Vet Times

Tag: Students

  • Staff retention: double or quits?

    Staff retention: double or quits?

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    The recruitment problem in the veterinary profession is omnipresent and as crippling as ever. The most recent method of trying to tackle the shortage is the announcement of the University of Nottingham School of Veterinary Medicine and Science’s dual intake. The university has opted to enrol 150 undergraduates in September – as many institutions do…

  • Why am I a farm vet?

    Why am I a farm vet?

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    I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about purpose lately… I suspect, as a lot of veterinary students prepare for finals and graduation, they’re probably wondering what theirs is, too. They’re only a handful of years into this career and they’ve probably had to answer “why did you want to be a vet?” thousands of…

  • A prayer to St Anthony

    A prayer to St Anthony

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    I haven’t come over all religious for this blog, but the patron saint of lost things has some relevance in this blog. In fact, I wonder if St Anthony’s prayer might need to be included in the oath the vets swear at graduation? The non-vets in clinic have long suffered under a part of the…

  • It’s new grad season already

    It’s new grad season already

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    Believe it or not, now is the time of year when a lot of soon-to-be-graduated vets will start looking around for what’s available in terms of job prospects. Graduation may not occur until early summer, but many keen beans like to feel organised and get hunting already. The veterinary recruitment crisis is ever-present and, in…

  • Making lone working less lonely

    Making lone working less lonely

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    As a farm vet, though you may encounter several clients over the course of the day, there is no getting away from the fact a large proportion of your time is spent driving alone. The amount will vary wildly between areas, but as I work in quite an urban setting, I spend more hours in…

  • The vet bubble

    The vet bubble

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    On my course, in a year of 300 students and with a timetable of mostly nine-to-fives, it’s safe to say I spend a fair share of my time with other vets. However, in the first few weeks of university I was warned by older vets to beware of the “vet bubble” – and I understand…

  • Mentorship

    Mentorship

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    After reading an article on “What veterinarians and veterinary students really want”, I’ve been assessing the top three things wanted from a veterinary role. After looking into work-life balance and a positive team environment, this article will explore mentorship. It goes without saying, anything you can do to ease new graduate vets’ transition from studies…

  • All work, no play

    All work, no play

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    Christmas is almost here, which means a much-awaited and deeply longed-for break from the 9 to 5 pattern of university life. The holiday period for Bristol students is starting a little later than normal this year, so, naturally, my friends and I are counting down the days until we get to retreat to the festive…

  • Positive team environment

    Positive team environment

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    In the previous entry, we started to look at the article “What veterinarians and veterinary students really want“, which named work-life balance as the most important aspect for new graduates. This time we look at the second most important: working in a positive team environment. “Salary will not keep a young vet in a practice…

  • Work-life balance

    Work-life balance

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    I read an article on “What Veterinarians and veterinary students really want” and the top three things wanted from a veterinary role were work-life balance, positive team environment and mentorship. Over the next three weeks I want to explore these three topics and offer my perspective on how to achieve them. For someone who often…