Veterinarian
Veterinarians diagnose and treat sick and injured animals, and advise their owners on keeping them well.
- Median salary
- $125,500
3.9%vs last year, before tax
- People employed
- 14,500
1.4%vs last year
- Projected growth
- +17.8%
to 2035
- AI exposure*
- Low
- automation risk
- Average hours
- 45/wk
+5h vs all jobs
- Shortage status
- In shortage
national
Most veterinarians work in general or mixed practice, where a single day can move from vaccinations to an emergency caesarean. A veterinary nurse handles much of the routine animal care and administration, but the veterinarian makes the clinical decisions and carries the legal responsibility for treatment. Others work in government biosecurity, research, specialist referral hospitals, or zoo and wildlife medicine.
How much do veterinarians earn?
The median full-time salary for a veterinarian is $125,500 per annum, before tax, up $26,100 since 2018.
What a veterinarian earns depends heavily on the type of practice and the hours attached to it. Emergency and specialist hospitals, corporate practice groups and government employers set their own scales, and after-hours or on-call rosters are usually paid at a higher rate than ordinary daytime work. Rural and mixed practices often include housing or a vehicle in the package, which changes what an offer is worth, and practice ownership is where earnings rise most over a career.
What does a veterinarian do day to day?
The list below is what fills most weeks; the exact mix shifts with seniority and whatever stage the current work is at.
- Examining and treating animals across a caseload that swings from routine vaccinations to genuine emergencies
- Performing surgery, from routine desexing to procedures where the plan changes once you're inside
- Explaining a diagnosis, the treatment options and the likely cost to an owner who may be frightened or grieving
- Weighing what is medically best for an animal against what its owner can actually afford
- Keeping clinical records, pathology results and medication charts current between appointments
What skills do veterinarians need?
Employers look for animal care and handling, clinical assessment and treatment, medication management, backed by Ultrasound and diagnostic imaging equipment fluency and strong problem solving.
Specialist skills
- Animal care and handling
- Clinical assessment and treatment
- Medication management
- Care planning and coordination
- Patient care and support
Software and tools
- Ultrasound and diagnostic imaging equipment
- Surgical instruments and operating theatre
- Veterinary practice management software
- Blood analysers and laboratory equipment
- Endoscopes
General skills
- Problem solving
- Written communication
- Attention to detail
Is the job growing?
About 14,500 people work as veterinarians in Australia, and employment is projected to grow 17.8% over the decade to 2035. That's healthy, above-average growth, and the role should stay in solid demand.
How do you become a veterinarian?
Here's the path most veterinarians take, step by step.
- 1Complete a veterinary degree
In Australia this is usually a Bachelor of Veterinary Science over five to six years, or a graduate-entry Doctor of Veterinary Medicine for people who already hold a science degree. Entry is competitive and depends on strong Year 12 results in chemistry, maths and biology, plus evidence that you have handled animals.
- 2Register with the veterinary board in your state or territory
You cannot practise without registration, which requires an approved degree, a criminal history check and English language evidence where it applies. Registration is renewed each year and continuing professional development is a condition of keeping it.
- 3Start in general or mixed practice
New graduates usually spend their first years in general practice, where the caseload is broad and supervision is close. Mixed rural practices give a wide range of experience early, covering companion animals and livestock in the same week.
- 4Choose an area and build depth
Veterinarians narrow over time into emergency and critical care, small animal surgery, equine or livestock medicine, or government biosecurity work. Further qualifications come through postgraduate study or membership examinations of the Australian and New Zealand College of Veterinary Scientists.
Study routes we have checked
Qualifications that are a recognised way into this role, and what else you need.
- Bachelor of Veterinary Science (Honours)
A recognised route into this role
Complete an AVBC-recognised professional veterinary qualification and obtain registration with the relevant veterinary board. General animal science or veterinary bioscience alone is insufficient. This catalogue groups awards: verify the chosen provider, programme and intake; the family-level link is not confirmation that every offering is approved.
Ready to apply as a veterinarian?
Whether you're working toward becoming a veterinarian or already are one and want a hand with the next step (sharpening your resume for ATS screening, tightening your cover letter, or knowing what you'll actually be asked at interview), here are examples grounded in this specific role, not generic templates.
What jobs can a veterinarian move to?
Moving into University Lecturer typically comes with the biggest pay rise, worth $26,500 a year more on average.
| Move to | Typical pay change | Overlap | Retraining |
|---|---|---|---|
| University Lecturer Veterinarians bring deep clinical and research expertise to teaching, though a teaching qualification or further study is needed.Known move | +$26,500 | 3% | reskill |
Moves are chosen from Jobs and Skills Australia's Data on Occupation Mobility, which follows income tax records between 2011-12 and 2020-21, together with entry requirements and skill overlap. A known move is one people were seen making in that data. Pay change compares median full-time pay for the two roles.
Who works as a veterinarian?
The typical veterinarian is 37 years old; 63% are women, 73% work full-time, and full-timers average 45 hours a week.
- 37
- Median age
- 63%
- Female share
- 73%
- Full-time
- +5h
- vs all-jobs avg
What's it like being a veterinarian?
The work runs at consultation pace, with a booked list in front of you and emergencies arriving on top of it. Veterinary medicine suits people who like solving problems and are comfortable deciding with incomplete information, because an animal cannot describe its symptoms and an owner cannot always pay for the tests that would settle the question. Full-time hours average about 45 a week, but the emotional weight of the job is what most veterinarians raise when they talk about the hard parts.
What people like
- You fix things. A blocked cat, a torn cruciate, a calving that goes wrong: much of the work has a clear problem and a clear intervention, and you see the result within the hour.
- Working out the diagnosis. The puzzle is the part many veterinarians enjoy most, especially when the presentation is vague and the history is unreliable because the patient cannot answer questions.
- Long relationships with clients and their animals. General practice means seeing the same pets through vaccinations, illness and old age, and knowing the household that comes with them.
- Variety across one day. A morning of consultations, an afternoon of surgery and an evening of phone advice is a normal shape rather than an unusual one.
What people find hard
- Euthanasia and grief. Ending an animal's suffering is part of the job, and it usually happens in a room with an owner who is upset. It takes a toll that people outside the profession tend to underestimate.
- Conversations about money. You will regularly offer a treatment you know is right, be told it is out of reach, and then work out what can be done instead.
- After-hours and on-call work. Emergency rosters sit on top of a full day, so the phone can ring at 2 am after eight hours of surgery and consultations.
- Physical risk and paperwork. Bites, kicks, needle injuries and infections passed from animals are real hazards, and clinical notes, consent forms and medication records have to be current regardless of how the day has gone.
Based on our synthesis of professional-body surveys and public accounts of the role, not first-person verified reviews.
Which industries employ veterinarians?
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services employs the largest share of veterinarians, followed by Public Administration and Safety.
Top employing industries
- 1Professional, Scientific and Technical Services
- 2Public Administration and Safety
Ranked by employment share; the source doesn't publish an exact percentage per industry.
| Bachelor degree | 68.3% | |
|---|---|---|
| Postgraduate | 23.1% | |
| Year 12 or below | 1.6% | |
| Certificate III/IV | 1.3% | |
| Diploma / Advanced Diploma | 1.1% |
Will AI replace veterinarians?
Veterinary work rates as low exposure overall, because the central tasks involve an animal that has to be examined, handled and treated in person. Technology does reach parts of the job: imaging software flags likely abnormalities on radiographs, AI scribes draft consultation notes, and practice management systems generate reminders and estimates. What that changes is the time spent on documentation and the speed at which images are screened, not who examines the animal.
Share of typical working time by exposure level
- Consultations and physical examinationsDiagnostic software can suggest likely conditions from a history and blood results, but someone still has to handle the animal, work out which findings matter and decide what happens next.30%moderate
- Surgery and proceduresDraping, cutting, monitoring anaesthesia and adapting when the tissue does not match the scan are hands-on work; robotic surgery exists in human medicine and is not in routine veterinary use.25%low
- Talking with owners about diagnosis, cost and optionsPractice software can generate an estimate and a written discharge summary, but explaining what a diagnosis means for this animal and this household happens face to face.25%moderate
- Clinical notes, pathology results and practice administrationVoice-to-text and AI scribes already draft consultation notes from dictation, which trims the hours spent typing up records after the last appointment.20%high
Common questions about becoming a veterinarian
Straight answers to the questions people ask most.
How much do veterinarians earn in Australia?
Full-time veterinarians earn a median of $125,500 per year before tax. The range around that figure is wide, with emergency rosters, specialist qualifications and practice ownership sitting above it and part-time general practice sitting below.
How do you become a veterinarian?
Complete a veterinary degree, either a Bachelor of Veterinary Science over five to six years or a graduate-entry Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, then register with the veterinary board in the state or territory where you will work. Entry is competitive and usually requires strong marks in chemistry and maths along with experience handling animals. Registration is renewed annually and continuing professional development is required.
Are veterinarians in demand in Australia?
Veterinarians are currently in shortage nationally, and employment is projected to grow 17.8% over the decade to 2035. Most of that work sits in private practice, with smaller numbers in government biosecurity, research and specialist referral hospitals.
Will AI replace veterinarians?
AI is changing parts of the job, but the role rates as low exposure because the core work is physical and hands-on. Imaging software can flag likely abnormalities on a radiograph and AI scribes can draft consultation notes, yet someone still has to examine the animal, decide what to do and carry out the procedure. What the technology changes is the time spent on documentation and the speed at which images are screened, not who treats the patient.
What can a veterinarian move into?
Experienced veterinarians often move into university teaching, where clinical and research expertise transfers to lecturing, though a teaching qualification or further study is usually needed and pay is $26,500 more. Owning or buying into a practice is another common progression, and it is often where earnings grow. Moving the other way, from veterinary nursing into veterinary practice, is possible but requires completing the full veterinary degree.
How many hours do veterinarians work?
Full-time veterinarians average about 45 hours a week, and that figure hides how uneven the hours are. Consultations run to appointment times, surgery is booked in blocks, and emergencies arrive without warning, so days often run long. Many practices also run an after-hours or on-call roster shared among the vets.
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