Please refer to the current SIUE catalog or the Biology Department Web Page for detailed specialization requirements.

As a general rule, residents of states that have a state College of Veterinary Medicine are less likely to be accepted by a veterinary school of a different state. Thus, residents of Illinois usually attend the University of Illinois CVM (Urbana/Champaign, IL). Residents of Missouri usually attend the University of Missouri CVM (Columbia, MO), which has a web site at http://www.cvm.missouri.edu/.

A useful web site with links to member colleges and to VMCAS, the application service used by 23 of 27 U.S. vet schools, including the University of Illinois, is http://www.aavmc.org/.

The UIUC College of Veterinary Medicine web site has very complete information regarding their requirements at http://www.cvm.uiuc.edu/admissions/recruitment/. Students apply to the UIUC CVM through the VMCAS application service. The standardized admission test is now the GRE.

Pre-veterinary students should plan to work with a veterinarian to gain experience while they are in college (and/or high school!). This can be paid or unpaid, but should include exposure to as many aspects of animal medicine as possible. Such experience is important for admission to veterinary school and also provides a potential source for a letter of evaluation from a veterinarian, also important.

Another way to gain experience in a volunteer capacity is to volunteer in a setting such as the Beverly Farm Therapeutic Riding Center Community Riding Program, 6301 Humbert Road, Godfrey, IL 62035, (618)466-0367x787, Stacey Rice, Developer, srice@beverlyfarm.org. Contact Stacey for more information. For those with an interest in therapeutic riding, the Handicapped and Therapeutic Riding Resources page provides extensive information.

Recommended Preveterinary Curriculum for Applicants with a B.A. or B.S. degree for the UIUC-CVM

• 8 semester hours in biology, with laboratories
• 16 semester hours in chemistry, including biochemistry, inorganic chemistry, and organic chemistry, with at least three laboratories in inorganic and organic chemistry
• 8 semester hours in physics, with laboratories

Recommended Preveterinary Curriculum for Applicants without a B.A. or B.S. degree for the UIUC-CVM

• A minimum of 60 semester hours of college credit (including 44 hours of science courses)
• 8 semester hours in biology, with laboratories
• 16 semester hours in chemistry, including biochemistry, inorganic chemistry, and organic chemistry, with at least three laboratories in inorganic and organic chemistry
• 8 semester hours in physics, with laboratories
• 12 semester hours of junior/senior level science courses in addition to the above
• 3 semester hours of English composition
• 3 semester hours of English composition or speech
• 12 semester hours of humanities/social sciences