Market For Veterinary Education

Recently, the AVMA released its State of the Profession report to give an inside look at what is trending in the veterinary industry, as well as what is causing some concern. The report focuses on three categories: the market for veterinary education, the market for veterinarians, and the market for veterinary services. In the next series of newsletters, I will explain the highlights of each category, beginning this week with veterinary education.

 

Characteristics of new graduates:

 

• Employment - 2022 veterinary graduates received full-time employment offers at a higher rate than any other graduating class in the past 22 years, with nearly half (47.6%) planning to join a companion animal practice.

 

• Internships - 25.3% secured an internship position (the lowest proportion of graduates taking an internship since 2004), with 77% in the companion animal sector, 16% in the equine sector, and 2% each in the food animal, mixed animal, and exotic/zoological sectors.

 

• Residency – 2.0% of 2022 graduates went on to a residency program.

 

• Salary - Starting salaries for new graduates have increased. The mean compensation for the 2022 graduating class was $93,079. Graduates securing full-time positions in private companion animal practice were offered the highest starting salary, averaging $120,317. Conversely, the lowest-compensated group remained those graduates accepting full-time positions as college or university faculty or staff.

 

• Debt - Average debt levels for graduates have been on the decline since 2020. In 2022, the mean DVM debt for all new graduates—including those with no debt—was $147,258. Mean debt for those with at least some DVM loans was $179,505.

 

• Racial inequality - Black graduates carry more debt than other graduates, whereas white graduates have less debt than nonwhite graduates, on average.

 

The report also finds that salaries for veterinarians in private practice in 2022 were not only on the rise, but returned to pre-2008 trends, when the industry took a major hit during the 2008 financial crisis.

 

Are you considering hiring a recent graduate to fill a position in your practice? Allow me a few moments of your time to explain how my team has earned a 88% success rate in providing quality candidates to our clients within the first 90 days of the recruitment process. I look forward to hearing from you.