Veterinary Schools in United States

In the United States, accreditation of veterinary medical education is run by the AVMA: the Council on Education (COE) accredits colleges of veterinary medicine (the professional DVM or VMD degree), and the Committee on Veterinary Technician Education and Activities (CVTEA) accredits veterinary technology programs, which include a small group of distance-learning programs. These are separate lists with separate roles; the COE list also separates fully accredited colleges, provisionally accredited colleges and colleges that hold only a letter of reasonable assurance. Veterinary assistant certificates and diplomas are not part of the CVTEA list. There is no fully online entry-to-practice veterinary medicine degree in this directory.

Source: avma.org/education/center-for-veterinary-accredi

Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM / VMD), professional degree at AVMA COE-accredited colleges

The professional veterinary degree is offered by colleges the AVMA COE lists as accredited. Most US colleges admit through the Veterinary Medical College Application Service (VMCAS), whose published deadline for the 2026-27 cycle at the colleges checked is September 15, 2026. Programs are mostly four years; one college (University of Arizona) publishes a three-year, nine-semester DVM. Prerequisite coursework, not a bachelor's degree, is the formal entry requirement at several colleges, while others (for example UC Davis) require a bachelor's degree. Source

Veterinary technology programs accredited by the AVMA CVTEA (associate and bachelor's)

The AVMA lists veterinary technology programs it accredits, including a distance education section for programs delivered largely online. Distance programs combine online coursework with clinical work at veterinary practices and sometimes with required campus or assessment visits, so delivery differs program by program. Source

AVMA Committee on Veterinary Technician Education and Activities (CVTEA)

Accredits veterinary technology programs, including distance education programs; accreditation is of the program, not of the institution.

AVMA Council on Education (COE)

Accredits colleges of veterinary medicine (classifications printed on its list: Accredited, Probationary Accreditation, Provisional Accreditation, Letter of reasonable assurance); this accreditation does not extend to an institution's technology, assistant or online programs.

Credentialing of veterinary technicians is set by each state. Programs state that graduates of AVMA-accredited programs are eligible for the Veterinary Technician National Exam (VTNE), which most states require, and some states do not credential technicians at all; students should check the state board where they intend to work. For veterinarians, the Colorado State University DVM program page states that graduation from an accredited institution is a standard prerequisite for licensure for professional veterinary practice, and the AVMA COE expects at least 80% of each college's graduating seniors who sit the North American Veterinary Licensing Examination (NAVLE) to have passed at graduation; state licensing boards set the actual requirements. Source

No degree on this site automatically permits anyone to practise as a veterinarian, and nothing here is visa, work-permit or credit-transfer advice.

Admissions. Colleges of veterinary medicine take DVM applications through the Veterinary Medical College Application Service (VMCAS), with a September 15, 2026 deadline for the 2026-27 cycle at the colleges checked (for example UC Davis, Purdue, Iowa State and Illinois). Requirements differ by college. Published minimum veterinary experience ranges from none (University of Florida, Iowa State: 200 hours is a goal only) to 180 hours (UC Davis), 200 (Tuskegee), 240 (Midwestern), 250 (University of Georgia) and 500 (Auburn; Western University of Health Sciences 500 by July 31 of the entry year). UC Davis requires a bachelor's degree while several colleges (Auburn, Kansas State, Iowa State, LSU) accept applicants with prerequisite coursework only. Some colleges limit who may apply: the University of Florida DVM takes only US citizens and permanent residents and Auburn's DVM does not admit international students. Check each program record. Source

• AVMA: veterinary technology programs accredited by the CVTEA
• AVMA: distance education veterinary technology programs
• AVMA: accredited veterinary colleges (COE)