The University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) School of Veterinary Medicine has received a Letter of Reasonable Assurance from the American Veterinary Medical Association Council on Education (AVMA COE).
The designation allows the developing program to begin recruiting its inaugural Doctor of Veterinary Medicine class for summer 2027. Once opened, UMES will be the first veterinary school physically located in Maryland and the first established at a public historically Black college or university (HBCU). According to 2025 data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 1.6% of veterinarians are Black.
The program features an accelerated, year-round curriculum that students will complete in three years. Clinical training will utilize a semi-distributed model, integrating case-based instruction across university-operated and affiliated clinical sites.
Addressing the labor market, Dr. Stanley Robertson, dean of the veterinary school, noted that the accelerated format aims to “graduate confident, practice-ready veterinarians sooner and strengthen the workforce” across the Mid-Atlantic region.