First vet tech class graduates

The first graduating class of Massey’s Bachelor of Veterinary Technology programme crossed the stage at Palmerston North’s Regent on Broadway today.

The programme was launched in 2009 to address the shortage of veterinary professionals in New Zealand. The three-year course includes basic physics, chemistry and biology, progressing to anatomy and physiology, pharmacology, diagnostic procedures, animal production, and advanced clinical studies.

Course director Hayley Squance says the technology class learns alongside veterinary science students and have many of the same skills. “Of the first graduating class, many have gone on to gain employment not only in veterinary practice, but in research, biosecurity and consultancy,” she says.

Graduate Emily Kemp is now working as a biosecurity officer for the Queensland state government in Gympie, Australia. Her work includes dealing with outbreaks of disease, quarantine, and animal welfare.

She says the veterinary technology degree has set her up well for the job. “At the beginning of the course I said I wanted a government job, and now I have one,” she says. “The course was great, it has equipped me with all the skills I need for my work.”

Peta Rossiter now works at Vet Plus in Rotorua as a large animal technician. “My roles include running the laboratory there and vaccinating stock,” she says. “I always wanted to work in the dairy industry so I did my work experience for my degree there. They remembered me and gave me a job when I finished.”

Other graduates, such as Sheila Ramsay, have gone on to further study. Ms Ramsay is now involved in a genomics project in conjunction with the University of California, Davis, looking at melanoma in horses. “I had done a diploma but wanted to up-skill that into a degree,” she says. “Now I’ve been able to springboard from there to this Graduate Diploma in Rural Studies, and I hope to continue in research.”