Career Center

VCA's Externship Program allows you to gain valuable real-world experience by taking what you've learned in the classroom and bringing it to the clinic.   As Veterinary students in your qualified year of education, you can apply with VCA Animal Hospitals as part of your formal externship blocks. Our Externship Program provides you access to hundreds of locations with exemplary talent all over the U.S.  We offer a competitive hourly wage to participants in our General Practice hospitals (except where prohibited by school regulation).  VCA’s practitioners and specialists are excited to meet you and mentor future talent of the Veterinary profession.  By participating in our Externship Program, you can network with our teams and experience personalized patient care complimented by customized technological support, which makes VCA unique.  Take the opportunity to promote yourself in becoming a veterinary associate or to pursue an internship, let us build upon your experience with VCA.  

Our hospitals offer a wide variety of medical and surgical services so the participation level for Externs will differ from hospital to hospital.   Once you complete your application, the request will be confirmed and an engaged hospital team will help you accomplish customized goals during your Externship. 

Application/Scheduling Process

• Go to vcacareers.com and click on the “Extern” icon
• Complete the application and indicate your dates of availability
• You will get an email or call from the Hospital Team to discuss your request. If you do not hear from the hospital team within 14 days of submitting your application, please email DVMExterns@vca.com.
• Within 30 days of your Externship start date, the Hospital Team will provide you with all necessary information to make your Externship a success.

**Any student Extern wishing to spend time in a VCA hospital must complete this online application process**

After your Externship

• Your feedback is important to us!   Please complete the VCA Externship Experience Survey that will be shared with you by email later during your externship.  Your feedback will help us create a valuable experience. 
• If you need a specific form completed in order to get school credit for your externship, please provide the necessary information to the Extern Coordinator at the VCA hospital where you completed the Externship.

We would love for you to join our team!  If you are interested in VCA job opportunities, please visit our website at vcacareers.com and email us directly at recruiting@vca.com.  If you are interested in a VCA internship, visit www.virmp.org for a complete listing of our internship programs.