Membership of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons
To work as a veterinary surgeon in the United Kingdom, a person must hold a degree qualification that is approved by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) and become a member of the College. They will have the letters MRCVS after their name to show membership.
Veterinary surgeons who have shown outstanding service to the profession may be awarded Fellowship of the College and will have the letters FRCVS after their name.
Veterinary Degree Qualifications
There are only 7 Universities in the United Kingdom where a veterinary degree can be studied. These are Bristol, Cambridge, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Liverpool, London and Nottingham Universities. Due to the limited number of places to study for a veterinary degree at these Universities there is much competition. The degree takes at least 5 years (6 years at Cambridge) to achieve.
The degrees awarded at each of these Universities are:
Bristol: BVSc
Cambridge: MA VetMB (the extra year is to achieve the MA)
Edinburgh: BVM&S
Glasgow: BVMS
Liverpool: BVSc
London (Royal Veterinary College): BVetMed
Nottingham: BVM BVS
Veterinary degrees may be gained abroad but the qualifications must be approved by the RCVS to be able to work in the UK as a veterinary surgeon. European Union regulations mean that all holders of veterinary degrees from the EU are entitled to work in the UK as veterinary surgeons.
Post-Graduate RCVS Qualifications
The Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) awards two levels of post-graduate qualifications. These are the Certificates and Diplomas.
RCVS Certificate examinations were designed for veterinary surgeons in General Practice to achieve. There are many different subjects in which the Certificates can be awarded, the common ones affecting small animal practice being the Certificates in Medicine (CertSAM), Surgery (CertSAS), Diagnostic Imaging (CertVDI), Ophthalmology (CertVOpthal), Dermatology (CertVD), Cardiology(CertVC) and Anaesthesia (CertVA). To achieve a RCVS Certificate, candidates must attend numerous further education lectures, write up a series of case reports and sit written, oral and practical examinations. Holders of Certificate examinations are said to be competent veterinary surgeons in their subject.
The old style Certificate examinations are being phased out with a new type, an Advanced Veterinary Practice examination, being introduced to replace them. This is because few veterinary surgeons working in general practice were able to achieve the qualifications due to the amount of study required to pass the examinations.
The new CertAVP examinations can be achieved by undertaking several modules over several years. The new examinations are designed to relate more towards general practice work such as consultation skills and be less specialised. It is possible to bias the CertACP towards specific subjects but there are no plans currently to award these examinations with a surgery or ophthalmology bias. It is hoped that more general practice veterinary surgeons will undertake further study to achieve a CertAVP.
The second type of qualification awarded by the RCVS is the Diploma. Diplomas are awarded in many subjects similar to the Certificate examinations but require further study and research. A holder of a RCVS Diploma is said to be a specialist in their chosen subject. Abbreviations include DSAS (Diploma in Small Animal Surgery- usually with an orthopaedic or soft tissue bias) and DSAM (Diploma in Small Animal Medicine).
European / American Colleges of Veterinary Surgeon Diplomas
It is now more common for veterinary surgeons to achieve Specialist status by achieving a Diploma from either the European and/or American Colleges of Veterinary Surgeons. These Diplomas are awarded in similar subjects to the RCVS Diplomas and holders will have the abbrievations DipECVS and/or DipACVS after their name along with the subject studied (e.g. Veterinary Internal Medicine or Veterinary Surgery).
Other Veterinary Qualifications
There are many other types of qualifications that can be achieved by veterinary surgeons including BSc's, PhD's and MSc's. A PhD qualification (in ANY subject, veterinary or otherwise) allows the holder to use the title Dr. These qualifications are normally achieved after studying a very specialised subject. Some, but not all, are achieved through further study at one of the seven veterinary universities and not all of them relate to clinical veterinary work.
There is also a General Practice Certificate qualification (GPCert)that is awarded following attending a modular veterinary course and sitting a written examination. These qualifications are not currently acknowledged by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons and are not equivalent to the RCVS Certificates awarded. They are popular amongst general practice veterinary surgeons as they allow them to gain useful knowledge without being too demanding. There are many subjects in which the GPCerts are awarded. The courses are run by Improve International who were also involved in setting up the European School of Postgraduate Veterinary Studies (ESPVS) who oversee the GPCert examinations.
