Supporting Aspiring Veterinary Professionals
June 23, 2023
We strive to bring hospitals into our network that align with our values, particularly in their commitment to invest time and resources into the veterinary community at large. As a part of our efforts to give back, we actively support the New Market Skills Center in Washington which offers technical training to high school students. Our teams in that region have fostered a longstanding relationship with the school. In fact Dr. Murphy, founder of People, Pets, and Vets, helped develop the pre-vet assistant curriculum.
Our hospitals, including Steamboat Animal Hospital, Chambers Prairie Animal Hospital, Healthy Pets Animal Hospital, Oly Cats Veterinary Hospital, Hawks Prairie Veterinary Hospital, and South Bay Veterinary Hospital have supported New Market Skills Center by hosting student interns and hiring graduates of the program. There are two New Market alums working as DVMs in the VetCor network— Dr. Harris, associate DVM at Chambers Prairie, and Dr. Warbington, COS at Steamboat. This means we've been part of these employees' journeys since they were in high school! Dr. Warbington reflected on her time at New Market, “I got to know more about the veterinary field and what it involves. We learned applied science which was really fun at that age.”
Dr. Harris shared, “I really enjoyed the pre-vet assistant class and it sort of clinched my decision to go into vet med. At New Market, I feel like I started learning a number of skills there were useful to me during vet school and later in my career. Taking a physical exam, basic grooming and maintenance tasks, my first dissection experiences, research, etc. I would argue though that, rather than any specific skills I cultivated, the most important thing I got out of the program was a real enthusiasm for veterinary medicine, exposure to other students who felt similarly…”
Our engagement with New Market students goes beyond our local hospitals. Our Chief Veterinary Officer, Dr. Michelle Shoemaker, and VP of Human Resources, Hayden Milligan, were asked to come into the classroom earlier this spring and provide invaluable information on how to prepare for an in-clinic internship. They were then invited back to provide mock interviews and give resume and CV reviews for 40 students. As a result of this work, two $500 scholarships were awarded to those continuing their educational pursuits in animal sciences post-high school. Looking to the future, VetCor has laid the groundwork to connect New Market with Yakima Valley College to establish matriculation credits (currently New Market has a relationship with Pierce College). This will allow students to transfer credits, saving money and time as they continue their veterinary careers. A second college program gives students a wider range of opportunities to choose from.
According to the New Market Skills Center, “Upon successfully completing the program, students are comprehensively prepared to enter any college Veterinary Technician Program or begin working in a veterinary clinic as an Assistant or an Animal Care Provider.” We know there is so much more in store for these graduates and we are proud to continue supporting the efforts to reach young, aspiring veterinary professionals.
If you are interested in the summer jobs and externships available in our network, please visit our careers page.
