Veterinary Science
“The greatness of a nation can be judged by the way its animals are treated.”
– Mohandas “Mahatma” Gandhi
Overview
Do you have a way with animals? Like to take care of small animals like cats and dogs or even large animals like horses and cows? Then consider a career in veterinary science. Our accredited online associate’s, bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree programs in veterinary science and pre-veterinary medicine will help you find a job as a veterinarian; veterinary assistant; livestock inspector; or meat, poultry and egg product inspector.
Veterinary Career Insights
- Veterinarians are licensed – you need a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) degree from an accredited college of veterinary medicine, as well as a license to practice.
- Veterinary medicine is a competitive career – getting into a good school requires excellent pre-veterinary grades.
- You can be an animal care worker without going to veterinary school – animal care and service workers are trained on the job, but advancement depends on experience, formal training, and continuing education.
Veterinarian
Veterinarians are responsible for the health and well-being of the full range of pets, livestock, and wild animals. Some veterinarians specialize in companion animals such as dogs, cats and ferrets; these are known as small animal practitioners. Veterinarians specializing in larger animals such as lions and tigers and bears are known as large animal practitioners. Veterinarians may practice in clinics or may be in private practice. Working closely with the veterinarian is a Veterinary Assistant, whose job is akin to that of a medical assistant in a human-oriented practice. The Veterinary Assistant typically performs a range of duties, such as restraining the animal during an examination to processing insurance forms to collecting information (from the owner).
Animal Care Workers
If you like working with animals but don’t want to go to veterinary school, you can still find a satisfying career as an animal care worker in an animal hospital, animal shelter, horse farm, pet store, ranch, wildlife or livestock program, or zoo.
Livestock Inspectors
Livestock inspectors are charged with keeping livestock healthy, so they don’t transmit disease to each other or to humans. Diseases that affect livestock include hoof-and-mouth disorder and mad cow disease. As a matter of course, livestock inspectors should not become too close to the animals they care for, since these animals usually end up as food. Meat, Poultry and Egg Product Inspectors are charged with inspecting these animal products before they reach consumers to be sure they are safe for human consumption.
If you’re interested in working with animals – or animal products – then find out how accredted online degree programs such as an associate of science in veterinary science, bachelor of science in veterinary science, master of science in veterinary science, or Ph.D. in veterinary science can help you get a job as a veterinarian, veterinary assistant, livestock inspector, or meat/poultry/egg product inspector.
Click here for a complete list of accredited online Veterinary Science degree programs
Penn Foster Career School
Penn Foster’s high school and vocational technical programs are accredited by the Middle States Commission on Secondary Schools. Their unique and flexible program offerings are designed for career oriented individuals and adult learners with an interest in real-world solutions. With programs in business, internet technology, appliance repair, paralegal studies, medical administration and many, many more, Penn Foster has provided valuable learning experience to over 12 million students worldwide.
Penn Foster Advantages:
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Something for Everyone – Penn Foster offers over 80 courses covering a wide variety of interests. Study common programs such as business management, or not-so-common courses such as wildlife and forestry conservation.
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Large and In Charge – With over 12 million students enrolled since 1890, they are the largest distance learning institution in the world.