Board Certified Veterinary Specialists

Board certified residency trained veterinary specialists have received intensive clinical training beyond their four-year Doctor of Veterinary Medicine Degree (DVM or VMD).  Additional 3, 4, or even 5 years of specialized clinical study is part of the requirement to become a board certified residency trained specialist.  These well trained veterinarians might specialize in cardiology, dermatology, internal medicine, neurology, ophthalmology, pathology, radiology, or surgery.

To become board certified a veterinarian must be accepted into a competitive clinical program or residency in their chosen specialty, undergo rigorous clinical training and pass written and practical examinations.  The clinical training and examinations are administered by a specialty group, called a college, which is approved by the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA).  The following specialty colleges are approved by the AVMA:

Once training and examinations are complete a specialist can be referred to as a Specialist in their particular field or a Diplomate in their specialty college.  For example a board certified residency trained veterinary specialist in surgery may also be called a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Surgeons (ACVS).

Because of the intensity of the examination process, specialty tests may be offered only once a year and a resident may prepare for well over a year for the tests.  A residency trained veterinary specialist may be designated as Board Eligible or Board Qualified, pending sitting for their specialty examination.

In addition to undergoing intensive and standardized training and testing, the residency trained veterinary specialist has typically published peer reviewed articles in their specialty and often has performed clinical research in their particular field.  AVMA approved residency trained specialists have completed the highest level of specialty training in veterinary medicine.