Veterinary Degrees Online

Pre-medicine, pre-dentistry, and pre-veterinary medicine are career paths and not majors. While most students planning to enter one of these fields select biology, chemistry, or psychology as a major, pre-medical, pre-dental, and pre-vet students may select any major. The University of Mary Washington has a pre-medical/pre-dental advisor and a pre-veterinary advisor to guide interested students through these curriculums. In addition to meeting with their assigned Academic Advisors, students with an interest in medical or dental school should meet with the Pre-Medical/Pre-Dental Advisor (Dr. Loesser-Casey, kloesser@umw.edu) early in the first semester to discuss the requirements for medical or dental school. Students with an interest in veterinary medicine should meet with the Pre-Veterinary Advisor (Dr. Lewis, llewis@umw.edu).

New students interested in entering one of these career fields should complete the following courses during their first semester: CHEM 111, BIOL 121, MATH 121, ENGL 101, and a Physical Education course or a General Education course. New students with AP, IB or transfer credit which substitutes for one or more of these first semester courses should confer with the pre-med or pre-vet advisor during the first week of classes if they have questions concerning alternative coursework.

We work closely with the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Minnesota, St. Paul. They have advised us that students should complete an undergraduate major before starting veterinary school. Most of our pre-vet students are biology majors.

The University of Minnesota accepts only a limited number of veterinary students, with residents of Minnesota as the largest group. They also accept a few students from Wisconsin, Nebraska and North Dakota. If you are a legal resident of some other state, I suggest that you contact whatever college of veterinary medicine you plan to attend. Your pre-veterinary curriculum at MSUM can then be tailored to fit requirements of the veterinary school of your choice.

Our pre-vet curriculum (biology major) is based on a strong background in chemistry and physics and also meets certain minimum requirements in math. The first semester freshman typically takes English (Eng. 101), math (depending on previous preparation), Cell Biology (Biol. 111), and General Chemistry (Chem. 150 & 155). The pre-vet curriculum is essentially the same as that followed by other pre-professional students and would prepare one for a wide variety of alternatives.

pre-veterinary medicine are career paths and not majors. While most students planning to enter one of these fields select biology, chemistry, or psychology as a major, pre-medical, pre-dental, and pre-vet students may select any major. The University of Mary Washington has a pre-medical/pre-dental advisor and a pre-veterinary advisor to guide interested students through these curriculums. In addition to meeting with their assigned Academic Advisors, students with an interest in medical or dental school should meet with the Pre-Medical/Pre-Dental Advisor (Dr. Loesser-Casey, kloesser@umw.edu) early in the first semester to discuss the requirements for medical or dental school. Students with an interest in veterinary medicine should meet with the Pre-Veterinary Advisor (Dr. Lewis, llewis@umw.edu).

New students interested in entering one of these career fields should complete the following courses during their first semester: CHEM 111, BIOL 121, MATH 121, ENGL 101, and a Physical Education course or a General Education course. New students with AP, IB or transfer credit which substitutes for one or more of these first semester courses should confer with the pre-med or pre-vet advisor during the first week of classes if they have questions concerning alternative coursework.

The USC Upstate pre-veterinary medicine program is an advisement track within the biology degree program. Students already having a degree and aiming for veterinary school should take courses that are required or recommended and that will best prepare them for taking the VCAT. Veterinary school admission is on a competitive basis. Important factors considered by Admission Committees are grade point averages (GPA), VCAT scores and letters of recommendation.

VCAT (Veterinary College Admission Test) exam:
Pre-vet students must start their math and chemistry sequences as soon as possible in order to take the VCAT exam at the appropriate time. Students must have Organic Chemistry and physics completed by the end of the junior year, as the VCAT exam should be taken the spring semester of the junior year or the fall semester of the senior year. Developmental math students may need an additional year of preparation. The minimum core of courses that are needed before the VCAT is taken is:
English 101+102
Mathematics 126+127 (Precalculus; with Mathematics 143 (calculus) recommended)
Biology 101+102
Chemistry 111+112
Chemistry 331+332 (Organic Chemistry)
Physics 201+202 OR Physics 211+212

Veterinary Programs:
As South Carolina has no in-state veterinary program, “South Carolina quotas” are available at the University of Georgia and Tuskegee University. The largest quota for South Carolina residents is at the University of Georgia. In addition to the VCAT, applicants to the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine program must also take the GRE, including the Advanced Biology section.

Pre-vet students should complete their applications no later than October of the year before they expect to enter veterinary school.

In addition to the VCAT minimum core listed above, other courses that are required (or recommended) are: Anatomy (SBIO 232) or Comparative Anatomy (SBIO 315, preferred), Microbiology (SBIO 330), Physiology (SBIO 242, recommended), Genetics (SBIO 350, recommended), Biochemistry (SBIO 541+543L), Animal Nutrition, and Statistics (SMTH 201 or SPSY 225 or SSOC 220).

S.C. residents interested in the University of Georgia Veterinary School need to contact the S.C. Pre-veterinary Advisory Committee, which coordinates S.C. applicants. The address is:

Pre-Veterinary Advisor
Department of Animal Science
College of Agricultural Sciences
Clemson University
Clemson, SC 29631

S.C. applicants interested in Tuskegee University can apply directly to that school. Other universities with veterinary programs (e.g., North Carolina State University) may accept South Carolina residents but do not reserve any places for South Carolina residents.

Veterinary medicine is one of the fastest growing professions in the country, and Warren Wilson College graduates have been very successful in gaining admission to schools of veterinary medicine. Students may fulfill the entrance requirements for veterinary schools by earning a B.S. degree in Biology or Chemistry. Veterinary schools expect applicants to have had experience in studying and caring for animals, and pre-vet students work on the Farm crew for two years, caring for and managing all aspects of the pig and cattle herds. The combination of a good academic background, Farm Crew experience, and the discipline from the Warren Wilson College Triad educational program benefit the student in applying to veterinary medicine programs and in future professional work. An additional strength of the pre-veterinary medicine program at Warren Wilson College is that the pre-veterinary advisor is a licensed veterinarian with a Ph.D. in animal behavior.