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University Health Professions Office

Veterinary

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Overview

Please be aware that prerequisites for the Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences have changed recently. The prerequisites below are what we have been given by the College of Veterinary Medicine. As of March 20, 2013 the prerequisites listed on TAMU's own website have NOT yet been updated. If you have any questions please contact your advisor.

An undergraduate education provides students with the opportunity to grow personally and intellectually; allowing them the time and resources to discover a breadth of new ideas and topics as well as to build and to explore in depth their own interests and passions.  Therefore, students should seek a broad education during their undergraduate years.  There is no required major for entrance to veterinary school.  The following courses represent what can be taken at UTSA to fulfill the prerequisites for entrance to Texas A&M University’s College of Veterinary Medicine’s Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) program.  Please note that all requirements are subject to approval by the College of Veterinary Medicine and are subject to change.  Further, because there is some variation in requirements to other veterinary schools, students are advised to consult individual programs for specific and most current information.

Timeline

Students who enter their undergraduate studies with the intention of beginning a veterinary program just after graduation should plan to complete the pre-veterinary course work during the spring semester of their junior year.  Such a schedule would permit a student to complete his or her degree requirements prior to graduation in May of the following year. It is not unusual, however, that a student will decide later in their academic career to pursue veterinary medicine.  Arriving at the decision later does not necessarily place a student at a disadvantage.  It will, however, require a student to postpone the application to veterinary school until prerequisite course requirements are fulfilled.  The veterinary medicine school application cycle, from application to matriculation, takes approximately fourteen months, so advance planning is essential. 

Prerequisites

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Required Areas of Study

UTSA Course

Grade/
Sem

Prerequisites/Corequisites

Non-Science Category-Must receive C or better

English Composition
(3 hrs lecture)

WRC 1013

 

 

Speech Communication
(3 hrs lecture)

COM 2113

 

COM 1043 or 1053 or consent of instructor

Psychology
(3 hrs lecture)

PSY 1013

 

 

Technical Writing
(3 hrs lecture)

ENG 2413

 

WRC 1013 and WRC 1023

Chemical/Physical Sciences and Mathematics Category-Must receive C or better

Inorganic Chemistry
(6 hrs lecture; 2 hrs lab)

 

 

 

¹CHE 1103 or ²CHE 1143

 

¹Passing grade on Chemistry Placement Exam or C or better in CHE 1073 and completion of or concurrent enrollment in MAT 1073; ²Grade of “B” or higher in MAT 1073 and CHE 1073 or score of 60% or higher on chemistry placement exam

CHE 1121 Lab and
CHE 1120 Lab Lecture

 

Completion of or concurrent enrollment in CHE 1103 or CHE 1143

¹CHE 1113 or ²CHE 1153

 

¹CHE 1103; ²“C” or better in CHE 1143 or “B” or better in CHE 1103 with instructor consent

CHE 1131 Lab and
CHE 1130 Lab Lecture

 

CHE 1121 and completion of or concurrent enrollment in CHE 1113 or CHE 1153

 

Organic Chemistry
(6 hrs lecture; 2 hrs lab)

NOTES:  Although UTSA chemistry labs are worth two hours of credit each, Texas A&M requires that students take matching labs to both Organic Chemistry I and II.

CHE 2603 was formerly CHE 2604;
CHE 3643 was formerly CHE 2623.
CHE 3652 was formerly CHE 2632;
CHE 3650 was formerly CHE 2630.

CHE 2603

 

CHE 1113 or CHE 1153

CHE 2612 Lab and
CHE 2610 Lab Lecture

 

Completion of CHE 1131 and completion of or concurrent enrollment in CHE 2603

CHE 3673 or CHE 3643

 

CHE 2603 and completion of or concurrent enrollment in CHE 2612

CHE 3652 Lab and
CHE 3650 Lab lecture

 

CHE 2603 and CHE 2612

Biochemistry
(5 lecture hrs)

NOTE:  Two lectures are necessary to fulfill this requirement; laboratory work does not apply. 

BIO 3513

 

CHE 2603 and CHE 2612

BIO 3813

 

BIO 2313

Statistics
(3 hrs lecture)

 

STA 3003

 

MAT 1214 or MAT 1193

Physics
(6 hrs lecture; 2 hrs lab)

PHY 1603

 

MAT 1023 (not recommended for pre-med students), MAT 1073 or higher

PHY 1611 Lab

 

Completion of or concurrent enrollment in PHY 1603

PHY 1623

 

PHY 1603

PHY 1631 Lab

 

PHY 1611 and completion of or concurrent enrollment in PHY 1623

Life Sciences Category-Must receive C or better

General Biology
(3 hrs lecture; 1 hr lab)

BIO 1404

 

MAT 1023 (not recommended for pre-med students), MAT 1073 or higher; CHE 1073 or higher also recommended by UHPO

BIO 1122 Lab

 

Completion of or concurrent enrollment in BIO 1404

General Microbiology
(3 hrs lecture; 1 hr lab)

BIO 3713

 

BIO 1122 and BIO 1413

BIO 3722 Lab

 

BIO 1122 and BIO 1413

Genetics
(3 hrs lecture)

BIO 2313

 

BIO 1413 and completion of or concurrent enrollment in CHE 1103 and MAT 1193 or MAT 1214 or STA 1053

BIO 2322 Lab and
BIO 2320 Lab Lecture

 

BIO 1122, BIO 1413, and CHE 1103

Animal Nutrition
(3 hrs lecture)

NOTE: Check with Texas A&M for courses at other Texas institutions that will fulfill requirement: http://vetmed.tamu.edu/dvm/future/animal-science-requirements.  

Not offered at UTSA

 

 

 


GRE

:  The Graduate Record Examination (GRE) is a standardized exam required for admission to the Texas A&M Veterinary Medicine Program.  However, a few other programs will accept the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT).  Information on both of these exams is provided below. 
The GRE is the required admissions exam for most DVM programs across the country, including the program at Texas A&M University.  Computer administrations of the GRE are available almost daily.  The GRE measures verbal reasoning, quantitative reasoning, critical thinking, and analytical writing skills.  An examinee can register for the GRE online, by phone, or by mail and are limited to taking the GRE General Test once per calendar month and no more than five times in any 12-month period.  Complete registration details and other information about the GRE are available at:  http://www.ets.org. 


Although the GRE is required by most DVM programs, some programs will also accept the MCAT.  The MCAT is offered between January and September each year in a computer-based exam format.  As it takes approximately 30 days for official exam results to become available, it is important that students plan to take the MCAT at least one month or more prior to the application deadlines of the schools to which they are applying.  Disciplined review and preparation for the exam should be undertaken at least six months in advance of the test date.  The MCAT is comprised of four sections: Biological Sciences; Physical Sciences; Verbal Reasoning; and Writing Sample.  The scoring for the first three sections is on a 1-15 scale.  Ten or better is considered a strong score.  The Writing Sample section is assigned a letter value of J to T, T being the highest possible score.  The total score for all of these sections combined will also be reported.  Through the AAMC website (http://aamc.org/students/mcat/start.htm), students can find detailed information about the exam and can register to take the exam.

Experience with Animals / Shadowing

An integral part of preparation for veterinary school entails knowledge of and experience in working with animals, such as at a clinic, farm/ranch, home, research laboratory, kennel, and/or animal shelter.  These activities serve to familiarize prospective veterinarians with the realities of everyday clinical practice as well as to underscore the role of veterinary medicine in relation to broader community level concerns and issues. 

In order to qualify for an interview with the DVM Program at Texas A&M University, a student must complete at least 50 hours of veterinary experience and observation under the direct supervision of a licensed veterinarian.  As other DVM programs may have a similar requirement, it is important that students refer directly to all schools to which they plan to apply for more information.

Involvement in other non-veterinary community service and volunteer experiences are also important in your personal and professional development.  A list of volunteer opportunities is available on the UHPO website (www.utsa.edu/healthprofessions), and we will continue to update it with additional possibilities.  We do not, however, have a list available for shadowing experiences.  Students must exercise personal initiative and develop relationships that would allow them to have this direct contact with a veterinarian in everyday clinical practice.