Program Overview

Veterinary Technician Ontario College Diploma program

Program Description

This program provides an opportunity for students to acquire the skills, knowledge, and attitudes required to be an integral member of a veterinary health care team. Students explore the range of activities carried out in companion and large animal practices, animal shelters, research facilities, zoos, or wildlife facilities. Through in-class theory and live animal labs, combined with clinical experience in our veterinary teaching hospital, students learn to care for and handle animals, understand the basic principles of normal and abnormal life processes, and carry out routine laboratory and clinical procedures.

Program Information

• Program Code: VETN
• Duration: 2 Years
• Credential: Ontario College Diploma
• Program Delivery: Full-time
• Program Delivery Method(s): In person

Admission Requirements

• Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) or equivalent or mature student status
• Grade 12 English (C or U)
• Grade 12 Mathematics (C, M or U)
• Grade 11 or 12 Biology (C or U)
• Grade 11 or 12 Chemistry (C or U)

Mature students, non-secondary school applicants (19 years or older), and home school applicants may also be considered for admission. Eligibility may be met by applicants who have taken equivalent courses, upgrading, completed their GED, and equivalency testing.

Selection Process

Applicants will be assessed and ranked based on academic grades. A minimum grade of 75% in each prerequisite subject is recommended.

Additional Information

• Within the first 7 weeks of the program, students must provide proof of current rabies vaccinations (administered within 1 year prior to the program start). Alternatively, students can provide results of an adequate titre* taken within 30 days prior to the program start. *Adequate titre is greater than 0.5 IU/ml: Health Canada.
• Field Placements 1 and 2 run for the equivalent of six weeks following the completion of the winter semester in year one and two of the program.

Why Take the Veterinary Technician Program at Georgian College?

Expert Faculty

Learn from experienced and dedicated faculty and support teams who share your love for animals and the field of veterinary medicine.

Practical, Hands-on Learning

As a Georgian College student, you’ll develop your Vet Tech skills within the framework of community care through live clinical applications. You’ll work directly with community clients, their pets, and several species of animals in our fully licensed, on-site veterinary hospital.

Graduate Job-Ready

Graduates from our fully accredited program are job-ready and eligible to sit for the Veterinary Technician National Exam (VTNE) – opening the door to becoming a Registered Veterinary Technician (RVT).

Career Opportunities

Graduates may find employment as a member of a veterinary health care team in veterinary hospitals, diagnostic labs, research facilities, zoos, and animal shelters, or may find employment related to pharmaceutical sales, livestock health management, or food animal inspections.

Course Information

• Program-Specific Courses: 27
• Communications Courses: 2
• General Education Courses: 3
• Field Placements: 2

Frequently Asked Questions

• What is the difference between a veterinary technician and a veterinary assistant? A veterinary technician is often referred to as the veterinarian’s “right-hand person”. They are responsible for an assortment of duties including: anesthesia, surgical assisting, taking radiographs and completing diagnostic lab work as well as providing an array of nursing skills, such as intravenous catheterization and taking blood.
• Is there an opportunity to become part of a registered organization? Graduates of the Veterinary Technician program can become registered with the Ontario Association of Veterinary Technicians (OAVT). This process includes writing the Veterinary Technician National Examination, as well as completing other requirements as required by the professional association.
• Do graduates find jobs? The most recent key performance indicator data (2019) found that 92 per cent of students in the Veterinary Technician program found employment upon graduation. There is currently a shortage of RVTs in Ontario, which is evident in numerous job postings on the OAVT website.

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