What Happens After the Veterinary Technician National Exam?
Before any of the school work course of study obtained through participating in a formal veterinary technology program can be put into real world practice, graduates form recognized institutions of learning must receive their state license. The benchmark performance evaluation for granting most of the country’s individual state licenses is passing the National Veterinary Technician Examination (NVTE). Once passed, the individual state Board of Veterinary Examiners issues a license that certifies the individual as a professional Registered Veterinary Technician, Certified Veterinary technician or Licensed Veterinary Technician. Sates vary in their selection of titles for this position.
What Do I Do Next?
Typically, newly graduated technicians look for jobs in veterinary practices, hospitals or clinics where they will fulfill any remaining internship requirements. However, professionals that look upon this as a lifelong career understand the need to be in a constant state toward improving their knowledge and sharpening their practical skills. Many newly graduated veterinary technicians will be instructed to look for their first career positions where they can perform as many of the tests they’ve learned in their college course of study in order to gain well-rounded experience. There is a great difference between a clinical setting and the pressures and demands every veterinary technician faces when going to work day in and day out. Nothing will ever beat real-world hands-on practice where people knew the profession can gain as much experience as possible.
Training Continues
In almost every setting that the newly graduated veterinary technician faces, on-the-job training will be one focus of employment. Expect to receive daily training under the supervision of licensed veterinarians. Despite what the setting may be, and that techs going to learn how to familiarize themselves with all the different aspects of the job including physical layout, laboratory and medical equipment, and the actual daily routines that are commonplace working in the veterinary medicine field.
Real World Process
Often many recently graduated students into the profession find that there are differences between the various functions they learned in an academic environment versus what they are commanded to perform on a daily basis in the real world. Each veterinarian will possess their own personal traits when it comes to how they like things to be done in their presence or practice. Although a highly trained surgical vet tech may know the correct instruments and procedures when it comes to assisting a doctor performing an operation, that same surgeon may have their own personal approach to the procedure that needs to be transmitted to the vet tech and learned in order to become a successful port of the team.
Duties May Vary in Performance
Although as a graduated veterinary technician, you possess the correct amount of knowledge and skills, you may be required to learn variation on assisting procedures when it comes to providing the right type of equipment during surgery or how to perform a variety of different lab tests according to your employer’s wishes, and other daily routines that are going to be defined by the people you work for or the organization that employs you.
Go For More Training
Once you have had a taste of what it’s like to be a professional veterinary technician, consider extending your formal education and specializing in a number of different fields such as anesthesia, critical care, internal medicine, animal behavior, dentistry or many others. Perhaps, you currently lie in the many areas of research. This desire can lead to obtaining other unique certifications from organizations like the American Association For Laboratory Animal Science that will designate you as qualified for particular research assignment such as DNA study or research into improved surgical techniques.
Exam Is Only The Beginning
Do not believe for a minute that passing the national exam is your ultimate goal setting you on a career as a vet tech. They should only be the beginning of your career which should include not only a lifelong passion for what you are doing, but I constant eagerness to learn more as well as one different aspects of your profession that will benefit you both professionally and personally.
You may even find that participation in a career as a veterinary technician develops a new inspiration to go on to become a licensed veterinarian.