Veterinary Medicine and Research Strategic Plan 2026 - 2028
You can download the full PDF of the Strategic Plan here
The Department of Veterinary Medicine on the University’s West Cambridge Site is a large, multidisciplinary department hosting small animal and equine hospitals and farm animal clinical services, alongside cutting edge scientific research. These different facets combine to train our outstanding veterinary and postgraduate students. The veterinary profession has changed profoundly in the last 15 years with general practices, and increasingly specialist referral centres, mostly integrated into large corporate businesses. The importance of public health, in the wake of a zoonotic global pandemic and climate change transforming the infectious diseases seen in both animals and humans, means it is vital our students are trained to thrive in this changing world. To meet these challenges Cambridge integrates a unique third year into the veterinary course where students specialise in one of the many opportunities provided by the wider university, for example in science, conservation, policy or management. Our graduates are, therefore, fully trained veterinarians ideally placed for diverse careers not only in general, referral or academic clinical practice, but also in conservation, government or industry.
The Department is led by Professor Mark Holmes, assisted by the three Deputy Heads; Professor Jane Dobson (Teaching and Clinical Dean), Professor Julian Parkhill (Research), Professor Clare Bryant (Strategy), along with Nick Bexfield (Hospital Managing Director), and the Business & Operations Manager (Alex Drury). Each area of the Department is managed by a leadership committee (Research, Teaching, Hospital Business and Administration), composed of both senior and more junior members of staff to ensure succession planning, which reports into the Strategy and Executive Committee.