Careers In The Veterinary Industry

Veterinary Surgeons

Working in the veterinary profession is highly rewarding but very demanding. Veterinary surgeons in practice have a professional obligation to provide a 24-hour service, 365 days a year and this can take its toll on family & social life. Not all vets work in private practice; there are a wide range of career opportunities including working for the army, the government, in public health, in teaching and research. To train to be a veterinary surgeon you will need to go to university and take a veterinary degree. There are two Universities in Scotland that offer veterinary degrees: the University of Glasgow and the University of Edinburgh. The course is five-years long and involves a lot of commitment and study and the minimum entry requirements are five Higher exams with AAABB. You should contact the veterinary schools directly for further information if you are interested, or visit the careers section of the RCVS web site. Alternatively this short video on YouTube is worth watching - http://www.youtube.com/vetcareers?gl=GB&user=vetcareers.

Veterinary surgeon salaries are significantly lower than other allied and comparable professions and you should consider this very carefully before making a decision to enter veterinary school.

Veterinary Nursing

We have seven qualified veterinary nurses in our practice who have a very important and valued job to do. Throughout our profession, there is a high demand for nursing skills. There is a range of entry routes into veterinary nursing, including a degree course at the Napier University and courses run by Thurso College amongst others. Our student nurses are present part-time in our practice and attend Thurso College for formal tuition.

If you are considering a career as a veterinary nurse or you would like to find out more about being a VN, please contact our VN assessor, Yvonne MacKay or our head nurse, Janet Stevenson. You should also read the guidance notes on the RCVS web site or read our page on nursing students.

Support Staff

Our veterinary practice wouldn’t function without our valued administrative team. Becoming a veterinary receptionist or veterinary manager is not easy and the job itself is challenging and hard work. There are several training routes but the VPAC and CVPM are the recognised further qualifications in practice administration and management. There is also a BTEC available in veterinary reception and this is an alternative route of further training.