24 Feb 2020
BVA/AVS survey highlights growing financial concerns that may be impacting on well-being and mental health among veterinary students.
James Westgate
Job Title
Image © pathdoc / Adobe Stock
New data has shown an increasing number of veterinary students are having to work part-time to make ends meet.
In total, 46% of students say they have less money than they need to live on, with 50% working part-time – according to new data from the latest BVA/AVS survey.
The findings – presented at the annual AVS Congress over the weekend – also showed students in the mid and later years of study are more likely to have a part-time job than those in earlier years.
When it comes to living expenses, vet students reported an average shortfall of £2,000 per year – the data appeared to show these financial worries are contributing to mental health and well-being issues.
Although fewer than one in five students (18%) say they haven’t suffered any mental health issues, 68% reported feeling overwhelmed, 52% reported experiencing anxiety and 35% reported depression.
The main triggers or contributing factors are their studies (78%), lack of free time (57%) and financial worries (44%).
Overall, more than four out of five vet students (85%) say they intend to go into a role in clinical practice (increasing from 79% in the first year to 90% in the final year). A total of 78% of students feel their course is preparing them for their future careers.
When they think about their first job, for an overwhelming large majority, the graduate support offering (43%) or type of practice (28%) are the most important elements.
Hands-on experience is the top priority for vet students when choosing their EMS placements and cost is the biggest barrier, with 37% of all students pinpointing this.
Overall, a large majority (84%) agree EMS enables them to explore a broad range of careers in veterinary medicine.
AVS president Katie Roberts said: “I’m really pleased that we’ve got an up-to-date overview of the thoughts, concerns and aspirations of our membership population.
“Our new comprehensive data set on the mental health and welfare concerns of our students is concerning, as are the number of students facing financial concerns during their degree.”
She added: “However, such shocking findings will provide us with really strong, quantitative support when we work to tackle these issues over the coming months.
“EMS has once again come up as a popular topic of discussion. I’m hopeful such a large collection of student views will be well received by the ongoing RCVS Graduate Outcomes review and will go a long way towards giving students a strong voice in this review.”
