Do you want to be a vet?

If you want to study veterinary in Ireland then you have only one college choice – UCD.

UCD is the only college in Ireland with a veterinary school and the points required to study veterinary there were 565 last year. In fact, in the last 10 years, the lowest the points have dropped to was 545*(in 2008).

However, it’s not just points that determine whether you get a place in veterinary in UCD. Other requirements include chemistry (minimum H5* in Leaving Cert or equivalent), a third language, and, while not required, Leaving Cert biology is strongly recommended. Furthermore, students must acquire at least 60 hours or two weeks’ practical experience relevant to animal handling or veterinary practice, covering at least two of pets, horses, farm animals and wildlife/zoo.

Suffice it to say, even due to the points requirement alone, it is difficult to get into veterinary in UCD. This is the very reason why in the schools zone at the Agri Careers Fair, one topic covered was “Veterinary Options Abroad”. This saw Trish McGrath of grinds school Hewitt College in Cork share details on veterinary courses abroad and how to go about securing a place on them. Trish has been running Hewitt College for many years and has seen a multitude of her students go on to study veterinary, both abroad and in UCD.

Trish says the typical student who appears before her wanting to study veterinary “tends to be from either a farming background or maybe from a strong equine background”.

She adds: “They have lots of practical experience. They know the positives and they also know the negatives and it’s about a balanced decision. It’s a rational decision and they just couldn’t see themselves doing anything else.”

At the Agri Careers Fair, Trish gave a very comprehensive rundown on the options for studying veterinary abroad. Here we have a breakdown of the information she gave on the day.

The UK

The deadline for applications to veterinary degrees in the UK is 15 October of the previous year and applications are made through UCAS (the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service). This means applicants need to be prepared much earlier than for the majority of other courses.

Some of the universities you can study veterinary in are the University of Nottingham, University of Bristol, University of Cambridge, the University of Edinburgh, University of Glasgow, University of Liverpool, Royal Veterinary College (University of London), and University of Surrey.

The exact entry requirements vary slightly between schools but all require a very high standard in the Leaving Cert.

The University of Glasgow, for example, and the University of Liverpool require four As and two Bs, while the Royal Veterinary College (at the University of London) requires four As and two Bs at higher level, including an A grade in biology and chemistry. There can be many small variations in entry requirements though, so it’s important to research every option.

Europe

It’s much easier to get into veterinary programmes in continental Europe than it is in the UK. Countries offering veterinary programmes through English on the continent include Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Estonia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Spain.

Tuition fees in European universities range from €4,000 to €12,060 but accommodation is usually significantly less than it is in Dublin. It is very important to thoroughly research the entry requirements. For example, in Poland the minimum entry requirements are six passes at Leaving Cert, including H4** in two of biology, chemistry and physics, while both an interview and a personal statement are also required.

Trish notes the “application process isn’t very challenging” in many of these colleges across Europe.

Trish says the real challenge is in staying there. First and foremost, veterinary is a very difficult course no matter where you study it.

“You have to work so hard because … it’s a challenging course anywhere – it’s challenging in Ireland, it’s challenging in the UK … but then you have all those extra challenges of the different culture, the different language and a different environment to cope with that you wouldn’t necessarily have if you were in Dublin, for example.

Trish notes the customs can be very different: “Some students say they feel a very long way away from home. I think that’s particularly true for veterinary students more so than students who’ve travelled for medicine or for dentistry because a lot of the veterinary students tend to come from farming and agricultural backgrounds. They really love home as a result, so I feel for them it’s even harder.

“For them it’s not just home, it’s everything. It’s the land, the way of life and it’s probably the way of life that has really strongly motivated them to study veterinary.”

Language is another factor and it is particularly important to do thorough research on this front. It is important to remember that while the course is offered through English, you may be expected to learn the language of your host country for clinical placement and practice – and the course may not be taught through English for its entire duration.

“For example, in Spain at the moment they’re teaching year one and two through English but then reverting to Spanish after that,” says Trish. This means students will have to make sure they’re fluent in Spanish by third year.

Croatia

To get into veterinary in the University of Zagreb, an institution founded in 1669, students are not required to sit an entrance exam or an interview. Rather, they have to write a personal statement or letter of motivation.

The annual tuition fee is €9,000 while rent for a studio apartment (private rental accommodation) is about €200 per month. Students need to have six passes in the Leaving Cert including two H5*.

Bulgaria

One of the Bulgarian universities you can study veterinary in is Trakia University, which is located in the city of Stara Zagora. The faculty of veterinary medicine there, which was originally part of Sofia University, has been training vets for nearly 100 years. Entry is guaranteed – there is no entry exam (although exceptions may apply). Tuition fees are from approximately €4,000 per year while living costs work out at under €7,000 per year. Leaving Cert students need six passes at Leaving Cert (two H5) including biology and chemistry. There is no entrance exam, no interview and no personal statement.

Czech Republic

The University of Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Sciences (UVPS) was established in 1918 and is located in Brno, which is the second-largest city in the Czech Republic. The city lies within a few hours of Prague, Vienna and Bratislava and is easily accessible via several international airports from western Europe.

The Faculty of Veterinary Medicine (FVM) at UVPS is one of the university’s oldest faculties.

Students must sit an entrance exam but there is no interview or personal statement. Students need to have six subjects at Leaving Cert, two of which they need to get a H5 grade in and one of these must be in maths. The fees are €7,600, while on-campus accommodation is approximately €200 per month.

*H5 – minimum 50% mark on a higher level paper.

** H4 - minimum 60% mark on a higher level paper.

Prior to entering veterinary in UCD, students must have at least 60 hours or two weeks’ practical work experience. If they were born or raised on a farm then that is not sufficient experience, there must be some external supervision and a parent can’t sign off on your experience. The same applies if you have pets at home. Even if you are completely responsible for looking after them, this is not requisite experience.

Examples of experience that would fit the criteria include working in an equine establishment such as a riding school, a stud farm or a racing yard, working at an animal rescue facility, working on a commercial farm (helping the farmer with daily jobs) or experience in a small or large animal veterinary practice.

The owner or manager of the business who you worked with must verify your experience and all the information provided will be verified by the School of Veterinary Medicine.

The experience doesn’t all have to be in one block (it can be made up of shorter periods) but the entire experience should amount to 60 hours or two weeks. Experience gained abroad counts if it can be verified.

Experience gained in another academic programme such as Animal Science or Veterinary Nursing will count if it meets particular requirements.

For more information on colleges in the EU which offer veterinary through English, visit www.eunicas.ie.