Female Veterinarians – The Future of the Industry?

Even though nowadays we can notice an increase when it comes to females holding the DVM degree and working in this field, it wasn’t always the case. Just take a look back at the 1960s when almost all jobs in the veterinary industry were taken by men (98% to be exact).

You might be wondering – what is the reason behind the change? Well, it all started with Title IX – a federal law that goes:

“No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.”

The law was passed in 1972; however, when it came to life, the society didn’t really think that it will change anything – they thought that females who decided to apply for university and study to pursue a career that was previously considered as ‘male’ would drop out to get married and have children. It turns out that it wasn’t the case, and the trend that began in the 1980s is still continuing today.

The Gender Shift

The law isn’t the only thing that has changed since then – the society experienced a shift in the cultural thought about females working as veterinarians or physicians. What are the reasons behind such a shift? While the exact ones are not known, there are some theories behind it.

According to the statistics provided by the American Council on Education, since 2000, 57% of people enrolling in colleges were females. What’s more, a higher number of women chooses to pursue additional education compared to men in the same position. This can explain why there are more people applying for veterinary schools than ever before.

If we look at another statistic, this time provided by the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges, we will realize that, at the moment, many more females are studying to be veterinarians than males – to be exact, 78% of the student population is female. A study conducted by the Department of Sociology at Southern Methodist University suggests that male candidates might feel discouraged after seeing the number of females applying.

Last but not least, there is a theory speculating that women are more willing to settle for a job with a lower salary, while men target other medical professions, e.g., surgery. However, this theory can be easily disproved, as the increase of female students can also be noticed in industries such as law or dentistry.

The Paradigm Shift

There’s no denying that being a working mother is hard – especially since many industries still need to adapt to it and learn how to support working mothers within them. Thankfully, such change can be seen in the veterinary profession, which is becoming more appealing to women with children who wish to pursue a career.

Female graduates want to be able to keep a strong balance between their work and personal life. They also want to work in a place that supports their female employees when they are on maternity leave and shows understanding for working mothers, for instance, by providing space for nursing needs at work or by offering health insurance options for the whole family.

While not so long ago mothers were a big no-no for many industries, the situation is changing now – at least when it comes to veterinary medicine. Many business owners are starting to notice that having a family can help veterinary practitioners do their job, as they are more connected to society. However, they cannot achieve success without being able to efficiently manage their work and family life, which is why it is important that workspaces support them.

Another thing worth mentioning is that 80% of clients with small pets are actually women themselves. For this reason, having a female vet within their workers might help a business grow and expand their client base.

What the Future Holds

Even though women in the veterinary industry have already made huge progress when compared to what was happening a century ago, there’s still a long way to go. People are especially concerned with the increasing amount of suicides among the females in this profession, as well as with the percentage of female graduates with the aspiration of ownership, which is slowly decreasing.

What is the situation going to look like in the future? Will the number of female veterinary school students decrease again, or will it keep increasing? Those are things that only time will tell.