Members of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine have called for a background in agriculture to be considered as an entry route to veterinary medicine.
The establishment of a new vet school was up for debate at a meeting of the committee which saw unanimous support from TDs and senators to expand the current course offering.
To access veterinary medicine in Ireland, Central Applications Office (CAO) points ranging from 601-625 are required for the 82 places which are delivered by University College Dublin (UCD).
Veterinary medicine
Speaking at the meeting yesterday (Wednesday, May 10), Senator Paul Daly said that not everybody with high points might be the “ideal candidate” to become a vet.
Whereas someone who may have not achieved the high points but went to an agricultural college or comes from an agriculture background would have practical experience, he said.
While the Higher Education Authority (HEA) is open to broader entry requirements, it will be a matter of the college whether a degree in agriculture will grant entry, the authority’s CEO said.
Dr. Alan Wall said that the HEA would support if the chosen third-level institution decided to allow agriculture graduates to enter the second year of a course in veterinary medicine.
A pathway is needed for students with the practical skills required in large animal practice that have a level 7 or 8 degree to enter a course in veterinary medicine, Deputy Cathal Crowe said.
Vet school
The HEA’s recommendations have not yet been submitted to government, Keith Moynes at the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science said.
The key question in the process going forward, Moynes said, will be the allocation of capital in the budgetary process. Those decisions, he added, will not be made in advance of the budget.
There has never been such unanimity around a committee room as there is in trying to get a new vet school up and running, Committee Cathaoirleach Deputy Jackie Cahill said.