The University of Prince Edward Island now offers a pre-veterinary stream to meet the course requirements for admission to the DVM program (see below) and also provides students with a structured selection of courses that will allow them to declare a major in one of several Science disciplines (or Psychology) after two years, with little difficulty and complete the major within 4 years, if they fail to gain admission to the DVM program.

A total of 20 one-semester courses or equivalent are required. Normally, these courses must be completed while the applicant is enrolled as a full-time student carrying at least 9 semester-hours credit. Science courses will normally have a laboratory component and be completed within six years of the date of application. Exceptional circumstances will be given consideration; however, it is necessary for all applicants to demonstrate the ability to master difficult subject matter in the context of meaningful full-time activity.

Framework of overall course requirements for UPEI students:

• 4 Biology courses (Genetics, Microbiology, 2 animal Biology electives)
• Mathematics courses (one being Statistics)
• 3 Chemistry courses (one being Organic Chemistry)
• Physics course
• 5 Humanities and/or Social Sciences (includes Global Issues 151 and 1 English course)
  • Please note:  An English course is required for DVM admission consideration.  It is possible to select an appropriate English course that will also satisfy the writing intensive course requirement for a UPEI Bachelor's degree.
• 5 Electives in any area

Please note: Admission to the DVM program is competitive. Each year many students apply for one of the sixty seats available in the program. Approximately forty-two of the seats are reserved for residents of Atlantic Canada and the remaining eighteen  seats are for International Students.  Students who enter the pre-veterinary stream are not guaranteed entry into the DVM program. As well, since a student’s application to the DVM program is assessed on other criteria besides grades, potential DVM applicants are strongly encouraged to consult the veterinary admissions section of the calendar for a complete description of DVM admission requirements.
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Proposed course of study at UPEI

Students can still take the minimal subset of required courses for admission to the DVM program and forego the options listed below. In addition, if they fail to gain admission to the DVM program and decide to pursue an undergraduate degree, they may not be able to complete the requirements for their undergraduate degree in the same time frame as a result of having taken courses out of sequence.

Effective September 2008, students will be allowed to take a minimum of 3 courses per semester and still be eligible to apply to the DVM program. This will provide students with the option to extend their pre-vet selection of courses beyond the two year mark and reduce their course load and need to take summer session courses.

The following programming options are based on a minimum 2 year (20 courses) plan of study:

Year 1 - Working toward a Major in Biology or Chemistry (10 courses)

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Year 2 - Working toward a Major in Biology (10 courses)

notes:

• Biology 222 must be taken in 1st semester of 3rd year to realign plan of study for a Major in Biology
• among the 5 Humanities/Social Science requirements, 1 must be Global Issues 151, and 1 English course
   

Year 2 - Working toward a Major in Chemistry (10 courses)

notes:

• Chemistry 221 should be taken in 1st semester of 3rd year to realign plan of study for a Major in Chemistry
• among the 5 Humanities/Social Science requirements, 1 must be Global Issues 151, and 1 English course

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Year 1 - Working toward a BSc in Psychology (10 courses)

Year 2 - 10 Courses

notes:
* courses together will meet a Stats and Humanities/Social Sciences requirement
** elective

• Global Issues 151 and 1 English course
• IT 111 to be completed in 3rd or 4th year

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Other possible options in Science

The following plans of study are also options that students could pursue to meet the admission requirements for the DVM program.

Year 1 - working toward a Major in Physics (10 courses)

Year 2 - (10 courses)

notes:

• Physics 272 should be taken in 1st semester of 3rd year to realign plan of study for a Major in Physics
• among the 5 Humanities/Social Science requirements, 1 must be Global Issues 151, and 1 English course
• Students would take 4 Humanities/Social Sciences courses in the summer after 1st year. The alternative could be to take an overload of courses but students are advised that overall academic performance could be adversely affected.

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Year 1 - working toward a Major in Mathematics (10 courses)

Year 2 - (10 courses)

notes:

• among the 5 Humanities/Social Science requirements, 1 must be Global Issues 151, and 1 English course
• Students would take 3 Humanities/Social Sciences courses in the summer after 1st year. The alternative could be to take an overload of courses but students are advised that overall academic performance could be adversely affected.

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Year 1 - working toward a Major in Computer Science (10 courses)

Year 2 - Pre-Veterinary Stream (10 courses)

notes:

• among the 5 Humanities/Social Science requirements, 1 must be Global Issues 151, and 1 English course
• Students would take 4 Humanities/Social Sciences courses in the summer after 1st year. The alternative could be to take an overload of courses but students are advised that overall academic performance could be adversely affected.

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Year 1 - working toward a Major in Family and Nutritional Sciences (10 courses)

Year 2 - Pre-Veterinary Stream (10 courses)

Notes:

• among the 5 Humanities/Social Science requirements, 1 must be Global Issues 151, and 1 English course
• Students would take 2 Humanities/Social Sciences courses in the summer after 1st year. The alternative could be to take an overload of courses

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