Distance Education Veterinary Technology Program (DEVTP)

New student enrollment

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Associate in Applied Science Degree
Degree Plan Code: AAS.VETERINARY.TECH.12

This program is designed to help meet the need for graduate veterinary technicians as indicated by the American Veterinary Medical Association. 

  • The Veterinary Technology curriculum is designed to provide the graduate with information, experience and skills needed to perform all technical duties in a practice, and become credentialed in their area of residence.
  • The program is accredited by the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Committee on Veterinary Technician Education and Activities (CVTEA).
  • Graduates are qualified to take the Veterinary Technician National Examination (VTNE) and to become eligible to sit for the Texas State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners Veterinary Technician Examination to become a Licensed Veterinary Technician (LVT) in Texas or to sit for the equivalent examination in any state or province that recognizes the VTNE.

Admission to the Veterinary Technology online program is open as long as course space is available, but students are encouraged to have a strong background in English, math, and biology. Completion of these general education courses are recommended but not required before starting the online program. A grade of “C” or better is required for all courses.

NOTE: Students enrolling in this program who plan to transfer to a four-year institution should consult an advisor or counselor regarding transfer requirements and the transferability of these courses to the four-year institution of their choice.

Registration for Spring classes is now open! Get started below.

Getting started

DEVTP requires a total of 60 credit hours. Program completion time will vary greatly, depending on the number of classes you take per term and the number of terms you enroll in per year. On average, full-time students graduate in five semesters, and part-time students graduate in three years. If you wish to take a semester off, you may do so and then re-enroll when you are ready.

Three terms are offered per year, beginning in January, May, and September. Each term is 12–14 weeks long, depending on the courses. All DEVTP courses are offered each term.

Step one

Complete an admissions Application to Dallas Community College

US Residents Application*

International Student Application

*If you have not taken courses at any DCCCD campus in the past year, you must complete the paper application.

Step two

Complete the four admissions application forms below to the Veterinary Technology Program

Send all four completed forms to the DCCCD Veterinary Technology Department via email.

Submitting transcipts

Send official transcripts to Dallas Community College from all colleges attended even those that will not be used for credit transfers.

    • Dallas Community College Admissions
      3030 North Dallas Avenue
      Lancaster, Texas 75134
    • Address electronic transcipts to [email protected]

FAQ's

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Tuition/financial aid/VA benefits

Tuition information
Visit Dallas College website

Financial aid
Financial aid may be available for those who qualify. Please call Dallas Community College Financial Aid Department at 972-587-2599, visit their website, or email them ([email protected]) for more information.
fafsa.ed.gov – Financial Aid Application
Cedar Valley Title IV Financial Aid School Code: 014035

Veterans Services Benefits
The appropriate paperwork will need to be completed and submitted to the Dallas Community College’s Veterans Service Office

Course overview

Course formats
Assignments will take a variety of forms, such as:

  • Reading selected chapters in a text and taking a written test
  • Viewing a video and completing a video-based assignment
  • Practicing skills while being observed by a preceptor
  • Writing assignments
  • Online assignments
  • Making and submitting a video of yourself performing a skill or task
  • Submitting work products, such as radiographs, for evaluation

Large-animal lab at Dallas Community College
Students are never required to travel to Dallas Community College to attend classes or complete lab practical exams. The laboratory portion of Large-Animal Assisting Techniques (VTHT 2325)* is offered on the Dallas Community College campus for students who do not have access to a large-animal training location. The lab is offered in the fall and spring semesters and is held over a two-day period on a Thursday and Friday. This lab covers all of the AVMA-required, hands-on large-animal tasks and gives students a chance to visit the campus, meet the instructors, and interact with other DEVTP students from all over the country. Students in DEVTP also have the option of submitting videos of the required tasks instead of traveling to campus.

*Travel fees and lodging for this lab are not included in tuition.

Courses

Students are expected to complete work according to the course’s schedule. It is strongly recommended that students take only one or two courses in their first semester. If using Financial Aid, you will need a minimum of 6 credit hours each semester.

Basic courses Credit Hours
VTHT 1217 Veterinary Office Management 2
VTHT 1301 Introduction to Veterinary Technology 3
VTHT 1349 Veterinary Pharmacology 3
VTHT 1413 Veterinary Anatomy and Physiology 4
VTHT 2201 Canine and Feline Clinical Management 2
VTHT 2205 Equine Clinical Management 2
VTHT 2209 Food Animal Clinical Management 2
VTHT 2321 Veterinary Parasitology 3

 

General Education Credit Hours
ENGL 1301 Composition II 3
BIOL 1406 Biology for Science Majors 4
Mathematics Elective 3
Humanities/Fine Arts 3
Social/Behavioral Science 3

 

Intermediate courses Credit Hours
**VTHT 1345 Veterinary Radiology 3
**VTHT 2223 Veterinary Clinical Pathology I 2
**VTHT 2331 Veterinary Clinical Pathology II 3

 

Advanced courses Credit hours
**VTHT 1341 Anesthesia & Surgical Assistance 3
**VTHT 2213 Lab Animal Clinical Management 2
**VTHT 2325 Large Animal Assisting Techniques 3
**VTHT 2380 Cooperative Education 3
**VTHT 2439 Veterinary Nursing Care 4

**These courses require students enployment at an approved veterinary facility prior to enrollment.

Required course material

Course

Book

ISBN

Publisher

VTHT 1301

  1. McCurnin's Clinical Textbook for Veterinary Technicians, 10th Edition. Bassert/Thomas
  2. Mccurnin's Clinical Textbook for Veterinary Technicians Workbook 10th Edition / Elsevier - Health Sciences Division/Bassert
  3. Low Stress Handling Restraint and Behavior Modification of Dogs and Cats
  4. Video Camera
  5. Access to a cat and dog

9780323751513

9780323765107

9780964151840

Elsevier/Mosby

VTHT 1413

  1. Clinical Anatomy & Physiology for Veterinary Technicians, 4th Edition. Colville
  2. Laboratory Manual for Clinical Anatomy and Physiology for Veterinary Technicians, 4th Edition. Colville

9780323793414

Lab Manual
9780323793421

Elsevier HlthSciences Division

Elsevier HlthSciences Division

VTHT 2201

  1. McCurnin's Clinical Textbook for Veterinary Technicians, 9th Edition. Bassert/Thomas
  2. Mccurnin's Clinical Textbook for Veterinary Technicians Workbook 9th Edition / Elsevier - Health Sciences Division/Bassert

9780323394611

9780323442749
(recommended, not required)

Elsevier/Mosby

VTHT 1217

  1. Front Office Management for the Veterinary Team, 3rd Edition. Prendergast

9780323570404

Elsevier/Mosby

VTHT 2321

  1. Diagnostic Parasitology for Veterinary Technicians, 5th Edition. Hendrix/Robinson

9780323389822

Elsevier/Mosby

VTHT 2205

  1. Equine Science, 5th Edition/ Parker

9780357712009

Cengage

VTHT 2209

  1. Large Animal Clinical Procedures for the Veterinary Technician, 4th Edition/Holtgrew-Bohling

9780323569040

Elsevier/Mosby

VTHT 1349

  1. Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics for Veterinary Techs, 4th Edition / Mosby

9780323086790

Elsevier

VTHT 2223

  1. Laboratory Procedures for Veterinary Technicians, 7th Edition/Sirois
  2. Laboratory Manual: Laboratory Procedures for Veterinary Technicians, 7th Edition/Sirois
  3. Essential Clinical Procedures for Veterinary Technicians, 1st Edition/Bluedoor (recommended, not required)
  4. Review Questions and Answers for Veterinary Technicians, 5th Edition (recommended, not required)
  5. Computer with webcam
  6. Students must work in an OCCI-approved veterinary clinic

9780323595384

9780323595407

9781681354026
(recommended)

9780323316958
(recommended)

Elsevier/Mosby

VTHT 2213

  1. Clinical Laboratory Animal Medicine: An Introduction 5th Edition by Karen Hrapkiewicz (Author), Lesley Colby (Author), Patricia Denison (Author)
  2. Access to a bird, rabbit, mouse, and rat.
  3. Video camera
  4. Students must work in an OCCI-approved veterinary clinic

9781119489597

Elsevier/Mosby

VTHT 1345

  1. Lavin's Radiography for Veterinary Technicians, 7th edition, Marg Brown/Lois Brown
  2. Students must work in an OCCI-approved veterinary clinic

978-0-323-76370-7

Elsevier

VTHT 2331

  1. Laboratory Procedures for Veterinary Technicians, 7th Edition/Sirois
  2. Laboratory Manual for Laboratory Procedures for Veterinary Technicians, 7th Edition/Sirois
  3. Video Camera
  4. Students must work in an OCCI-approved veterinary clinic

9780323595384

9780323595407

Elsevier/Mosby

VTHT 1341

  1. Anesthesia and Analgesia for Veterinary Technicians, 5th Edition . Thomas/Lerche
  2. Small Animal Surgical Nursing Skills and Concepts, 3nd Edition/Tear
  3. Clinical Textbook for Veterinary Technicians, 9th Edition. Bassert/Thomas
  4. Veterinary Instruments and Equipment, A Pocket Guide 4th Edition/Sonsthagen
  5. Small Animal Surgical Nursing, 3rd Edition
  6. Video Camera
  7. Students must work in an OCCI-approved veterinary clinic

9780323249713

9780323312271

9780323394611

9780323511322

Elsevier/Mosby

VTHT 2325

  1. Large Animal Clinical Procedures for the Veterinary Technician, 4th Edition/Holtgrew-Bohling
  2. Access to cattle, horses, and goats or attendance to fast track lab required animal facility or attend fast track lab
  3. Video Camera
  4. Students must work in an approved large

9780323312271

Elsevier/Mosby

VTHT 2439

  1. McCurnin's Clinical Textbook for Veterinary Technicians, 9th Edition. Bassert/Thomas
  2. Mccurnin's Clinical Textbook for Veterinary Technicians Workbook 9th Edition / Elsevier - Health Sciences Division
  3. Essential Clinical Procedures for Veterinary Technicians
  4. Review Questions and Answers for Veterinary Technicians, 5th Edition
    (recommended, not required)
  5. Video Camera
  6. Computer with webcam
  7. Students must work in an OCCI approved veterinary facility

9780323394611

9780323442749

9781681354026

9780323316958
(recommended)

Elsevier/Mosby

VTHT 2380

  1. No course materials required.
  2. Students must work in an OCCI approved veterinary facility

N/A

N/A

Off campus clinical instruction and hands-on experience

Dallas College is given a list of required and recommended tasks by the American Veterinary Medical Association that students must complete in order for Distance Education Veterinary Technology Program to be an accredited program. The task list is non-negotiable and, in order to maintain accreditation, Dallas College requires students to complete the specified required tasks and didactic information. Therefore, there is no testing out of classes or granting credit for on-the-job experience. Even though some of the tasks and information in the lower-level courses may seem simplistic or repetitive, students with work experience often use the information and opportunity to brush up on their existing skills and come away with new ideas.

You must be working with an Off-Campus Clinical Instruction (OCCI)-Dallas College approved hospital to complete all hands-on tasks for the intermediate and advanced courses. Almost any hospital can be approved for use as an OCCI facility as long as they have the required equipment and credentialed staff to serve as your preceptor.

To locate the additional OCCI information and paperwork, students will need to log into Blackboard and search “OCCI” in the Community Tab.

Preceptors

Each hospital with a student performing AVMA-required hands-on tasks is required to provide a designated preceptor who acts as an in-house mentor to assist, tutor, and provide feedback to the student. Preceptors must be veterinarians, graduates of an AVMA-accredited program of veterinary technology, or credentialed technicians designated as RVT, LVT, or CVT. Preceptors spend one to two hours per week, per course, assisting DEVTP students with course work.

VTNE details and pass rate

Graduates of DEVTP receive an Associate of Applied Science (AAS) degree from an AVMA-CVTEA-accredited program of veterinary technology. By obtaining this degree, graduates qualify for any registration, licensing, or certification exams needed to become a credentialed veterinary technician—including the VTNE. Taking and passing the VTNE, administered by the American Association of Veterinary State Boards (AAVSB), is a final step in becoming a credentialed veterinary technician.

Why is this important?
To become a credentialed veterinary technician, DEVTP graduates must take and pass the VTNE, which is administered by the AAVSB. The exam is given in January and June of each year and is constantly updated, reviewed and re-evaluated.

DEVTP VTNE pass rates, July 1, 2015–June 30, 2018

Campus (onsite) program:
Number of eligible first-time candidates: 100
Number of first-time candidates that have taken the VTNE: 70
Three-year VTNE pass percentage: 70%

Distance learning (online) program:
Number of eligible first-time candidates: 119
Number of first-time candidates that have taken the VTNE: 45
Three-year VTNE pass percentage: 73%