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Navvaran Mann
Mr Alford
English 4
9 May 2012
Veterinarian
Many people believe that a veterinarian is someone that treats local animals or pets in a
clinic. Veterinarians are very similar to doctors in that they can specialie in many different fields
and are not limited to !"st a private clinic. #hey are a very smart individ"als that have st"died
hard for many years. Veterinarians physicians treat animals in the same $ay that a doctor $o"ld
treat a h"man. Veterinarians are not limited to treatment and can e%pand to many research or
food safety fields. Veterinarians are highly ed"cated people that can $or& in a variety of fields
$hich are pro!ected to gro$ tremendo"sly in the f"t"re.
#he dictionary definition of a veterinarian is a person $ho practices veterinary medicine
or s"rgery. #hey typically love $or&ing $ith animals and are e%tremely devoted to their !obs.
Vets diagnose and treat animals for a variety of illnesses. 'n their clinics a variety of %(rays and
blood tests can be given to animals to diagnose them. )ome veterinarians are even licensed to
preform s"rgery on certain animals. A veterinarian is also e%pected to give a $ealth of
information to o$ners abo"t the health* treatment* and care of the pet. #he food that yo" eat
everyday m"st also be inspected by veterinarians to ens"re that no disease is present in the
animals. +eing a veterinarian ta&es a lot of time in yo"r life and comes $ith a lot of
responsibility. Most vets have a hard time "sing e"thanasia on pets. Veterinarians go thro"gh an
ed"cation that is similar to a doctors and receive a !ob $ith responsibility that is e,"al to a
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doctors.
Veterinarian-s are ed"cated people and in order to become one yo" m"st start by getting a
bachelors degree. 't is recommended that yo" obtain a bachelors degree in a science or other
related areas. )ome e%amples are chemistry* oology* biology* chemistry* animal science*
biochemistry* and molec"lar biology are some degree programs yo" may be interested in. #here
are some special cases $here yo" may not need to hold a fo"r year bachelors degree b"t it is
recommended to obtain one. #a&ing a science related co"rse is !"st the beginning. )ince the field
of veterinary medicine is e%tremely competitive* yo" m"st maintain a grade point average of ../
or higher. Veterinary schools "s"ally place the most emphasis on the last co"ple semesters. Many
colleges advise prospective veterinarians to obtain some vol"nteer e%perience d"ring yo"r
st"dies. 't $ill help st"dents gain e%perience in the veterinary field and let yo" see if this field is
the right one. #he 0rad"ate 1ecord E%aminations201E3 also have to be ta&en before applying to
grad"ate school.
Applying to one of the many schools that offer 4octor of Veterinary Medicine is the ne%t
step in the process. #here are "s"ally 5000 applicants every year for abo"t 2400 openings.
Applying $ith the centralied application provided by the American Association of Veterinary
Medical 6olleges2AVMA3 is re,"ired by all schools in the 7nited )tates. 8etters of
recommendation from . different individ"als and a s"pplemental application is re,"ired after
filling o"t the centralied application.
#he ne%t step is the fo"r year 4octor of Veterinary Medicine program. 't is divided into
t$o separate 2 year segments. A 4VM program is e%tremely similar to a physician program. #he
first t$o years are spent in the classroom and then the ne%t t$o years are spent in clinical
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rotations. )chool is not cheap and t"ition m"st be loo&ed at before going to a 4VM program. 9or
e%ample the 6"mmings )chool of Veterinary Medicine has a t"ition of :40*000 dollars a year for
in and o"t of state residents. 'n some schools resident t"ition may be as lo$ as :20*000 dollars. 't
is al$ays $ise to consider t"ition and the ,"ality of ed"cation before yo" decide to attend a
veterinary school of medicine.
Veterinary schools have varying c"rric"l"m and do not have a set of standards to follo$.
;rograms can last any$here from three to si% years in the 7nited )tates. 9or e%ample the first
t$o years in a typical fo"r year veterinary school are spent on basic science. )ome e%amples of
classes ta&en are animal behavior* animal n"trition* clinical pathology* large and small animal
medicine* anesthesia and s"rgery principles* and veterinary pharmacology. <ther basic topics
li&e anatomy and histology are also covered. )ome schools may choose to spend three years in
the classroom and then head to clinical rotations. 'n some e%treme cases li&e china st"dents have
to spend abo"t si% years in school before they can go into any type of clinical rotations.
)t"dents proceed to more hands on $or& once they are done $ith the classroom in
veterinary school. 6linical rotations are designed to give the st"dents e%perience in a $ide range
of veterinary fields. #hey learn the specialties of cardiology* e,"ine care* oncology* dentistry* and
many more. Most schools do not $ant to foc"s too m"ch one one single specialty d"ring school
beca"se they $ant st"dents that are e%perts in a broad range of veterinary fields. )t"dents $ill
learn ho$ to correctly diagnose an animal and prescribe the correct medication in response to the
diagnosis. 9ac"lty $ill help st"dents preform s"rgery "nder very close s"pervision. =o"nds and
any other type of physical in!"ry to the animals $ill also be properly diagnosed and treated
d"ring these rotations.
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#he one big difference bet$een veterinary school and medical school is internships.
Many co"ntries do not re,"ire internship>residency after grad"ating. An internship>residency is
re,"ired in the "nited states for anyone see&ing board certification in the 7nited )tates. #here is
a internship and residency matching program for all grad"ates in the 7nited )tates. An internship
$ill give yo" m"ch needed e%perience to specialie in a field of veterinary medicine. A licensing
test m"st also be ta&en. 't is the North American Veterinary 8icensing E%am 2NAV8E3. 't is a
.50 ,"estion test that last ?./ ho"rs and $ill assess an individ"als &no$ledge of veterinary
medicine.
#he most important thing to consider before coming a veterinarian is the f"t"re of the
field. All st"dents no matter $hat field sho"ld loo& at the pro!ected gro$th of their related fields.
No one $o"ld $ant to specialie in a field that is declining. 9"t"re vets are l"c&y beca"se the
field is e%pected to gro$. According to the 7.). +"rea" of 8abor )tatistics* 2+8)3* veterinarian
!obs are pro!ected to gro$ by ..@ bet$een 200A and 201A. #his gro$th is m"ch faster than the
average !ob according to the +8). More !ob opport"nities can be find in r"ral areas d"e to less
competition. 0ro$th of veterinary medicine is d"e to people placing more val"e on pets and ne$
medicine to help pets. According to the +8) veterinarians earned a mean ann"al $age of
:92*/?0 in May 2010. #he "pper ten percent earned an average of :14/*000 a year.
Veterinarians also have many different types of vet !obs available to them. Most vets are
small animal vets that $or& in private clinics. #hey are also &no$n as companion animal vets.
#he most common types of pets treated at these clinics are dogs* cats* rabbits* ferrets* birds* and
other types of small animals. )mall animal vets may or may not be trained in certain types of
s"rgery for small animals. Veterinarians that $or& in clinics need to be very approachable and be
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able to cons"lt $ith pet o$ners on a daily basis. <ther vets may choose to $or& at farms to ta&e
care of large gro"ps of animals. )ome veterinarians are E,"ine veterinarians and $or& $ith
horses.
Veterinarians may choose to $or& in a type of !ob in $hich they have little social
interaction. #hese types of vets can $or& in food safety and research. 9ood safety veterinarians
chec& livestoc& and ma&e s"re it is in line $ith government reg"lations. #hese veterinarians are
very important in &eeping diseases li&e E. coli o"t of o"r food s"pply. #hey can be fo"nd near
large amo"nts of animals and in sla"ghterho"ses. 1esearch veterinarians spend time doing
research in laboratories. #hey test ne$ s"rgical techni,"es* dr"gs* and do clinical research on
animal health. <ther veterinarians may choose to become a post secondary teachers in the many
colleges that offer 4VM programs.
Veterinarians $or& long hard days b"t they love the idea of $or&ing for animals. 'f
animals is not yo"r thing then do not consider this career path. #hey are responsible for $atching
the health of animals in all parts of life. #hey may $or& on the dogs and cats in yo"r comm"nity
or they may choose to $or& in other places. Veterinarians are responsible for ma&ing s"re o"r
food s"pply is safe for "s to eat. #he field is gro$ing and is e%pected to contin"e gro$ing for a
$hile. No$ is the perfect time to become a veterinarian as salaries are increasing and !obs are
popping "p in nearly every comm"nity.
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