A message from our dean

Dr. Dana Zimmel

Greetings,

It’s hard to believe that already we are almost a month into spring, full as it is with new beginnings and the culmination of the academic year. Adding to the excitement, we have great news to share!

On April 8, U.S. News & World Report released its new rankings of veterinary medical colleges nationwide, and the UF College of Veterinary Medicine has risen two spots to land at No. 5! The full rankings can be found here.

Although the national rankings are but one indicator of our success, they represent a metric in recognizing excellence across our missions of teaching, research, patient care and community outreach. They are a direct reflection of the passion I see every day in our faculty, staff and students, along with their commitment to advancing animal, human and environmental health. To have our collective efforts recognized by this national metric is extremely rewarding. Read more about some of the things UFCVM has achieved since our last rankings in 2023 in a story included in this issue.

In other news, our traditional college Open House was held on April 5 on a beautiful, sunny day. Thousands of attendees of all ages showed up to participate in interactive exhibits showcasing our many programs, view dozens of educational demonstrations and attend sessions on how to get into veterinary school. This event is such a great way to show the public what we do here at the college and in our hospitals. Special thanks to the Class of 2026 Student Open House Committee; to Sarah Coulson, our hospital marketing and referring veterinarian outreach coordinator; to the recruitment team from our Office of Academic and Student Affairs; and to everyone from our faculty and staff who volunteered their time to help. By all accounts, the event was a huge success.

The UFCVM Research and Phi Zeta celebration will take place April 24-25, and I encourage everyone to attend both the poster session on the first day and the oral presentations and award ceremony on the second day. This event is always a great opportunity to highlight the very best of the biomedical and clinical research taking place here at the college. More information is available here.

On May 9, we will celebrate our sophomore students’ transition into clinics during the professional coating ceremony for the Class of 2027. The event will be held at the UF Phillips Center for the Performing Arts. This event marks the milestone of completion of the first two years of veterinary school and symbolizes the onset of the clinical phase of these students’ educational journey to become our veterinarians of the future. Two weeks later, on May 23, commencement exercises for the Class of 2025 will be held, also at the UF Phillips Center. We are so very proud of our soon-to-be graduates and know they will enter the world to do great things as our veterinarians of the future.

Thanks to everyone in our college community for all you do, every day, to make our college great.

Sincerely,

Dana

Dana N. Zimmel, D.V.M.
Dean and Professor