Fully accredited by: AVMA CVMA RCVS New Zealand Australia
Potential Students - VMCAS Applicants click here
“To provide veterinary graduates with the professional skills to deliver excellent veterinary services that sustain the health, welfare and productivity of companion and farm animals and wildlife, with an emphasis on contexts that are unique to New Zealand”.
The Massey University BVSc programme is fully accredited by the Australasian Veterinary Board Council (AVBC), the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA), and the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS). The next accreditation visit will take place in May 2014.
The BVSc is also recognised through reciprocity by the South African Veterinary Association (SAVA).
Massey University was the first veterinary programme in the Southern Hemisphere to receive American Veterinary Medical Association(AVMA) accreditation. This, along with our other accreditations, means that our graduates are able to work in New Zealand, UK, Australia, South Africa, Singapore, Hong Kong and North America. The Massey University veterinary degree is a Bachelor of Veterinary Science degree (BVSc) which is recognised by the AVMA as being equivalent to a DVM from an accredited North American university.
The major advantage of this to you is that it will allow you to work in the USA/Canada as if you had graduated from one of the North American veterinary schools/colleges and you will not have to complete the US Educational Commission for Foreign Veterinary Graduate (ECFVG) programme requirements (either a 4 day practical or 1 year of supervised training).
As Massey University is the veterinary school of New Zealand, passing the final year examinations will enable the student to meet the examination requirements of registration to practice with the New Zealand Veterinary Council. For details on registration to practice requirements in other countries, please contact those
The Bachelor of Veterinary Science (BVSc), is a 5 year (or 10 semester) programme. The first semester beginning in February of each year, is referred to as the “pre-selection” semester and is a trial semester for domestic and Group 1 international students competing for entry into the professional phase of the program.
The professional phase of the degree is 9 semesters or 4.5 years in length, and begins in semester 2 (July) of each year. Selection for entry into semester 2 of the BVSc programme is competitive and students are selected on the basis of academic merit. More details on the selection process can be found here. Successful Group 1 students from the pre-selection semester will be joined by Group 2 International students at this stage.
Years 1 and 2 of the program focus primarily on instruction in the core medical sciences tailored for veterinary students to learn normal form and function. In year 3 papers (aka classes) help the student recognise abnormality and introduce clinical studies. Year 4 focuses on the medicine, surgery, health management, diagnostics and treatment of companion and agricultural animal species. The fifth year is a semi-tracked clinically based year. Each student will choose a track from the following options: small animal, production animal, equine, mixed animal, or other areas as approved (i.e wildlife, research). All tracks share a core of 18 weeks of clinics covering all species areas, Then depending on the track a further 7-9 weeks will be prescribed. The student will then have a further 7-9 weeks where they can choose to do externships (within New Zealand or overseas), or further clinics at Massey University. The semi-tracked, individualised final year curriculum allows students to further explore their area of interest while ensuring wide coverage of the main veterinary species.
The individual papers in the veterinary degree at Massey University can be found here.
In addition to the classes during the term time, veterinary students will also need to complete some farm and veterinary practical work in their holiday time.