School of Veterinary Medicine at UMES

UMES will help solve the current veterinary shortage through the introduction of its proposed School of Veterinary Medicine. A national veterinary shortage has been created by an aging population of veterinarians and an inadequate number of veterinary medicine students filling the gaps in rural communities. This was amplified by COVID-19. Qualified student applicants are in abundance, but there is currently a lack of seats to accommodate them across the country. The proposed School School of Veterinary Medicine at UMES would change that. 

We are excited to share updates on the school’s opening on this page.

About the School of Veterinary Medicine at UMES

A new School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore is currently seeking accreditation through the American Veterinary Medicine Association-Council on Education, and it would be the first of its kind in Maryland and among the nation’s public historically Black colleges and universities. The school, slated to accept students in fall 2026, dependent on the accreditation process, adds another program to an institution that already offers the most health professions programs among HBCUs in the country.

The goal of the new UMES veterinary science program is to meet the increasing need for veterinarians regionally and nationally, while increasing diversity in the profession. The addition of the veterinary school aligns with UMES’s position as one of nineteen 1890 land-grant institutions in the nation.

TIMELINE

Fall 2026
UMES School of Veterinary Medicine planned opening, dependent on the accreditation process. 
July 2024
AVME-COE consultative site visit team will visit campus to review plans for the School of Veterinary Medicine. After this visit, UMES will request an American Veterinary Medicine Association-Council on Education (AVMA-COE) comprehensive site visit.
January 2024
Search begins for a permanent dean for the School of Veterinary Medicine.

Maryland Higher Education Commission gives its approval for the school.
https://wwwcp.umes.edu/sans/sans-monthly-digest/umes-vet-school-will-be-a-first-for-maryland-and-public-hbcus/
December 2023
University System of Maryland Board of Regents gives its approval for the new school.
https://wwwcp.umes.edu/sans/sans-monthly-digest/umes-responds-to-national-vet-shortage-with-new-school/
May 2023
UMES wrote to AVMA-COE requesting a consultative site visit.

FAQ

When will the UMES veterinary school open? When can I join the school?
  • The target date when the first anticipated students will be accepted is fall 2026, dependent on the accreditation process.
Why is the UMES School of Veterinary Medicine significant?
  • This will be the first public HBCU to have a veterinary school.
  • This will be Maryland’s first stand-alone vet school. There is none in Delaware nor Washington, D.C.
What’s different about the UMES vet school?
  • The proposed program calls for three-year completion, with year-round attendance.
  • The proposed target is to graduate 100 students per year.
Who can I contact for more information?
Is the SVM accredited?
  • The University of Maryland Eastern Shore received approvals to offer a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree as both an on-campus education program and a distance education program.
  • Approvals have been received for the creation of a UMES School of Veterinary Medicine from the Maryland Higher Education Commission in January 2024 and the University System of Maryland Board of Regents in December 2023. 
  • The program will be accredited by the American Veterinary Medicine Association-Council on Education. In May 2023, UMES initiated the accreditation process by writing to the COE requesting a consultative site visit, which is scheduled for July 2024. The timing of the specific key follow up actions will become known in due course.
What is the timeline on the school’s opening?
  • The search for a permanent dean is underway.
  • The university is proceeding with advocacy, fundraising and planning for infrastructural developments. 
  • First anticipated students will be accepted in fall 2026, dependent on the accreditation process.
Why is a vet school needed?
  • The UMES School of Veterinary Medicine will help fill an unmet need for veterinarians (large animal and domesticated pets) throughout the nation, Maryland and the Eastern Shore. 
  • There will be a 19% projected growth in the field over the next seven years.
  • Black veterinarians make up only 3% of the population.
Learn more:

CONTACT US

  1. Email: vetschool@umes.edu
  2. Call: 410-651-7140

MEDIA INQUIRIES
umesnews@umes.edu

Video

WARNING: The video below shows a live birth at UMES that pre-vet students take part in.

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