Advice

I can't decide whether to pursue a veterinary nursing degree with the intention of doing graduate entry veterinary medicine afterwards, or go into teaching. I have just completed my A levels and am taking a year out, but I just can't decide. I know that animals are my life passion/purpose, and I care for each and every one, but I also know that it's a long journey, particularly graduate entry, and know that teaching is very respectable/in demand. Do I go with animals or stability? Thank you for taking the time to read/respond to this

I wouldn't recommend entering teaching purely for stability. Especially in the first few years, it can be extremely stressful, and many people who enter with a strong passion for teaching end up leaving early. For people who enter who don't have a strong conviction that teaching is what they want to do, it's probably even harder to justify that stress. You may also want to consider that if you go into teaching biology (just assuming, maybe this isn't what you want to teach) that in the vast majority of schools, you would also have to teach chemistry and physics.

If you love working with animals, why not pursue the veterinary nursing? If you work very hard, you may be able to get into graduate entry veterinary medicine, but even if you don't manage that, you could still become a veterinary nurse. Wouldn't this align more closely with your passions than teaching, as you'd still be working with animals?

bluebeetle Thank you very much for your response. It was really helpful to get another point of view, and I understand that teaching must be very stressful; 10 of my family members, including my dad, are teachers, all in a variety of subjects. I also thought perhaps I should pursue teaching to carry on the tradition, but my lifelong passion for animals has to be a sign. This has been incredibly helpful, thank you.