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Alumni Profiles

Claire Jakobsson

RVC Graduate 2008

Claire spent a few months working in a sales job with fashion magazine Vogue before packing it in to become a writer for the Parliamentary Resources Unit based at the House of Commons.

In Parliament she works with the front bench MPs on Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) policies ranging from animal welfare to climate change.

As one of the first graduates from the Royal Veterinary College’s (RVC) unique BSc in Veterinary Sciences she was keen to use the skills she developed through the degree programme.

"When I chose my course I had initially been interested in a career as a vet, as I have a real interest in animal health. But, then I found out about the degree in Bioveterinary Sciences, which is designed for students to develop lab based skills as well as their knowledge of veterinary medicine and how to communicate complex issues to the public. Some graduates from the BSc Bioveterinary Sciences do go on to take the BVetMed degree, that enables students to train as qualified vets, but I realised that this was not the best career path for me.

The course content was fantastic and it gave an excellent blend of theory and work experience in the lab. I also undertook a dissertation in the Structure and Motion Laboratory,at the College, analyzing the gait and maximum power output of ostriches, which involved recording the movement of these massive birds running at speed on a treadmill.

I developed a number of skills through my degree, which involved preparing presentations and essays. This developed my communications skills, as well as veterinary knowledge.

With health crises such as foot and mouth disease, BSE and the threat of avian flu it is more important than ever for the vet community to be able to communicate complex issues.

As a fresh graduate I initially took up a job with Vogue, but but found I wanted to combine my communications and writing skills with the knowledge gained from my RVC degree. Now as a researcher and writer at the House of Commons my job is much more challenging. My day-to-day work involves preparing correspondence and briefing papers for MPs, dealing with various interest groups from animal rights extremists to environmental charities such as WWF, and attending front bench Defra meetings.

Recently I’ve been working on the Animal Welfare Bill, the most significant animal welfare legislation for nearly a century. It brings together and modernises welfare legislation relating to farmed and non-farmed animals.”

The BSc in Veterinary Scienceswas initiated in 2002 and it arms graduates with the skills to take up prominent positions in the pharmaceutical and agricultural industries, as well as specialised roles assessing disease risks of herds and flocks of animals, and the nation as a whole. The degree isn’t a qualification to be a vet, but offers students a whole host of opportunities to work on animal and health promotion.The veterinary profession has developed considerably since the days of James Herriot, as scientific and medical advances, similar to human medicine, have been introduced into the treatment of animal diseases.

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