Texas Tech University

Admissions Requirements

Residency

  • Applicants must be residents of Texas or New Mexico. Up to 10% of the student body may be New Mexico residents.

Rural and Regional Life Experiences and Personal Attributes

The Admission Committee focuses on each applicant's life experiences with activities supporting rural and regional communities. For example, applicants must demonstrate agricultural, animal, or veterinary experience in rural and regional communities. There is no minimum number of hours, but applicants should have accumulated substantial life experiences to demonstrate their understanding of these communities, their awareness of the various roles veterinarians have in rural and regional communities, and thereby providing evidence supporting their interest in rural and regional veterinary medicine. The quality and/or quantity of those experience will be ranked in our selection process.

In addition to life experiences, the Committee also looks for evidence of personal attributes to aid in success in our program and in a career supporting rural and regional communities. Examples of personal attributes might include perseverance, grit, being conversant in Spanish, work ethic, written and verbal communication skills, and ethical reasoning (this is a non-exhaustive list).

Minimum Academic Requirements

  • At least 2 years of post-secondary instruction (after graduating high school) and 48 semester credits from a regionally accredited college or university by the end of Spring Semester prior to enrollment.
  • Minimum overall 2.9 GPA or higher in all coursework; minimum 2.9 science GPA or higher. GPAs are based on the TMDSAS GPA Calculation. All coursework is included in the GPA Calculations (i.e., there is no grade replacement).

Graduate Record Examination

  • The Texas Tech University School of Veterinary Medicine does not require the Graduate Record Examination (GRE).

Animal Experience

  • We recommend that applicants be exposed to a variety of veterinary careers, animal species, and care experience prior to application. The quality and/or quantity of those experiences will be ranked in our selection process. For example: Direct veterinary supervision (employment or externships) would be considered a higher quality experience than veterinary shadowing. This will aid in obtaining a quality evaluation (TMDSAS Evaluation Form) and inform the applicant about the profession.

Evaluations

  • Three Applicant Evaluation Forms, available from TMDSAS, are required. One evaluation must be completed by a veterinarian.

Pre-Requisite Coursework

  • Students must receive a C or higher grade in all required coursework.
  • Pre-requisites courses must be completed within the last 10 years prior to admissions.
  • Exceptions to the 10 year requirement may be considered on a case by case basis based on a holistic review of other coursework or experiences by the Admissions Committee. Written confirmation for this exception must be given by the Admissions Committee.
  • Courses must be completed at a regionally accredited college or university. Use the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board Recognized Accreditors reference to see if your institution is an accredited college or university.
  • Coursework may be in progress or planned at the time of application, but must be completed by the end of spring semester of the year of matriculation.
  • Advanced placement credits must appear on college transcripts in order to be counted toward required credits. They must have a specific subject title, number, and credits listed to be accepted.
TTU-SVM Prerequisite Semester Credits
Animal Nutrition 3 Lecture
Biochemistry 3 Lecture
English 3
General Biology 4 Lecture & Lab
General Microbiology 4 Lecture & Lab
Genetics 3 Lecture
General Chemistry I & II 8 Lecture & Lab
Introductory Statistics 3
Organic Chemistry 4 Lecture & Lab
Physics 4 Lecture & Lab
Total 39

*It is strongly recommended that students take a human or animal anatomy (animal preferred) course and a physiology course or a combined Anatomy/Physiology course to better prepare them for first-year veterinary school coursework.