Wisconsin Ag Connection - Program Offers Student Loan Forgiveness for New Veterinarians

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Program Offers Student Loan Forgiveness for New Veterinarians
Wisconsin Ag Connection - 04/19/2017

The state's agriculture department says new veterinarians who commit to practicing in one of seven areas in Wisconsin can now apply for financial support under the USDA's Veterinary Medical Loan Repayment Program. State Veterinarian Dr. Paul McGraw says the VMLRP helps qualified veterinarians offset a significant portion of the debt incurred in pursuit of their veterinary medicine degrees in return for their service in certain high-priority veterinary shortage areas.

"We identified seven different areas in the state with a variety of service needs that will provide a new veterinarian with broad experience, while at the same time bringing veterinary expertise to an area that needs it," McGraw said. "This is a win-win situation for all of us."

Applicants must commit to providing veterinary services in a designated area for at least three years. In exchange, they can receive up to $25,000 per year toward repayment of principal and interest on government and commercial loans received for the attendance at an accredited college of veterinary medicine resulting in a degree of Doctor of Veterinary Medicine or the equivalent. In each area, the veterinarian must serve the needs of beef and dairy cattle and may also require expertise working with swine, poultry and other small ruminants.

The areas identified for the latest program include portions of Barron, Brown, Buffalo, Calumet, Door, Florence, Fond du Lac, Forest, Kewaunee, Langlade, Lincoln, Marathon, Marinette, Portage, Taylor and Vilas Counties.

Applications are due May 19 for consideration during the 2017 grant period.

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