Veterinary education has the highest gap of any discipline between what it costs universities to deliver and what they receive from the Commonwealth and fees to meet those costs.
The University of Sydney welcomes the ‘Rethinking Veterinary Education’ report released today by Veterinary Schools of Australia and New Zealand.
The report is the result of close cooperation between the Deans of veterinary science schools and faculties in Australasia. The last significant report into veterinary education was more than 20 years ago.
The report recognises the crisis facing the veterinary profession, particularly in terms of funding models for veterinary education; sustainability in domestic and agricultural practice; and retention in both urban and rural areas.
It also highlights the vital role that veterinary experts will play in managing the impacts of climate change, improving biosecurity and disease prevention.
Professor Jacqueline Norris, Head of School for the Sydney School of Veterinary Science, said: “Veterinary education has the highest gap of any discipline between what it costs universities to deliver their programs and what they receive from the Commonwealth and capped domestic student fees to meet those costs.
“At the University of Sydney, on average over the past four years, the annual funding gap per full-time Commonwealth-supported veterinary student has been 36 percent, or almost $20,000 each. We know that many other universities face similar funding shortfalls in sustaining high-quality veterinary science programs in the national interest.”
