Veterinarians

Health Science In demand
Diagnose, treat, or research diseases and injuries of animals. Includes veterinarians who conduct research and development, inspect livestock, or care for pets and companion animals.

What a veterinarian does

Become a veterinarian

If you enjoy doing these activities, you might make a good veterinarian

  • Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
  • Reading work related information.
  • Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
  • Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
  • Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.

Discover what you could earn in Washington

  • Average hourly rate is $60 per hour with an average salary of $124,200 per year.
  • Half of workers earn between $45 and $72 per hour.
  • Half of workers earn an annual salary between $94,600 and $149,000 per year.

Veterinarian job outlook

  • There are 2,052 workers in this occupation in Washington.
  • There are 264 openings per year in this occupation in Washington.

Growth rate by year

Education needed

Most of these occupations require graduate school. For example, they may require a master's degree, and some require a Ph.D., M.D., or J.D. (law degree).

Programs to get you there

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