Cedar Rapids Gazette, IA
11-30-06
HIGHER EDUCATION
It's their thing now
Women dominate veterinary school enrollment
By Diane Heldt
The Gazette
AMES — A display in the lobby of the College of Veterinary Medicine at Iowa
State University holds photos of every graduating class since 1906, a class of
eight men.
It’s a telling visual reminder of the shift that has taken place at ISU, which
graduated its first vet med class in 1880, and in the nation’s 27 other vet
programs. The pictures go from the all-male classes of the early 1900s, to those
with a handful of women later in the century, to the female-dominated classes of
today.
At ISU this year, 78 percent of the students admitted were women, compared
with a first-year class that was 66 percent female 10 years ago.
Nationally, women occupy three-quarters of the seats in vet med programs.
Professors, administrators and students offer a number of reasons the profession
is so attractive to women, but no one is exactly sure what has caused the
dramatic shift.
The admission ratios are mirrored in the applications.
‘‘I think the crossover point was somewhere in the early 1980s,’’ said Lisa
Nolan, chairwomen of ISU’s department of veterinary microbiology and
preventive medicine. ‘‘It’s a caring profession, but it also has the science
aspect. It has a lot of draws for women.’’
More emphasis is placed on math and science education for females compared
with a few decades ago, many said, and professions in those fields are more
open to women.
The shift also is tied to a greater demand for pet care, since small-animal
veterinary work is often more attractive to women, several officials said. Decades
ago, vet classes were filled with graduates bound for work with large farm
animals in rural areas. ‘‘There has been a boom in the care of companion
animals, a change in society’s view of animals’ role in our lives,’’ said Donald
Draper, associate dean for academic and student affairs at ISU’s vet
college.
Jen McGivern, a 1999 Cedar Rapids Prairie graduate, said she knew in high
school she wanted to work with animals. Now a fourth-yea r ISU vet student,
McGivern, 25, hopes to do a small-animal surgery internship after graduation.
‘‘My older sister is a vet and she influenced me,’’ McGivern said. ‘‘ We had
horses and dogs when I was younger and I just had a love for science and a love
for animals.’’
Sarah Young, a 1999 Cedar Rapids Washington graduate who’s now a fourthyear vet student at ISU, plans to join a small-animal clinic after graduation.
‘‘I think the world is more accepting of female veterinarians One attractive aspect
of the profession is the flexibility, both in careers available and in the workload,
several students said. ‘‘The coolest thing about veterinary training is it opens up
so many doors,’’ Nolan said.
With the May 2007 graduates, there will be an even distribution of males and
females among practicing vets in the country for the first time, Draper said.
But there are shortages in some areas, like rural vets and mixed-animal work for
the government, said Claudia Baldwin, associate professor of veterinary
clinical sciences at ISU.
‘‘That’s where our shortages are, these areas where women are not migrating
to,’’ she said. ‘‘I think we need to be more
It’s also a concern that the rosters of vet programs don’t mirror the classrooms,
Baldwin said. Of the nation’s 28 programs, only four have female deans, she
said. ISU has only one full professor in vet med who is female, though two of its
five department heads are women, she said
Contact the writer: (319) 339-3158 or diane.heldt@gazettecommunications.com