Whether they grew up in the saddle or have never stepped foot in a barn, a group including many of our first-year veterinary students took to the field to learn and refine important safety techniques with NC State’s equine experts and horses.

Organized by NC State’s Student Chapter of the American Association of Equine Practitioners and led by professionals at our Reedy Creek Equine Farm, this lab taught our students safe practices for approaching and standing around horses, the basics of grooming and leading, and proper technique for picking up a horse’s hoof.

Equine medicine is one of five specialty areas our veterinary students can focus in, and extracurricular events like this are important to help foster interest in large animal medicine — an area with a growing shortage of veterinarians.

NC State is committed to addressing that shortage.

To that end, we’re investing heavily in the future of equine medicine. Our new large animal veterinary center will be a state-of-the-art facility for training the next generation of large animal practitioners and will elevate the world-class care we already provide for the entire region.

Go to the link in our bio to learn how we`re building that future, together.

https://go.ncsu.edu/lavc

Today marks 45 years since the first class of veterinary students arrived at NC State’s new School of Veterinary Medicine — what it was called until it and many other NC State “schools” were designated colleges six years later.

The class of 40 students, all from North Carolina, would go on to become the state’s first locally trained veterinarians since the establishment of modern accreditation. Prior to the opening of our college, the state government had to make arrangements to send students elsewhere in the country to receive formal veterinary education.

Now, NC State is among the top veterinary colleges in the country and attracts students and faculty from all over the world.

Our veterinary students traveled the world this summer, taking their lessons into real life and getting hands-on experience through externships, the NC State Veterinary Scholars Program and volunteer opportunities! Our #FromTheField correspondents kept us up to date on their activities, with three of them traveling internationally.

Read their dispatches at the link in our bio.

https://go.ncsu.edu/ftf-2026

Lightning talks, a chance to talk with veterinary experts in 15 specialties and two amazing keynote speakers! Those were just a few of the highlights at the 2026 Veterinary Scholars Symposium, which NC State hosted this month for more than 700 students and faculty members from across the world.

Students in the program spent the summer conducting research under the guidance of faculty mentors and presented their findings at the symposium. More than 40 universities were represented!

A Combined Degree Colloquium where more than 40 dual-degree DVM/Ph.D. students presenting their research preceded the symposium.

“The enthusiasm around NC State during the events was contagious,” said Dr. Joshua Stern, NC State’s associate dean for research and graduate studies.

Explore more of the highlights at the link in our bio!

https://go.ncsu.edu/2026-vss-recap

We’re welcoming alumni from across the country back to campus as we celebrate an all-class reunion! Our alumni have come from as far away as Nevada and South Dakota and represent graduating classes going back to the earliest years of the college.

"Fourth-year veterinary student" means it`s time for clinical rotations, and #FromtheField correspondent Aniya Brown started hers visiting elephant sanctuaries in Thailand! She expected to gain hands-on experience caring for elephants but left with something even more valuable: a deeper understanding of just how complicated and important elephant conservation truly is. 🐘

"Many sanctuaries seek to provide a better life and safe place for elephants that previously suffered at the hands of mankind," she says. "In particular, the elephants at this sanctuary had previously been used to work at circuses and ceremony rituals in Thailand. While it breaks my heart to think about what they had to go through to get here, I know that they are in a better place, even if it’s not perfect."

Read the rest of her reflections at the 🔗 in our profile. #vetstudent #vetschool #elephantconservation

It’s time for NC State’s veterinary scholars to show off! We’re hosting this year’s Veterinary Scholars Symposium — an annual gathering of DVM students and faculty researchers from across North America, with more than 700 people joining us in Raleigh.

The first day of presentations was a huge success, and we’re keeping that momentum going! Today, attendees are presenting research posters, networking, participating in seminars and learning about the future of veterinary medicine.

NC State funded 71 veterinary scholars this year for summer research — the largest number from any university in the program’s history and a 36% increase over last year.

The students spent 10 weeks conducting research on real problems under the guidance of faculty mentors, and now they get to share their findings among a community of hundreds of their peers from over 40 other schools.

Check out @cvmresearch for the latest updates!

The 125 members of our #Classof2030 have checked the first box ✅ after making it to the end of Orientation 2026. Next up? The first day of classes on Monday, the beginning of a four-year professional journey through veterinary excellence.

To help prepare our first-year students for the rigor ahead, the last day of orientation started with learning how to insert scalpel blades (it`s much harder to get them out) and ended with the scrub-in ceremony.

All of the students are presented with Wolfpack red scrubs to signify that they are now part of the @ncstate Pack 🐺 — and that everyone around them has their back.

Words of encouragement welcome! ⬇️⬇️⬇️