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The master's degree in Veterinary Medicine is a professional degree and equips the student with a broad scientific background in the theoretical and practical aspects of the chosen field of study.

The MMedVet degree may entitle the holder to registration as a specialist with the South African Veterinary Council together with other requirements as determined by Council. Candidates are encouraged to review current Council guidelines on specialist registration.

Students are required to confirm whether a module will be presented in any particular year. This enquiry should be directed to the relevant head of department.

Also consult the UP General Regulations.

• Subject to the stipulations of the applicable UP General Regulations, a candidate must be in possession of the BVSc or an equivalent veterinary degree; and have two (2) years of applicable post-qualification general veterinary experience or one year of training in the specific field as an intern at a recognized training facility. In certain cases, the head of department under which a specific field of study lies, may require a candidate to pass an entrance examination to demonstrate that the person has the relevant experience.
• Students will be required to submit a project concept note as part of the application, for consideration for admission.

Additional Requirements

• Candidates are required to be qualified veterinarians registered with the South African Veterinary Council or authorized by the South African Veterinary Council during the training.
• The candidate will be required to work fulltime in the field of specialization under supervision of an approved supervisor for the required duration at a facility approved for this purpose.
• The number of students that can be admitted to the MMedVet degree programme annually depends on the training capacity of a department, the number of specialists appointed and the number of available posts.
• All international applicants whose first language is not English, may be required to pass a proficiency test in English (TOEFL). Application and more information: www.ets.org/toefl/
• Postgraduate applicants who have completed any foreign qualifications must have all their previous post-school qualifications evaluated by the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) before applying for postgraduate studies at the University of Pretoria: www.saqa.org.za

International requirements

• Candidates not yet registered or authorised by the South African Veterinary Council can find more information on the South African Veterinary Council website at www.savc.org.za

Notification

• While the MMedVet is an advanced professional programme equivalent to specialist certification, registration to practice as a specialist is controlled by the South African Veterinary Council or international equivalent. These bodies may have additional requirements for registration that are not university requirements. Please check their requirements as well.
   

Also consult the applicable General Regulations.

Conferment of the degree
The MMedVet is conferred by virtue of completion of a minimum of 90 weeks of clinical training, examination in the specialist module, and a mini-dissertation

Examinations
The examination(s) in the specialist field of study may only be taken on completion of the minimum clinical training.
The nature and duration of the specialist module's examination(s), which will test fully the theoretical knowledge as well as the practical skills of the student, is determined by the head of department in which the chosen field of study is offered.
A minimum examination mark of 50% is required in each of the theoretical and practical and oral sections of the specialist module.
Students who intend applying for membership of a specialist college abroad later on, should bear in mind that many of these colleges require a minimum examination mark and a final mark of at least 60% for admission.

Mini-dissertation
(Also consult the General Regulations)
A student must submit a mini-dissertation, which deals with the particular field of specialization.
A mini-dissertation is based on a research project or related research projects (which need not be original), planned and written down by the student within the theme of the chosen specialization.  (Assistance with statistical processing, applied specialised procedures, etc. is allowed, but must be acknowledged.) The student may use appropriate research done previously, to add to the writing of the mini-dissertation.
Earlier, related publications by the student may be bound with the mini-dissertation, but may not substitute the complete text of the mini-dissertation. Publications that are submitted, must be rounded off by means of an extensive introduction, materials, and information concerning methods and a discussion of the results. The mini-dissertation will be evaluated by two examiners, who may not necessarily attend the final examination.
The average of the separate marks awarded by the two examiners, constitutes the final mark for the mini-dissertation. The minimum pass mark is 50%. A student who has failed may be permitted by the Dean, on the recommendation of the relevant head of department, to submit an amended mini-dissertation for final adjudication.

In order to obtain the degree with distinction, a minimum final  mark of 75% is required for the field of specialisation and the mini-dissertation.