The History of Veterinary Education in Edinburgh - Paperback

by Alastair A. MacDonald (Author), Colin M. Warwick (Author)

The history of veterinary education in Edinburgh has been traced from 1696 to 2022. William Dick established his veterinary school in 1823. The development of his veterinary interest, formal training and family life is presented. About 14,000 students from at least 139 countries have studied towards obtaining undergraduate veterinary degrees and/or postgraduate qualifications (diplomas, masters, doctorates) from the Dick Vet, Gamgee's New Edinburgh Veterinary College and Williams' New Edinburgh Veterinary College and the Centre for Tropical Veterinary Medicine. The progressive changes in course duration, content, staffing and physical facilities are described. The student populations, graduations, dress codes, extra-curricular activities and traditions give insights into the lives of veterinary students over two centuries. The academic and clinical leadership of the individual veterinary teaching and research institutes is described. Some indication is given of administrative, teaching and support staff. The geographical location of veterinary education in Edinburgh is highlighted.

Back Jacket

Charts 200 years of growth, development and global contributions of veterinary education in Edinburgh The History of Veterinary Education in Edinburgh offers a comprehensive history of the six veterinary institutions established in Edinburgh over the last two centuries: William Dick's Edinburgh College (the Dick Vet), John Gamgee's New Veterinary College, William William's New Veterinary College, the University of Edinburgh, the Polish Veterinary Faculty and - within the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies - the Centre for Tropical Veterinary Medicine (postgraduate training). This book brings together the contributions that each institution made to enable academic progress within veterinary education. This account highlights the educators who drew students from around the world and discusses the development of the research base that provided the foundation to the teaching programme. Edinburgh has attracted students from over 120 countries and its graduates are found in every corner of the world. Edinburgh's veterinary graduates have contributed to the progress of global health through groundbreaking research into domestic and wild animal health and welfare, and thereby to the nutrition, health and welfare of humanity. Key Features  Provides essential background information to understand the foundations of veterinary training in Edinburgh, and Scotland more widely.  Examines the academic and professional structures established to provide traditional and alternative styles of veterinary training  Provides a comprehensive timeline of the evolution of veterinary medicine in Edinburgh  Documents two centuries of veterinary student life  Showcases Edinburgh as a global epicentre for veterinary education Alastair Macdonald is Honorary Fellow at the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh. He lectured at the Royal (Dick) from 1984 to 2011 and has held visiting professorships in China and Indonesia. He has authored and edited numerous academic articles and books. Colin Warwick is Honorary Fellow at the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh. Having started working at Royal (Dick) in 1958, he retired in 2005 and was awarded an MBE for Services to Veterinary Science. He is author of over 32 articles in Veterinary History.

Author Biography

Alastair A. Macdonald has been a lecturer then senior lecturer at the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies from 1984 until retiral in 2011, and an Honorary Fellow of the University of Edinburgh since then. Awarded a PhD by Edinburgh University (1975) and Doctor in de Diergeneeskunde by Utrecht University (1983) he was appointed as Visiting Professor in Fuzhou University, China from 2008-2011. From 2011-2015 he served as the Secretary/Treasurer of the Edinburgh, then Scottish Consortium for Rural Research. Investigating the biology of the wild Indonesian pig, babirusa (Babyrousa celebensis) has been an academic cornerstone for the last 35 years, and similarly, researching the history of veterinary education in Edinburgh, has been a focus for the last 20 years.

Colin M. Warwick has been associated with the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies for 64 years (47 on the Technical Staff and 17 as an Honorary Fellow) so he is himself part of Dick Vet history. In 2005 Her Majesty the Queen presented him with an MBE "for services to the Veterinary School, University of Edinburgh". Having an interest in local history he served on the council of the Old Edinburgh Club for ten years. During the last 20 years he worked collaboratively researching and writing over 30 papers on veterinary history.