance.

Requirements to become a veterinarian -- Pre-veterinary courses should emphasize the sciences. Veterinary medical colleges most often require applicants to have taken classes in inorganic and organic chemistry, physics, biochemistry, animal biology, general biology, animal nutrition, genetics, microbiology, zoology cellular biology and systemic physiology. Some programs may additionally require calculus; some require only statistics, trigonometry and college algebra, or pre-calculus. Most veterinary medical colleges also require some courses in English or literature, other humanities, and the social sciences. Increasingly, courses in general business management and career development have become a standard part of the curriculum to teach new graduates how to effectively run a practice.

Most veterinarians will provide a diagnosis of any health problems in animals; administer vaccinations against diseases, such as rabies and distemper; medicate animals suffering from illness or infection; treat and dress any wounds; set required fractures; perform all surgery; and advise animal owners about feeding, behavior, and breeding.


Requirements to Become a Veterinarian - Degree - Graduate - Job Outlook

Employment is expected to increase much faster than average. Excellent job opportunities are expected.

Employment of veterinarians is expected to increase 35 percent over the 2006-16 decade, much faster than the average for all occupations. Veterinarians most often practice in animal hospitals or clinics and care primarily for animals within the family unit, such as the family cat, dog, and/or horse. Recent trends indicate that currently there is a greater interest in cats as pets. Faster growth of the cat population is expected to increase the demand for feline medicine and veterinary services, while demand for veterinary care for dogs should continue to grow at a more modest pace.

The average annual salary for veterinarians in the Federal Government was $84,335 in 2007.

Related Occupations: Veterinarians prevent, diagnose, and treat diseases, disorders, and injuries in animals. Those who do similar work for humans include physicians and surgeons, chiropractors, optometrists and dentists and also podiatrists. Those with a veterinary degree have extensive training in physical and life sciences, and a number of those do medical and scientific research, as do biological scientists and medical scientists.

Animal care and service workers and veterinary technologists and technicians also work extensively with animals. Like veterinarians, they must have patience and feel comfortable with animals. However, the level of training required for these occupations is substantially less than that needed by veterinarians.

Requirements to Become a Veterinarian - Colleges - Universities

There are an excellent number of choices for an online Veterinarian Degree. Online colleges and universities now provide the same curriculum as the traditional education. Learning online provides you with so much more flexibility to suit your lifestyle and current employment. We include our top recommendations for earning a Veterinarian Degree.

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