Overview
Career Exploration Form (PDF)
American Veterinary Medical Association
Veterinary Technician National Exam Pass Rates (PDF)
Narrative
If you love animals and want a career that keeps you in constant contact with them, being a Veterinary Technician is an affordable and accessible way to achieve your goal. Veterinary technicians are animal care professionals. Vet techs are knowledgeable in the care and handling of various species, basic principles of normal and abnormal life processes, laboratory and clinical procedures and veterinary medical and surgical nursing.
Certified veterinary technicians find employment in small and large animal veterinary facilities, the pet food industry, specialty practices, diagnostic labs, pharmaceutical research centers, zoo and wildlife organizations, and educational institutions. The job opportunities are numerous and varied. With more Americans than ever sharing their homes with companion animals, the need for formally trained veterinary technicians in veterinarian practices in particular continues to grow.
Working jointly with Lehigh Carbon Community College, Northampton's Veterinary Technician program will provide you with all the necessary coursework, hands-on training, guidance and experience you need to begin an exciting career working with animals.
Graduates of the program are prepared to sit for the veterinary technician national board examination. Students that pass the exam may obtain certification. This program has received full accreditation from the American Veterinary Medical Association.
Features
Northampton's program provides academic and practical experience through a combination of veterinary technology and general education core courses. One-third of veterinary technology courses include laboratory experience including exposure to small, large and exotic animal species.
The culminating experience of the program is a summer externship experience during which students can practice their clinical skills at veterinary hospitals. Instructors in the program are practicing veterinarians and veterinary technicians working in the field.
Classes are held on the NCC and LCCC campuses. There is a clinical science laboratory on the Northampton campus and a Veterinary Training facility adjacent to the LCCC campus provided exclusively for the veterinary technician students. Classes are offered during the day and the program takes 2 full years (fall, spring and summer to complete).
Career Potential: Veterinary Technician, Biologic Research Labs, Lab Animal Technician, Small Animal Practice, Large Animal Practice, Exotics and Specialty Practices, Zoos, Wildlife Rehabilitation Centers, Pharmaceutical Companies, Teaching Institutes, Diagnostic Labs, Aquariums, Animal Shelters, Animal Feed Companies
Any questions or concerns? Contact one of our Program Directors; Dr. Steven Marks at: smarks@northampton.edu or Dr. Lisa Martini-Johnson at: LMartini-Johnson@northampton.edu.
Admission Requirements
Admission Criteria and Program Requirements
Before Admission:
- High school diploma or GED
- A minimum GPA of 2.5
- High School Biology (with a lab), or college equivalent, with a grade of B or better.
- Completion of high school Algebra I and II ,or college equivalent, with grade C or better
- Submission of official high school transcript or copy of GED and official transcripts from all post-secondary institutions attended.
- Placement into college level English and Math; Any remediation must be completed before starting the program
- Application deadline February 1st for fall semester. Application is made by enrolling as "Veterinary Technician Intent" through the admissions office. If not currently enrolled as "Veterinary Technician Intent", a Change of Major Form must be completed.
- At the time of the application, the student must have completed 20 hours observation in a Veterinary facility within the past year and completed the Career Exploration Form available on NCC homepage.
- Interview by invitation. Only the most qualified applicants are interviewed; the college will contact students to schedule interviews when appropriate.
Please Note: Admission into the Veterinary Technician program is competitive. Meeting the minimum requirements does not guarantee admission into the Veterinary Technician program. If available spaces in the program are not filled by students who have met the aforementioned standards, the College reserves the right to accept students who have, in the judgment of the College, the potential to complete the Veterinary Technician Associate Degree.
After Admission:
- Medical Forms: physical examination
- Proof of current health insurance
- Rabies pre-exposure vaccine.
Contact the Admissions Office at 610.861.5500 for further information.
Courses
First Semester
| CMTH102 | Speech Communication | 3 credits |
| CHEM135 | Chemistry of Life | 4 credits |
| ENGL101 | English I | 3 credits |
| VETC101 | Veterinary Anatomy & Physiology | 4 credits |
| VETC110 | Intro to Vet Technology | 3 credits |
| Total Credit Hours: | 17 |
Second Semester
| BIOS202 | Microbiology for Allied Health | 4 credits |
| | |
| ENGL151L | English II | 3 credits |
| OR | |
| ENGL151R | English II | 3 credits |
| OR | |
| ENGL151T | English II | 3 credits |
| | |
| VETC115 | Animal Management & Nutrition | 2 credits |
| VETC120 | Veterinary Parasitology | 2 credits |
| VETC125 | Veterinary Clinical Lab Techniqu | 4 credits |
| Total Credit Hours: | 15 |
Summer Session
| VETC210 | Large Animal Clinical Procedures | 3 credits |
| Total Credit Hours: | 3 |
Third Semester
| MATH120 | Nature of Mathematics | 3 credits |
| VETC215G | Animal Disease | 3 credits |
| VETC218 | Vet Pharmacology & Anesthesia | 3 credits |
| VETC220 | Small Animal Clinical Procedures | 4 credits |
| Arts and Humanities Elective (AH) | 3 credits |
| Total Credit Hours: | 16 |
Fourth Semester
| VETC225 | Veterinary Radiology and Surgica l Nursing | 4 credits |
| VETC228 | Lab Animal Science & Exotics | 4 credits |
| Social Science: Societies and Institutions over Time Elective (SIT)+ | 3 credits |
| Social Science: Scientific Study of Human Behavior Elective (SSHB) ++ | 3 credits |
| Total Credit Hours: | 14 |
Summer Session
| VETC230 | Veterinary Technician Externship | 3 credits |
| Total Credit Hours: | 3 |
Total Credit Hours: 68
ENGL151: Students have the choice of ENGL151L (Literature option), ENGL151R (Report Writing), ENGL151T (Technical Writing). Consult with your advisor.
+It is recommended that students take SOCA102 as the Social Science: Societies and Institutions over Time (SIT) Elective; this also satisfies the Diversity (D) requirement.
++ It is recommended that students take PSYC103 as the Social Science: Scientific Study of Human Behavior (SSHB) Elective.
- One course should be designated as Diversity and Global Awareness (D).
- Completion of VETC215G satisfies the Writing Intensive (WI) requirement.