What Will I Learn at Vet School?

Once you have been accepted at one of the vet schools, it’s time to start studying.

All vet schools have a curriculum to follow. For example, you cannot enroll in endocrinology until you understand anatomy and physiology. This is important to realize because many students tell themselves that it is not important to learn a subject or don’t see the importance of it and downplay it, only to find out later that they are having difficulty because they didn’t master the basics. The bottom line here is that if any of the vet schools think a subject is important, it is and you will sooner or later find out why!

There are many courses you will take when enrolled at vet school.

Here are some of them:

Epidemiology

What causes disease and how do diseases spread? How do you investigate an outbreak?

Cellular and Molecular Immunology

How does the immune system work on a cellular level? How do the genes influence the immune system? What happens biochemically in the body when cells fight against a bacteria, virus, fungus, or parasite?

Molecular Genetics

How do cells communicate with each other to replicate? What genes influence the replication process? What genes affect how the offspring will look?

Molecular Virology

How do viruses work on a molecular basis and how do they evade the defense mechanisms of the animal with the virus?

Diagnostic Pathology

What do diseased red blood cells and white blood cells look like under the microscope? What do tumor cells look like? How can these be identified in the blood, urine, and in a biopsy sample? How do the organs work together in disease? When the liver shuts down, how does this affect the kidneys and colon?

Diagnostic Oncology

How can the dozens of animal neoplasms (cancers and tumors) be diagnosed? How are they different from each other?

Veterinary Protozoology and Entomology

What do parasites do to the body of an animal? How do they affect the animal’s physiology? How pathogenic are they? Will an animal die from a certain parasite? What do parasites do to insects? How do they affect the insect and how pathogenic are they?

Neuroanatomy

What is the normal structure of the nervous system in primates and domestic animals? How does the brain control the rest of the body?

Clinical Pharmacology

How do drugs work in animals? What drugs are used and why? When are they toxic? What is an acceptable dose? How are drugs prepared?

Physiology

How do the heart and blood vessels pump the blood through the body of an animal? How do the kidneys filter the blood? How do the lungs allow an animal to breathe? How do the hormones work? How does the digestive system break down the food and feed the body? How does the animal reproduce?

Surgery

How are basic types of surgical procedures performed in animals? How does a veterinarian replace a hip? Fix a ligament? Close up wounds in the animal’s flesh? Mend a tear that occurred during the birth process?

Gynecology of Large Domestic Animals

What are the different diseases and problems of the reproductive system of large domestic animals? What is normal and what is abnormal?

The exact name of the courses you take varies in the different vet schools. However, all of them must cover basic topics to receive their accreditation. Vet schools are pretty consistent in meeting the standards of instruction necessary to give you a good education. Most vet students discover that the more they learn, the more they want to learn. You will, too!