You love animals passionately, had an entire menagerie all through life and are now looking for a career that will be enjoyable and rewarding! Great news – one of the most rewarding careers is that of a vet tech that requires a deep love of animals.
Veterinary technicians work with trained veterinarians to provide a range of animal healthcare services. After completing your training through a college or school that offers accredited programs in veterinary technology, you will enter the work environment to seek employment in a setting that includes zoos, private or public animal clinics, animal farms, aquariums, animal hospitals or animal shelters to provide animal healthcare services.
The education opportunities available are diplomas generally completed within a year, associate’s degree programs that take two years to complete and bachelor’s degrees that take four years to complete.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) accredits associate’s degree and bachelor’s degree programs offered by various education institutions in the country.
When you graduate from a veterinary technology degree program by successfully passing the vet tech exam you can enhance your career opportunities by earning credentialing. To receive credentialing you need to first pass the National Veterinary Technician (NVT) exam. Success in the NVT exam depends on the kind of education you receive. When you study in an accredited program you receive a well-round education with a solid foundation in various aspects of animal healthcare including animal medicine, veterinary diseases, animal behavior, veterinary pharmacology, laboratory procedures, animal dentistry, surgical assisting and anesthesiology.
Let us pause a moment to consider the process for sitting vet tech exams. You will first need to complete your vet tech degree and pass the exam to graduate from the program.
Following the completion of your degree program, you need to pass the Veterinary Technician National Examination (VTNE). The VTNE in turn is administered by the American Association of Veterinary State Boards (AAVSB). It may sound complicated at first, but it is quite simple really. You pass the vet tech exam to get your degree and then you pass the VTNE exam. The VTNE exam is a process that evaluates the veterinary technician’s competency in practicing and serves as a stepping stone to credentialing. Actually, most states in America require students to receive a passing score on the VTNE exam as it is one of the criteria for credentialing.
Veterinary technicians graduating from an accredited program are allowed to take the veterinary technician credentialing exam. It should be understood that regulations pertaining to veterinary technicians vary between states. But the standard for veterinary technicians in all states is to take the credentialing exam once the degree is completed. The credentialing exam comprises three parts: oral, written and practical exams.
Successful completion of the credentialing exam by a veterinary technician will lead to the individual becoming registered, licensed or certified. The exact procedure will depend on state regulations for veterinary technicians.
It may seem like an awful lot of vet tech exams before you get to be a qualified veterinary technician. But the end result is well worth it in terms of job satisfaction.
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