Estimated Costs of Veterinary School

Hello Everyone:

Here are a couple of charts a dedicated veterinarian has put together estimating the cost of attending veterinary school in North America. We thought it would be very helpful for those of you considering veterinary school to find out how much you will likely have to pay.

Unless otherwise noted, the dollar amounts used are for current (2011-2012) tuition costs and estimating a conservative 7% per year tuition increase. Also, the Cost of Attendance chart (which includes estimates for living expenses) estimates a 5% increase in cost of living per year.

Please see the attached files.

**UPDATE** See post #33 in this thread for updated PDFs with corrections!!

Unless otherwise noted, the dollar amounts [...] estimat[e] a conservative 7% per year tuition increase.

Is there historical data that suggests 7% is a good number? I know at my university the increase from last year to this year was much higher than that. I understand you have to throw a dart at the wall at some point; just wondering why 7% (i.e. is that an average based on history, or .....).

Originally Posted by LetItSnow

Is there historical data that suggests 7% is a good number? I know at my university the increase from last year to this year was much higher than that. I understand you have to throw a dart at the wall at some point; just wondering why 7% (i.e. is that an average based on history, or .....).

I think she chose 7% per year as a conservative number Many schools are doing 9-12% per year but perhaps that number will come down a bit.

These numbers are (hopefully) fairly accurate for the Class of 2015.

Was there a reasoning given for this?

Guelph
na
K State
na
PEI
na
St Matthews
na
Tuskegee
na
UNAM
na
Utah
na

And Saskatchewan is listed as having non-resident tuition, but to my knowledge, they don't take non-residents?

Those files should require a warning label on them.... Thanks for reminding me

Hey, Eden here.

I think that is the first time anyone has ever referred to me as 'a dedicated veterinarian'!

I picked 7% because that's the number that two schools actually gave me.
I would LOVE to put together the data to track average increase in tuition overall by ferreting out what tuition was at each school for the past ten or so years...

The reason for the na's at the bottom is that I can not locate cost of living figures for those schools; for each school I used the cost of attendance provided by the school on their website. Despite repeated emails I still haven't gotten estimates from those schools listed with an na. I will update as new figures come in. Glad to take suggestions about who to contact at each school.

Important to note-dollar amounts for Canadian schools are in $CN.

As far as Saskatoon not taking non-residents, I dunno. They list non-resident tuition. I'll check with them and see what the story is.

I do have to say I think these numbers are pretty conservative. They do not take into account any pre-existing loans from undergrad, nor do they reflect teh accumulation of interest while in school, AND allow NO wiggle room for unexpected expenses or events like major illness, buying a car of any kind, having to fly home for a funeral...

Eden, thanks so much for putting this together.
Have to say, I'm rather pleased to be reminded that while still a small fortune, Oklahoma is on the "least expensive" spectrum of things. Makes me feel a lot better about my decision to be here, rather than at another school!

I forgot to mention...The tuition only chart reflects an annual increase of 7% as previously mentioned.
The Cost of attendance chart reflects an increase of 5% for both tuition and living expenses every year; my thinking was living expenses won't go up quite that much, tuition will go up more, that's a middle ground.

I'll try to refine that and apply the higher rate to the portion of cost that is tuition and a hopefully lower inflation estimate to the living expense portion...
To my knowledge nobody's really done this so I am sort of feeling my way through it.

Keep the suggestions coming, I'll do my best to keep up with them.

Originally Posted by justavet

The reason for the na's at the bottom is that I can not locate cost of living figures for those schools; for each school I used the cost of attendance provided by the school on their website. Despite repeated emails I still haven't gotten estimates from those schools listed with an na. I will update as new figures come in. Glad to take suggestions about who to contact at each school.

Ah, thanks for clearing that up. I may be able to help you out with PEI. Will PM you.

Originally Posted by justavet

I think that is the first time anyone has ever referred to me as 'a dedicated veterinarian'!

Oh, Eden, you are seriously seriously dedicated!!! Thank you so very much for all of the long hours in putting this data together.

Originally Posted by justavet

As far as Saskatoon not taking non-residents, I dunno. They list non-resident tuition. I'll check with them and see what the story is.

Canadian here, Saskatoon takes BC, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba residents plus the residents of the territories because it is provincially funded. As far as I know, WCVM does not take anyone else because of funding just like Guelph, Uni. Montreal, and AVC ( to a certain extent). I think AVC takes international/other Canadian provincal and US students and *share* spots for students from the Atlantic provinces due to funding.

Originally Posted by Coquette22

And Saskatchewan is listed as having non-resident tuition, but to my knowledge, they don't take non-residents?

They take non-residents but preference is for those from certain provinces and territories, and international applicants are not eligible. They have an inter-provincial agreement to accept a certain number from the western provinces (and northern territories) http://www.usask.ca/wcvm/undergradua...nal_nature.php

Originally Posted by CalliopeDVM

They take non-residents but preference is for those from certain provinces and territories, and international applicants are not eligible. They have an inter-provincial agreement to accept a certain number from the western provinces (and northern territories) http://www.usask.ca/wcvm/undergradua...nal_nature.php

Thanks for clearing that up! So other Canadians can apply, but don't get preference, but non-Canadians aren't eligible at all? Am I understanding that correctly? (This is mostly for my own curiousity.)

$65,458

I love this number! The chart is a nice reminder to thank my lucky stars.

A HUGE thanks to justavet and all others who have put effort into this. These aren't fun to look at but it's essential to take a hard look at this and think hard about the future. I hope everybody takes the time to look at these numbers....I can't imagine I'll be applying for much more than my in-state. Thanks guys.

SarBean, you're quite welcome. Knowing you looked at it and found it useful is about the best thanks I could get, actually

hey justavet, could you PM an email address? i dont think the message is sending for some reason i didn't realize it didnt go through a few weeks ago and it doesn't appear to be going through no (but i can receive your messages)

I got it the third time, but I'll PM you my email anyway, in case whatever it was happens again. Thanks for the multiple tries!

This is some really great information! Thank-you all for posting!

Thank you for using it! Makes the effort to put it together worth it.
I enjoyed putting this together, and I like that it helps
If there's other information- whatever would make it easier and more efficient to figure out whether, when and where to go to vet school- let me know. Some other people have some tools in the pipeline- IBR info, debt calculator/decision modeling tool, visual display of the cost info listed in this thread- that I hope will show up on SDN eventually.

How 'bout a map of what contract seats are available at all the schools- would that be useful, or is everybody happy with the chart?

nauseated by the cost of veterinary school? I know it is expensive but is it even practical? Its making me question going afterit....I'mnot sure what everyone else's financial situation is but I graduated from undergrad with about 17k in debt, to go another 200+ in debt is daunting...and I'm starting to think maybe I should just look into an accelerated nursing program....please tell me I'm not alone in feeling so completely hopeless and lost in allof this...its so scary...

Originally Posted by lolobend86

nauseated by the cost of veterinary school? I know it is expensive but is it even practical? Its making me question going afterit....I'mnot sure what everyone else's financial situation is but I graduated from undergrad with about 17k in debt, to go another 200+ in debt is daunting...and I'm starting to think maybe I should just look into an accelerated nursing program....please tell me I'm not alone in feeling so completely hopeless and lost in allof this...its so scary...

The cost is prohibitive for sure. I think the best piece of advice I've been given is to go to school as least expensively as possible. I've been told time and time again that it really doesn't matter what school you go to (as long as it's accredited) and that there's no reason to go to the most expensive one. So apply to your instate and contract schools (if you have either, I don't) and if you don't get in first round, move to the state of the school you want to go to, gain residency and apply again. I think what makes it especially hard is the lack of compensation for the amount of debt vets go into for schooling. I think vet school debt can be doable, but only if you're prepared for it and you make the best possible decisions going in.

Are these COA estimates all based on the same variables? For example, the UC-Davis breakdown from their site includes about $15K for food costs and also includes the summer between 3rd and 4th year in their calculations. The Colorado State site as I understand it does not. These are pretty substantial disparities, no?

I noticed that you have CSU's 2012 IS tuition at 21764 but it is actually 23498 (unfortunately). Awesome work by the way. It is really nice to see all of this information together like this.

Originally Posted by August West

Are these COA estimates all based on the same variables? For example, the UC-Davis breakdown from their site includes about $15K for food costs and also includes the summer between 3rd and 4th year in their calculations. The Colorado State site as I understand it does not. These are pretty substantial disparities, no?

I think it's important to remember that COA is there for the school to figure out based on guidelines set by congress (or so I've been told) a rough estimate of the MAX amount of money that is reasonable for a student to take out in loans to attend school. It just takes in account the tuition/fees, reasonable fees for books and supplies, health insurance, rent, food, transportation, etc... all adjusted for the regional cost of living. What the COA means for you is the max amount of federal loans you can take out to pay for EVERYTHING. So it doesn't matter if it appropriates money for food in one school and not the other. If Davis has $15k calculated for food but CSU doesn't, it doesn't mean you'll have to scounge up an extra $15k to attend CSU or starve. The only major difference is that Davis calculates based on 10 months of school, so you're technically responsible for finding funding for the two months summer vacation. For CSU, it's calculated on 9 months of school, so you're technically responsible for funding 3 months of summer. Depends on the person if this makes either one more affordable or not (for most it won't make much of a difference). If you're someone who's going to earn a ton of money during the summer, the longer the break the better. If you're someone who spends net money over the summer, then not so much. As for the summer between third and 4th year, unless something's changed, my understanding is that the tuition you pay is based on the number of credits you elect to take. I'm not sure exactly how it works though, so if that's going to make a difference to you, then contact the school and find out. So unless I'm mistaken, there isn't exactly a set tuition per se.

So the COA not there for the school to tell you exactly how much you'll be spending, or to make an accurate comparison of your personal COA between different schools. It's not supposed to be there for a literal comparison between schools. The only thing that is for sure on there is your tuition and fees! The amount you'll pay for everything else in your life will depend on how thrifty you are. For example, if you decide to do a house share in Ft Collins, you can find places where you'll spend less than $500/month including all utilities. But if you get a 1 br in a managed apt and have to pay all utilities yourself, it might be double that. Big difference. Same thing between people who have cars (and buy parking permits) and those who don't. People who need to buy expensive plane tix to go home for the holidays vs. those who don't. People who need to move from far away and either need to move a ton of furniture/buy new ones, and those who don't. People who eat out/go out drinking a lot, and those who don't. People who buy all textbooks required/suggested brand new, and those who do without, or buy old editions on half.com. Buying or not buying a new computer can make a difference too depending on what kind you get. So yeah, because of that, even asking current students what their budgets are won't be all that helpful because your spending pattern and financial circumstance probably won't be the same.

So bottom line being that if you're not willing to take the rough COA estimates listed on the website as enough info to make a financial decision on which school to attend, you'll have to spend the time and energy to research that for yourself. You can get concrete costs for things like health insurance from the school if you're going to go to use school insurance. Unless you really want to expend the energy to ask students exactly what supplies/books you need for school, you may want to just use what they've listed on the COA chart though because that would be a huge pain in the a** to figure out. The school's already taken into consideration what things you need, including computer specifications and supplies particular to the courses you'll be taking. That, and how thrifty you'll be on textbooks won't change all that much between schools. You can peruse rental websites and craigslist to get an idea of how much you'll spend on rent for the type of living situation you want. Food and utilities and other stuff that will vary in cost between locations, you can look at your current budget and put that into a regional cost of living comparison calculator online and get a rough estimate. If you go this route though, you'll have to remember that your estimate is going to depend entirely on your thoughfulness and understanding of personal finances. If you do it well, you'll get a pretty good comparison on your actual COA for whatever school you want to consider to make an informed decision. If you don't do it well... well then, you might as well just use the COA estimate on the website...

VIN has a good breakdown of ranks of costs of tuition. My alma mater was relatively LOW at over $100K for the loan own...not to mention what you will finally pay. Be aware. Be very aware.

Originally Posted by SMHVET

VIN has a good breakdown of ranks of costs of tuition. My alma mater was relatively LOW at over $100K for the loan own...not to mention what you will finally pay. Be aware. Be very aware.

What is the difference between being aware and being very aware?

Originally Posted by SMHVET

VIN has a good breakdown of ranks of costs of tuition. My alma mater was relatively LOW at over $100K for the loan own...not to mention what you will finally pay. Be aware. Be very aware.

You've been a member here for a couple of months now, so I'm sure you're aware (very aware) at how very aware we are.

If I was choosing veterinary medicine because it was an easy path to take, I would have stopped the first day of undergraduate biology.

Hi all,

I just wanted to put up an updated link that can help with the information how much vet schools cost as well as average DVM salaries in the states.


Link


Let me know if this helps.

Originally Posted by jdabbracciodvm

Hi all,

I just wanted to put up an updated link that can help with the information how much vet schools cost as well as average DVM salaries in the states.


Link


Let me know if this helps.

I couldn't look at the site. I'm thinking it's bc I don't have a Vin account. womp womp

I am 46 and live in Chicago. I have always wanted to become a DVM and I was researching the cost of tuition. I have an undergrad in Finance (did what my parents wanted) & currently an executive in the finance industry. I love animals and figured this might be my last chance to do what I really want to do. However, given these numbers I don't know if I could ever get out debt on a vets salary in the midwest. I would like to hear from others to see if i'm out of my mind.

Thank You

Originally Posted by jhs1120

I am 46 and live in Chicago. I have always wanted to become a DVM and I was researching the cost of tuition. I have an undergrad in Finance (did what my parents wanted) & currently an executive in the finance industry. I love animals and figured this might be my last chance to do what I really want to do. However, given these numbers I don't know if I could ever get out debt on a vets salary in the midwest. I would like to hear from others to see if i'm out of my mind.

Thank You

yes, you are out of your mind. Don't do it!

You sound like you might make good money. If you can cut your current costs and sock away some money, it may be more feasible. However, you have a few years of prereqs ahead of you.

Check out this website: http://www.vinfoundation.org/CostOfEducation

The information that was previously posted on here in PDF form is derived from the VIN Foundation.

J

Thank you very much putting all this together.

I just spoke with a veterinarian today and she warned me about the cost of test for out of country schools(such as the Caribbean schools). She told me that the final test cost $10,000. Is this true and what test was she referring to?

Originally Posted by toomuch2

Thank you very much putting all this together.

I just spoke with a veterinarian today and she warned me about the cost of test for out of country schools(such as the Caribbean schools). She told me that the final test cost $10,000. Is this true and what test was she referring to?

Caribbean schools can be cheaper than going OOS in the USA. But it depends on how often you want to come back home b/c flights can be expensive.

That test is the PAVE (I think those are the right initials), and it must be taken by any graduate fron a non-AVMA accredited vet school. SGU & Ross are now both accredited so they simply take the same exams as any US graduate.

Originally Posted by SnowyRox

Caribbean schools can be cheaper than going OOS in the USA. But it depends on how often you want to come back home b/c flights can be expensive.

That test is the PAVE (I think those are the right initials), and it must be taken by any graduate fron a non-AVMA accredited vet school. SGU & Ross are now both accredited so they simply take the same exams as any US graduate.

There is also the ECFVG test which I've seen quoted at $7-8k on here. I'm not sure what the actual price is and I believe that one potentially has a waiting list to take it. At least that's what I've heard from vets. I found this list of payments for the PAVE. Honestly, I don't know much about either test because I have no intention of taking them, mainly because I've heard their ridiculously expensive and I will already be paying an arm and leg to go to vet school, so I really don't need to spend the additional money.

http://www.aavsb.org/PDF/PAVE/FeesPayment2011.pdf

From what I understand from being curious about the acronyms, the Veterinary Clinical Skills Assessment (the super expensive part) portion of PAVE is something you don't have to take if you take PAVE before you do clinics while in school and you can then use clinic evaluations to count towards clinical portion.

Here: http://www.aavsb.org/PAVE/StandardsA...es/#Experience

Originally Posted by kakurubird

From what I understand from being curious about the acronyms, the Veterinary Clinical Skills Assessment (the super expensive part) portion of PAVE is something you don't have to take if you take PAVE before you do clinics while in school and you can then use clinic evaluations to count towards clinical portion.

Here: http://www.aavsb.org/PAVE/StandardsA...es/#Experience

Ah! Then that would definitely make the PAVE the cheaper option if your state accepts that test. I never really researched any of it, since that wasn't the route I was planning on taking.

I can clarify things.

The PAVE is a cheaper test about $1500 or so. It is a computer based exam and offered while the students are still taking classes from their main school. Typically this is taken before starting final year of clinics at a US/Canadian/UK/Australian clinical contract school. Down side is if you’re Canadian or from a state not accepting the PAVE you have to take the ECFVG.

ECFVG is given by the AVMA. This test has a written exam (computer based) but takes during your final year of clinics. Once you pass you take a 3 day practical exam that includes surgery, anesthesia, medicine (small, equine, and food animal), radiology, and necropsy. The practical is given at different testing centers in the US/Canada. This exam costs $8,000 but not all at once...it is based on sections (written, deposit, then final $4k before the practical). However, this grants you the option of getting licensed in any state and country.

The exams are not that bad. Many AVMA accredited students say they would not be able to pass the exam after they saw the rule book. The same goes for the clinicians I’ve talked to. I look at it like this....I’m going a little extra for things...but in the grand picture I’ve still done OK with expenses for school and the experience was outstanding. It’s all on an individual preference basis.

J

Originally Posted by LaRue

Question, random new question

In your opinion is it better to go to a school that offers interesting electives (specifically wildlife related) and research you want to do even if the school is expensive?

Or is it best to go to the schools that are decently priced and you find a way on your own to get the experience you want?

I heard that it was extremely hard to get financial aid/scholarships for vet school, that you pay mostly out of pocket. Is this true?

Thanks

Yes it is true. Scholarships that are more than a thousand or two here and there are very hard to come by. And even those aren't easy to get for many people.

I don't think electives are worth it for the added price tag, unless you are 100% sure you can make it worthwhile for yourself. Just remember that before your clinical years, many students don't have much time for dedicating to their interest areas. And I don't mean to discourage you but a large percentage of incoming students express interest in exotics/zoo/wildlife and that ends up being a pipe dream for the vast majority (even in schools with strong programs). You have two whole summers and elective rotations to do whatever you want to regardless of where you go! If you go to a school that's $50k cheaper overall, I'm sure you can use a little bit of that to even go to Africa or something over the summer and work in the veldt or something and still feel like you saved money!

Research depends on how serious you are about a veterinary research career, and how much of a benefit you will have by joining that particular research group you want to break into. If it's more of a self-enrichment thing, or a weeeelll maybe that would be cool kind of thing, probably not.

That's just my opinion though...

Originally Posted by Minnerbelle

Yes it is true. Scholarships that are more than a thousand or two here and there are very hard to come by. And even those aren't easy to get for many people.

I don't think electives are worth it for the added price tag, unless you are 100% sure you can make it worthwhile for yourself. Just remember that before your clinical years, many students don't have much time for dedicating to their interest areas. And I don't mean to discourage you but a large percentage of incoming students express interest in exotics/zoo/wildlife and that ends up being a pipe dream for the vast majority (even in schools with strong programs). You have two whole summers and elective rotations to do whatever you want to regardless of where you go! If you go to a school that's $50k cheaper overall, I'm sure you can use a little bit of that to even go to Africa or something over the summer and work in the veldt or something and still feel like you saved money!

Research depends on how serious you are about a veterinary research career, and how much of a benefit you will have by joining that particular research group you want to break into. If it's more of a self-enrichment thing, or a weeeelll maybe that would be cool kind of thing, probably not.

That's just my opinion though...

Thanks for the advice/opening my eyes. Although, I am in West Africa right now (I'm in an REU program conducting conservation research, projects= whether food type affects the growth rate of the African armyworm and Danaid eggfly, but those are bugs haha.....couldn't work with any type of mammal :///)

So I am serious over having some sort of career that involves wildlife, but you made an excellent point! I could go to a cheaper school and gain experience on my own. So I think I'm going to drop LSU, Tufts, and Cornell from my list (my IS= Maryland) and shoot for NC State still (cheap and has some wildlife electives), but also keep VMRCVM as my number two and add/focus on the cheaper schools rather than the cool expensive ones


I'm also still going to check whether the expensive schools will allow you to change your residency after a year (found a few so far). Does anyone know if this is a relatively easy process? Or does it just depend on the state?


Thanks again!

Originally Posted by LaRue

I'm also still going to check whether the expensive schools will allow you to change your residency after a year (found a few so far). Does anyone know if this is a relatively easy process? Or does it just depend on the state?


Thanks again!

Depends on the state. When you're doing your research, pay attention to any talk that suggests residency rules may change in the future; VMR recently elected not to recognize residency at all (that is, if you come in as an OOS student, you continue paying as an OOS student, no matter what your driver's license says).

I think for the most part it's a year of living in the state (mostly for tax purposes), topped off by a change in driver's license to that state.

Or you could marry a state resident. =) That works too.

Originally Posted by hopefulinva

Depends on the state. When you're doing your research, pay attention to any talk that suggests residency rules may change in the future; VMR recently elected not to recognize residency at all (that is, if you come in as an OOS student, you continue paying as an OOS student, no matter what your driver's license says).

I think for the most part it's a year of living in the state (mostly for tax purposes), topped off by a change in driver's license to that state.

Or you could marry a state resident. =) That works too.

Bahaha thanks! Definitely going to look more into it. Specifically NC State and Missouri.....trying to find out if I can even switch my residency for Iowa and Wisconsin. (VMRCVM is my IS)

I also have another super opinionated question......How expensive is too expensive?

I have no clue how to figure this out honestly....I don't know where I would work let alone what state I would be working in during vet school......I decided to define anything beyond $100,000 as expensive (for all 4 years,....took into consideration whether you can be IS after the first year), but that kind of limited me a bit.

Advice? Already looked at the cumulative tuition pdf and cumulative cost of attendance pdf.

Originally Posted by LaRue

Bahaha thanks! Definitely going to look more into it. Specifically NC State and Missouri.....trying to find out if I can even switch my residency for Iowa and Wisconsin. (VMRCVM is my IS)

I also have another super opinionated question......How expensive is too expensive?

I have no clue how to figure this out honestly....I don't know where I would work let alone what state I would be working in during vet school......I decided to define anything beyond $100,000 as expensive (for all 4 years,....took into consideration whether you can be IS after the first year), but that kind of limited me a bit.

Advice? Already looked at the cumulative tuition pdf and cumulative cost of attendance pdf.

How expensive is too expensive is such an immensely personal decision - there are people that will attend a school no matter what the cost, and people who simply won't go into debt for vet school. Most people are somewhere in between.

Personally: I hate hate hate the idea of being in debt, so I only applied to my in-state school my first time around. I probably would have branched out a little more during a second cycle if I hadn't gotten in, but would have selected my schools I applied to mainly on cost, not program or location. I simply can't fathom a 100k+ loan debt. I'm trying to keep it below 50k. I'm not willing to make several thousand dollar loan payments each month, and hate the idea of my loans curtailing my ability to specialize or travel.

Originally Posted by LaRue

So I think I'm going to drop LSU, Tufts, and Cornell from my list.

Huh. I never really thought LSU to be all that expensive, OOS. But I just checked, and I've been looking at per SEMESTER cost for OOS (~$20K), thinking it was per YEAR OOS cost (~$40K).

Which makes perfect sense....seeing as I'm IS, and my tuition is just over $9k a semester....making my per year cost about $20K.

Derp.

Interesting question, it was briefly covered a few pages back...
One of my bosses recently asked me "Exactly how much money are you willing to spend to become a vet?"
As in, is there some magic number to be reached where the cost of school is no longer worth becoming a DVM? And when reached, would you call it quits and find something more lucrative? This is really relevant because in our area, we have a veterinarian practicing with the highest amount of debt out of school in the country. Also knew an SGU student who almost didn't go back after break because finding a loan was nearly impossible (ended up being something like 20% interest..ouch).


I'm not sure I could place a number on it because I want it so badly, but at the same time I don't want to be sucked into the Concord Fallacy, i.e. "Well I already have x amount of money invested so I might as well keep going"
I think there definitely comes a point where you have to accept that you may never get your loans paid off....

Anyway, it's been bouncing around my brain lately...any thoughts?

Originally Posted by TooLove

I'm not sure I could place a number on it because I want it so badly, but at the same time I don't want to be sucked into the Concord Fallacy, i.e. "Well I already have x amount of money invested so I might as well keep going"
I think there definitely comes a point where you have to accept that you may never get your loans paid off....

Anyway, it's been bouncing around my brain lately...any thoughts?

In trading we call that throwing good money after bad.....

Of more succinctly, when your boss screams in your face.. .
"CUT YOUR F***ING LOSSES NOW".

Luckily for me, my bus driver said if he wins the lotto he'll pay for me to go to vet school! Here's to hoping!