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We are delighted you are considering attending a program at the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine! The mission of UW-Madison's School of Veterinary Medicine is threefold--teaching, research and public service. Yet, it is the interdependence of the parts that gives the School its vitality and its unique quality, just as the interdependence of humans and animals represents the heart of its mission.
At the UW, an education in veterinary medicine promises the broadest possible perspective on the profession. Students are encouraged to consider all the options available--from private practice to the growing opportunities in industry and government, from caring for Wisconsin food animals to carrying out research on whales in Alaska.
Many of the School's faculty have won local and national awards for excellence and creativity in teaching. The faculty's wide-ranging research interests further enrich the classroom experience for students--and also provide opportunity for study across all species.
By the time students reach the fourth year of the program, they are well prepared to move beyond the classroom to apply their theoretical knowledge to a real-world experience.
Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital
The majority of the fourth year is spent in the School's highly regarded Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital. Truly a teaching laboratory, the VMTH offers state-of-the-art veterinary medical care in such specialty areas every two weeks as they acquire basic skills and learn more about their particular area of interest.
While many other veterinary schools have large animal ambulatory clinics to provide students with on-farm experience, UW uses the outstanding farms of Wisconsin. The School's Food Animal Production Medicine team of faculty and students provides full health advisory services to two privately owned "core herds" on an ongoing basis.
Fourth-year students' mandatory rotations also include the food animal ambulatory rotation in which students work with some of Wisconsin's best private veterinarians to learn the realities of life as a dairy practitioner. This special partnership with the private veterinarians, who hold adjunct faculty appointments, gives students first-hand knowledge of dairy farms and dairy cow medicine, and also introduces them to typical rural Wisconsin practices. This award-winning program is now a model for other schools.
Fourth-year students also can spend some of their elective weeks of rotation off campus. Faculty and staff guide the students in arranging externships--perhaps in private practice or at a zoo, in race horse country or on a large dairy farm--and the School provides some financial grants to assist the students.
Wisconsin consistently ranks among the top two or three veterinary schools in the country in the number of qualified student applicants. Although one of the youngest of the nation's 28 schools, Wisconsin has earned a reputation for providing an outstanding education in veterinary medicine.
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Learn more about the admissions process and our DVM program.
Click here for directions. If you still have questions, you can contact the admissions office at (608) 263-2525.