Teaching and Programme Structure

The College has always prided itself on providing a course that offers a wide range of stimulating teaching and learning methods designed to equip you for a fulfilling career in veterinary medicine. Now, with the added strength of the only Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning in a British veterinary school, we have taken a fresh look at how we can bring together the best elements of technological change, clinical and scientific progress, and best practice in teaching methods. The result is a degree programme that will equip you for a variety of careers in the veterinary professions over the course of your lifetime.

One of the most important is that we have reduced the amount of detail that students are expected to cover. Scientific and veterinary knowledge has exploded in the last few years, and you can’t hope to learn more than a fraction of what might come in useful one day. What you can do, though, is to achieve a thorough understanding of the key concepts and essential facts that form the basis of veterinary science and medicine, and develop vital problem-solving, clinical reasoning and communication skills.

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How is the programme taught?

Programme content

Course structure

(Student makes notes about her observations through her microscope) (Lecturer teaching students in large lecture theatre) (Student looks over chart)

How is the programme taught?

In order to keep material stimulating and exciting, the BVetMed Veterinary Medicine programme is taught in a variety of formats. Sessions include:

clinical skills development
directed learning sessions
dissections
lectures
tutorials (some of which involve live animals)
practical classes (in the laboratory and at our working farm)
practical experience
research projects (as coursework)
work experience placements (AHEMS and EMS)

We teach the curriculum from a comparative perspective. We use only one or two species - primarily the dog - to teach many aspects of the basic and clinical sciences, but we teach so that you will learn principles that can be applied to other common species. In the more clinical teaching later in the course much of the teaching will focus on common cases that you would encounter in veterinary practice, and on cases that will help you to understand the most important clinical principles. Teaching of Special Species (exotics, wildlife, birds, fish etc) is integrated into the mainstream teaching of body systems.

Veterinary medicine is first and foremost a scientific discipline, and you will not get very far as a veterinarian without a sound grasp of the scientific theory underpinning veterinary practice. But wherever possible the science will be presented in the context of its clinical relevance, so you have a clear understanding of where it all leads.

Programme content

You'll be taught by some of the UK's most prominent veterinary scientists and have the opportunity to benefit from studying in an environment of cutting-edge veterinary research. During the programme you will learn, amongst other things:

an understanding of the basic biological principles of normal body function and disease
the ability to distinguish the pathological from the normal
the ability to prevent disease and safely manage the processes of animal production
the expertise to diagnose and treat disease and alleviate suffering
the professional skills you need to work and communicate effectively with your colleagues and the public
critical business and communication skills,
to be a lifelong learner, an essential attribute in a rapidly changing world.

All of this is designed to produce practising veterinary surgeons who have the knowledge and skills to make a significant contribution to animal health and welfare.

Course structure

Students on the Graduate Accelerated Programme start their course with an intensive one-year programme (Transitional Year) which provides graduate students with a veterinary-oriented approach to basic sciences and will enable each student to acquire the animal handling skills necessary to enter the third year of the standard BVetMed programme. Once students have successfully completed this transitional year, and have passed tests in animal handling, they enter the BVetMed course at the start of Year 3. The final three years of the course are common to all students studying for the Veterinary Medicine degree and take place at our Hawkshead Campus in Hertfordshire.

In your final three years, most lectures are timetabled early in the week, with usually no more than two lectures per day. Consequently, you will spend less time in the classroom, giving you more time to really master the material you need to learn. Lectures will be followed by timetabled Private Study Sessions, usually eight hours per week. The remainder of the week will comprise a mixture of practicals, dissections, academic tutorials, Integrated Structure and Function (ISF) tutorials using live animals, and Directed Learning (DL), which aim to help you consolidate and apply your knowledge.

In your final three years, on many Fridays, you will be offered the opportunity for self-evaluation of your knowledge using computer-based MCQs, which will offer immediate feedback on why your chosen answer may be wrong, offer a further hint to the correct answer for a repeat attempt at the question, and quote a reference so that you can extend your knowledge through further study. This feedback is designed to help you assess how you are coping with the demands of the course, and meeting our expectations. In the accelerated year, such formative tests are timetabled at the completion of every Unit. Should you encounter problems with learning, support is available through our Learning Support Officers as well as the tutorial system.

The tutorial system has been completely revamped recently. You will meet monthly in groups of six for an hour with an academic tutor. Besides reflecting on your learning in broad terms, you will have been provided with a task, maybe a problem to solve, the solution of which you present to the group for discussion; alternatively, you may be asked to discuss your understanding of one of the topics from the previous month’s classes, a hot scientific topic, or a scientific paper. Tutor groups will also be a route for learning through sharing of experiences, successes or problems.

Pre-clinical year 1 (Camden campus)
Elements	Comments
Basic Veterinary sciences	Taught in an integrated manner on body systems basis with the clinical relevance of the sciences highlighted at every stage.
Animal health and handling	Visits to the Hawkshead campus for lectures and practicals The healthy animal in its normal environment Basic skills in handling and examining horses, farm animals and companion animals.
Animal Husbandry Extramural Studies (AHEMS)	Takes place over 12 weeks during holiday time. Tackle real-life problems in a variety of settings such as dairy and sheep farms, pig farms, stables and catteries.
Once you have successfully completed Year 1, and you have passed tests in animal handling, you will enter the BVetMed course at the start of Year 3.
Clinical years 3-4 (Hawkshead campus)
Elements	Comments
Clinical science: Knowledge Practical Skills	Necessary for your full participation in clinical practice at the RVC and in private veterinary practice.
Clinical skills	Much time at this stage will be spent in our state-of-the-art Clinical Skills Centre practising a wide range of skills in a "safe" setting under expert guidance. This will stand you in good stead when you start your clinical placements.
Research project	During your third year of study, you will spend at least 8 weeks devising and executing a research project on any aspect of veterinary sciences that interests you. Self-motivation is important but a supervisor will be assigned to provide help and support as you need it.
Intra Mural Rotations (IMR) - hands-on experience in RVC clinics	Our clinical facilities provide students with the opportunity to be exposed to as many as 20,000 cases each year.
Clinical Extra Mural Studies (ClinEMS)	This is the compulsory time that all veterinary students have to spend off-campus gaining practical experience. During your final three years you must complete 26 weeks of clinical Extra Mural Studies via a balanced programme of placements at general veterinary practices, specialist veterinary centres, the State Veterinary Service, research institutes and the Veterinary Laboratory Agency (VLA).
Clinical year 5 (Hawkshead campus)
Elements	Comments
Lecture free final year: Practical skills Problem based learning	A lecture free final year is devoted to developing practical skills and problem based learning in the RVC hospitals and private veterinary practices.

Undergraduate Courses

Teaching and Programme Structure

How is the programme taught?

Programme content

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