STC program puts Valley high school students on path to veterinary careers

South Texas College is adding a new cohort of students to its veterinary apprenticeship program, which gives high school students hands-on experience at local clinics while helping address demand for veterinary professionals across the Rio Grande Valley.

The program, offered through STC’s Center for Advanced Training and Apprenticeships, works with McAllen ISD and Pharr-San Juan-Alamo ISD to introduce students to careers in veterinary medicine before they graduate from high school.

McAllen ISD will add 12 juniors this fall, following the program’s inaugural class of 10 seniors last year. Students combine classroom instruction with on-the-job training at local veterinary clinics, gaining practical experience during their junior and senior years.

“There is a high demand for veterinary professionals especially from nonprofit groups who have reached out to us seeking to help with their expanding veterinary services they are now handling because of the abundance and surge of stray animals,” said Carlos Margo, dean of STC’s Center for Advanced Training and Apprenticeships. “They need students with those skills to meet that growing demand.”

Margo said the apprenticeship provides students with foundational skills that can lead to careers as veterinary technicians or serve as preparation for veterinary school.

“We have had a long-standing partnership with STC and we want to continue to grow this apprenticeship even further,” said Leo Saenz, McAllen ISD’s director of Career and Technical Education. “When the opportunity came to work with the veterinary technician program, we were all open for it because there is a real need for veterinary technicians in our region.”

In addition to training at veterinary clinics, students gain experience working with livestock and other animals through McAllen ISD’s Agricultural Learning Center.

While many veterinary training programs focus primarily on companion animals such as dogs and cats, the apprenticeship also exposes students to large-animal care, giving them experience in a broader range of veterinary settings.

“The biggest component is having those students get that hands-on experience and work-based learning experience that everybody looks for,” Saenz said.