Intramural rotations (IMR)

As part of our Veterinary Medicine and Science BVMSci, you’ll be required to complete seven, four-week intramural placements away from the University in your final year of study. These will allow you to develop your knowledge, skills and practice within a clinical environment. 

Type of rotations

You’ll have rotations in the following core areas of general practice: 

  • Small animal primary care practice I 
  • Small animal primary care practice II 
  • Equine primary care practice 
  • Production animal primary care practice 
  • Veterinary pathology and public health (VPPH) 
  • A core elective of a further four weeks’ primary care in your choice of small animal, equine or production animal practice 
  • A two-week rotation in small animal emergency and critical care 
  • A two-week rotation in referral practice in your choice of small animal, equine or production animal practice. If you opt to do referral in equine or production animal practice, you must also complete your core elective in this species area.  

Placement locations

Your placements will take place throughout the UK with one of our 100+ partner veterinary practices. For each of your rotations, you’ll be assigned a different practice. 

How we allocate placements

We’ll allocate you a veterinary practice for each of your rotations. 

We take the following criteria into consideration when deciding on your practice: 

  • Care commitments 
  • Disability and neurodiversity 
  • Medical reasons. 

All allocated placements are subject to availability and, as such, may change. 

You’ll typically be placed with at least one other Surrey student. 

Travel

You’ll be required to travel to each of your placement locations and cover the upfront costs associated with this. You can claim back any travel expenses incurred, including petrol, parking, toll roads and public transport fees. There are some restrictions placed for rotations that take place on campus such as VPPH and for return weeks. 

You aren’t required to have a driving licence but having one and a vehicle will make it easier for you to commute to your allocated practice, especially if you’re happy to drive yourself and other students. You can also claim additional expenses for any passengers. 

Accommodation

You’ll be required to return to us for University-based activities and exams throughout the year, so we’d recommend you maintain accommodation within a 60-mile radius of Guildford. 

If you’re allocated a placement location deemed ‘non-commutable’ from your home base, you’ll need to stay in accommodation nearer to your allocated practice. We’ll help cover all or some of the costs of this, dependent on the circumstances: 

  • Where practices have their own accommodation, we’ll cover the full cost of this with the practice directly. 
  • Where there isn’t practice accommodation, you’ll be required to find private accommodation in rented housing, which we’ll give you a budget for (this is dependent on where you are in the UK and other factors). We’ll provide you with a lump sum at the beginning of your placements to use towards your accommodation. If you go over your allocated budget, you’ll be required to cover the costs of the difference. 

If you decide to stay with family or friends, we’ll be unable to contribute towards any accommodation costs. 

Working hours

Throughout your placements, you’ll work a variety of shifts, including being on call, to ensure you get an accurate representation of working in a veterinary setting. Your shifts will typically be 8am to 6pm, but are dictated by the practice you’re allocated to, so may vary. 

For on-call and weekend shifts, you’ll usually be provided with a rota, to ensure you have enough downtime in between your shifts. 

Salary 

You won’t get paid for the work you do on your placement, as this forms part of your teaching and learning experience. 

Recording your progress

Before you go out on placement, we’ll work with you to set objectives, which we’ll map against day one competences (PDF) outlined by the RCVS. We’ll also give you a list of skills to practise.  

Throughout your IMR, you’ll keep a written portfolio of your work, including case reports, referral letters and critique of isolation facilities. You’ll get personalised academic feedback and advice for this. 

Support

You’ll have a clinical instruction mentor (CIM) out in practice, who’s a registered veterinary surgeon with an interest in teaching and mentoring. Each CIM receives extensive training from us, to ensure they can give you the best on-the-ground support. They’ll provide you with feedback and facilitate your in-practice assessments. 

You’ll be allocated a member of University staff for each of your rotations, known as a Lecturer in Veterinary Clinical Practice (LVCP), who’s an experienced veterinary surgeon. They’ll be your main point of contact at the University. They’ll check in with you at a minimum every two weeks and keep track of your training, to ensure you’re exposed to a wide variety of clinical scenarios. They’ll be on hand to answer any questions you may have or help with any issues you may be experiencing. 

If you’re not sure who to contact for queries, you can also get in touch with your course representative or personal tutor who can point you in the right direction. 

Extra learning opportunities 

When you’re on placement, you won’t have any scheduled lectures. However, if you’d like to go over any cases you’ve been working on and any topics that you’re less familiar with, you can arrange a session with your allocated LVCP. 

Your practice may run in-house seminars, arrange study afternoons or carry out journal clubs, where a veterinary professional will discuss past cases and complete guided learning with you. 

You’ll automatically become part of a Microsoft Teams channel for each of your rotations and you’ll be encouraged to share interesting cases with your peers and to discuss clinical scenarios you may not have experienced. 

Costs 

See the 'Travel' and 'Accommodation' sections for information on costs during final year. 

The demands of final-year IMR placements may impact on your ability to pursue paid employment during both semester and holiday time. This is due to commitments on placement such as weekend working and the final year following a different timetable to the typical University semester timetable. 

However, there are several bursaries and other sources of financial aid available that can be applied for, with the support of your personal tutor if required, during the course. There is no additional equipment or uniform to purchase specifically for your final year, but you may need to replace items throughout the course due to wear and tear. It is also a requirement to retain a base in Guildford during your final year but you will be on multiple four-week placements throughout the year which are geographically spread over the UK.