Survey on the relevance of subjects in the current and future veterinary curriculum among veterinarians and veterinary students in Germany

In Germany, veterinary education is regulated by the Licensing Regulation for Veterinarians (TAppV). The relevance of various subjects and competencies such as communication and business administration are controversially discussed. Main objectives were to assess (i) self-perceived importance of the study content during education, (ii) subjective relevance for the professional practice, and (iii) expected relevance for the TAppV subjects for a future-oriented education. Surveys were conducted by veterinarians and veterinary students on a 6-point Likert scale in order to identify fields of action for study redesign. In the first survey, 1851 veterinarians participated; 1084 fully answered questionnaires were evaluated. In the second survey, 875 veterinary students in semesters 7 to 11 participated; 610 questionnaires were complete. Three comparison groups were formed: (1) veterinarians who had studied before 2006 (2) veterinarians that studied according to the TAppV (enrolment between 2006 and 2012), and (3) veterinary students in their 7th-11th semester in winter 2019. Physics, zoology and botany were considered not relevant by all target groups. In contrast, anatomy, physiology, biochemistry and the practical-clinical subjects were seen as very relevant to extremely relevant. The relevance of sub-specialties for the veterinary profession as well as for a future curriculum was in the relevant to extremely relevant range. According to the survey participants, practical skills were not sufficiently taught in the clinical area. The results show that the relevance of some taught subjects for the veterinary profession is negated by veterinarians and students. Valuable information can be derived from the results regarding a future oriented veterinary curriculum.