15 Nov 2022
The one-year Postgraduate Diploma in Veterinary Primary and Accessible Care and Education internship is a full-time programme, and is the first of its kind in the UK.
James Westgate
Job Title
The RVC is offering a new postgraduate programme for practising vets with a particular interest in primary care and shelter medicine.
Believed to be the first programme of its kind in the UK, the Postgraduate Diploma in Veterinary Primary and Accessible Care and Education internship (PGDipV-PACE) is designed to develop clinicians’ skills in teaching and research within practical settings.
The one-year full-time programme will see interns complete placements in hospital and charity partner sites in London and Cambridgeshire.
Sites include the RVC Beaumont Sainsbury Animal Hospital on the Camden Campus and Woodgreen Pets Charity in Godmanchester near Huntingdon. Teaching is scheduled to begin in summer 2023.
Interns will receive advanced training and support in postgraduate education, leading to the award of Associate Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy.
Four modules need to be completed in the year: shelter medicine, primary care practice, foundations in veterinary education and practice-based research.
Louise Allum, course director and head vet at the RVC shelter medicine programme, said: “The ideal candidates will have been in practice for at least two years and are now looking to develop their careers. If you are a vet in your practice who all the extra mural studies students follow, or you are always identifying and suggesting ways to improve your practice, this course could help you further develop your skills in these areas.
“This new programme is a great opportunity for all vets with a passion for primary care, and shelter medicine in particular.”
Adrian Boswood, vice-principal for learning, teaching and assessment, added: “Clinical internship training has previously been targeted at interns wishing to focus on speciality practice. We were keen to develop an internship that offered a deeper understanding and broader experience of primary and accessible care while developing expertise in education; allowing these interns to share their enthusiasm for practice with the next generation of vets.”
Applicants must be a member of the RCVS by the date the internship starts, and ideally by the date of application and interview.
English language requirements apply for entry on to the course and applicants would need to have a minimum of two years’ experience as a veterinary surgeon in small animal primary care.
For more information, visit the course website or for general internship enquiries, email course director Louise Allum.
