The Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences offers a Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine (BVM) programme modelled on the Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) programme at Cornell University. The programme was awarded provisional accreditation with the Australasian Veterinary Boards Council (AVBC) (https://avbc.asn.au/veterinary-education/) in 2017 and will be eligible for ongoing accreditation with the AVBC as well as the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons when our first cohort graduates in 2023.
Our vision is to become a centre of excellence in veterinary medicine and life sciences education and research, and to be one of the 20 leading veterinary schools in the world within the next 20 years. Our BVM programme caters for the needs of the region, with particular emphasis on emerging infectious diseases, food safety, animal welfare and aquatic animal health.
Overview
Major: | Veterinary Medicine |
Award Title: | Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine (BVM) |
Mode of funding: | Government Funded |
Programme Code: | JS1801 (JUPAS) 1801 (Non-JUPAS) |
Tuition Fee: | Click HERE for more information |
Mode of Study: | Full-time |
Duration: | 6 years |
Credit Load
The number of credits required to complete the Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine programme is 243 credit. These are distributed through 12 semesters (i.e. 6 years). The maximum study period is 8 years. The requirements of international accreditation and the study themes tailored for the Asian veterinary environment mean that all students study the same courses constituting the 243-credit-unit programme. In additional, there are non-credit bearing curricular milestones, which are compulsory requirements not affiliated with particular courses, but must be satisfactorily completed before a student can advance in the programme. These are:
- the satisfactory completion of VM1001 Pre-EMS Animal Handling Skills prior to commencing VM1002 Animal Husbandry Extra-Mural Studies (EMS);
- the satisfactory completion of 12 weeks of VM1002 Animal Husbandry EMS during the Summer Terms or teaching breaks prior to commencing the third year of the programme;
- the satisfactory completion of 26 weeks of VM1003 Clinical EMS during the Summer Terms or teaching breaks prior to graduation; and
- the satisfactory completion of a register of veterinary skills prior to graduation.
Curriculum
The Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine is a six-year programme designed to train professionally competent veterinarians in accordance with the international accreditation standards of the Australasian Veterinary Boards Councils (AVBC) and the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS). At graduation, students will have achieved the Day One Competences of the AVBC and RCVS and will be confident and competent to practice.
The first two years of the programme focus on biomedical and pre-clinical disciplines that will equip students with the knowledge and understanding required to embark on the para-clinical and clinical curriculum taught in Years Three to Six of the BVM.
During Years One and Two, students will become confident in understanding and assessing the normal behaviour of a range of different species, and in handling them for health assessments and clinical examinations. The four themes of the BVM, comprising of animal welfare, aquatic animal health, emerging infectious diseases and food safety, are introduced from Day 1 of the BVM programme.
The BVM curriculum, jointly developed with our partner The College of Veterinary Medicine of Cornell University, ranked 3rd in the world for veterinary education, uses problem-based learning to deliver key para-clinical courses including the courses Animal Body, Function and Dysfunction, and Host, Agent and Defence. In these courses, students develop problem-solving skills and embrace an evidence-based veterinary medicine approach that is invaluable for a diverse array of careers in veterinary medicine, from general to specialist practice and research.
The six-year curriculum emphasises both clinical practice and the science that underlies it, ensuring that BVM students develop into well-rounded veterinarians omnicompetent to provide veterinary care to multiple animal species including companion animals (cats, dogs, horses), exotics and wildlife, marine and freshwater species and livestock.
The completion of some components of the curriculum may require students to spend time at facilities outside of Hong Kong, including in Mainland China.
Students are required to undertake courses without intermission to fulfil the BVM degree requirements within the normal study period.
They are expected to follow the below progression pattern of study (click on a course code for more information about individual courses):
Course Code | Course Title | Credit Units |
Year 1 | ||
GE1401 | University English | 3 |
GE1501 | Chinese Civilisation - History and Philosophy | 3 |
GE1136 | Animal Ethics, Welfare and Law – A Regulatory and Policy Review | 3 |
GE1351 | Food Production and Security | 3 |
GE2401 | English for Science | 3 |
PHY1400 | Introductory Physics for Biologists | 3 |
CHEM1300 | Principles of General Chemistry | 3 |
VM2001 | One Health | 3 |
VM2002 | Animal Welfare | 3 |
VM2003 | Livestock Husbandry | 3 |
VM2100 | Statistics for Evidence-based Biological and Veterinary Sciences | 3 |
VM2102 | Animal Behaviour and Handling | 3 |
A GE course in Area 2 to prepare for professional development | 3 | |
Sub-total: | 39 | |
Year 2 | ||
BMS2202 | Diversity of Life and Evolution | 3 |
BMS2803 | Biology of Cells | 3 |
BMS2804 | Veterinary Microbiology | 3 |
BMS2805 | Biochemistry for Veterinary Science | 3 |
BMS2806 | Genes, Inheritance and Genetic Disorders | 3 |
PHY2400 | Advanced Physics for Biologists | 3 |
CHEM2007B | Principles of Organic Chemistry | 3 |
VM2103 | Animal Nutrition and Welfare | 3 |
VM2104 | Introduction to Food Safety | 3 |
VM2106 | Aquaculture and Aquatic Animal Health | 3 |
VM3004 | Evidence Based Veterinary Medicine | 3 |
GE2342 | Introduction to Zoonoses | 3 |
Sub-total: | 36 | |
Year 3 | ||
VM3012 | Animal Body | 18 |
VM3010 | Veterinary Practice Parts I & II: Physical Examination and Clinical Procedures |
3 |
VM3100 | Function and Dysfunction | 18 |
VM3101 | General Pathology | 3 |
Sub-total: | 42 | |
Year 4 | ||
VM4000 | Host, Agent and Defence | 18 |
VM4001 | Clinical Pharmacology/ Toxicology | 3 |
VM4010 | Veterinary Practice Parts III & IV: Veterinary Communication, Business and Professional Development |
3 |
VM4101 | Animal Health and Disease: Part I | 18 |
Sub-total: | 42 | |
Year 5 | ||
VM3003 | Food Safety and Regulation | 2 |
VM4011 | Veterinary Practice Part V: Transition to the Profession |
3 |
VM4102 | Animal Health and Disease: Part II | 18 |
VM4103 | Conservation, Zoo and Exotic Animal Diseases | 3 |
VM4104 | Transboundary Animal Diseases | 2 |
VM4105 | Clinical Seminars | 1 |
VM4202 | Aquatic Veterinary Medicine | 3 |
VM4301 | Clinical Rotations: Part I | 10 |
Sub-total: | 42 | |
Year 6 | ||
VM4302 | Clinical Rotations: Part II | 18 |
VM4303 | Clinical Rotations: Part III | 18 |
VM4401 | Research Project I | 3 |
VM4402 | Research Project II | 3 |
Sub-total: | 42 | |
Total credit units | 243 |
Please click HERE for the complete six-year curriculum structure (click on a course code for more information about individual courses).
Or HERE for more information about the BVM programme in general (including Intended Learning Outcomes).
Contact Us
JCC General Office
Address: Room 1B-501, 5/F, Block 1, To Yuen Building
Email: jcc.bvm@cityu.edu.hk
Website: https://www.cityu.edu.hk/jcc/
Tel: 3442 8948