Through an innovative and collaborative program, SDSU veterinary students are offered an education with double the opportunity.
Under this collaborative structure, students will complete the first two years of veterinary school at SDSU in the Department of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences before moving on to the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine to complete the final two years of their professional education.
Nicknamed the “2+2” program, this formal partnership between two top-tier universities will foster the next generation of vets who will serve critical roles in the spectrum of animal, environmental, and public health.
Years in the making, the plans for this enhanced curriculum aimed to improve the people, places, and equipment for the existing program. Together, the two universities hired a new Director of the Professional Program in Veterinary Medicine (PPVM).
Dr. Gary Gackstetter, Director of the PPVM, said, “The SDSU 2+2 veterinary program is highly competitive, as only the top 20 students are accepted from an applicant pool of more than 200. Our program is unique because, as Doctors of Veterinary Medicine, we are confident our students are committed to ensuring adequate distribution of mixed animal or rural-focused veterinarians, especially in South Dakota and the upper Midwest.”
To bolster the program, new facilities were constructed at SDSU as a home for the project. The Animal Disease Research and Diagnostic Laboratory features the very latest in instructional tools, including new dissection tables and state-of-the-art equipment for an elevated learning environment.
The 2+2 program will catalyze an enormous impact, offering an in-depth and rigorous education unlike anywhere else. Both universities will intentionally host small class sizes, designed to provide supportive learning communities with greater hands-on practice. With dedicated professors, modern equipment, premier facilities, and a strategic partnership, SDSU is poised to train competent and compassionate veterinarians of tomorrow.
The SDSU Professional Program in Veterinary Medicine hosted the inaugural Blue Coat Ceremony in November 2021 for first-year vet students. Veterinary medicine students typically receive a white lab coat to signify their journey to becoming a veterinarian. The University of Minnesota holds its white coat ceremony during the third year of vet school. Since Jackrabbit students will receive their coats while at UMN, SDSU decided to honor this class of students with a blue coat.
Each coat was sponsored by a South Dakota veterinarian, who also offered words of encouragement and advice to their student.
