Research In Vet Med (+ School)

[vampyrica]

Hi all! I was curious to know if anyone has any personal experiences with research in the field post graduation or during vet school? I have a really strong interest in research and public health and would love to dedicate my career working with animals in a laboratory setting and conducting vaccine trials, zoonotic and foreign animal disease research. I know some schools really pride themselves on providing research opportunities to their vet students, I wanted to know if anyone has conducted research/is conducting research and what your experience has been like?

Thanks!

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[beepboopbop1]

At my university, we have a summer research program for vet students. It is well-paid, but there is a minimum of 12 weeks of full time work that is expected (therefore, limited time for travelling home and/or relaxing during summer break). However, this is variable depending on your mentor and project requirements. Additionally, we were required to present a poster at a research symposium at the end of the summer. Between myself and the other students that did this experience, there were mixed reviews as to the quality of the experience and whether it was worth doing. Personally, I really enjoyed my project and am glad that I did the program. I would recommend finding a mentor that you get along with really well and whose current research is something you are interested in. Also make sure that expectations and timelines are clearly laid out between you and your mentor from the beginning to avoid any issues.

 

[vampyrica]

There are a couple of DVM-PhD programs: National Association of Veterinary Scientists

I was more-so asking for people's experiences on conducting research while in vet school not so much which programs have dual degree programs.

 

[JaynaAli]

I was more-so asking for people's experiences on conducting research while in vet school not so much which programs have dual degree programs.

If you’re wanting a career in research though, the PhD is likely going to be needed and is probably given higher weight than the DVM degree. I’ve gotten the impression from talking to people that dual degree programs have their issues and it may be better to pursue the PhD and skip vet school altogether (if possible based on your career goals) or pursue it after you graduate vet school, but the kind/level of research vet students do is nowhere near the level that would be needed for a career in research. The research done by average vet students in the 12 week summer research program you do one summer or maybe someone who wants a residency helping faculty with a project and getting to be a coauthor on a paper. And while that’s a fun little project and a good experience, that’s just not enough time to do anything super significant and set you up for a career in research.

 

[ciderdoughnut]

I was more-so asking for people's experiences on conducting research while in vet school not so much which programs have dual degree programs.

Hi! I can’t speak for other schools but I would imagine it’s pretty similar across the board. At tOSU there are pretty much opportunities to be involved in research as much or as little as you’d like. There’s dual degree, the summer research program, or if you’re like me, you can just reach out to faculty in the specialty/field you’re interested in to get started. I really think it’s about what you want to get out of it/the research mentor that you’ve chosen that determines the trajectory of your work. For me, personally, my research is pretty laid back, but I have classmates that are much more involved/published if that’s something you’re interested in.

 

[vampyrica]

If you’re wanting a career in research though, the PhD is likely going to be needed and is probably given higher weight than the DVM degree. I’ve gotten the impression from talking to people that dual degree programs have their issues and it may be better to pursue the PhD and skip vet school altogether (if possible based on your career goals) or pursue it after you graduate vet school, but the kind/level of research vet students do is nowhere near the level that would be needed for a career in research. The research done by average vet students in the 12 week summer research program you do one summer or maybe someone who wants a residency helping faculty with a project and getting to be a coauthor on a paper. And while that’s a fun little project and a good experience, that’s just not enough time to do anything super significant and set you up for a career in research.

I'm currently interested in obtaining my MPH and DVM concurrently (or I'll get my MPH first if I don't get in anywhere this cycle) and then pursuing a PhD in the future after working in the field for a little bit. My ultimate goal would be to work both in a lab and directly with animals on foreign disease research projects or working for APHIS or the USDA in some sort of ag biosecurity sector. I'm still exploring my options but this seems like the path I was to pursue. I currently work full-time as a research technologist at a university and I work 50% of the time in the lab and 50% of the time directly with the mice and I love love love it.

I figured projects wouldn't be too in-depth while in school and that students might act more like research assistants or technologists rather than develop a project of their own! I just wanted to know if there are opportunities for students like me who are interested in pursuing research long-term. Little projects and summer programs seem like great opportunities to get your foot in the door!

 

[vampyrica]

Hi! I can’t speak for other schools but I would imagine it’s pretty similar across the board. At tOSU there are pretty much opportunities to be involved in research as much or as little as you’d like. There’s dual degree, the summer research program, or if you’re like me, you can just reach out to faculty in the specialty/field you’re interested in to get started. I really think it’s about what you want to get out of it/the research mentor that you’ve chosen that determines the trajectory of your work. For me, personally, my research is pretty laid back, but I have classmates that are much more involved/published if that’s something you’re interested in.

tysm for sharing your experience!!

 

[supershorty]

Hi! I can’t speak for other schools but I would imagine it’s pretty similar across the board. At tOSU there are pretty much opportunities to be involved in research as much or as little as you’d like. There’s dual degree, the summer research program, or if you’re like me, you can just reach out to faculty in the specialty/field you’re interested in to get started. I really think it’s about what you want to get out of it/the research mentor that you’ve chosen that determines the trajectory of your work. For me, personally, my research is pretty laid back, but I have classmates that are much more involved/published if that’s something you’re interested in.

Just to clarify for the OP, tOSU does NOT have a formal dual DVM/PhD program unless things have changed very recently.

 

[ciderdoughnut]

Just to clarify for the OP, tOSU does NOT have a formal dual DVM/PhD program unless things have changed very recently.

That’s correct! We have dual DVM/MPH, DVM/MS, and residency/PhD

 

[supershorty]

Also @OP (and any others interested in research in vet school), I am a recent graduate from the dual DVM/PhD program at UMN and am happy to discuss my experience and thoughts on dual DVM/PhD programs in general via PM 😊

 

[vampyrica]

Also @OP (and any others interested in research in vet school), I am a recent graduate from the dual DVM/PhD program at UMN and am happy to discuss my experience and thoughts on dual DVM/PhD programs in general via PM 😊

I would love to hear about your experience!

 

[leman1]

The University of Illinois is a top-tier Research 1 university. I would encourage you to look into their programs, including a joint DVM-MPH degree offered in conjunction with the University of Illinois-Chicago School of Public Health: MS & PhD Degrees - Veterinary Medicine at Illinois.