Master of Veterinary Clinical Care

Master of Veterinary Clinical Care (MVCC)

The Master of Veterinary Clinical Care (MVCC) program is for credentialed veterinary technicians who desire to have advanced knowledge in patient case management, evidence-based medicine and clinical practice, critical thinking, practice management, clinical skills, and professional skills.

 

Mission Statement

The mission of the Master of Science in Veterinary Clinical Care (MVCC) program at Lincoln Memorial University is to provide advanced academic learning in veterinary technology through graduate coursework to prepare graduates for advanced veterinary nursing careers.  The mission is achieved by:

  • Graduating students with a Master of Science in Veterinary Clinical Care degree
  • Enhancing the learning of licensed technicians through evidence-based medicine, advanced patient care management, and specialized veterinary technology and nursing skills
  • Providing preparation for advancing patient care and extended care of the veterinary health care team

 

MVCC Program Overview

The MVCC offers veterinary technicians exciting career growth opportunities, enabling them to transition into advanced, skills-focused, or leadership roles within the veterinary industry. Designed with 100% online flexibility, the program is ideal for working professionals who wish to further their education while maintaining their careers. Students gain specialized knowledge in evidence-based medicine, patient care management, and the latest veterinary technology trends, equipping them with the advanced expertise needed to excel in the dynamic field of veterinary healthcare.

This program currently does not lead to additional licensure qualifications.

 

MVCC Admissions Standards and Application Process

Admissions Standards

All applicants to the MVCC must:

The LMU-CVM MVCC Program Director and Graduate Admissions Committee may recommend applicants with exceptions to these admissions requirements subject to the LMU-CVM Dean who has final approval.

*Applicants who meet all other admissions criteria but work in a state that does not provide veterinary technician credentialing may contact CVMGradPrograms@LMUnet.edu for eligibility.

**Applicants with a cumulative GPA below 2.8 may be considered for the program but will be admitted under automatic academic probation for their first semester.

 

Required Prerequisite Coursework

All applicants to the MVCC program must demonstrate successful completion of the following required prerequisite coursework before their intended starting semester with a course grade of C+:

 

Prerequisites

Semester Units

Quarter Units

Notes

English

6

9

Reading or Comprehension can count toward this total

General Biology

6

9

Anatomy, Physiology, and Microbiology are acceptable substitutions.

Chemistry

6

9

Pharmacology (up to six (6) hours is an acceptable substitution.

 

Required Application Materials

To apply to the MVCC program, the following must be completed and/or submitted:

  1. PostbacCAS Application
  2. Official transcripts from all institutions attended
    • Foreign transcripts, including from previous DVM programs, must be evaluated by World Education Services (WES) or Josef Silney & Associates, Inc. before submission.
  3. Two (2) letters of recommendation from individuals with knowledge of the applicant’s work and ability and can, therefore, evaluate their potential for success in this graduate program
  4. One (1) personal essay (500 words) that professionally articulates a response to the following prompts: Why do you feel the MVCC program is the next step in your career, and what do you hope to contribute to your field after graduation? Please include specific examples from your career and/or education to support your response.
  5. One (1) problem-solution essay (500 words) that professionally articulates a response to the following prompt: What do you see as primary barriers to technician utilization and technician retention in the veterinary profession? How do you feel technicians could be better utilized within the current scope of practice?
  6. Application Fees (PostbacCAS)
  7. Curriculum Vitae (CV)
  8. Proof of Veterinary Technician Licensure or Credentials

 

Application Process & Notifications

Application Submissions

Fall Start

June 21

 

Term of Enrollment

Admitted applicants are expected to begin the program in the Fall term of their acceptance but may request a deferment for up to one (1) year under special circumstances.

 

MVCC Academic Progress, Standards, and Policies

Requirements for Graduation

Successful completion of an MVCC requires

  • Completing a minimum of 30 credit hours
  • Completing all degree requirements with a > 2.85 overall GPA

 

Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy

Any MVCC student found to have performed below a 2.85 GPA in a semester will be placed on academic probation for the following semester and may remain on academic probation until their cumulative program GPA meets the standard.

 

MVCC Curriculum

The Master of Veterinary Clinical Care (MVCC) is a fully online, asynchronous program available on a full-time or part-time basis, requiring 30 graduate credit hours to earn a Master of Science (M.S.) degree. These credits include core (24) and elective (6) credits. The program may be completed in 3 consecutive semesters.

 

Enrollment Status as Determined by Credit Hours

  • Full-time status is a minimum of nine (9) graduate credits in a Fall or Spring semester.
  • Part-time status is anything less than nine (9) graduate credits in the Fall or Spring semester.

Students must be registered for a minimum of six (6) credit hours to qualify for financial aid. Contact the Office of Student Financial Services for more information if necessary.

 

Maximum Timeframe for Program Completion

MVCC students must complete their studies within five (5) years after initial registration.

Extensions for any program completion timeframes require approval of the MVCC Program Director and the LMU-CVM Dean. The student bears the ultimate responsibility for ensuring completion of all degree requirements.

Degrees and Certificates

Courses

MVCC-501: Veterinary Management & Leadership

Credits 3

This course explores veterinary management and leadership with an emphasis on diversity, equity and inclusion, cultural sensitivity, and comparative healthcare organization. Topics include: veterinary technician scope of practice, professional organization, technician utilization, and comparative paraprofessional scope of practice and utilization, diversity in the veterinary profession, concepts of leadership and applications to the veterinary profession, current veterinary profession issues and challenges, ethical issues in leadership, and strengthening diversity at the leadership level.

MVCC-502: Clinical Veterinary Physiology

Credits 3

Systems based overview of clinically relevant physiology for the graduate veterinary technician. Students will gain understanding of homeostasis, function, regulation and integration of body systems.

MVCC-503: Principles of Surgery & Wound Management

Credits 3

This course will introduce advanced principles of soft-tissue and orthopedic surgery, wound healing, and wound management. Covers aseptic technique, pre-op work up, room and table prep, perioperative patient care, post-operative short term and long term care, and surgical suture and ligation techniques. Specialized instrumentation, equipment, and sterilization of specialized equipment will be introduced. This course will provide students with a broad knowledge of common small animal surgical diseases and disorders organized by system. The course will include multiple case discussions in order to allow students to apply the knowledge they gain in lecture to situations they may encounter in the clinical setting. Application of anatomic knowledge related to surgical prep and surgical approaches will be included. Students will be required to demonstrate successful completion of related skills for this course.

MVCC-504: Evidence Based Medicine

Credits 1

This course is designed to teach evidence-based medicine (EBM) and information literacy skills that will enable veterinary professionals to conduct critical searches and evaluations of existing literature to improve patient care. Topics include advanced literature searches, developing PICO (Patient, Intervention, Comparison, Outcome) questions, overview of clinical study design, evaluating existing clinical guidelines, critically analyzing and synthesizing research articles using the GRADE criteria, and integrating evidence into practice.

MVCC-505: Anesthesia & Pain Management

Credits 3

This course will provide an in-depth review of anesthesia, anesthesia-related patient care, and pain management in the veterinary patient. Includes pre-anesthetic preparation and evaluation; anesthesia induction, maintenance, and emergence; post-anesthesia care; anesthetic equipment maintenance and trouble-shooting, and multimodal pain management techniques. Emphasis on case-based design of anesthetic protocols for patients with an ASA physical status of I -V. Students will be required to demonstrate successful completion of related skills for this course.

MVCC-506: Population Med & One Health

Credits 2

This course will provide an overview of veterinary public health, population health management, and One Health principles. Topics will include principles of epidemiology, herd health management, zoonotic and infectious disease control, human animal bond, and current topics in One Health. Students will learn about the importance of community stakeholders and interdisciplinary collaboration. This course will expand on principles of DEIB and cultural safety and humility learned in MVCC 501.

MVCC-507A: Small Animal Internal Medicine

Credits 3

This course will provide students with a broad and comprehensive knowledge of common canine and feline medical diseases and disorders organized by system. This course will introduce the fundamentals of advanced patient management to allow students to make informed decisions when managing simple and complex cases in practice.

MVCC-508: Diagnostics and Clinical Pathology

Credits 3

This course explains pathophysiologic mechanisms responsible for abnormal findings in hematologic, biochemical, urinalysis, and cytologic tests in health and disease of animals. Students will learn a selection of diagnostic tests for various diseases, interpretation of results, quality control, reference intervals, specificity, sensitivity, and positive and negative predictive values.

MVCC-590A: Small Animal Emergency and Critical Care

Credits 2

This course is a culmination of previous small animal nursing knowledge, skills, and clinical experience. The course will focus on basic emergency and critical care veterinary nursing theory and concepts of patient assessment, fluid pathophysiology, critical patient monitoring, CPR, and disease pathophysiology. The course will include emergency and critical care case studies to apply practical application of knowledge and skills learned, critical thinking, and clinical reasoning. The course goal is to prepare students to respond to emergency and critical patient scenarios in all types of small animal veterinary practices.

MVCC-590C: Advanced Small Animal Emergency and Critical Care

Credits 2

This course is a culmination of previous small animal nursing knowledge, skills, and clinical experience. The course will focus on basic emergency and critical care veterinary nursing theory and concepts of patient assessment, fluid pathophysiology, critical patient monitoring, CPR, and disease pathophysiology. The course will include emergency and critical care case studies to apply practical application of knowledge and skills learned, critical thinking, and clinical reasoning. The course goal is to prepare students to respond to emergency and critical patient scenarios in all types of small animal veterinary practices. Online.

MVCC-590D: Veterinary Dentistry

Credits 2

This course examines the field of advanced veterinary dentistry and the advanced delivery of dental service with an emphasis on client communication and veterinary technician utilization. Online.

MVCC-590E: Veterinary Imaging

Credits 2

This course will cover all imaging modalities that are used in veterinary medicine that are utilized on cats, dogs and exotic species. Online.