Lincoln Memorial University readies for 2012 veterinary college debut; Arkansas, Arizona eye veterinary programs too

Harrogate, Tenn. --

Lincoln Memorial University (LMU) is staffing up to fill key positions as it readies to open its new veterinary college next year.

In fact, the newly formed LMU College of Veterinary and Comparative Medicine plans to open its doors in 2012 with a starting class of 100 veterinary students, and it’s hiring key positions within the college including director of admissions and students affairs.

According to

DVM Newsmagazine

, the new veterinary college is slated for a site visit by the American Veterinary Medical Association’s accrediting body in October.

The school, located 55 miles north of Knoxville, is planning a six-year accelerated program to attain a bachelor’s degree and veterinary degree to help fill the void of large-animal veterinarians in the region.

Lincoln Memorial University has maintained a veterinary technology program since 1985, and the expansion becomes the third new professional program for the university in five years.

Proposed veterinary schools are also under consideration at Southern Arkansas University and Midwestern University in central Arizona.

The news also follows an American Association of Bovine Practitioners (AABP) report questioning the need for enrollment increases and new veterinary schools to serve in rural areas. In fact, the AABP committee concluded that there no longer is a shortage of veterinarians to serve in areas that can sustain a private veterinary practice.