Basseterre, St. Kitts, June 16, 2022 (RUSVM) – Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine (RUSVM) graduated more than 400 students who hailed from four countries and 42 U.S. states and Puerto Rico. These new veterinarians will help fill a critical need for large- and small-animal veterinarian practices, helping to address current and future veterinary workforce needs as a significant number of veterinarians are expected to retire over the next 10 years. This brings the total number of RUSVM alumni to nearly 6,000.
RUSVM is a leader in diversifying the field of veterinary medicine in accordance with the mission of the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA®)and the American Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC). Annually, RUSVM recruits significantly more total number of DVM students from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups than that other AVMA-accredited schools. In fact, 26% of students enrolled full-time at RUSVM for the 2020-2021 academic year identified as an underrepresented racial and ethnic group, including Hispanic (14%), Asian (5%), Black or African American (3%), or two or more races (4%).
“We are proud of the diversity of our newly minted RUSVM graduates,” said Sean Callanan, MVB, CERTVR, MRCVS, PhD, FRCPATH, DIPLECVP, dean of RUSVM. “With a RUSVM degree, graduates can make a positive impact on the communities where they live and work using the knowledge gained through focusing on One Health, the connection between human, environmental and animal health.
RUSVM Class of 2022 graduates were honoured with the president of the AVMA, Jose V. Arce, DVM, serving as the keynote speaker.
“The AVMA is proud to empower veterinarians to thrive in the profession we all love,” said Arce.” “We are pleased to welcome Ross Vet’s newest class of DVMs to the field, to serve in areas where they are critically needed. With the ongoing crisis in the world, a caring and compassionate veterinarian is more important than ever to many pet owners who receive comfort from their animals.”
Many RUSVM graduates serve in large-animal practice, emergency medicine, and speciality animal care and progress into many other specialities and research. These high-demand fields demonstrate RUSVM’s commitment to filling critical workforce needs, a mission that is supported by RUSVM’s parent company, Adtalem Global Education.