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Why 77% of New Veterinarians Are Women

10 Comments | Add Yours
By Exceptional Veterinary Team
January 4, 2010

Are women in veterinary medicine in it because of the flexible schedule? That's what Claudia Golden, Harvard University economist, seems to believe. Golden recently delivered a speech at the American Economic Association in Atlanta where she argued that 30 years ago, women were only a "trivial fraction" of veterinarians and now make up nearly 77% of new veterinarians. She credits much of this growth to the fact that veterinary medicine allows for part-time or flexible schedules and has lighter residency requirements than that required for physicians (although equal in prestige). Because women are often willing to trade pay for better hours, many women that would have pursued careers as physicians are also now becoming veterinarians. Her research has revealed that 15 years after graduation that in women with children: 23% of MBAs weren't working vs only 3% of MDs. With business hours for MBAs typically ranging from 9 to 5 and often much longer, veterinary medicine allows women to "have it all" if they so desire: family and career, rather than family OR career.

But is this really the reason that veterinary medicine has become so popular with women?  An equally valid argument is that these women are drawn to healing animals and enjoy the sciences - not that they are picking a career based on the feasibility of procreating and still maintaining a career. After all, would a woman who applies to business school really be the same type of person who applies to veterinary school -- is this woman really choosing a career in health care over business because of the "better" schedule? Perhaps the reason for the drastic rise in numbers is that women are finally able to pursue the careers that were once the almost exclusive domain of men.

One fact remains certain though: with 77% of new veterinarians being women, this spells change for the profession overall. For better or worse, women are entering the field and leaving it (many to come back only part time) when they decide to have families. Is this a victory for women or a potential issue for the profession?

What are your thoughts? Read the full article published in the Wall Street Journal here.

 

10 comments so far...

77% of new vets are women

I just wanted to add a quick comment from Australia. We recently held our first AVA Womens Conference where it was revealed that it is not so much that more women are applying to do vet science but that there are fewer men applying.I would also have to agree with those who felt that women become vets because they want to work in a profession which combines science with the desire to care, nurture and communicate. Even 20 years ago cattle farmers in my community were saying that they felt that their beasts responded better to a female vet than a male vet;and I know I was certainly not thinking about flexible working hours and raising a family when i applied to study veterinary medicine 38 years ago.
Sun, 01/10/2010 - 03:01 — Guest

Sorry my reply was in

Sorry my reply was in response to Emily Murphy 's comment... Well said Julia Boyce
Wed, 01/06/2010 - 22:31 — Guest

I feel that this statement is

I feel that this statement is much more educated and eloquentally said than any "Harvard" researcher could have written. I find it extremely disappointing that this article was even written. We put off a big part of our lives to get an education and although when I do have children I intend to work because I want too, I also have to work as I am in an abundant amount of financial debt from pursuing the field that I love. Both my husband and I each work hard to pay that off! I guess the next article will be how we marry for money to pay our debt???? Thank you for saying the words I was to mad to write down!!I didn't think at 17 while applying to pre-vet program to much about my future children! Julia Boyce DVM
Wed, 01/06/2010 - 21:49 — Guest

Issue for the profession

This is definately becoming an issue for the profession. I've been a practice manager for 25 years and it is getting harder and harder to get, keep and schedule enough doctors to run the practice. Women work a year or two and then decide to have families and maybe come back part time or not at all. When they do come back, they don't want to work nights or weekends because of family issues. I'm a female too with a family so I understand the reasoning but it does make it hard for a practice to continue to meet their changing needs.
Wed, 01/06/2010 - 16:52 — Guest

Women in veterinary medicine

I am disappointed with the Harvard economist's contention that more women enter the profession of veterinary medicine because of a "flexible" schedule. Obviously she's not a veterinarian. I think most of us decided to become veterinarians because we love animals, and people, and practicing medicine. I'm tired of derogatory comparisons between physicians and veterinarians. The entrance requirements and rigorous education are essentially the same for both professions. In fact, most people would agree that its more difficult to gain admission into veterinary schools, since there are fewer of them and class sizes are typically smaller than human medical schools. Post-graduate residencies are just as exhausting and lead to even more demanding schedules. I don't think any of us started down this career path thinking that we would have an easier time raising our children someday. Quite the contrary, most of us delayed having a family so that we could devote ourselves to education and career. In some cases, we've even sacrificed the opportunity to have children. Perhaps there are more women in this profession because we are good doctors and good communicators. Maybe as a gender, women are more willing to devote themselves to careers that provide challenges and fulfillment outside the realm of financial security and prestige. The majority of men may choose more lucrative careers out of different motivations. This disparity may be driven by our culture, but that's an entirely different discussion. Being a veterinarian is an altruistic calling for most of us, men and women alike. Clearly there are many factors that go into choosing a profession, but the schedules of most veterinarians are anything but flexible. I find it laudable that so many women are choosing to be veterinarians and I am proud to be one of them. After all, there are innumerable other professions that women excell in. Its inconceivable to me that any educated person would chalk up feminine leadership in our profession to such a trivial factor as the schedule. Emily Murphy DVM
Wed, 01/06/2010 - 16:47 — Guest

research doesn't prove the point

Is this a typo,"that 15 years after graduation that in women with children: 23% of MBAs weren't working vs only 3% of MDs"? Or, is the author seriously trying to extrapolate something about DVMs from statistics about MDs and MBAs? That makes no sense! Where is the statistic about what percentage of DVMs are still working 15 years after graduation?
Wed, 01/06/2010 - 16:45 — Guest

less time than an MD or PhD???

8 years of school
Wed, 01/06/2010 - 16:31 — Guest

choice of women

I doubt the reasons for women choosing veterinary medicine vs other science careers have changed. the numbers of applicants per student position has decreased, and of the applicants more are women than men. So, there is a net increase in women in the profession. I know even 25 years ago when I was in school very few women were thinking about family planning. They were more concerned with the freedom to be able to work at what they wanted without the social constraints of discrimination, which had finally been broken through. Why fewer men? That would be a good thing to figure out. There is alot of flexibility with a dvm degree as compared to other degrees, with a more structured schooling in less time than an md or Phd in the sciences. I think this is what attracts most women.
Wed, 01/06/2010 - 16:24 — Guest

Are there more women, or less men?

I think that there may be more women applying to veterinary school, but I also think there are fewer men applying. I don't have statistics to prove it, but I think the higher cost of education and the need for most men to be providers for their families may be driving more men to chose other more lucrative careers or careers that earn the same with less education and less student debt. -Recent male Graduate.
Wed, 01/06/2010 - 15:49 — Guest

Women choosing to become veterinarians

I disagree that the reason more women are choosing to become veterinarians is because it's more flexible for pregnancy leave and raising children. My major point is that at the time many of us decided we wanted to become veterinarians, my female classmates were far to young to be worried about having babies and families. Once that choice was made, a career path in high school and undergraduate study is often followed pretty strictly. Hardly scientific, but a quick poll of some classmates (all female) show that 0 of 7 chose the profession with family planning in mind. I believe it's far more complex than that. The reasons women choose to become veterinarians I believe to be much the same reasons men do and what we're seeing is the result of better gender equality. I also believe there are other more obscure and harder to prove factors. What about the diversity of the veterinary field as an attraction to the profession? Is it possible that women are simply more competitive these days than men for admission to veterinary school? Jeramie Abel KSUCVM Class of 2011
Wed, 01/06/2010 - 14:53 — Guest

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