A LONGITUDINAL-STUDY OF VETERINARY STUDENTS AND RECENT GRADUATES .3. PERCEPTIONS OF VETERINARY EDUCATION

Objective To examine the attitudes and opinions on veterinary educatio n at the beginning and end of the veterinary course, and after graduat ion. Design Longitudinal study. Population Students - 154 in all - who began studying veterinary science at The University of Queensland in 1985 and 1986. Procedure Questionnaires were completed in the first an d fifth year of the course and in the second year after graduation. Th e data were analysed using the SAS System for Windows. Results When th ey entered the course, the students were looking forward more to learn ing about animals than about basic sciences. At fifth year and after g raduation most believed that more emphasis should have been placed on all facets of their education except the basic sciences. It may be dif ficult to increase this emphasis without placing undue pressure on the students, although more than half of the fifth year students and grad uates agreed that there is much in the curriculum that is not needed b y a practising veterinarian . Only one-third or less agreed that veter inarians are well equipped to practise veterinary science immediately they graduate. There was no relationship between the level of agreemen t with this statement, and the academic grades obtained. Conclusions A majority of veterinary graduates do not believe that they are well eq uipped to practice immediately they graduate. They believe that more e mphasis should have been placed on most facets of their education, but , conversely, that there is much in the curriculum that is not needed by a practising veterinarian.