A hands-on rural experience for 120 vet students

The program, now in its fourth year, started when senior lecturer Dr Stuart Barber took 30 second-year students to visit regional Victoria on a voluntary field excursion to investigate farm management.

 "The feedback from the trip was so positive I decided to run it again the following year, and we now run this visit for all 120 first year students," Dr Barber explained.

He said the program gave students a chance to learn on-farm and to use all their senses in the environment to maximise their learning experience, which complemented their theoretical work. Students also gained improved practical understanding of what happened on Australian farms.

Dookie was chosen as the base because there were many diverse farm types in the area, and its excellent accommodation and conference facilities allowed plenty of scope for different types of teaching.

Dr Barber said courses like this one were particularly important given the majority of students had minimal or no experience working in rural or regional areas. 

"This program demystified what it was like to work in these areas and introduced students to what happened on-farm, and what veterinary roles in rural areas entailed," he said.

"It has become increasingly difficult to get veterinarians to work in rural and regional areas worldwide, and it is hoped this early introduction will increase the numbers of students who will consider a career in rural areas."

This year, the students visited thoroughbred horse breeding properties, stud beef cattle properties, a commercial dairy, commercial wool and prime lamb production and alpaca stud farms as well as a Boer goat enterprise and a commercial cattle enterprise. 

Students learnt from veterinarians working in rural areas in private and government roles and the impact climate change may have on agricultural production in the region.