ÌÇÐÄÔ­´´

Undergraduate students examining cows at the Vet School farm, Sutton Bonington campus

Vet medicine: extra-mural studies (EMS)

30 hours of hands-on experience.

What are extra-mural studies?

°Õ³ó±ðÌýÌýrequires that all veterinary students complete:

  • 10 weeks Animal Husbandry EMS (AHEMS)Ìý– animal handling/husbandry and learning aboutÌýthe animal industries
  • 20 weeks Clinical EMS (CEMS)Ìý– applying your clinical learning

EMS allows students to gain practical experience of working in veterinary medicine. Students must completeÌýa set number of EMS weeksÌýin order to graduate.

Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons

Aims of EMS

EMS aims to provide hands-on, real-world experience across a wide range of veterinary disciplines. These may include:Ìý

  • Animal handling
  • Medical and surgical treatments across different species
  • Communication skills
  • Veterinary practice management
  • Animal management systems and animal industries
  • Animal welfare in veterinary medicine and animal production
  • Herd health and the epidemiological approach to production animal work
  • The ethical and legal responsibilities of the veterinary surgeon
  • Any areas or species not covered in the university curriculum

How do I arrange EMS?

AllÌýAnimal Husbandry EMS and the majority of Clinical EMS is student determined and organised with support from ourÌýdedicated EMS team. They have a database of suitable hosts which you can access.

You willÌýdiscuss and agree your personal EMS planning with your tutors and develop intended learning outcomes before each placement.

When will I complete EMS?

You usuallyÌýcomplete Animal Husbandry EMS by the end of year two. This means you need to undertake 10 weeks of AHEMS during your holidays in years one and two.Ìý

Your 20 weeks of Clinical EMS are split across years three to five.Ìý

Katie Siddons headshot
left double quote mark symbol

All throughout the morning, pets are being brought throughÌýto the prep room from consults to have blood taken, ears swabbed or lumpsÌýsampled, so I can get involved with a lot of different cases and help wherever IÌýcan.

Ìý

Read more from Katie >

Ìý

Katie Siddons headshot

Katie Siddons

Completed EMS at a small animal general practice

Open Day June 2022