Tat Chee Avenue, Hong Kong
DURATION
6 Years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
30 Jun 2025
EARLIEST START DATE
Jul 2025
TUITION FEES
HKD 350,000 / per year *
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
* for non-HK citizens | additional 10,000 HKD acceptance fee + 450 HKD application fee
Introduction
The Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine (BVM) programme aims to educate future leaders in veterinary medicine who are equipped to advance animal health and welfare. The bespoke curriculum incorporates the best aspects of the Doctor of Veterinary Medicine programme at Cornell University, which is ranked 3rd in QS World University Rankings for Veterinary Science 2024. It features small group problem-based learning and comprehensive, evidence-based veterinary training at state-of-the-art teaching laboratories and clinical facilities. This programme ensures that students acquire the necessary skills and knowledge to become successful veterinarians anywhere in the world.
Highlighted Features
- First and only professional veterinary medicine degree in Hong Kong with dual accreditation from the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) and the Australasian Veterinary Boards Council (AVBC)
- Graduates can register to practice in Hong Kong, the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand, or any other country recognising AVBC or RCVS accreditation, without further examinations
- Four themes tailored to the local context: Animal Welfare, Aquatic Animal Health, Emerging Infectious Diseases, and Food Safety
- Opportunities to gain hands-on experience at our world-class clinical facilities, including the CityUHK Veterinary Medical Centre, CityUHK Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, and CityUHK Farm
- Mentorship Scheme to provide academic guidance and personal support throughout six years of study
Global Exposure and Global Vision
The well-established partnership with Cornell University offers numerous opportunities to the students, such as:
- Animal husbandry training at Cornell’s extensive large animal facilities
- Guest lectures from internationally recognized experts
- Exchange opportunities in the clinical years
Flagship Scholarship recipients will be eligible for an exchange placement at Cornell University, providing students with advanced training in research, leadership skills and clinical practice.
The BVM Programme has been internationally accredited by both the Australasian Veterinary Boards Council (AVBC) and the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS). Our BVM Programme is the only programme in Asia to be directly accredited by AVBC and RCVS.
Admissions
Scholarships and Funding
As the Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine (BVM) undergraduate degree programme is one of the Flagship Programmes offered by CityUHK, the ten highest-ranking local JUPAS students admitted to the BVM programme each year will be awarded the Flagship Scholarship.
The Flagship Scholarship goes towards covering tuition fees and hall fees, guarantees a berth in the Halls of Residence and includes a one-off special sponsorship for one exchange placement at the College of Veterinary Medicine at Cornell University, which is ranked 3rd in QS World University Rankings for Veterinary Science 2024, in addition to the compulsory Cornell Extra-mural Studies (EMS) programme already embedded in the BVM programme.
The following placements at Cornell are offered depending on availability:
- a place in the Veterinary Investigator Program (VIP) , a 10-week summer programme designed to provide veterinary students with rigorous and rewarding exposure to biomedical research at the highest level of inquiry and to motivate students to pursue the study of research problems that are relevant to veterinary medicine.
- a place in the Leadership Program for Veterinary Students, a summer research experience for veterinary students who seek to broadly influence the veterinary profession through a science-based career.
- a place in the Summer Dairy Institute Program, a concentrated 6-week course of the highest quality to a select group of professionals whose career objective is to enhance the well-being of dairy cattle such that they contribute to efficient, profitable, and environmentally sound production of safe food.
- a Clinical EMS placement of four weeks duration after completion of Year 5 or during Year 6 only.
Based on the student's HKDSE scores, they will be offered either a full or a half scholarship. The scholarship will be automatically renewed annually throughout the normal duration of the programme, on the condition that the student continues their study in the BVM programme by the end of Semester B each year.
Program Outcome
The College aims to train veterinarians who fulfil the Day One Competences as stipulated by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) and adopted by the Australasian Veterinary Boards Council (AVBC). As a college that strives to be a premier provider of veterinary research, training, and service in Asia, the College is also committed to attaining Competencies of Graduating Veterinarians (‘Day 1 Graduates’) of the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH).
Each competency is related to a course learning objective present in the courses of the curriculum, which are mapped against the RCVS Day One Competences. Thus, it will not be possible for a student to graduate who has exceeded the pass mark for the course by being very proficient at one aspect but at the same time scoring a very low mark for an aspect directly linked to a Day One competency. To graduate, a student must not only exceed the pass mark for a particular course but also achieve Day One Competences in the skills and attributes associated with that course.
The curriculum was designed with five objectives:
- To meet the accreditation standards set by the Australasian Veterinary Boards Council (AVBC);
- To include courses of particular relevance in East, Southeast, and South Asia and arranged in themes
- Animal Welfare
- Aquatic Animal Health
- Emerging Infectious Diseases
- Food Safety
- Animal Welfare
- Aquatic Animal Health
- Emerging Infectious Diseases
- Food Safety
- To include pre-clinical courses in Years 1 and 2 to prepare students for para-clinical and clinical studies in subsequent years;
- To include para-clinical and clinical courses in Years 3 – 6, which are modelled on the veterinary medicine curriculum of our partner, The College of Veterinary Medicine of Cornell University;
- To meet the University’s undergraduate requirements.
Intended Learning Outcomes of Major (MILOs)
- Have an understanding of the scientific principles underlying veterinary medicine
- Acquire the basic clinical skills and attitudes necessary to care for the common domestic animals and other species entrusted to our stewardship
- Acquire critical thinking as evidenced by successful problem solving
- Demonstrate sound clinical judgment and medical decision-making skills
- Show an understanding of the interactions among animals, people, and the environment
- Display a commitment to professionalism, including a commitment to animal welfare and to following the best practices in relation to ethical, cultural, global, business management, and legal issues
- Subscribe to the need for self-education and lifelong learning skills to promote professional growth
- Demonstrate an understanding of the limits of one’s knowledge and skills and the ability to address those limits through effective use of sources of information and expertise
- Satisfy a series of Day One Competences
- Have particular knowledge and understanding of the issues related to Animal Welfare, Aquatic Animal Health, Emerging Infectious Diseases and Food Safety
Career Opportunities
With dual accreditation of the BVM Programme by AVBC and RCVS, graduates can register to practise in Hong Kong, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand, without the need to sit further examinations.
Individual graduates need to fulfil the registration requirements of relevant professional bodies, which can include certain minimum fitness to practise standards relating to medical or physical conditions, conduct or competence issues, disciplinary findings, convictions, language skills, etc.
China's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs will also allow veterinary graduates who are Chinese nationals and are registered in Hong Kong or Macau to sit the Chinese National Veterinary Licensing Examination.
Gallery
Facilities
Curriculum
GE Requirements
GE University Requirements
- University English
- English for Science
- Chinese Civilisation - History and Philosophy
GE Distributional Requirements
- 1 each from the following distributional areas:
- Area 1: Arts and Humanities
- Area 2: Study of Societies, Social and Business Organisations
- Area 3: Science and Technology
- Area 1: Arts and Humanities
- Area 2: Study of Societies, Social and Business Organisations
- Area 3: Science and Technology
College-Specified Courses
- Principles of General Chemistry
- 1 of the following:
- Discovery in Biology
- Principles of Organic Chemistry
- Discovery in Biology
- Principles of Organic Chemistry
- Introductory Physics for Biologists
Major Requirements
Year 1
- One Health
- Livestock Husbandry
- Statistics for Evidence-based Biological and Veterinary Sciences
- Animal Behaviour and Handling
Year 2
- Diversity of Life and Evolution
- Biology of Cells
- Veterinary Microbiology
- Biochemistry for Veterinary Science
- Genes, Inheritance, and Genetic Disorders
- Advanced Physics for Biologists
- Animal Nutrition and Welfare
- Introduction to Food Safety
- Aquaculture and Aquatic Animal Health
- Evidence-Based Veterinary Medicine
Year 3
- Veterinary Practice & Professional Studies 1
- Animal Body
- Function and Dysfunction
- General Pathology
Year 4
- Host, Agent, and Defence
- Clinical Pharmacology/ Toxicology
- Veterinary Practice & Professional Studies 2
- Small Animal Clinical Studies 1
- Companion Animal Surgery
- Anaesthesia, Analgesia, and Fluid Therapy
- Clinical Pathology
Year 5
- Food Safety and Regulation
- Veterinary Practice & Professional Studies 3
- Conservation, Zoo and Exotic Animal Medicine
- Transboundary Animal Diseases
- Small Animal Clinical Studies 2
- Equine Medicine and Surgery
- Production Animal Clinical Studies
- Aquatic Veterinary Medicine
- Clinical Rotations: Part I
- Research Project
Year 6
- Clinical Rotations: Part II
- Clinical Rotations: Part III
Extra-mural Studies
- Pre-EMS Animal Handling Skills
- Animal Husbandry Extra-mural Studies
- Pre-clinical Extra-mural Studies
- Clinical Extra-mural Studies