Finding Permanent and Locum Vet Work in the UK

This article is part 3 in the series: Vet’s Guide to Moving to the UK

Are you thinking of working as a Vet or Registered Vet Nurse in the UK, but unsure of how to find your first role?

This was one of my biggest concerns when I made the move to the UK in 2016- but finding work, either in permanent positions or as a locum, is not as difficult as you might think. So while I’m not a pro at veterinary recruitment, this is the info I share with my colleagues when they tell me they’re worried about finding their next role.

There are a few different options for looking for work in the UK, but they basically boil down to this- you can use an agency to find your positions, or you can find them yourself through facebook pages, online advertisements and word of mouth.

Keep in mind that in the UK its not uncommon to have accommodation or a vehicle offered with some veterinary roles- particularly in ambulatory mixed practice or those in rural locations. Keep an eye out for this, as it may save you a lot of time and money.

Agencies

Signing up for an agency can take a lot of the hassle out of looking for work- you tell them what you’re looking for, and they’ll get back to you with potential jobs and interviews to attend. However, agencies make their money by getting you working, so while they are very eager to help, I’ve sometimes found they’ve pushed me towards roles that aren’t what I’m looking for, or that isn’t appropriate for my skills. For locum placements, they also tend to charge the practice a fee for each day they provide a locum, so some practices prefer not to work with them.

You’ll easily find recruitment agencies with a quick google search, but a few of the larger agencies to start with are:

– Vetfinders

– Brightleaf

– Recruit4Vets

– BVS Vets

– Simply Locums

– A1 Locums

If you’re interested in working for one of the large corporate chains in the UK:

– Petmedic Recruitment – recruits for CVS practices

– Independant Vet Care (IVC)

Facebook Groups

The Veterinary Community is surprisingly active on facebook, and I actually find the majority of my jobs through their forums. I actually prefer this method, because its usually someone from the practice who writes and posts the ad- meaning you get a vibe for the position straight away, and if you have questions, you can message that person directly and get a quick response.

Joining veterinary employment Facebook groups also means you can write a post about yourself and what you’re looking for, and let the employers get back to you!

Here’s the most useful UK vet employment groups that I’ve found:

– Veterinary Employment and Locum Network UK– the largest general veterinary employment group

– Career Opportunities for VV and VSGD– Vets: Stay, Go, Diversify are a great community, and their employment group advertises alternative roles to general practice as well as vet and RVN vacancies.

– Scottish Veterinary Jobs Alert– Very handy if you live in Scotland

– Kookaburra Vets UK

– BVS Vets – the facebook group for the BVS agency

Classifieds

Other places where you can look for vacant positions are classified sections of professional websites and magazines. Some of my favourites are:

– Kookaburra Vets– an Aussie website that also lists some UK and international vacancies

– The British Vet Record Careers Site

– The Vet Grad- a site offering support to graduates and advertises graduate-suitable roles

Personal Contacts

This is by far the best way to find veterinary work in the UK- after all, the veterinary community is a fairly small, tight-knit group. Provided that you make a good impression and start building your professional relationships, you may find, like me, that future opportunities come from those you already know in the industry.

So what should you do if you’re new to the UK and have no personal contacts (yet)?

Start building them today! If you’re already working in a clinic, get to know the professionals you work with. If not, you can attend CPD lectures, conferences and networking events. Or if you’re really stuck, you could contact local clinics and ask to shadow their vets or RVNs for a few days- we tend to be a friendly profession, and its a great way to get a feel for practice in the UK while building relationships (note- you may need you’re own insurance to do this- see my previous post for recommendations)

Conclusion

So after all that info- where should you start looking?

Here’s my usual approach for both locum and permanent work:

First of all- make sure you know exactly what type of role you’re looking for (and what you’re not). Are you happy doing weekend or after-hours work? Are there certain species you want (or don’t want) to work with? Will you require accommodation?

Then, if you have contacts or colleagues that you trust, start making polite inquiries whether they know of any suitable vacancies. They may well know colleagues in other practices who are looking for vets, and if they can personally recommend you it will act in your favour.

If you have no luck there, start scrolling through the last couple of weeks facebook posts in the employment groups to see if there’s anything suitable. You can also use the search function to look for keywords (for example accomodation, small animal vet and locum) to make sure you’ve not missed anything. And even if the post is a few weeks old, its still worth sending a polite enquiry about a role just in case its still vacant.

The final step is usually to use an agency- you can check out the vacancies on their websites, then call or email the agent about roles in your area. I find that the agents are always eager to fill any available dates I have, but sometimes I need to negotiate a little on rates and accommodation to suit my needs.

And thats all there is to it. The more places your work, the easier this process tends to become. So, jump online and take a look at all the opportunities that are out there!

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Further Information

Want to know more about how to start working as a vet after you move to the UK? Check out the Vet’s Ultimate Guide to Living in the UK and Working in the Vet Industry.

Or if you’re more interested in working as a Locum vet or nurse, get started with the first post in my locum series.

And please leave me a comment to let me know whether this post has been of help to you- I’m always open to suggestions!