Plus-Hex CLINICAL
Admissions processes
Figure 4 . Diversity data for staff on veterinary medicine courses .
( Jackson & Armitage-Chan , 2016 ). This is exacerbated for BAME students by feelings of isolation and nonbelonging . In 1992 , polytechnics in the UK became universities and were allowed to award their own degrees , welcoming a range of students who would not have attended university prior to these changes . BAME students are more likely to study in these post- 1992 institutions and , more specifically , in the Greater London area . For example , more black students study at the University of East London than in the top 20 UK universities combined ( Sanders and Rose-Adams , 2014 ). This statistic shows that the feelings of belonging and familiarity are very influential . However , not many post-1992 institutions offer VM degrees , meaning 98 % of veterinary students are being trained at pre-1992 universities typically associated with white , middle-class students ( Jackson and Armitage-Chan , 2017 ).
Pre-1992 institutions have been slow to adopt successful schemes for boosting diversity , so BAME students who do study VM there face many challenges , including interacting with peers who do not resemble them , and who have had more opportunities , and financial and educational privileges . As many as 24 % of VSs who qualified after 2016 were previously privately educated ( Robinson et al ., 2019b ). This is a significant over-representation of the 6 % of UK schoolchildren who attend private school ( Vet Futures , 2015 ).
Furthermore , 46 % of veterinary students have an average financial shortfall of �2,000 each year , while 67 % of students are unaware of , or do not use , the financial grants available for placement ( AVS and BVA , 2020 ). This financial burden can become overwhelming and warrants the need for extra support for BAME students , especially those from widening access routes ( Sanders and Rose-Adams , 2014 ).
Admissions teams and procedures impact the future composition of the sector and are regarded as the gatekeepers of the profession ( Andrews , 2009 ). Institutions need to acknowledge the differences between a white , privileged , privately schooled student and a less privileged BAME student , as they will be unfairly compared when looking solely at grades and work experience . Bourne ( 2020 ) highlights that getting work experience on a farm is much easier for someone who lives nearby and can afford to work for free , compared to a student from a first-generation immigrant family who lives in an inner-city environment and relies on part-time work . This highlights the determination of less privileged BAME students who have had to work harder to meet the criteria for a veterinary course ( Bourne , 2020 ). However , BAME students who have not managed to meet these criteria are discouraged from the profession despite having the potential to excel when given the correct resources .
Typically , students from below-average schools perform better at university than those from above-average schools ( Wyness , 2017 ), so lowering grade requirements for certain students would not be setting them up for failure . This requires universities to give clear , transparent information on how contextual factors are used , as well as advice and guidance for the admissions process , and information on the financial aids that are available ( Boliver et al ., 2017 ).
Information on the variety of career paths in the veterinary industry is not being shared with primary and secondary school students – instead , students are told by advisors to consider different career paths ( Andrews , 2009 ). Despite BAME students having higher aspirations than their white counterparts ( Platt & Parsons , 2018 ) – with black Caribbean girls rating ‘ vet ’ fifth in their top job aspirations , and BAME parents supporting and encouraging their children ’ s high aspirations – this is not maintained and translated into veterinary qualifications .
The benefits
The value of having a diverse workforce includes driving innovation , increasing profitability , and encouraging a range of perspectives ( Dos Santos , 2020 ), as well as increasing morale and reducing staff turnover ( Alworth et al ., 2010 ). Raising awareness and teaching cultural humility in both education and the workplace reduces prejudice , bias and stereotypes , resulting in less discrimination and a support network if such events were to happen .
The profession is not currently representative of the public it serves ( Loeb , 2018 ), so VNs and VSs cannot meet the expectations and needs of all clients ( Alworth et al ., 2010 ), whether in food standards , preventing disease or small animal practice .
VOL 37 • May 2022
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