The attrition rate of food animal veterinarians is alarmingly high, with early career veterinarians frequently citing a lack of mentorship as a primary reason

The Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture awarded Texas Tech University System $299,802 on September 1, 2026, under the Veterinary Services Grant Program (CFDA 10.336) to develop and disseminate a structured mentorship toolkit for food animal veterinarians.

The project addresses high attrition of early-career food animal veterinarians by creating an electronic resource to guide mentors and mentees in designing individualized mentorship plans. Texas Tech will conduct targeted surveys to identify perspective differences between mentors and mentees, develop a practical mentorship toolkit, pilot it in selected practices, refine it based on user feedback, and disseminate it through professional organizations, industry networks, open-access publication, and continuing education events. The toolkit is designed to improve alignment of expectations and job satisfaction, thereby increasing retention within the food animal sector.

Work is performed in Lubbock, Texas. The period of performance runs through August 31, 2029. This is a Project Grant, an assistance type under VSGP that supports veterinary services through education, training, recruitment, placement, and retention initiatives.

We hypothesize that veterinary practices utilizing a structured mentorship resource will have increased retention of new associates and consequently we expect a decrease in the attrition of food animal veterinarians from the profession.by using targeted surveys to define perspective differences between mentors and mentees, the project will develop a practical, structured mentorship toolkit designed to foster effective and sustainable relationships in food animal practice. This project seeks to create an electronic resource which will guide mentors and mentees in designing individualized mentorship plans. IT will be piloted in selected practices, refined based on user feedback, and disseminated through professional organizations, industry networks, open-access publication, and continuing education events. Ultimately, the project is intended to improve the alignment of expectations and enhance job satisfaction, increasing the retention of veterinarians within the food animal sector.