Internship and Externship Openings
Farm Vet Internship: 2026 High School Internship Program
Reaching New Generations of Vets
Amongst our extension efforts is an internship for Tulare County high school students at the Veterinary Medicine Teaching and Research Center (VMTRC). The internship is led by Dr. Sharif Aly and Dr. Gabriele Maier, both professors at the School of Veterinary Medicine at UC Davis.
The internship aims at educating high school students about the important roles that veterinarians play in animal and public health and food safety and security. High school interns will acquire an understanding of which college paths lead to veterinary school admission, experiences that can strengthen their veterinary school application, and how to fund their veterinary education.
Internship duration and academic calendar timing:
The duration of the VMTRC internship is approximately 40 hours. The internship will be during spring break March 30th - April 3rd. The variety of learning opportunities available will include the different livestock species and commodities that a veterinary career involves.
Application Requirements:
- Have a keen interest in a Livestock veterinary medicine career
- Must currently be in Junior year (2025-2026).
- Have a GPA of 3.0 or higher.
- Complete a letter of interest.
Students who meet these requirements may be eligible for an interview.
Selected applicants will be interviewed between February 17th and 20th, 2026.
Application deadline: February 13, 2026
Apply Now
Itinerary
Students will have to attend the first day to complete an orientation and necessary training to go on to participate in the internship. Schedules are planned in collaboration with farms, businesses, or lab sites and are subject to change. A tentative itinerary includes visits to a cow dairy, goat dairy, and beef feedlot.
Visits may include creameries and veterinary diagnostic labs.
Other opportunities include educating students on undergraduate paths to veterinary school admission, meeting with veterinary professionals to ask questions and learn about their paths to vet school and their current careers.
Based on student feedback from 2025, the internship in 2026 will prioritize hands on opportunities
Milk Quality Lab: High School Internship Program
The Milk Quality Laboratory High School Internship Program started in 1997. The program is offered only to Tulare high schools as part of their community service program. Students attend during a scheduled class period and receive a pass or fail grade at the end of the semester. The program is designed to expose high school seniors, who are interested in biomedical, agricultural, and animal science fields, to medical microbiology and applied animal health diagnostics. Student interns work with diagnostic laboratory technicians and learn skills and laboratory techniques used in microbiology, livestock research and veterinary medicine. The program exposes the students to a diverse range of activities and allows them to develop responsibility, maturity, and good work ethics. Two to four students per year complete the internship program.
In addition to working in the laboratory during the internship, students also have the opportunity to observe clinical veterinary services provided on-farm to local herds.
Summer Enrichment Program
The Summer Enrichment Program (SEP) began over 30 years ago and has welcomed students from around the world. It is designed to provide disadvantaged students with activities that will enhance their veterinary school applications.
Summer Program Overview
Click here to learn more about the application process!
Veterinary School Volunteer Hours
Gaining veterinary and animal experience through volunteer work is a key component of preparing a strong application at UC Davis. Most veterinary programs require a minimum of 180 hours, but in practice, competitive applicants often report between 2,500 and 3,000 hours at the time of application.
When to Begin Accumulating Hours
Students are encouraged to begin acquiring experience as early as possible. Volunteer hours can be earned during high school, throughout undergraduate studies, or at any time prior to applying. Early and consistent engagement provides the opportunity to build skills, establish professional relationships, and explore different fields within veterinary medicine.
The Value of Diverse Experience
Diversity of experience in addition to the number of hours is key to a strong application. Applicants are expected to demonstrate exposure to a range of veterinary settings and species. This breadth shows a genuine understanding of the profession and a commitment to exploring its many facets.
Examples of relevant experience include:
- Small animal clinics or general veterinary practices
- Large animal or farm based veterinary work
- Animal shelters, humane societies, or rescue organizations
- Wildlife rehabilitation centers or zoos
- Research laboratories involving animal care
- Specialty or exotic animal practices
Shadowing veterinarians, volunteering, paid work, and internships can all count toward experience hours. Be proactive reach out to local practices, university affiliated programs, or student organizations such as pre veterinary clubs for opportunities.
Documenting Your Hours
UC Davis requires detailed records of your experience, including dates, locations, roles, and supervising veterinarians. Maintaining a well organized log or spreadsheet throughout your academic journey will help streamline the application process and ensure accuracy when reporting your experiences.
Animal hours are volunteer hours that are not supervised by a certified veterinarian. While vet hours are volunteer hours that are supervised by a veterinarian and in a veterinary setting. Vet hours count towards the required 180 volunteer hours, while animal hours do not count towards the requirement.
Some local recourses for volunteer opportunities: