Internships & Residencies

The UCD Veterinary Hospital offers a unique Internship in Farm Animal Clinical Studies (FACS). This is a primarily hospital-based internship where the intern works under the guidance of senior clinicians, either European Specialists in Bovine Health Management (ECBHM Diplomates) or European Specialists in Animal Reproduction (ECAR).

The intern is facilitated to attend a herd health visit every two weeks, as well as contributing to the work of the Herd Health Team as often as possible. Interns work in a team environment together with clinicians and ECBHM and ECAR Residents delivering a cutting-edge referral service for farm animal veterinary practitioners throughout the Island of Ireland.

The Farm Animal Hospital operates 365 days of the year, including the provision of an on-call service in which the intern partakes on a shared rota with the equine interns. Interns in FACS are exposed to and perform surgery and in-depth medical work-ups, diagnostics and treatment of dairy and beef cattle, calves, sheep, goats, alpacas and pigs. Concurrently, the intern contributes to final year veterinary medicine and nursing student teaching.

The intern in FACS combined rota with equine interns necessitates the management of equine surgical and medical cases overnight and at weekends in the hospital. All diagnostic, surgical, anaesthetic, post-mortem and medical treatment facilities are contained within a shared building space which makes this an excellent learning and development environment under the mentoring of a dedicated, hard-working, enthusiastic and passionate team of friendly and empathetic colleagues.

An internship programme offers an excellent opportunity for any veterinary surgeon, in particular recent graduates, to gain further training in veterinary medicine and enhance their knowledge and clinical skills.

The UCD Veterinary Hospital offers both rotating and discipline specific internship programmes:

• Small Animal Rotating Internship
• Small Animal Internal Medicine
• Small Animal Surgery
• Anaesthesia

Further information regarding our Small Animal Internships can be found in the following document:

Small Animal Internships 2024

Residency in Small Animal Surgery 

The Small Animal Surgical Residency at University College Dublin is a four-year ECVS-approved training programme designed to provide advanced clinical training in small animal surgery, while also supporting academic and professional development. The aims of the residency are to prepare the resident for the Diploma of the European College of Veterinary Surgery (DECVS), to complete a postgraduate professional doctorate (Doctor of Veterinary Medical Specialisation – DVMS), to gain substantial experience in clinical research, and to develop strong teaching and communication skills.

Residents must enrol in the DVMS programme, which includes a formal Stage Transfer Assessment at approximately 18 months. The training requires a commitment of at least 36 weeks per year to clinical work, with the remaining 12 weeks (excluding holidays) devoted to research, publications, externships, conferences, and taught modules. Successful completion of the programme requires participation in relevant research projects, with the expectation of producing at least two publications in peer-reviewed journals and submission of a doctoral thesis.

Applicants must hold a veterinary degree registrable with the Veterinary Council of Ireland and demonstrate a clear commitment to specialist surgical training and academic research. In line with ECVS requirements, candidates should have completed either a one-year rotating internship or a minimum of two years in a high-quality small animal practice.

Day-to-day responsibilities for UCD residents are varied and include communication with clients and referring veterinarians, the development of surgical and clinical skills required for board certification, and regular participation in out-of-hours duties. Residents are expected to teach veterinary medicine and veterinary nursing students during clinical rotations, support interns and nursing staff, and take an active role in rounds, journal clubs, seminars, and taught postgraduate modules. They are also required to maintain detailed case, procedure, and activity logs in accordance with ECVS and DVMS standards.

Residency positions, when available, are advertised through the ECVS and UCD websites. Applicants must ensure their eligibility for registration with the Veterinary Council of Ireland before applying.

Residency in Ruminant and Equine Reproduction 

The European College of Animal Reproduction residencies in Ruminant reproduction and herd health and Equine reproduction provide our residents with a 4 year training programme where they will cover all aspects of animal reproduction with the aim work towards taking their board certifying exams at the end of the four years.

The training of the residents aims for them to progress from dealing with cases together with their supervisor to being able to lead on the case handling and management as they reach the later stages of their residencies. Residents in ruminant reproduction also cover the herd and flock health aspect of the fertility management in larger groups of animals. A

longside the clinical training, the residents also get the opportunity to do research in the area of reproduction which will culminate to scientific publications as well as conference presentations, thus aiming to contribute to evidence based veterinary medicine in the area of animal reproduction.

Residency in Veterinary Anaesthesia & Analgesia

The UCD Veterinary Anaesthesia and Analgesia Residency offers a comprehensive four-year specialist training pathway within a leading European academic veterinary hospital. Based in Dublin, our supportive, friendly, and skilled team includes three European Specialists in Veterinary Anaesthesia and Analgesia (Dipl. ECVAA), a residency-trained anaesthetist, four dedicated anaesthesia nurses, three residents, and a small animal anaesthesia intern.

Our programme is fully approved by the European College of Veterinary Anaesthesia and Analgesia (ECVAA) and combines intensive clinical training with research, teaching, and professional development. The residency is integrated with the Doctor of Veterinary Medical Specialisation (DVMS) degree, providing residents with both a recognised specialist qualification and an advanced academic degree.

Programme Highlights

• Specialist training: Wide-ranging experience with both small and large animal referral cases under the supervision of ECVAA Diplomates.
• Research opportunities: Structured involvement in clinical research, aiming for two publications in peer-reviewed journals, and preparation of a DVMS thesis.
• Professional development: Active participation in journal clubs, book and training tool discussions, case rounds, seminars, and credit-bearing taught modules designed to strengthen both clinical and research expertise.
• Teaching and leadership: Progressive responsibility in teaching veterinary and veterinary nursing students through lectures, tutorials, practicals, and clinical rotations, as well as mentoring interns.
• International exposure: Opportunities to attend conferences, undertake externships, and connect with the wider anaesthesia specialist community.

Clinical Commitment

Residents contribute to the hospital’s busy referral service with a minimum of 36 clinical weeks per year, providing anaesthesia care across a wide caseload of species. Out-of-hours duties (small and large animals) are shared on a 1:3 or 1:4 basis, ensuring exposure to emergency and critical care anaesthesia. Four weeks of annual leave are provided.

Beyond Clinical Work

Protected time outside clinical service allows residents to focus on research, publications, professional training modules, and the development of teaching and communication skills. These elements ensure graduates are prepared to succeed both in the ECVAA Diploma examinations and in academic or specialist clinical careers worldwide.

Residency in Bovine Health Management

UCD Veterinary Hospital, as a recognised Centre of Excellence, is registered as a training facility for Residents in Bovine Health Management under the European College of Bovine Health Management (ECBHM)

There are two residencies which are supervised by our team of ECBHM Diplomates/European Specialists in Bovine Health Management.

This unique residency is a species-focussed residency with the resident under-going a structured Standard Residency Programme of 4 years duration, when combined with the research degree programme of the Doctorate of Veterinary Medical Specialisation (DVMS).

Residents are trained in all aspects of advanced bovine internal medicine, surgery, herd health investigation and monitoring.

Residents are facilitated in achieving their annual case logs of individual animal cases in the UCD Veterinary Hospital and herd health cases through the UCD Lyons Herd Health Hub and herd health investigations provided as part of the UCD veterinary referral service.

Residents attend a training workshop in a different country each year as well as attending and presenting at conferences during their residency.

The residency culminates in the publication of two peer-reviewed research publications and in the ECBHM professional certifying examination from the end of the third year of the residency.

Residents contribute hugely to the delivery of teaching and the clinical services within the hospital and herd health hubs and are an integral part of the Farm Animal Clinical Studies and Herd Health Teams.