Veterinary Science Certificate Program makes job-ready high school graduates

Haley Andrews, a veterinary science instructor in Pasadena, follows one guiding principle when it comes to choosing eighth-grade students for the high school veterinary science program: the more curious, the better.

“We’re really looking for those kids who aren’t afraid to get their hands dirty,” she said. “Veterinary science is a unique industry, and we love finding those remarkable kids who want to develop their minds for veterinary science.”

Andrews teaches a customized version of the Veterinary Science Certificate Program offered by Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service through the Department of Animal Science. At her school, students undergo a four-year pathway that culminates during their senior year with an industry-based certification exam.

The exam, once passed, guarantees graduates are ready and qualified for work as a veterinary assistant. They can then enter directly into a veterinary assistant job and assist in treating animals’ injuries and illnesses, or they can apply the knowledge and experience gained for a multitude of other pathways in the life sciences.

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Beef Cattle Short Course Youth Track

The VSCP hosted youth at the Texa A& M Beef Cattle Short Course! 30 kiddos from across the state joined us for 3 days of Beef Cattle fun! We learned so many thing and are looking forward to next year!

Mark your calendar and set your alarms! Registration for our Fossil Rim camps will open next Tuesday, September 11th at 10am. Check our website or keep an eye on our social media for the live links!

Middle School Day Camp is Tuesday November 5th

High School Overnight is Wednesday & Thursday November 6th & 7th.

You can find more infomation on our website at https://aevm.tamu.edu/summer-camp/

Animal Science Howdy Event

HOWDY! HOWDY! HOWDY!

What fun it is to attend the Texas A&M Animal Science HOWDY Event and see students we have been mentoring and teaching for a couple of years now!

These three girls (top picture), Janae LeMalle, Cyncere Denman and Daniela Galindo have all earned their veterinary assistant certification through our program before coming to Texas A&M and are now Animal Science majors.

Dee Ellis, DVM, one of our program veterinarians, along with our student employee Steven Perez got to welcome freshman student Carter Noynaert and sophomore student Erin McDaniel.

It is awesome to see these students continuing what they have pursued from high school now into their undergraduate studies. We are sure glad to have played just a small part of their journey thus far!

We are gearing up for our 2024-2025 Career Development Events in Veterinary Science! We offer online virtual contests each month starting in October!

Mark your calendars and get ready to compete and sharpen your skills at the same time!

These contests are open to students of all ages, all locations and does not matter if you are a member of 4-H or FFA....I mean we will encourage you to join one of these amazing organizations, but you do not have to be a member to compete!

Registration will open soon. So keep an eye out!

Need resources to help you get started?

Check out our website!

Student Spotlight - Evelyn Arnold

Evelyn has been with the VSCP program for several years. Evelyn was a VSCP student, she passed her Veterinary Assistant Exam last October, and she has attended several of our veterinary science summer camps. This summer Evelyn had an opportunity to further her education fueling her desire to become a large animal veterinarian!

"I am Evelyn Arnold, I have always had a deep affinity for animals and agriculture. I am an active officer in my local Future Farmers of America (FFA) chapter and have shown steers for the last 2 years. I have attended several veterinary science camps over the last 4 years; 3 at Texas A&M campuses and 1 at Prairie View A&M (which was sponsored by the USDA). I worked at a local veterinary clinic shadowing a veterinarian, obtaining over 300 clinical hours and was able to earn a Veterinary Assistant certification from Texas A&M University AgriLife last October. Equipped with the knowledge I learned from all my vet science camps and my certification I applied to and was accepted into the Pre-College Equine Science II Camp at University of California Davis this summer. As I prepare for my junior year of high school and beyond, I remain grateful for the opportunities at Texas A&M and UC Davis that have fueled my passion and desire to become a large animal veterinarian."

Congratulations Evelyn! We are so proud of you! Keep up the great work!

NEW SKILLS KIT LAUNCHED

Bandging - kit #3

This veterinary skills kit is designed to help an educator teach the parts of a bandage, removing a bandage, and wound evaluation in a classroom setting. All of our clinical kits come with free lesson plans!

Purchase HERE!