How To Become A Laboratory Veterinarian: What It Is and Career Path

What is a laboratory veterinarian and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

Quoted expert

Donna Bouley DVM, PhD

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a laboratory veterinarian. For example, did you know that they make an average of $28.7 an hour? That's $59,697 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 19% and produce 16,800 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to a laboratory veterinarian?

Donna Bouley DVM, PhD

PROFESSOR OF COMPARATIVE MEDICINE, Stanford University

In addition to everything scientific and technical that they learn in vet school, they will need to have good people skills, patience and understanding (pet owners may not be able to afford to treat their animals and this can be stressful for vets), therefore a creative mind - especially if there are alternative ways to treat an animal if the proposed treatment is beyond the owner's reach. A vet must have a strong work ethic, be willing to work in a team, should be willing to give back (ie - volunteer to work with the homeless community's pets), be a lifelong learner (vets must attend continuing education to maintain their licenses). And the passion to still want to work as a veterinarian, despite the fact that they most likely have tremendous debt due to the outrageous tuition costs of veterinary school, and this debt will impact their lives for decades after graduation. Since veterinarians in general will never make the salary that MDs do, this potential financial burden can lead many young people to decide against going to vet school in the 1st place.

ScoreLaboratory VeterinarianUS Average

Salary

4.7

Avg. Salary $59,697

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

10.0

Growth rate 19%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.26%

Asian 3.93%

Black or African American 1.25%

Hispanic or Latino 4.18%

Unknown 4.09%

White 86.29%

Gender

female 59.09%

male 40.91%

Age - 42

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 42

Stress level

10.0

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

10.0

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

5.7

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a laboratory veterinarian

Explore laboratory veterinarian education requirements

Most common laboratory veterinarian degrees

Doctorate

50.0 %

Bachelor's

41.7 %

Master's

8.3 %

Start to develop specific laboratory veterinarian skills

Skills	Percentages
Federal Regulations	26.30%
GLP	22.18%
Institutional Animal Care	20.21%
Clinical Care	13.42%
AALAS	8.57%

Complete relevant laboratory veterinarian training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New laboratory veterinarians learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a laboratory veterinarian based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real laboratory veterinarian resumes.

Research laboratory veterinarian duties and responsibilities

Lead original research in tumor virus biology and pharmacogenomic correlates of vaccine effectiveness with industry and USDA ARS research experts.c.
Lead original research in tumor virus biology and pharmacogenomic correlates of vaccine effectiveness with industry and USDA ARS research experts.c.
Advance services include enucleation, fracture fixation, Ultrasonography, chemotherapy and others.

Apply for laboratory veterinarian jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a laboratory veterinarian job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do laboratory veterinarians rate their job?

-/5

5 stars

4 stars

3 stars

2 stars

1 star

Laboratory veterinarian reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on May 2020

Pros

I love how I get to do the two things I love, working in the lab, (which includes solving mysteries and helping animals) and working with my hands and still being able to come in contact with the Wildlife.

What is a laboratory veterinarian and how to become one

What general advice would you give to a laboratory veterinarian?

Laboratory veterinarian career paths

Key steps to become a laboratory veterinarian

Explore laboratory veterinarian education requirements

Most common laboratory veterinarian degrees

Start to develop specific laboratory veterinarian skills

Complete relevant laboratory veterinarian training and internships

Research laboratory veterinarian duties and responsibilities

Apply for laboratory veterinarian jobs

How did you land your first laboratory veterinarian job

Average laboratory veterinarian salary

How do laboratory veterinarians rate their job?

Laboratory veterinarian reviews