The Bel Rea Institute of Animal Technology

Date: Feb 17 2012
Major: Animal Studies (This Major's Salary over time)
I am amazed at how much I've learned in my first year at Bel-Rea - the classes are challenging, the faculty helpful, and there is a lot of free tutoring available from the TAs. I am excited to see what I will learn in my second year, in the more specialized classes.

It is a commuter campus, so there are not a lot of "social" activities, but that has been good for me - I needed to focus on school. I have made plenty of friends though.

I am looking at working internationally after, and have found a lot of opportunities for techs in Europe/the UK. There aren't a lot of countries that credential vet techs, but all seem to be happy to have you come and work there. But Bel-Rea's accreditation does cover any requirements for credentialing in the US, Canada, and the UK.

When I was researching schools, I discovered that Bel-Rea blew everyone else out of the water. Most programs have under 50 students, and because of that, a very limited number of faculty. I have enjoyed the variety of instructors at Bel-Rea.

It is on the pricier side of vet tech programs, but was not the most expensive program I looked at in Colorado or the US - it was average cost-wise. I do like that there are not a lot of additional costs - other than scrubs, some basic equipment like a stethoscope, and books - nothing out of the norm for college. I do have to park on the street sometime, but there is plenty of street parking around - I never have to walk far. My last school charged me over $200 each semester for parking that was much further away.

They have done a lot of renovation around campus since I first toured it - I really like studying in the new library and media center. I rarely have a problem finding a computer available and Rosemary has been super helpful with my research in the library.

I strongly recommend you volunteer on the side - Bel-Rea does offer a lot of labs and hands-on training, but because we all can't blood draw off of the same teaching animals (that would just be cruel), I have found that volunteering at a shelter has given me plenty of extra practice - I can even place an IV Cath on a small dog now without cringing and can easily restrain a feisty cat!

BE PREPARED TO WORK HARD! I get scared when I see some students not put in their best efforts - we are going to hold animals' lives in our hands when we graduate. Work your butt off so that you will be the best tech you can be!