Small Animal Rotating Internship

Grade UE06: £34,610 - £39,906 per annum

Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies / Hospital for Small Animals

Full-time: 35 hours per week

Fixed-term: for 12 months

Posts available: 5

Your next step starts here. Be part of something bigger. We are looking for our next five interns to join the team.

Make a meaningful impact

**Join the University of Edinburgh and you’ll be making a difference to everything around you. Be part of something bigger — where you’ll do meaningful work, grow and progress, be rewarded and recognised, and benefit from our strong commitment to your wellbeing. There are so many reasons to join us.

The University of Edinburgh is a world-class organisation. We look for the best in the field across all disciplines and provide a working environment where academics can develop their careers and passion for their chosen subject area. We offer the full range of academic roles and have a genuine focus on our students’ performance and wellbeing.

The Opportunity:

Based within the Hospital for Small Animals at Easter Bush Campus, Midlothian, this one-year rotating internship offers excellent preparatory experience for those considering further clinical training as well as those wishing to expand on their skillset and return to private clinical practice. Candidates must have enthusiasm, a willingness to learn and an ability to function as part of a dedicated team in a busy hospital.

Our team of Interns rotate through the referral services within our Hospital for Small Animals, and contribute to the out of hours service which includes support for patients in the ICU and primary care of our general practice and exotics clinic patients. Interns have the opportunity for elective rotations, which may be spent gaining further clinical or research experience within the veterinary school or undertaking externships elsewhere.

Our referral services include: Anaesthesia, Behaviour, Cardiology, Clinical Pathology, Dermatology, Diagnostic Imaging, Emergency & Critical Care, Exotics, Internal Medicine, Neurology, Oncology (medical and radiotherapy), Ophthalmology, Orthopaedics, Pathology and Soft Tissue Surgery.

Each intern will also be paired with a mentor in their speciality of interest, to assist with guidance on career progression, as well as the opportunity to pursue a research project throughout the year. We also boast a thriving programme of continuing education within the hospital, including dedicated weekly seminars for interns, as well as practical sessions, journal clubs, board review sessions, specialty rounds and book clubs.

During the rotating internship, there is the opportunity to enrol in the Higher Education Academy, to achieve a teaching qualification.

Your skills and attributes for success:

• Member of RCVS or eligible at time of appointment.
• Appropriate English language qualification.
• Ability to work in the UK
• please check right to work pages (via link below). Applicants should ensure they have fully read and understood the UK Immigration criteria required to apply for this position.
• This role is eligible for Skilled Worker Sponsorship under the New Entrant Route. To qualify for sponsorship, applicants must not exceed the total maximum period (4 years) of sponsorship UK permitted under the New Entrant route by the end of 12-month contract. This includes any time already spent in the UK on a Graduate visa or a Skilled Worker visa.
• Experience working in a UK veterinary practice (preferable but not essential). Completion of VetGDP (preferable but not essential).

View the full job description

How to apply

**Please include the following documents in your application:

• CV

• Cover letter

An internship is a 12-18 month fixed term position awarded to qualified veterinary surgeons (usually early career) who wish to explore becoming a Specialist by achieving a Specialist qualification. This applies to both small animal and equine internships. The role is heavily supervised by more senior vets and has formal taught components. A 12-month internship rotating through different Specialties is a requirement to be eligible to apply for the next step in Specialist training -a residency.

Specialist training is via a three-year residency followed by examination. The Specialist diplomas are awarded by either the European Board of Vet Specialists (EBVS) or the American equivalent and are recognised by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) in the UK. The curriculum is approved by the individual European colleges who sit under the EBVS, and the eligibility criteria for entering the training is also decided by the colleges, and includes a rotating internship.

Below are links to the European colleges of Internal Medicine, Ophthalmology, Neurology and Surgery as examples of this requirement.

https://ecvim-ca.college/resident-enrolment/

https://www.ecvo.eu/quickmenu/becoming-an-ecvo-diplomate.html

Training Guidelines_0.pdf (ecvn.org)

document-library.php (ecvs.org)

There are also focussed discipline specific internships which are often undertaken after a rotating internship. These are again 12-month fixed term contracts for individuals who are wanting to further their specialist knowledge, by working in their field, to strengthen their application for a residency, whilst applying for a residency programme.

**Postgraduate study | Veterinary Schools Council UK (vetschoolscouncil.ac.uk)

As a valued member of our team, you can expect:

**- A competitive salary.

• An exciting, positive, creative, challenging and rewarding place to work.
• To be part of a diverse and vibrant international community.
• Comprehensive Staff Benefits, including generous annual leave entitlement, a defined benefits pension scheme, a wide range of staff discounts, family-friendly initiatives, and flexible work options. Check out the full list on our staff benefits page and use our reward calculator to discover the value of your pay and benefits.

Championing equality, diversity, and inclusion

The University of Edinburgh holds a Silver Athena SWAN award in recognition of our commitment to advance gender equality in higher education. We are members of the Race Equality Charter, and we are also Stonewall Scotland Diversity Champions, actively promoting LGBT equality.

Prior to any employment commencing with the University, you will be required to evidence your right to work in the UK. Further information is available on our right to work webpages .

The University may be able to sponsor the employment of international workers in this role. This will depend on a number of factors specific to the successful applicant.

Key dates to note

The closing date for applications is 20 th April 2026.

Unless stated otherwise the closing time for applications is 11:59pm UK time. If you are applying outside the UK the closing time on our adverts automatically adjusts to your browsers local time zone.********