Many veterinary medical colleges require extensive undergraduate course work, and most prefer candidates who hold bachelor's degrees from accredited colleges or universities, according to the BLS. Pre-veterinary course work typically includes chemistry, biology, physics, animal nutrition, systemic physiology, genetics, embryology and other science courses. General education courses such as the humanities, English, the social sciences and mathematics are required by some schools. Education-Portal.com notes that candidates typically must also achieve satisfactory scores on a graduate-level standardized test such as the Graduate Record Examination, the Veterinary College Admission Test or the Medical College Admission Test.
Many veterinary schools offer preferential treatment to residents of their state, according to the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges. The Auburn University program allots about half of each class for Alabama residents but also allocates 40 slots for students from Kentucky and two from West Virginia. Ohio State University limits nonresident slots to 40 of the 140 total available new student positions in its College of Veterinary Science. The School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Wisconsin allocates 60 to 70 of the 80 available entering class positions to Wisconsin residents.
Competition for admission to veterinary medical schools is strong. According to the BLS, in 2007 only a third of applicants were accepted. In addition to formal education, test scores and residency, veterinary schools also look for experience in the animal care field. The BLS notes that on-the-job training in veterinary hospitals, zoos, clinical science laboratories, agribusiness or other health science institutions provides additional weight to a candidate's application. A demonstrated love of animals, excellent communication skills, manual dexterity and business acumen are also taken into consideration.