Austin Community College District’s (ACC) Veterinary Technician program received full accreditation in spring 2021 by the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA).
“This was a team effort. I would like to express gratitude for the support that has been given to the program to achieve this plateau. This level of accreditation opens a lot of doors for our students,” says Kerry Coombs, Veterinary Technology program chair. “Attending an AVMA fully-accredited veterinary technology program helps students know that they are enrolling in a quality program that will help them be successful in a career as a Licensed Veterinary Technician. Graduating from an accredited program makes them eligible to take the VTNE national board exam to become a Licensed Veterinary Technician.”
The program received initial accreditation in April 2016 from the AVMA Committee on Veterinary Technician Education and Activities. The committee conducted another virtual site visit in February 2021 and elevated ACC’s Vet Tech program at its April meeting. Full accreditation is effective February 11, 2021.
Full AVMA accreditation means that ACC’s Veterinary Tech program meets or exceeds the standards of accreditation. The standards involve:
- Having institutional accreditation, financial support for the program, organization, and communication between the institution and program staff and students, and be conducted with integrity.
- The physical facilities need to emulate contemporary veterinary facilities and be in compliance with federal and state regulations and have adequate resources for clinical instruction.
- Library and information resources need to be of high quality and admissions policies well defined.
- Students need to be of appropriate number for the mission of the program and exposed to veterinary team concepts.
- Faculty and staff properly qualified to instruct in a veterinary technology program and proper ratio of students to instructors.
- The curriculum must prepare graduates to be successful on the national board exam and be responsive to the changing needs of the veterinary medical profession.
ACC’s Vet Tech program is a special admissions program with limited availability. The program is housed at ACC Elgin Campus which underwent an extensive expansion from 2015 to 2018. Funded by the 2014 General Obligation bond, the expansion project provided a new 18,500-square-foot academic building with a surgical clinic and small animal wards for the Vet Tech program. Read more about the expansion project here.
For more information on ACC’s Vet Tech program, visit the Veterinary Technology webpage.
As part of the curriculum, students in the Veterinary Technology program care for local shelter animals and provide socialization and basic training as well as general medical care such as vaccinations and heartworm prevention. Learn more about adopting, fostering, or donating on the college’s Adopt Our Pets! webpage.