Go to your cheapest option!
Beyond that though, UTK is great for zoo/exotics/wildlife (I'm a 2020 grad). We have two boarded zoo vets and another who is recently retired and still hanging around. We also have two boarded exotics vets (I think they're both ABVP - Avian and one is also ABVP - Exotic Companion Mammal but don't quote me on that). The zoo vets oversee care of the Knoxville Zoo collection as well as Tiger Haven, Appalachian Bear Rescue, and some other random collections here and there. There is a big cat in the hospital nearly every week and they are very open to students observing/helping with procedures.
The exotics service operates as its own clinic within the clinic - no referrals necessary, they see all kinds of exotics except primates and venomous snakes. They also work with American Eagle Foundation. They take injured and sick wildlife dropoffs from the community and provide care for those animals until they are well enough to go to rehab. Students are heavily involved in that, particularly clinical year, as they take primary case responsibility for those animals. There is a combined zoo/small animal internship as well as an exotics residency, so usually an intern and two residents on those services as well.
Lots of opportunities for students to get involved too. There is an Avian, Wildlife, and Exotics club that also acts as the umbrella for student chapters of AAV, ARAV, and WAVMA. They run the wildlife care team which allows students to sign up for shifts to help with wildlife patients. The Wildlife Disease Association Student Chapter is open to vet students (and undergrads and other grad students). And there is a lot of research going on in all of these areas too, so definitely chances to get involved in that as well.
As far as didactics go, we have a Multispecies Medicine course that includes lectures and labs on a range of exotics species in the core curriculum, and then several electives - Exotics Anatomy, Aquatics, Intro to Avian Medicine, Zoo Medicine, a Wildlife Conservation course that takes place in Belize (in non-covid times), Amphibian Ecology & Conservation, Wildlife Journal Club, and Wildlife Diseases. Clinical year, Avian/Exotics and Zoo Med are separate elective rotations. There is also a rotation through the Belize Zoo but that has only happened once so far - I think there are plans to continue offering it, but COVID got in the way of that too.
I was (and actually continue to be) involved in a lot of the zoo/exotics/wildlife goings on at UT, and took almost all of the electives, so if you have any questions let me know!
