Also called: Veterinarian, Companion Animal Vet, DVM
Diagnoses and treats illness and injury in dogs, cats, and other pets.
Sees 20-25 appointments a day: puppy vaccines, an itchy dog's allergies, a cat that stopped eating. Squeezes in surgeries like spays and lump removals, reads X-rays, and has the hardest conversations about putting pets to sleep.
BLS May 2024 (all veterinarians).
Professional degree (MD, JD, DVM…), about 8 years after high school. Bachelor's plus a 4-year Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) and a national licensing exam.
Ways in: 4-year college, Professional school. Training cost: Over $150k.
Majors to look at: Animal Science, Biology, Pre-Veterinary, Zoology.
Growing much faster than average (about 10% over 10 years). Much faster than average.
Low risk for 10 years. AI reads X-rays and bloodwork and drafts records; examining a scared dog, doing surgery and talking owners through hard choices stay human.
Classes: AP Biology, AP Chemistry, Algebra II, Anatomy & Physiology.
Official data: O*NET occupation 29-1131.
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