VetPartners has launched a bursary scheme for budding vets as it aims to create a more diverse profession and remove the financial barrier for many students.
Some 14 first-year university students have become the first to be awarded bursaries of £1,500-a-year for the full duration of their five years at vet school.
They include mature student Ayla Sandison, a who lives with her two children in Wiltshire and is studying veterinary medicine at Bristol Vet School.
Here, she talks about pursuing her childhood dream of a veterinary career, with some support from VetPartners….
I CAN vividly recall the day I decided to reignite my childhood ambition of becoming a vet.
I’d taken our beloved Springer Spaniel, Phoenix to our local veterinary practice. It was a place that was extremely familiar to me because Phoenix had an autoimmune disorder which resulted in him having lots of exploratory work done, multiple trips to the vets and support in managing his condition.
During one visit, I explained to the vet what I thought he needed, and she made a half-hearted comment about how I should become a vet.
I laughed, replying I was a single mum with two children and didn’t have the qualifications.
Undeterred by my protests, she explained there was no reason why I couldn’t. She went on to tell me about an Access to Higher Education Diploma, a qualification which prepares people without traditional qualifications for study at university, adding that a friend of hers had successfully done so and pursued her dream of becoming a vet.
The seed was sown and I started looking into how I could do it and if it was feasible.
There was a part of me that still thought it was a ridiculous idea. After all, I had a 11-year-old and a 13-year-old and I would be over the age of 40 by the time I graduated from vet school if I even managed to get there.
I had left school at 16 as I wasn’t able to do A-Levels due to family circumstances and I didn’t have enough qualifications.
There was certainly no route into studying veterinary medicine at university .Instead, I did a BTEC National Diploma in animal management and then I switched to doing an accounting course.
After speaking to the vet treating my Springer Spaniel that day, there was another part of me that was determined to see if it would be possible to dust down my childhood dreams of becoming a vet.
I looked into an Access to Higher Education Diploma course through learndirect.
If you have ambitions of becoming a vet, a nurse, a teacher, a midwife, an engineer, or another high-level profession, you will likely need a degree to achieve your goals.
Traditionally, to secure a place at university you would need a certain number of A-Levels, but now, most universities accept Access to Higher Education Diplomas as equivalent qualifications and they are available in an array of subjects.
It is not for the faint-hearted because it is hard work, you have to be dedicated, the work is online, and there are more than 20 assignments to complete, but it is achievable.
It was such an amazing moment when I secured a place to study veterinary medicine at Bristol University.
It was a dream come true and I was so overjoyed. I started in September 2022 and it is everything I hoped it would be – and more!
However, it has not been without its worries because I started to panic when the beginning of my course coincided with the cost of living crisis, including a huge rise in the cost of petrol. Of course, I wasn’t able to budget for this as it was so unexpected.
I live in Wiltshire and have to drive to Bristol University and the Bristol Veterinary School at Langford a minimum of three times a week so it costs a considerable amount of money.
When I found out I was being awarded a bursary from VetPartners, it was such a massive boost.
The bursary has made a huge difference as it is helping to ease the burden of travel costs.
I recently got a job milking cows and I do a few hours working at an eventing yard to get more experience with horses.
My aim when I graduate is to work with livestock or horses.
I think nervous anticipation is what I am feeling right now as I am incredibly excited about graduating even though it is still some time off and there is still a lot to learn.
My children love that I’m studying to become a vet. Yes, money is tight but I wanted to build a work ethic into my children. I want them to see that if you want to get somewhere, you have to put effort into it and that working hard to achieve something is a good thing.
- VetPartners wants to remove the financial barrier that means many people struggle to pursue a career as a vet due to the high cost of studying at university.
- We have pledged a five-year package of bursaries totalling more than £500,000, which will support 75 students over the period who already have a university place and who would struggle to fund their studies without additional financial support.
- To apply for a bursary, go to https://vetpartners.co.uk/student-sponsorship-form/
For media enquiries, please contact Amanda Little, VetPartners PR and Communications Director. Email amanda.little@vetpartners.co.uk