Veterinary Medicine placements

Between Years 1 – 3 of the BVMS, you'll have the chance to build practical animal handling training that typically takes place on local farms, stable yards and other animal handling facilities near our Preston Campus. You'll typically spend 1 day per week doing this training during term time, and you'll gain experience handling small animals, horses and a range of larger farm animals like cattle and sheep. What's more, all travel costs and arrangements are covered by the University. 

In Years 1-4, you'll spend one week per semester training at veterinary practices providing care for a wide range of animal species. You'll work alongside expert veterinary practice staff and have a chance to learn and build confidence in your clinical skills. In Year Five, you'll spend 28 weeks (split into seven four-week blocks) in various veterinary practices.

In this intensive training period, you'll be exposed to different scenarios, providing clinical care for small animals, horses, farm animals, and less common species. You'll gain practical clinical skills, including surgery and anaesthesia.

The University will organise these placements, and travel and/or accommodation will be covered or subsidised. We've built a network of local placement providers, but if you know of a practice in your local area that you'd like to work with, please let us know – we are always open to expanding our practice network. 

During Years One and Two, we'll support you in gaining 12 weeks of pre-clinical EMS placements during the holidays. You'll gain exposure to various species through several EMS providers during this time. You'll gain a deeper insight into animal husbandry alongside furthering your animal handling skills.

During Years Three to Five, the requirement changes to 26 weeks of clinical extra clinical mural studies during the holiday. These placements are held at veterinary practices, where our students will gain a deeper insight into the vet profession. We'll support you in finding a placement through our list of approved EMS providers. 

The Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons requires these placements, and the University doesn't typically provide financial support for travel and accommodation.