Veterinary Medicine Schools and Programs in Spain

Veterinary Medicine Studies in Spain

In Spain, veterinary medicine is a regulated profession taught at university through a five-year official bachelor's degree, the Grado en Veterinaria. At the universities checked for this page teaching is in Spanish, and the degree follows a European directive that regulates the profession across the European Union, so its structure is similar in every Spanish faculty.

How the degree is organised

Most Spanish bachelor's degrees (grados) have 240 ECTS credits. Royal Decree 822/2021 makes an exception for degrees that must have 300 or 360 credits under European rules, and veterinary medicine is one of them. As the Universidad de Murcia explains, Directive 2005/36/EC on regulated professions sets a minimum of five years, so the degree has 300 ECTS credits spread over five years. The same directive lists the subjects that veterinary students in Europe must take.

According to the Universidad de Murcia, the programme covers three broad areas:

• clinical practice and animal health
• animal production and hygiene
• food inspection, control and safety

Practical training carries a lot of weight. At the Universidad de León, for example, the curriculum includes 24 credits of external placements and a 6-credit final project. The university points to placements from the first year, a veterinary hospital of 1,275 square metres, its own experimental farm and agreements with more than 550 centres, institutions and companies that take part in practical training.

Admission and language

Students who finished secondary school outside Spain usually apply through UNEDasiss, the UNED service that assesses the academic records of international students and runs the tests needed to enter a Spanish bachelor's degree. Documents must be legalised and translated. The application for admission is then made to each university, within its own deadlines.

Places are limited. The Universidad de Murcia offers 90 first-year places, and its cut-off mark for 2025-26 admission was 11.34; the Universidad de León offers 100 places. At both universities the degree is taught on campus and in Spanish, so international students need a solid command of the language before they start.

Where to study veterinary medicine in Spain

The ministry's Register of Universities, Centres and Degrees (RUCT) lists 16 bachelor's degrees in veterinary medicine, each at a different university. Public universities in our directory that offer it include the Universidad Complutense de Madrid, the Universidad de León, the Universidad de Murcia, the Universidad de Zaragoza, the Universidad de Extremadura, the Universidad de Santiago de Compostela and the Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. Private universities include the Universidad Alfonso X El Sabio in Villanueva de la Cañada (Madrid) and, in the province of Valencia, the Universidad CEU Cardenal Herrera and the Universidad Católica de Valencia San Vicente Mártir.

The Universidad de Murcia and the Universidad de León both have a teaching veterinary hospital and a farm of their own. Clinical and farm facilities, the number of places and the language of instruction are worth checking at any university before applying.

Recognition of the qualification

Anyone with a foreign veterinary degree who wants to practise in Spain must apply for homologation (official recognition) to the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, and only through its online portal. The assessment criteria of ANECA, the national quality agency, include for example 300 ECTS credits or 3,000 contact hours and five years of study. The degree certificate and academic transcript must come with an official translation into Spanish and be legalised and apostilled, except for degrees from the EU, the EEA and Switzerland.

Applicants must show Spanish at level B2, unless they are nationals of a country where Spanish is an official language. Holders of a degree from the European Economic Area can instead ask the Ministry of Health for professional recognition under Directive 2005/36/EC: veterinary medicine is one of the professions with automatic recognition, and the procedure is free. Those who do not intend to work as vets can apply for a declaration of equivalence of their studies; the ministry advises checking with the Colegio Oficial de Veterinarios which activities are reserved for the profession.

Careers

The Universidad de Murcia describes a profession spread across several sectors:

• public administration, mainly health and agriculture
• veterinary clinical practice
• private companies such as the pharmaceutical, animal feed and meat industries
• consultancy
• exotic and wild animals

Food inspection and safety, a core part of the curriculum, also link the profession to public health.

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take to study veterinary medicine in Spain?

Five years. The Grado en Veterinaria has 300 ECTS credits because European rules set a minimum of five years of study for the profession.

Is it hard to get a place?

Places are limited: the Universidad de Murcia offers 90 and the Universidad de León 100. In Murcia the cut-off mark for 2025-26 admission was 11.34.

Can I study veterinary medicine in Spain in English?

At the universities checked for this page, Murcia and León, the degree is taught in Spanish. Check the language of each programme with the university before applying.

How do I get a foreign veterinary degree recognised in Spain?

Apply for homologation to the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities through its online portal, with an official Spanish translation of your degree and transcript, legalised and apostilled where required. EEA degrees can instead be recognised by the Ministry of Health under Directive 2005/36/EC, free of charge.