Explore different areas of veterinary medicine and surgery
At Nottingham, we’ve included hands-on learning throughout our courses to ensure you’re gaining those essential skills as soon as day one.
As a passionate aspiring vet, we know you understand the dedication involved in the professional care of animals.
Exposure to a varied caseload, in real environments is so important for your development as a vet. That’s why with us you’ll work with
- all domestic species
- exotic animal medicine
- livestock production systems
- wildlife conservation
We’re able to offer these opportunities as we work with Clinical Associates rather than our own referral hospital. This approach enables you to further practice animal handling and clinical skills in various settings and broaden your experiences to help you choose a speciality.
Your fifth year is where you’ll put your learning into practice. You’ll undertake 26 weeks of rotations, both in the school and with our Clinical Associates.
My favourite rotation so far has been small animal practice, which is the main ‘first opinion’ element of small animal rotations. In this rotation, we spent time at different first opinion practices, each with a different culture, policies and client base. This was a really practical, hands-on placement which was great for developing skills and increasing confidence.
Alison Anderson
Fifth-year Veterinary Medicine and Veterinary Surgery BVM BVS with BVMedSci student
Fulfilling other requirements by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS)
You’ll also undertake 38 weeks of extra-mural studies (EMS) at farms and veterinary practices.
These will need to be completed over the duration of your course outside of term time (so during the summer or December holidays) and are organised by you.
In the school, we have a dedicated EMS team who will support you to find suitable placements. Some of the extra-mural studies will offer opportunities for you to work abroad.
See what one of our placements looks like
We can open the door to a vast network of opportunities within veterinary medicine. Placements provide you not only with hands-on experience, but also networking opportunities that can lead to career discovery and progression.
Hear from final year veterinary student, Molly Buckmaster about placements at Tywcross Zoo.
