Become a Vet Tech | Vet Tech Schools Shartlesville PA

How to Choose a Veterinary Technician School near Shartlesville Pennsylvania

Shartlesville PA vet tech diagnosing puppy Realizing your lifelong dream of working with and caring for pets by enrolling in a veterinary technician school near Shartlesville PA may at first feel like a daunting undertaking. After all, you need to find and enroll in a college that will provide the proper training to ensure that you can be successful as a veterinary technician. But just how do you tackle assessing and comparing colleges so that you can make the proper choice? Many future students launch their due diligence process by looking for campuses that are close to their residences. Once they have located some nearby colleges, they ascertain which ones have the cheapest tuition and focus on those. Although cost and location are important factors when evaluating vet technician programs, they are not the only critical ones when making your assessments. Factors such as accreditation and internship programs need to be looked into as well. The main idea is that there are questions you should be asking the vet technician programs you are evaluating before you make a final decision. We have provided several in this article to help get you started, but before we discuss them we’ll talk about the different duties of vet techs and the training alternatives offered.

The Job of a Veterinary Technician in Shartlesville PA

cat with cone after surgery in Shartlesville PA One of the initial decisions that you will need to make is whether you want to train as a vet assistant, technician or technologist. Part of your decision may be dependent on the amount of time and money that you have to invest in your training, but the principal factor will most likely be which specialty appeals to you the most. What technicians and assistants have in common is that they all work under the immediate direction of a licensed and practicing veterinarian. And although there are many duties that they can perform within the Shartlesville PA veterinary practice or hospital, they can’t prescribe medications, diagnose health issues, or conduct surgical procedures. In those areas they can only provide support to a licensed vet. There are technologists and technicians that work outside of the typical vet practice, for instance for zoos, animal shelters or police departments. Let’s take a look at the job functions and education requirements for each specialization.

Vet Assistants in almost all cases will have gone through a structured training program, either as an intern or apprentice in a practice, or by finishing a certificate program at a vocational school or community college. As the name implies, their job function is to assist the vets and vet techs in the completion of their duties. Generally they are not associated with more involved undertakings, for instance assisting with surgeries. Some of their usual responsibilities may include working at the front desk, preparing and cleaning exam rooms and equipment, or handling animals during examinations.
Vet Technicians get more advanced training in contrast to assistants and typically earn a two year Associate Degree, ideally from an American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) accredited program. They are in a fashion the vet counterparts of medical nurses, since their general job function is to assist vets with diagnosing and treating animal patients. Where they differ from veterinary assistants is that they are engaged in more involved activities, for instance assisting with surgical procedures or providing medicine. All states presently require veterinary technicians pass a credentialing exam for either licensing, registration or certification.
Vet Technologists are similar to vet technicians and essentially carry out the same job functions. They are mandated to attain a Bachelor’s Degree in veterinary technology, which generally requires four years. Therefore the main difference between a vet technician and a technologist is the technologist’s more advanced level of education. But with an advanced degree comes more work opportunities, increased salaries and possible management positions. They are also required to pass a credentialing examination for either licensing, registration or certification.

Vet techs and technologists may specialize in areas such as anesthesia, internal medicine or emergency care. A number may acquire certification from the American Association for Laboratory Animal Science (AALAS) to work in Shartlesville PA labs or research facilities as well.

Online Vet Tech Schools Offered in Shartlesville

student attending online vet tech school in Shartlesville PA An option that may be a solution for those with a hectic lifestyle or who are working full time while attending veterinary college is to enroll in an online program. Because the classes are offered over the internet, students can study on their own schedule wherever a computer is available. The course of study is taught using multiple venues, including videos, slide shows and live streaming webinars. And since most vet tech and technologist degrees require practical training, that part can typically be completed as an internship or work study program at a local Shartlesville PA veterinary practice or hospital. Distance learning, as it is also called, may in many instances decrease the cost of your education. Tuition and secondary costs, for example for travel and study supplies, may be lower compared to more traditional classroom courses. Just confirm that the program that you enroll in is accredited, either by the AVMA or another nationally certified accrediting agency. With the online classes and the clinical training, everything is included for a comprehensive education. So if you are disciplined enough to learn in this more independent mode, an online vet tech school may be the right option for you.

Questions to Ask Shartlesville PA Vet Tech Colleges

Questions to ask Shartlesville PA vet tech schools At this point you should have decided on which veterinarian credential that you want to earn, and if you want to study online or attend a school on campus. Since there are an abundance of veterinarian community colleges, vocational and trade schools in the Shartlesville PA area as well as across the USA, you should ask some important questions to help narrow down your list of alternatives. As we pointed out in our introduction, many prospective students start by concentrating on location and tuition expense. But we have already touched on other important qualifiers, which include accreditation and internship programs. And obviously you need to select a program that offers the degree and specialty that you would like to earn. These and other factors are addressed in the checklist of questions that you should ask the vet tech programs that you are reviewing.

Is the Vet School Accredited? It’s imperative that you verify that the veterinary technician college you enroll in is accredited by a regional or national accrediting agency. As earlier stated, among the most highly regarded is the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA). Vocational schools and colleges that are accredited by the AVMA have undergone a rigorous screening process that confirms you will receive a superior education. Also, accreditation is essential if you are requesting a student loan or financial aid, since a large number of programs are not offered for non-accredited programs. Last, having a certificate or degree from an accredited program is often a requirement for employment for many Shartlesville PA area vet practices and hospitals.

What is the School’s Reputation? The veterinary college or vocational school and program you enroll in should have an excellent reputation within the veterinary field. You can initiate your due diligence by asking the colleges you are reviewing for testimonials from the employers in their job placement network. Other pointers include looking on internet school rating websites and checking with the school’s accrediting agencies as well. You can ask the Pennsylvania school licensing authority if there have been any grievances or violations regarding your targeted schools. As a final pointer, call some Shartlesville PA veterinary clinics that you might wish to work for after you receive your training. Find out what they think of your school selections. They might even recommend some schools not on your list.

Are Internships Offered? The best means to get practical hands on experience as a vet tech is to work in a clinical environment. Ask if the programs you are reviewing have internship programs set up with Shartlesville PA veterinarians, vet practices or hospitals. Almost all veterinary medicine programs mandate clinical training and a large number provide it by means of internships. Not only will the experience be invaluable as far as the practical training, but an internship may also help establish connections in the local vet community and help in the search for a position after graduation.

Is there a Job Assistance Program? Getting a job after graduating from a veterinary technician program may be challenging without the assistance of a job placement program. First, find out what the graduation rates are for the colleges you are evaluating. A lower rate may indicate that the instructors were unqualified to teach the syllabus or that a number of students were unhappy with the program and quit. Next, confirm that the colleges have a job placement program and ask what their placement rates are. A high placement rate may signify that the school has an excellent reputation within the Shartlesville PA vet community and has a significant network of contacts for student placements. A low rate may indicate that the training is not highly thought of by employers or that the job assistance program is a failure at placing students.

How Large are the Classes? If the classes are bigger, you most likely will get little or no individualized instruction from the teachers. Request from the Shartlesville PA programs you are looking at what their class teacher to student ratios are. You may also decide to participate in some classes (if practical) to observe the interaction between students and instructors. Ask for evaluations from students concerning the quality of instruction. Also, speak with the teachers and determine what their qualifications are as well as their methods of teaching.

Where is the Campus Located? Of course, we already covered location, but there are a couple of more points to consider on the topic. If you are planning to commute to your vet tech classes from your Shartlesville PA home, you have to make sure that the driving time fits into your schedule. For example, driving during the weekend to investigate the route won’t be the same as the commute during rush hour traffic, especially if the school is located close by or within a large city. Also, if you do decide to attend a school in another state or even outside of your County of residence, there may be increased tuition costs especially for state and community colleges. Of course taking classes online may be an option that will provide you with more flexibility and reduce the need for travel.

Is the Class Schedule Flexible? And finally, it’s imperative that you determine if the veterinary colleges you are considering offer class times that are sufficiently flexible to accommodate your schedule. For instance, a number of students continue to work full time and can only go to classes on the weekends or in the evenings near Shartlesville PA. Others might only be able to go to classes in the morning or later in the afternoon. Make certain that the class times you require are available before enrolling. In addition, find out if you can make up classes that you may miss due to illness, work or family responsibilities. You may find that an online program is the best way to fit your vet education into your busy life.

Enrolling in a Vet Tech School near Shartlesville PA?

If you have decided to attend a Veterinary Technician Program in the Shartlesville Pennsylvania area, then you may find the following information about the location of your school campus interesting and informing.

Shartlesville, Pennsylvania

It is located just south of Interstate 78 and is served by the Hamburg Area School District. It is home to the Shartlesville Hotel, which suffered major roof damage in February 2009 during a wind storm, which also knocked down a billboard in Reading and blew off roof tiles of the Pagoda in eastern Reading.

The community is also the home of Roadside America, a large community of miniature trains and villages, located off Interstate 78, that is open to the public. Just to the north of Shartlesville is located the Mountain Springs Arena, which hosts events including rodeos, concerts, horse shows, demolition derbies, tractor pulls, and an annual country fair.

The village is located on the south side of Blue Mountain and is drained by the Wolf Creek south into the Northkill Creek, a tributary of the Tulpehocken Creek. While the village has its own box post office with the ZIP code of 19554, outlying areas have the Bernville ZIP code of 19506 or the Hamburg ZIP code of 19526.[4][5]

Choose the Ideal Veterinary Technician School near Shartlesville PA

Shartlesville PA vet tech holding dog Enrolling in the appropriate veterinary technician program is a critical first step to beginning a gratifying career delivering care and treatment for pets and livestock. Students looking into vet tech colleges must make their selection based on a number of key factors. Veterinary technicians and technologists are employed in animal hospitals, veterinary clinics and animal shelters. They usually take on administrative tasks and assist the veterinarian with the animal patients as needed. As we have covered, it’s very important that you enroll in a veterinary medicine program that is both accredited and has an excellent reputation within the field. This applies to online vet tech colleges as well. By asking the questions provided in our checklist for reviewing schools, you will be able to reduce your alternatives so that you can make your final choice. And by picking the ideal college, you can achieve your goal of becoming a vet tech in Shartlesville PA.