Veterinary Medicine Schools and Programs in Colombia

Veterinary Medicine Studies in Colombia

Veterinary studies in Colombia are a five-year university degree taught in Spanish. Colombian law recognises three related professions in the animal sciences: veterinary medicine (medicina veterinaria), veterinary medicine and animal science (medicina veterinaria y zootecnia) and animal science (zootecnia). The first two both train veterinarians; the combined degree adds livestock production. Our directory lists five universities in Colombia with veterinary studies, in Bogotá, Medellín, Montería and Villavicencio.

How the degree is organised

The first qualification is a pregrado, an undergraduate professional degree. Depending on the university, graduates receive the title of Médico Veterinario or Médico Veterinario Zootecnista. The programmes in our directory all last 10 semesters and are taught in person:

• Universidad de Antioquia (Medellín): Medicina Veterinaria, title Médico Veterinario, 10 semesters
• Universidad de La Salle (Bogotá): Medicina Veterinaria, title Médico Veterinario, 10 semesters, daytime
• Universidad de Córdoba (Montería): Medicina Veterinaria y Zootecnia, title Médico Veterinario Zootecnista, 10 semesters and 180 academic credits
• Universidad de los Llanos (Villavicencio): Medicina Veterinaria y Zootecnia, 10 semesters
• Universidad Nacional de Colombia: Medicina Veterinaria at the Bogotá and Palmira campuses

Credits are Colombian academic credits, not ECTS. After the pregrado, Ley 30 de 1992 provides for specialisations (especializaciones), master's degrees (maestrías) and doctorates. The Universidad de Córdoba, for example, lists specialisations in tropical cattle production and in medicine and surgery of companion animals, a master's in Ciencias Veterinarias del Trópico and doctoral programmes.

Where it is taught

The universities are spread over very different regions, and that shapes the training. The Universidad de Córdoba is on the Caribbean coast; its veterinary programme started on 6 April 1964 and students work with the cattle and horses of the farm on the Berástegui campus. The Universidad de los Llanos is in the Orinoquía region and describes a profile that covers animal health and welfare, sustainable animal production and veterinary public health under a One Health approach. In Medellín, the Universidad de Antioquia teaches the degree in its Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias, which also runs a veterinary hospital and a diagnostic unit. In Bogotá, the Universidad de La Salle teaches the degree at its Sede Norte campus, and the Universidad Nacional de Colombia offers it in Bogotá and in Palmira.

Programmes must hold a registro calificado from the Ministerio de Educación Nacional. Several also report the voluntary high-quality accreditation: the Universidad de Antioquia for 8 years from 2022, plus an international ARCU-SUR accreditation for 6 years; the Universidad de Córdoba for 8 years from December 2019; and the Universidad de los Llanos, which also cites accreditation by the Pan-American veterinary education council COPEVET.

Admission and language

By law, every undergraduate applicant needs a secondary school leaving qualification (título de bachiller) or its foreign equivalent and must have sat the state exam for entry to higher education (Saber 11). Public universities then select through their own procedures. The Universidad Nacional de Colombia and the Universidad de Antioquia both hold an entrance exam. At the Universidad Nacional, foreign applicants follow the regular admission process, identify themselves with a passport or foreigner's ID, and can sit the test online at a Colombian consulate; the application fee paid from abroad was US$87.5 for the 2026-02 intake. Not every programme opens every semester, so check the current call. Teaching is in Spanish.

Students who need a visa apply for the visitor visa (type V) for students. According to the Colombian foreign ministry (checked in October 2026), holders of visa-exempt passports do not need it for stays of up to 180 calendar days. The application requires a certificate of admission or enrolment and health insurance for the whole stay.

Costs

The programme pages of the public universities consulted do not show a single tuition figure. As an example of a private university, the Universidad de La Salle showed a cost of COP 12,325,000 on its veterinary medicine page in October 2026. Confirm current fees with the university.

Recognition and careers

A degree alone is not enough to practise. According to the Consejo Profesional de Medicina Veterinaria y de Zootecnia de Colombia, legal practice requires a professional degree from a programme approved by the Ministerio de Educación Nacional, or a foreign degree recognised (convalidado) by the ministry, plus the registration and professional licence (matrícula and tarjeta profesional) issued by the council. The fee for the licence in 2026 is COP 875,000. Professional conduct is governed by the code of ethics in Ley 576 de 2000.

Veterinarians work in clinics for companion animals, on farms and in livestock production, in veterinary public health, including the control of zoonoses and the safety of food of animal origin, and in research and teaching.

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take to become a veterinarian in Colombia?

The undergraduate degrees in our directory last 10 semesters, that is, five years. After graduating you need the professional licence before you can practise.

What is the difference between Medicina Veterinaria and Medicina Veterinaria y Zootecnia?

Both train veterinarians. Colombian law treats them as related but separate professions; the combined degree also covers animal production and leads to the title Médico Veterinario Zootecnista.

Can a veterinarian with a foreign degree work in Colombia?

Yes, but the degree must first be recognised by the Ministerio de Educación Nacional. With that resolution the professional council issues the registration; for foreign nationals the procedure is done on paper at the council's office.

Is the degree taught in English?

No. The programmes listed here are taught in Spanish.