Paris Solimanzadeh
The Agriculture Studies Department at Pierce College will be having a celebration on May 22, awarding students of the animal sciences who have recently been accepted into veterinary schools around the country.
Dr. Leland Shapiro, director of the pre-veterinary program, will be hosting this event to honor 13 students who will be attending various graduate schools of veterinary medicine.
“It is much more competitive to be accepted into graduate schools of veterinary medicine than human medicine,” said Shapiro.
“That is one of the reasons why I am so very proud of our students’ accomplishments.”
Pierce College has the most successful two-year Pre-Veterinary Science programs in the State of California.
As of March 2007, 129 Pierce alumni have applied and been accepted into graduate schools of veterinary medicine. 2005 was an exceptional year for Pierce College’s Pre-Veterinary students.
Every one of the 18 students who applied to Veterinary Medicine Graduate schools was accepted.
As stated in the Pierce College Pre-Veterinary Handbook, students who complete at least 75 semester units, maintain a B+ grade point average and earn a high score on the GRE exam (Graduate Records Examination), and obtain hands-on experience with a variety of animals (food producing, companion, research) have an excellent opportunity in competing for admission into the school of veterinary medicine.
A major New York Times article published last month said there is a huge shortage of veterinarians in the U.S. This is true locally as well.
“We have a shortage of food animal veterinarians throughout our state and every state.
“We also have a shortage of veterinarians in almost every field, such as, companion animal, equine and exotics,” confirmed Shapiro.