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This page is a brief guide if you are contemplating a career in the Veterinary world. The two main career paths are Veterinary Surgeon and Veterinary Nurse. Please note you should check directly with the Universities and Colleges concerned for accurate, up to date details of entrance requirements etc...

Both careers, while related are very different from one another and there can be confusion about the role of each one. A Veterinary Nurse is NOT (as some people assume) a Veterinary surgeon in training and a Veterinary Surgeon does medicine, gynaecology, obstetrics, geriatrics and much more as well as being the surgeon that the name suggests. Veterinary assistants are NOT assistants to vets, they are fully qualified vets in their own right - the term 'assistant' is a historical accident of language designed to spread confusion among the public and annoyance among vets. All the term means is that an assistant is a vet who is an employee, as opposed to a partner who owns the business, there is no difference in qualification or expertise and all partners were assistants once. Later in their careers some vets may become partners and start to run their own businesses and then as well as all the above they will find themselves being an accountant, manager, staff liaison officer, tax collector (unpaid), health and safety officer, public relations and marketing specialist, radiation protection adviser and so forth... the list is endless.

A career in Veterinary Medicine whether as a nurse or vet can be highly rewarding. You are unlikely to make large amounts of money in either career path but, especially after you have gained some experience you should be able to make a decent living while at the same time doing a job that you enjoy. You are not a small cog in a large wheel, it is you that is responsible for your own actions and decisions and it is this immediacy that gives you some of your best (and worst) moments.

It is not an easy career, nor is it one for those who are overly sentimental but it is one where you can make a difference on as small or large a scale as you care to choose from the kitten with a broken leg to the health and welfare of entire populations of animals.

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