Our BVetMed programme and graduate transition year follows a ‘spiral’ curriculum. This means that key concepts are presented repeatedly to you as you progress through the course, at deepening levels of complexity and in different contexts.

The progression of knowledge and understanding from preclinical basic concepts to clinical knowledge and reasoning skills is achieved by revisits to each strand at different stages of the course.

For example, when learning about the kidney, you will learn basic anatomy and physiology during the preclinical phase of the course and then learn about the common diseases of the kidney and how they are diagnosed and treated during the clinical phase. This is then enriched by working with animal patients presented with kidney disease in our first opinion and referral hospitals, or other practices, during clinical rotations and extra-mural rotations.

In Year 4 and 5 of the course, you will undertake intramural clinical rotations. These rotations will focus on:

• Observation, discussion and practical experience as a member of the clinical team in the College’s hospitals, and in clinical enterprises in which the College is a collaborating partner
• Placements in veterinary practices
• Attendance at lectures, seminars and workshops
• Completion of a major research project

Learning

This course is delivered through whole-class lectures, small group tutorials, group work in directed learning classes, computer-assisted learning, demonstrations, practical work in laboratory and dissection classes, practical classes utilising live animals, directed and self-directed reading, directed and self-directed practice in the Clinical Skills Centre, self-evaluation, animal husbandry placements, placements in veterinary practices, and production of project reports.

Self-directed learning

Outside of your timetabled lectures and practical sessions, you are expected to undertake self-directed learning. Typically, this involves reading journal articles and books, working on individual and group projects, undertaking research in the library, preparing coursework assignments and presentations, and preparing for examinations.

Teaching staff

The RVC has three outstanding academic and clinical departments. Lecturers in each department are not only world-class researchers and clinicians who are passionate about their field; they are highly qualified teaching professionals. All RVC students are assured teaching of the highest standard.

Assessment and feedback

In the final year of your course, your assessment will comprise:

• Assessment of knowledge, problem solving and professional behaviour on clinical rotations
• Examination of practical skills through OSCEs (objective structure clinical examinations)
• Completion of a 4000-word research project
• Written examination testing clinical and professional decision making

You will need to fulfil our requirements in each of the following areas to be considered for interview.

Academic qualifications

The standard academic requirements for entry to the BVetMed Accelerated Programme are outlined below.

Note: International applicants already holding a Veterinary Medicine degree who are seeking to practise in the UK are not eligible to apply for this course and should refer to the registration department of the RCVS.

Work experience

To apply for the BVetMed you will need to have prior work experience in order to have developed animal handling skills and obtained an insight into the work of veterinary surgeons. Before you apply, you must have completed the minimum requirements:

• A total of 70 hours (e.g. 10 full days) of work experience (paid or voluntary) in one or more veterinary practices
• A total of 70 hours in one or more non-clinical working environments with live animals (excl. the home environment/family business/pet ownership).

The above 140 hours must be obtained within the 18-month period directly preceding the application deadline. Earlier experience is welcome but will not count towards the 140 hour requirement.

We encourage you to think creatively about these environments and are interested to hear about any experiences that have helped to give you a sense of the veterinary role in the wider world. Examples of suitable non-clinical environments might include, but are not limited to: kennels, cattery, animal shelter, rural or city farm, stables, pet shop, lambing, intensive livestock, abattoir, animal research laboratory, wildlife park, zoo, etc. You do not have to have gained experience in all these areas.

NB: References will be required - we recommend collecting these as you go.

Work experience: Applicant Supplementary Form

All applicants applying through UCAS must complete the Applicant Supplementary Form. The form will be available in our application portal and applicants will be given access to this, and notified of the need to complete the form, via email on receipt of their application. The form must be submitted independently of, and in addition to, the UCAS application and within five days of your application being received by the RVC. The RVC will not contact applicants reminding them to submit the form before the deadline given.

The RVC uses email as the primary method for contacting applicants about their application. Emails may be sent from either admissions@rvc.ac.uk or myapplication@rvc.ac.uk and applicants are strongly encouraged to take the necessary steps to ensure emails from these addresses do not end up in spam or junk inboxes, as the RVC cannot accept responsibility for any applications that are unsuccessful as a result of missed information or deadlines.

Mitigating circumstances

If you wish to make us aware of any mitigating circumstances related to your application please see our guidance on mitigating circumstances here: www.rvc.ac.uk/mitigatingcircumstances

Interviews

All applicants to this course must attend an interview if invited and cannot receive an offer without attending an interview. All UK interviews for this course will be held in December (US interviews to be held in November/December and Asian interviews to be held in December/January). Our interviews are held in person. If invited, it is often not possible to rearrange an interview for a different date, so applicants must ensure they are available for interview before applying and inform us by email of any specific days within this time period when they are unavailable

All applicants invited to interview will need to provide their passport (in some cases another valid form of ID will be acceptable), original degree certificate (if already completed) and reference letters (see example) to cover the minimum work experience requirements as stated above.

English language requirements

• IELTS (Academic) score of 7.0 or above with minimum 6.5 in each component

All applicants must have an acceptable English Language qualification. Please see our English Language Requirements page for a list of qualifications we accept as alternatives.

How are applications assessed?

We have put together a document with advice on our process of selecting Veterinary Medicine students, from initial screening of applications through to making offers post-interview. This can be downloaded here.

What will I be able to do with my qualification?

You will be entitled to practise as a veterinarian as soon as you have earned your BVetMed degree and registered as a Member of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS).

Our graduates go on to enjoy a wide range of careers in veterinary medicine, including positions in:

• Small animal practices
• Mixed practices
• Equine practices
• Farm/livestock environments
• Wild animal environments
• Wildlife conservation
• Military support
• Industry
• Research
• Government
• Academia

Global careers

The RVC's accreditation status with the European Association of Establishments for Veterinary Education (EAEVE) and the reciprocal arrangement between the RCVS and the Australasian Veterinary Boards Council Inc (AVBC) allows BVetMed graduates to register to practise in Europe, Australia and New Zealand without requiring any further qualifications.

In addition, the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) will recognise your degree as equivalent to those awarded by veterinary colleges in the United States. Some of the USA’s major veterinary employers recruit actively among our final year students. Please note, however, that you will still be required to sit the North American Veterinary Licensing Examination (NAVLE) if you intend to work in North America after qualifying, as you would if qualifying from a US vet school. 

Tuition Fees

The tuition fees for students commencing the course in 2024/25 are as follows:

Tuition fee amounts are subject to increase each academic year, please be aware of this when making your calculations and planning how much money you will require.

• Students from countries outside the UK who wish to undertake full-time study at the RVC are required to pay the international fee for their programme of study (please see Fee status section).
• Information on Fees & Funding can be found here
• UK students considering studying on the BVetMed Graduate Accelerated or the BVetMed as a second degree are entitled to a variable means tested living cost loan and RVC bursary. Please see Maintenance Loan and RVC Bursary.
• Please note  BVetMed Graduate Accelerated and students studying BVetMed as a second degree are not eligible for tuition fee loans so please consider how you will pay the tuition fees for each year before enrolling.

The following course-related costs are included in the fees:

• Student membership of the British Veterinary Association for course duration
• Access to books and journals essential to your course (print and digital)
• Open access and bookable IT equipment such as PCs and laptops
• Largely paperless curriculum plus £10 p.a. printing allowance

• Annual membership of College gym (both campuses)

The following course-related costs are not included in the fees:

• Specialist clothing and equipment £600
• Travel to AHEMS and EMS placements
• Some AHEMS and EMS placements will also require students to pay for board and lodging
• Travel to tracking rotations

Accommodation and living costs are not included in the fees. Our Housing Advice pages provide further information on College and private housing.