Welcome to the Department of Veterinary Science Undergraduate Program

The pre-veterinary medicine program prepares students to meet requirements for veterinary school.

Although Kentucky does not have a veterinary school, it does have contracts with Auburn University and Tuskegee Institute in Alabama. Each year 40 seats are available at Auburn and 6 at Tuskegee for legal Kentucky residents.

Suggested courses beyond Auburn/Tuskegee requirements.

Undergraduate courses

Three undergraduate courses are offered in the Department of Veterinary Science:

• VS 350 Introductory anatomy, physiology and animal hygiene

• VS 351 Principles of animal hygiene and disease control

• VS 395 Special problems in veterinary science, where students can work with a Veterinary Science faculty member in hands-on research projects for University Credit. 

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Pre-Veterinary Advising

• As of April 2008, Kentucky State Legislature approved funding for an additional 6 seats at Auburn (total of 40) and 4 seats at Tuskegee (total of 6).

• UK has the largest pre-veterinary program in the Commonwealth of Kentucky.

• UK students have been accepted not only to Auburn and Tuskegee, but also in the highly competitive world of out-of-state applicants to veterinary schools at Tufts (Massachusetts), Tennessee, Purdue (Indiana), Michigan, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Colorado and other schools.

• Any Kentucky resident has the opportunity to apply for contract seats at the veterinary schools at Auburn and Tuskegee Schools of Veterinary Medicine. (Kentucky does not have a veterinary school.)  Historically, UK has had 50+% of all KY applicants to Auburn’s College of Veterinary Medicine, as well as 50+% of students accepted.  During the past 10 years, Kentucky has had 90-100 applicants per year.  While some schools can boast an 80% acceptance rate to Auburn, they might only have 5 applicants.  During the past 15 years, UK has had ~45 applicants per year for Auburn’s 34 Kentucky seats.

• UK offers all courses required by any veterinary school in North America.

• Central Kentucky offers students opportunities to work with world class equine veterinarians in hospitals, at horse shows, racetracks and on farm calls.  Volunteer and paid positions exist working with equine and small animal veterinarians, as well as large animal veterinarians.

• The Director of the Pre-Veterinary advising program, Dr. Roberta Dwyer, has 18 years experience in advising and has spoken at national college advising conventions on trends in veterinary admissions.  She is a veterinary graduate of Iowa State University and has visited 11 North American veterinary schools, and programs in the Caribbean, Finland, and Ireland.

• UK pre-vet students have been successful in obtaining semester-long internships at Disney, Orlando, FL and at the Cincinnati Zoo.  Opportunities exist for international study tours through the College of Agriculture.

• The UK Pre-Vet Club is one of the largest clubs in the College of Agriculture and can provide the leadership and community service activities that are desired by veterinary schools.

• The UK Pre-Vet program holds Mock Interviews to prepare applicants for the “real” veterinary school interview.  The mock interviewers are Veterinary Science faculty and local veterinarians who have actually served on veterinary school selection committees at Cornell, Louisiana State University, and Auburn.

Frequently Asked Questions

Please do not write the schools of veterinary medicine at Auburn or Tuskegee for applications.

The book Veterinary Medical School Admission Requirements in the United States and Canada is available from Purdue University Press, telephone 1-800-933-9637 or 765-494-2038. New yearly editions are usually available in September. http://www.lib.purdue.edu/thepress.

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Pre-Vet Notes for UK students -

The pre-vet bulletin board is found down the hall from Dr. Mullen’s office (N-6, Ag. North). Here you will find updates on courses, information on pre-vet club meetings, pre-registration meetings, help wanted, etc.

ALL pre-vet students being advised through UK must sign up for the pre-vet listserve:
Mail listserv@lsv.uky.edu; the text of the message is subscribe ukprevet-L yourfirstname yourlastname.

Grade Point Averages:

• A MINIMUM 2.5 GPA overall is required for your application to be considered for Auburn. A student with a GPA of 2.49999 will NOT be evaluated by the Auburn Veterinary Admissions Committee. Minimum GPA requirements vary among other vet schools. Average Overall GPA’s for admitted students is 3.45 - 3.65.

• Advanced Placement credit should be cleared through Dr. Dwyer for applicability to Auburn & Tuskegee requirements. Students must check with all other veterinary schools on their acceptance of this type of credit.

• All required courses must have a letter grade of a C or higher. Some courses must be taken within 6 years of application. See GPA calculation sheet.

Veterinary experience is very important in your application. Having worked with a veterinarian and being able to obtain a letter of evaluation is practically mandatory. Ideally, students should have experience with small and large animals. The time to start is in high school, and continue through college.

Applications to veterinary school take place a year before anticipated starting of vet school. Auburn participates in the Veterinary Medical School Application Service (VMCAS). Further information is available at: www.vmcas.org. Deadline for applications is October 1. Tuskegee and Auburn require the general Graduate Records Exam (GRE).

Tuskegee has their own application available on-line with an October 1 deadline.

Students interested in applying to veterinary schools other than Auburn and Tuskegee are responsible for obtaining application information directly from the school. The book Veterinary Medical School Admission Requirements in the United States and Canada is available from Purdue University Press, phone 1-800-933-9637 or 765-494-2038. This book is highly recommended and provides general admission information. New yearly editions are usually available in September. http://www.lib.pur due.edu/thepress.

The following are additional courses which will be beneficial in vet school (not to be considered as Electives necessarily). Consult your undergraduate degree advisor to determine if these courses are applicable to University degree requirements.

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Auburn Required Course List (pdf)

This course list is subject to change. Always consult with pre-vet advisor for complete information.

Tuskegee Requirements (pdf)

This course list is subject to change. Always consult with pre-vet advisor for complete information.

Graduate Record Examination (GRE)

All applicants to Auburn University and Tuskegee University are required to complete the General Aptitude (verbal, quantitative and analytical) portion of the GRE. The College of Veterinary Medicine at Auburn will have its own identification code so that scores will be reported directly to them.

The GRE is given by computer in both Lexington and Louisville. The fee is approximately $120. For registration information, call 1-800-GRE-CALL. It can be taken by computer at Sylvan Learning Center, Lexington. Students should allow adequate time to take the test twice should they not like their first exam scores. Final scores need to be reported to Auburn and Tuskegee by October 1.

It is highly recommended to study for the GRE by using study guide materials readily available at campus bookstores. 

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Or - for more information contact:

 for incoming freshmen:

• Dr. Kathy Graves
  220 Dimock Animal Pathology Building
  (859) 257-2510

for students with college credit:

• Dr. Roberta Dwyer
  435 Gluck Equine Research Center
  (859) 257-4757 ext 81122
  rmdwye2@email.uky.edu