Internships
Are you looking to explore new challenges in your career and continue your professional development? Then maybe a CVS Referrals 1-year internship is for you.
As part of the UK’s largest integrated veterinary group, CVS Referrals offers a variety of exciting progression opportunities. For example, did you know that we currently (July 2023) employ around 19 rotating interns and 15 specialist service specific interns across our small animal referral division?
CVS offers both rotating and discipline-specific internships.
Rotating internships give you exposure to referral practice and a broad range of specialist disciplines working alongside world-class nurses, vets and specialists. They are suitable for candidates who have not undertaken an internship previously, who want to explore career options and improve their depth of knowledge within a supportive learning environment. Subsequently they are an excellent springboard to upskill and return to general practice (perhaps to start a certificate or the Advanced practitioner journey) or continue in referrals and go on to specialise. In most disciplines completion of a rotating internship is required prior to applying for a residency training position.
Discipline-specific internships are aimed at those who have previously undertaken a rotating internship and wish to explore their chosen subject of interest in more detail, including increasing case and research exposure and confidence. For many, it is undertaken prior to applying for a residency training position (although not a requirement), but it can also act as an excellent foundation to return to general practice.
An internship can be a part of whatever your individual career journey ends up being. You might also have some fun and meet some new friends along the way!
CVS has state-of-the-art referral hospitals across the country in many beautiful areas. If you think an internship is for you, check out our referral centres on our website and sign up for job alerts.
| CVS hospital | Location | Rotating internship positions | Discipline specific internship positions |
| Bristol Veterinary Specialists | Bristol | 5 | 5 |
| Highcroft Exotic Vets | Bristol | 0 | 2 |
| Chestergates Veterinary Specialists | Cheshire | 6 | 0 |
| East of England Veterinary Specialists | Cambridgeshire | 0 | 2 |
| Grove Veterinary Hospital | Norfolk | 0 | 2 |
| Lumbry Park Veterinary Specialists | Hampshire | 5 | 6 |
| NiVS | Northern Ireland | 1 | 0 |
(December 2023)
1. Northern Ireland Veterinary Specialists
2. Chestergates Veterinary Specialists
5. Lumbry Park Veterinary Specialists
6. East of England Veterinary Specialists
- Internship current salary (2022/23) is £32,000 per annum based on a full-time role.
- A generous CPD package of up to 5days and £1000 is available for external courses/conferences.
- In addition, monthly in-house CPD, online educational content and continual one-to-one patient-side learning and mentoring is provided.
NB: For internship programmes you must be a qualified veterinary surgeon with a degree registrable with the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons.
Meet Sophie Keyte, RCVS Specialist in Internal Medicine, Intern and Resident Co-ordinator
“I am very excited to be in this new role of CVS Small Animal Referral Intern and Resident Co-ordinator. I love working alongside and collaborating with my referral colleagues to continue to make CVS training programmes the best they can possibly be and to create more opportunities to inspire vets of all experience and backgrounds
to consider whether a career in referrals might be for them. The fact that CVS have created the role shows that they recognise how important interns and residents are within Referrals and that they take their responsibilities towards supporting them and those who aspire to take up these roles, with their career progression seriously. I think it is a really exciting time for the company, to continue to grow the confidence and skills of the vets of the future, to enable us to both provide the best possible care to animals and be a great place to work and have a career.”
If you are interested in discussing these roles and any available opportunities, please contact referralcareers@cvsvets.com