Graduate Programme

Our new graduates are part of the team from day one

We have great enthusiasm for nurturing great vet talent in the UK, and our graduate programme helps us to do that. Since it was founded the programme has supported over 100 new vets to embark on their career in farm animal practice, with many of these now having senior roles within our business. The programme has been designed to give new vets a flying start to their careers in the farm animal veterinary sector. Across a busy 24 month period, new graduates work as full members of our veterinary team at the forefront of farm animal practice as well receiving tailored one-to-one mentoring and a course of more formal CPD sessions.

As part of VetPartners all of our graduates take part in the new graduate programme, usually consists of a series of two day CPD workshops focusing on the core areas of farm animal practice. The sessions are designed to build on the knowledge and skills learnt at university and in practice through lectures, workshops and tutorials delivered by experienced vets and other experts from across VetPartners and the wider industry. The sessions also enable our graduates to develop a network of contacts across all the farm animal practices within VetPartners. Our Westpoint South East teams also work together to boost your CPD, with in-house sessions run periodically by our clinical directors, tailoring the subjects to the farming calendar, and your feedback. These sessions may include bovine nutrition, camelids, pigs, infectious disease management and more.

On farm support is always given to new graduates, with regular check-ins to assess your confidence in your approach and skillset. The aim of the course is to build on each graduate’s existing skill set and produce farm animal veterinary surgeons with the knowledge, skills and ability to deal with routine visits and herd health disease problems in an evidence-based way, focussing not only on animal health but also on meeting producer objectives. Within our friendly teams, we hope to produce confident, fulfilled new vets who want to continue their career journeys with us.

Some of our vets already have post graduate qualifications and are working towards them. Several of our vets hold PhDs, diplomas or certificates. Our graduates benefit from working as part of enthusiastic and motivated teams. We organise regular clinical club meetings and bring in external speakers, many of whom are experts in their field, to teach on a range of pertinent topics across the year. Our journal clubs and farmer training events also offer the chance to learn and meet our clients in an informal setting.

We are dedicated to helping graduates develop a well-rounded understanding of the challenges and opportunities faced by the animal health industry. We pride ourselves on our inclusive teams and welcoming practices. We remain committed to equality of opportunity and welcome applicants from diverse backgrounds.

Applications for our August Intake are now closed.

We are happy to take enquiries year round though - please email Ian.Roper@westpointfarmvets.co.uk if you would like to be considered for any upcoming vacancies.