What universities are best for being an equine vet?

I am wanting to apply to veterinary courses soon, but I am not sure which ones to pick. I am hoping to go into equine after uni, so want to go to a uni that will best prepare me for that. I know that Liverpool is considered the best, but other then that information seems to be pretty varied. Thanks in advance! :smile:

(edited 8 months ago)

Reply 1

louisvbird

Universities Forum Helper

Liverpool isn't regarded as the 'best' - in fact, RVC tends to score highest in rankings. However, to say that there is a best vet school is kind of a useless argument. They are all slightly different, but in the UK every vet school will make you into a world-class vet, and you build your own opportunities through doing placements and getting experience in your chosen field. So you should pick which one suits you and would support you the best for your future career aspirations.

None of the vet schools really have specialisms and you don't specialise as a vet during vet school; you will have to study every species. In final year, you can choose to do your non-core rotations in an area of your choosing - so you could choose equine for this. Outside of this, there's not really any benefit to going to one vet school over another if you want to specialise - becoming an equine vet is more your own work, by networking, growing contacts, doing equine placements, becoming involved in equine societies, becoming knowledgeable with horse medicine and eventually after uni, landing yourself an internship. Your vet school won't really help you do these things.
I have heard some people say that one vet school is best for exotics and one is best for horses etc, however in my opinion, all of the vet schools are well set-up for teaching all the different species. And, as I said above, you basically need to make your own opportunities in order to become an equine vet. Every vet school will have equine specialists to teach you so you just need to make the most out of wherever you study.

When picking which vet school to go to, you may want to consider:
+ How the campus is set out (some vet schools have the same campus for the full 5 years, some will have you travel to two different campuses throughout your vet school life, some will have you do one half of the course on one campus before moving to the other campus halfway through).
+ Whether the vet school has its own hospitals/clinics on site, or if rotations work using the clinical associate model.
+ How expensive that part of the country is.
+ Whether the vet school has international accreditations which allow you to practise in other countries (if this is important to you).
+ Do the methods of teaching align with how you like to study?
+ Whether you liked the vibe of the place on the open day!

I hope this sets your mind at ease somewhat. Basically, just choose a school that works for you, because when you get to vet school it will be up to you to expand your equine interests, regardless of where you study. :smile:

Reply 2

RambleAmple

Apply where you feel you’d have best chances of getting in (strategic applying is good as it’s so difficult to get offers) and where you feel you’d enjoy life best at for 5 years - type of campus, curriculum etc. All the vet schools will get you where you want to be vet wise, there is no “better school for equine” and so on, every school does all the species roughly the same and it’s up to you to choose your EMS placements where they are developing your skills in your chosen speciality. So I wouldn’t worry about any “I’ve heard Liverpool is best for equine” etc - things change all the time, all the vet schools are competent and it makes no difference when you come to getting jobs etc. Choose a school you’ll a) stand a chance at getting into (i.e. meet all grade and work experience requirements, has the interview types etc you feel you’d do best at) and b) enjoy your time best at, 5 years is a long time after all. And that is coming from a Liverpool vet student.