“We’re very pleased to welcome our newest and largest group of talented students to our four-year Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) program — the 44th class since the veterinary college opened in 1965,” says WCVM Dean Dr. Charles Rhodes.

During the college’s annual “White Coat Ceremony,” every first-year class member accepts a personalized lab coat from the Canadian Veterinary Medical Association. Each student also receives a stethoscope from the provincial veterinary medical association in the student’s home province.

Members of the regional college’s first-year class represent 50 communities located across Western Canada and in the Northwest Territories. Based on an interprovincial agreement, the WCVM accepts an allotted number of applicants from Canada’s four western provinces and the northern territories.

The class’s 20 Saskatchewan-based students include a Regina resident who helped to co-ordinate pet spay and neuter clinics in the province’s north, a graduate student from Ebenezer who is completing her Master of Science degree in environmental biology, and an agriculture student from a cattle and grain farm near Marshall, Sask.

“We’re very proud of the exceptional quality of our students’ academic records and their broad array of personal skills and experiences that will make them outstanding veterinarians,” says Rhodes.

He adds that the veterinary college is fortunate to have an excellent pool of applicants from which to select its student body each year. First-year veterinary students are selected based on their academic record, their animal-related experience and knowledge, their insight into the profession and their communication skills.

WCVM (www.wcvm.com) is a Canadian centre of expertise for veterinary education, clinical services and research that’s located on the U of S campus. Since 1969, more than 2,400 veterinarians have received their DVM degrees from the regional veterinary college. While most WCVM alumni live and work in Western Canada, former students can be found in more than 580 communities around the world.

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For more information, contact:

Myrna MacDonald
Communications, Western College of Veterinary Medicine
University of Saskatchewan
Tel: 306-225-4479
Cell: 306-291-9950
sm.ridley@sasktel.net