Appendix L
Issues and Concerns about Recruiting Students for Research Careers in Veterinary Science from the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges Symposium on Veterinary Graduate Education
The following points are excerpts from papers given at a symposium sponsored by the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges on The Future of Veterinary Graduate Education: Quality, Challenges and Opportunities. The papers are published in the 2005 issue of Journal of Veterinary Medical Education.
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Colleges of Veterinary Medicine (CVMs) do a poor job of recruiting students into veterinary research, as many of them are unaware that research is a career option. By the time students apply for entry into veterinary college, almost all of them are committed (or at least think they are committed) to careers in practice. Quoting Freeman (2005), “Although colleges of veterinary medicine are biomedical research institutions that contribute significantly to the national research effort, these endeavors are virtually invisible to constituencies outside of the profession. Only 11 to 24% of the general public is aware that veterinarians are employed in areas such as medical research, environmental protection, public health, and food safety. As a result, most applicants to veterinary school are more interested in the human-companion animal bond than either basic or applied research. Moreover, many pre-college students and undergraduates interested in scientific investigation do not even contemplate a career in veterinary medicine. In fact, a recent survey of the potential veterinary school applicant pool revealed not only that this group is poorly informed about careers in veterinary medicine beyond companion animal practice, but also that a subset of the students who choose not to apply to veterinary college are interested in research opportunities and environmental issues.”
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CVMs have addressed the issue that clinical practice, especially small-animal (pet) practice, dominates the curriculum to the detriment of veterinary research.
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Visibility, excitement, role models, and mentoring for research careers are all deficient. Freeman described a number of programs aimed at addressing these issues, many of which seem successful and all of which can be adopted or adapted for application at many of the nation’s CVMs.
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The best science in CVMs often is supported by agencies (such as the National Institutes of Health) whose main interest is human health, leaving veterinary students wondering how this excellent basic science contributes to animal health and therefore is related to their career aspirations.
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There are some welcome and appreciated opportunities for veterinary students to gain research experience, during both the summer months and the regular academic year, but they are too few and may fail to provide stipends sufficient to meet veterinary students’ financial needs.
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The time and costs involved in obtaining adequate research training and experience after earning the veterinary degree seem to deter students from pursuing graduate education. There are too few sources of adequate support for combined PhD-DVM and post-DVM training.