Exploring pathways beyond clinic for veterinary students
Image: Mikki Orso/ Adobe Stock
Vet school features a reasonable clinical focus throughout. The course is vocational, and most veterinary students will graduate and go on to work in clinical practice. However, this article is for those of you who may have changed your mind with regard to working in clinical practice.
The feeling of getting a place at vet school is one of a kind. The effort you have put in to get a place has paid off and the excitement grows.
Yet, there is no way of truly knowing how you’ll find it until you’re doing it. The first few years of vet school are predominantly lecture based, with minimal exposure to clinical practice. While this is a safe and sensible way to build up your knowledge and skills, your experience in a clinical setting only starts to pick up halfway through the course.
For some, the reality of clinical work may not be what they expected. If you are beginning to question life in practice, do not panic. Finishing the degree is certainly not a waste of time.
My own experience of this has led me to realise that there is so much more to this degree than the clinical skills it appears to focus on. A James Herriot stereotype is associated with being a vet, which comes with a presumption of what working as a vet should involve. This can put pressure on us to fulfil these expectations, but nothing out there should stop you from finding a career that matches your strengths and style.
I have revealed a plethora of non-clinical skills and dug deep into the “other” veterinary career options; I want to reassure others feeling the same way and provide them with the tools to explore these alternative options.
What non-clinical skills do you gain from a veterinary degree?
While they may not be as obvious, plenty of transferable skills can be gained from a veterinary degree. This will vary depending on the university you went to and the EMS you have done.
I started by listing what I had done as part of the course and then noted what non-clinical skills had been developed as a result.
Here are some of the things I came up with:
- Professional training – client relationship management training and portfolio professional competence tasks.
- Written communication skills – clinical notes, referral letters, and presentations.
- Verbal communication skills – client consultations and presenting at rounds.
- Visual communication skills – graphical abstracts, schematic diagrams and original illustrations.
- Research skills – literature reviews and applying evidence-based medicine.
- Academic writing – research projects are a part of most vet school curricula.
- Willingness to learn and network – attending BVA Congress and non-curricular seminars.
- Feedback literacy – rotation feedback via Liftupp.
- Problem-solving – disease outbreak investigation task. Treatment plan proposals based on a list of differential diagnoses on EMS or rotations.
- Organisation and time management – EMS.
- Adaptability – changing the way you communicate medical information based on the recipient’s level of medical knowledge (for example, clinicians versus clients).
- Statistics – epidemiology assignments and data-handling assessments.
- One health awareness – public health lectures and abattoir visits.
- Health and safety awareness – radiation and animal handling teaching.
- Reflection – Pebblepad portfolio.
- Ability to work as a team – group assignments and rotation groups.
These transferable skills will help you get any number of jobs outside of practice. Don’t forget to pull up any skills you may have gained from work outside of your degree, such as previous studies or employment.
What are the other options?
After hours on the internet, conversations with old colleagues and members of university staff, I learned that many alternative options to going into practice after graduation are available.
One particular rabbit hole led me to an article by the European Medical Writing Association (EMWA), which discussed the different pillars of veterinary careers. This concept highlighted the abundance of non-clinical roles within the veterinary profession (Kontasser, 2019).
The exact path you find will depend on your strengths, interests and career priorities, but here is a selection of alternatives that will enable you to use your veterinary degree differently:
- research
- recruitment
- pathology
- telemedicine
- pharmaceutical industry
- food safety inspection
- pet consumer industry
- veterinary education
- veterinary medical communications
- government work
- management
The exact job roles available will vary depending on the industry. Some specific roles within the pet consumer industry include data analysts, technical services, sales, advisors, pet nutritionists, product development specialists and veterinary marketing consultants – the list goes on.
A lot of government work focuses on public health, epidemiology and policy advice. Several government bodies you could choose to work with exist, including the APHA, VMD and Food Standards Agency. Some of the roles available at the APHA include veterinary inspector, investigation officer and policy advisor.
It is important to note that some non-clinical roles do require at least a few years in practice to be eligible, so this may be something to consider before applying. I would recommend reading job descriptions and considering if the specifications not only suit your skillset, but also your interests.
Who can I speak with to discuss the other options?
If you are looking for alternatives to clinical practice, I would like to start by recommending the Vets Stay Go Diversify community. They can be found on Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram.
Whether it is specific job posts or shared thoughts and feelings, I have found being part of this community a great source of reassurance and support. If you like the sound of a career in veterinary medical communications and writing, the EMWA has a veterinary special interest group that provides advice on getting into this area of work, the line of work itself and job opportunities.
Universities are pretty good at providing career advice. They can help you work out exactly what you want from a career and the skills you should sell yourself with for a particular job. Some of the people I spoke to about careers at the University of Liverpool included:
- personal tutor
- well-being team
- careers team
- veterinary school staff
- veterinary alumni
LinkedIn is a great networking platform that can be used to explore job opportunities or to learn more about potential organisations you would like to work with. You can also connect with employees to gain a deeper insight into what certain jobs involve day to day and what additional experience you may need to secure a job in that area. I have built most of my medical communications experience through contacting founders on LinkedIn. Most importantly, speak to course mates and clinicians you trust. Most vets will have considered alternative career options at some point in their lives and would be more than happy to give their advice.
What should I do to pursue a non-clinical vet career?
To pursue a non-clinical veterinary career, it may be worth gaining some additional experience in your chosen alternative area; for example, completing EMS with a government body can provide you with an insight into this line of work and could give you a competitive edge when it comes to applying for a job.
Directly getting in touch with the organisations that appeal to you is the best way of finding out if there’s anything you can do to gain the necessary experience to work with them. This will help to get a foot in the door with potential employers.
Closing thoughts
A veterinary degree is often referred to as a veterinary passport, suggesting that it can take you anywhere. This is true regardless of whether you decide to go into practice; your veterinary passport will allow you to make career changes at any point in time.
You can make the profession work best for you with whatever combination suits you best. If you are undecided as to whether practice is really for you or not, you could give it a go to see how you find it.
Find a supportive practice and be honest about your uncertainties; there may be someone else who has been through a similar situation and can offer advice. The alternatives will still be there if you change your mind in the future.
There is no obligation to stay in a line of work you do not thrive in, and you should not feel as though you need to defend or justify your decision to anyone. Explore your options, don’t feel guilty for wanting to diversify and, most importantly, do what makes you happy.
Reference
Kontasser M (2019). From vet to writer – veterinary medical writing, Eur Med Writ Assoc 28(1): 93.