The Veterinary Science Department provides advising services for students in the pre-veterinary medicine curriculum and offers courses in the biomedical sciences for undergraduate and graduate majors in related sciences. The department also offers several graduate research assistantship positions in microbiology, virology, and molecular biology for students majoring in other departments. Graduate training is supported by active research programs in diseases of food-producing animals.
South Dakota does not have a professional College of Veterinary Medicine. A pre-veterinary medicine curriculum is offered which allows students to obtain prerequisites for application to Colleges of Veterinary Medicine in other states. Students may meet requirements in two or three years of pre-veterinary study. Many students complete a major for the Bachelor of Science Degree before entering the professional curriculum of Veterinary Medicine. Many degree options are available to students in the pre-veterinary medicine curriculum, but popular choices include Animal Science, Biology, Microbiology, Dairy Science, or others. Students typically select a BS option late in their freshman year or during their sophomore year.
Entrance into the professional curriculum in a College of Veterinary Medicine rests with the individual applicant, and is based upon many factors including their academic record and experience. The applicant should be aware of the difficulties involved in being accepted to a College of Veterinary Medicine. Keen competition should be anticipated.
Integrated within the Department of Veterinary Science is the South Dakota Animal Disease Research and Diagnostic Laboratory (ADRDL). The ADRDL is one of 36 full-service veterinary diagnostic laboratories in the U.S. that is accredited by the American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians. The ADRDL is a reference lab that investigates naturally occurring animal health problems. The lab receives over 20,000 submissions and conducts over 400,000 test procedures annually. The lab is the official test center for the SD Animal Industry Board and promotes animal agriculture commerce by performing required export testing. The lab is also integral to national disease eradication programs and serves public health by tracking zoonotic diseases.