Associate degree
Veterinary Technician Associate Degree (online)
Penn Foster College · Veterinary Studies · No campus · institution based in United States
- Official award
- Associate Degree in Veterinary Technician (AVMA lists: Associate in Science)
- Pathway
- Veterinary technologyStated for United States
- Format
- OnlineFour semesters; self-paced
- Tuition
- Not published
About this program
Self-paced, four-semester online associate degree in veterinary technology with two clinical externships.
- Subject
- Veterinary technology
- Department
- Veterinary Studies
- Awarding body
- Not stated on the pages we checked
Qualification and professional pathway
Pathway is classified only from a statement on an official page. An award title such as DVM, BVSc, BSc or MSc does not decide it, and no degree, accreditation or listing by itself grants permission to practise anywhere.
- Degree level
- Associate degreeA two-year-type degree, common in the United States for veterinary technology.
- Pathway
- Veterinary technologyPrograms preparing veterinary technicians or technologists, depending on the jurisdiction. This is a different role from veterinary nursing in some countries and the same role under another name in others.
- Why we classify it this way
- The page says the program prepares students to sit for the VTNE and become credentialed veterinary technicians.“Prepares you to sit for the Veterinary Technician National Exam (VTNE).”Source
- Prior degree required
- Not published
- Further professional requirements
- Licensing varies by state; graduates of an AVMA-accredited program are generally eligible for the VTNE, which most states require.Source
- International applicants and graduates
- Available only to students within the United States and Canada; international students cannot enroll.Source
Accreditation, evaluation and recognition
Recorded for this program and campus, with the authority’s role. Program accreditation, evaluation status, professional-body recognition, eligibility toward registration, institutional recognition, directory listings and memberships are different things; none of them is automatic permission to practise, and recognition in one country does not guarantee registration in another.
Verified in official recordAVMA Committee on Veterinary Technician Education and Activities (CVTEA)Program accreditationProvisional or probationary statusUS
Scope: Associate in Science, Veterinary Technician Distance Education Program (as listed by AVMA)
Dates: 5 January 2006 to not stated
Further requirements: AVMA lists the classification as probationary accreditation (Standard 8a); initial accreditation date printed as January 5, 2006.
Study structure
- Delivery
- OnlineAcademic instruction is online. Check the details for campus visits, laboratory work, attendance-based exams and mandatory clinical or workplace placements, which can still apply.
- Online instruction
- Online classroom instruction
- Mandatory campus attendance
- No
- Campus residencies or workshops
- None described.
- In-person assessment
- Not stated on the program page.
- Laboratory work
- Hands-on skills are practised in two clinical externships supervised by credentialed veterinary technicians and veterinarians.
- Mandatory clinical or workplace placement
- Mandatory: two clinical externships across the 4 semesters, supervised by licensed veterinarians and credentialed veterinary technicians (the page does not say who finds the site).
- Placement arrangement
- Placement arrangement not published
- Must already work in a veterinary setting
- Not published
- Placement site approval
- Not published
- Live attendance
- Live attendance not published
- International enrolment
- No
- Enrollment restrictions
- This program is available only to students within the United States and Canada. Due to externship requirements and other factors, international students are not able to enroll.
- Study mode
- Not published
- Duration
- Four semesters; self-paced
- Clinical placement
- Two clinical externships
- Intakes
- Not published
Source could not be re-checked automatically.
Teaching language
- Taught in
- English
- English
- English teaching not verifiedAn English-language website does not mean a program is taught in English.
Admissions
- Animal or veterinary experience
- Not published
- Interview
- Not published
- Previous qualification
- High school diploma or equivalent
- Official instructions
- Application instructions
Source could not be re-checked automatically.
Fees and costs
Original currency is authoritative. Each price keeps its basis (per year, per credit, whole program), academic year and student category, and is never converted. Annual tuition and whole-program tuition are different figures.
The institution does not publish tuition for this program on the pages we checked. Ask for current fees, what they include and whether clinical or laboratory charges, equipment and protective clothing, travel, placement expenses and insurance are extra.
Sources and verification
Not published on the program’s source pages: tuition, full-time or part-time options, intakes, animal or veterinary experience requirement, whether a prior degree is required.
Sources and how this was checked
Last checked 19 October 2026. Each fact carries a verbatim quote that is re-checked against the live page. Research methodology.
Sources (checked 19 October 2026)