Veterinarians
Diagnose, treat, or research diseases and injuries of animals. Includes veterinarians who conduct research and development, inspect livestock, or care for pets and companion animals.
- Median pay
- $130,100
- Doing it now
- 91,100
- By 2035
- Up 9.4%
- Usually needs
- Doctoral or professional degree
a year
across the country
3,100 openings a year
to get in
What the work involves
- Examine animals to detect and determine the nature of diseases or injuries.
- Treat sick or injured animals by prescribing medication, setting bones, dressing wounds, or performing surgery.
- Inoculate animals against various diseases, such as rabies or distemper.
- Collect body tissue, feces, blood, urine, or other body fluids for examination and analysis.
- Operate diagnostic equipment, such as radiographic or ultrasound equipment, and interpret the resulting images.
- Educate the public about diseases that can be spread from animals to humans.
- Train or supervise workers who handle or care for animals.
What to study
The fields of study the Department of Education links to this occupation, most widely taught first.
- Veterinary Biomedical and Clinical SciencesSee 10 colleges that teach it
- Veterinary MedicineSee 1 colleges that teach it
Who it suits
O*NET scores every occupation on six interest dimensions. This one leans hardest on these three.
Hands-on and practical
Analytical and curious
Organised and precise
Careers like this one
Where this comes from: the description and the task list are O*NET, which the Department of Labor maintains. Pay, workforce size, outlook and the education normally needed are the Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections programme, 2025 wages and 2025 to 2035 projections. Half of them earn more than $130,100 a year, which means half earn less, and what you would earn depends on where you work and how long you have been doing it. The fields of study come from the National Center for Education Statistics crosswalk.