Meet Tomorrow’s Perspectives from the School of Veterinary Medicine’s newest class

Written by Britta Wellenstein, photography by Seth Moffitt

Read or watch the news these days, and you’ll likely hear of a veterinarian shortage.

Throughout America, the number of pet owners is growing. However, there are not enough clinicians to meet this increased demand. Those with livestock and other large animals, particularly horses, have also felt the impacts.

In a 2022 statement on the U.S. veterinary workforce, the American Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC) reported significant shortages of veterinarians among all sectors and specialties. They highlight ways to increase the number of veterinarians, including bolstering pay and support. They also call attention to increasing enrollment and interest in veterinary medicine, particularly by creating a more inclusive environment and workforce.

In response to a need for more veterinarians, the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine increased its Doctor of Veterinary Medicine class size to 96 with the 2017 incoming class. This increase was gradual, from 80 students in the 2011 and 2012 incoming classes to between 87 and 90 students in the 2013-16 classes of first-year DVM students.

“There is at least some light at the end of the tunnel in the sense that there are many more veterinarians being trained now than there were even five years ago, but it’s a four-year program,” says Mark Markel, the school’s dean. “It’s not an instant solution, but it is a pathway where more veterinarians are going to be trained and come into the workforce.”

Efforts to increase interest in the profession also seem to be having an impact. For the 2021-22 veterinary college admissions cycle nationally, there was a 5.5 percent increase in qualified applications, with a total of 10,834 nationwide.

The UW School of Veterinar y Medicine saw record applicants — 1,942 total — for its Class of 2026. This represents a 93 percent increase in applications compared to the year prior. Most recently, applicants for the school’s Class of 2027 set another record, with a total of 2,179.

With so much attention on the veterinar y workforce of today and tomorrow, we thought you might want to know, who is the Class of 2026? We queried our students after they completed their first semester of studies in fall 2022 and share some of their perspectives across the following pages.