Office of the Dean
Taken from Dean Herb Whiteley's monthly column in the Illinois Vet News.
Ninety-five newly minted Illinois veterinarians will march across the stage in Urbana on Sunday. Shortly thereafter they’ll disperse to careers and locations as varied as the profession allows.
Valedictorian Erin Long received her commission as an officer in the U.S. Army Veterinary Corps last month. She’ll begin an internship at the Military Working Dog Veterinary Service in San Antonio, Texas. Another 2009 graduate pursuing a military career, Erika Stapp, administered the oath to Erin at the commissioning ceremony at left.
Other graduates will be entering internships in small animal surgery and medicine, emergency medicine and critical care, or equine medicine and surgery in hospitals from California to New Jersey, Wisconsin to Texas to Florida. One is staying for an internship at our College.
The first students to enter the joint DVM/ master’s in public health degree program will be heading to Chicago to finish their course work and field experience for the MPH.
Among those heading directly into practice, interests encompass small animal, exotics, shelter medicine, swine, beef cattle, ambulatory, mixed practice, and more. Still others will pursue laboratory animal medicine, research, and oncology.
Many of our graduates will remain in our state, in Chicago and the suburban area as well as in Arthur, Roseville, and Peru. Those venturing farther afield are destined for Florida, the Pacific Northwest, and points between.
We proudly salute this year’s graduating class. Wherever their careers may lead, they remain ambassadors of the University of Illinois and respected colleagues in the veterinary profession.--Herb
