Awards issued prior to january 20, 2025, were funded under previous administrations and may not reflect the priorities and policies of the current administration.** receiving mentorship from an…

Awards issued prior to january 20, 2025, were funded under previous administrations and may not reflect the priorities and policies of the current administration.** receiving mentorship from an experienced and supportive colleague can be transformative for early career veterinarians. During the first year of practice, when many new veterinarians find the job to be arduous, a good mentorship program can help instill confidence, build new skills, and reduce exhaustion and burnout. Specifically, within large animal veterinary practice, lack of mentorship has repeatedly been found to be a reason for leaving bovine practice [1, 2]. While there are many options available for mentorship, one reliable route is through a well-structured internship program. The benefits of a good internship have become increasingly evident to many new veterinary graduates, as noted by the 229% increase in the number of applicants for veterinary internship programs between 1988 and 2022 [3].within rural practice, many veterinarians are faced with the challenge of providing care for multiple species while playing a pivotal role in the public health of their communities. However, currently, there is a paucity of mixed animal internships available. A well-structured academic mixed animal internship could provide an educational opportunity to new graduates, allowing them to gain mentored experiences in both small and large animal medicine. Therefore, the goal of this proposed project is to provide a year of mentorship through a rotating mixed animal internship program that will work to prepare new graduates to be confident in their veterinary skills upon entry into a rural mixed animal practice. The goal of this internship program is to provide an educational experience for new graduates that will result in a positive experience that will build momentum for the future of that veterinarian to provide support for a rural community. The proposed program will be organized through the university of missouri (MU) college of veterinary medicine (CVM) veterinary health center (VHC) but will include a mix of both academic and private practice experiences. The internship program will provide opportunities in small and large animal medicine. Within the academic hospital, components of the internship will include small animal community practice, small animal emergency practice, shelter medicine, food animal ambulatory, food animal emergency, equine ambulatory, and equine emergency cases. Through collaboration with MU extension and private practice colleagues, the intern will also have the opportunity to gain experience in production medicine, beef cattle reproductive services, mixed rural practice, small animal practice, and beef cattle consultation. This program aligns with the veterinary service grant program goals by providing valuable education for students interested in high quality mixed animal practice that will help fill rural veterinary shortages with qualified mixed animal veterinarians throughout the US.