About Cambridge Veterinary School
MissionThe Department of Veterinary Medicine at Cambridge is at the forefront of veterinary science and education and is a centre of excellence for teaching and research. Our mission is to improve the prevention and treatment of diseases of animals by defining and applying best clinical practice, by understanding and developing the science underpinning best practice, and by embedding an education programme in the veterinary sciences that delivers the best veterinary practitioners, academics and research scientists. We thus educate people in the veterinary sciences so that they develop into leading clinicians and researchers. We maintain and develop research excellence in basic and applied biomedical and veterinary sciences and embed our clinical veterinary training in this strong scientific foundation. We aim to produce practitioners, academic clinicians and researchers with an education in veterinary science second to none. History of the DepartmentOriginsCambridge Veterinary School was founded in 1949 with eight undergraduate students, but its origins go back to 1909 when the University Department of Pathology set up an outstation to study diseases of large animals. In 1935 the University entered into an arrangement with the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons whereby it ran a pre-clinical course and a postgraduate diploma, with the final two years to be spent at one of the existing veterinary schools. The recommendation of the Loveday report that students completing the Natural Sciences Tripos could go on to take a course leading to the VetMB degree was put into effect in 1949 with the arrival of the first eight students. The fabric of the school grew markedly in the 1950s and 1960s with many new facilities being built, in part to accommodate increased student numbers. In 1975 the Departments of Animal Health and Veterinary Clinical Studies were merged into one Department of Clinical Veterinary Medicine, which then emerged as a separate entity from its position up to then as a sub-section of the School of Medicine. CrisisThe 1980s saw further developments in the school, which were abruptly halted in 1988 with the publication of the Riley report that recommended closing Glasgow and Cambridge veterinary schools. A massive campaign going right to the top of the Government ensured that we stayed open, which was just as well given that a report in 1990 indicated that the Riley report had omitted to calculate the national requirement for veterinarians, and that there was indeed a shortage of veterinary surgeons! RenaissanceThe Department stayed open, but with wide-reaching re-organisation of its activities. This breathed new life into the Department that is still driving it forward today. In the 1990s, there has been an increased emphasis on research and scholarship, and on providing a cutting edge veterinary education in re-furbished and newly built state-of-the-art facilities. Cambridge remains the smallest veterinary school in terms of student numbers, graduating approximately 65 students per year, but this contributes to a strong sense of team spirit within the Department and excellent staff-student interactions. Present and FutureWe produce clinicians, researchers and practitioners of the very highest calibre. Our graduates go on to follow diverse career paths, with many becoming successful practitioners and academic veterinarians, but with many also going on to become leading biomedical researchers. Many prestigious posts in the various branches of the veterinary profession are occupied by Cambridge graduates. We face the future with confidence and excitement. Veterinarians have never been more needed by society, and we are enthusiastic about providing a science-based education second to none, that will deliver the broadly educated veterinarians that will be required to meet the animal health challenges of the future. The 3 Aspects of the Department |