Two new veterinary medicine colleges are to be established at South East Technological University and Atlantic Technological University.
The move will almost double the number of graduates who join the Irish veterinary ranks each year.
It means fewer Irish students will need to travel abroad to qualify and it may also ease CAO points for veterinary science, which are among the highest in the State.
Taoiseach Simon Harris, Minister for Further and Higher Education Patrick O’Donovan and Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue made a formal announcement at the National Ploughing Championships in Co Laois this afternoon.
The move will create about 80 new veterinary medicine places in higher education, according to informed sources.
South East Technological University (SETU), whose main campuses are based in Waterford and Carlow, is expected to offer courses in conjunction with Kildalton Agricultural College in Piltown, Co Kilkenny.
Atlantic Technological University is expected to provide courses at its Letterkenny campus in Donegal and at Mountbellew, Co Galway, where its agricultural college is based.
Some new places will come on-stream in Atlantic Technological University from next September, though sources say it many take a number of years for the full complement of places to be available across both universities. Capital funding of about €50 million will be needed to build or expand facilities.
University College Dublin (UCD) currently offers the only degree in veterinary science on the island of Ireland.
There is huge demand annually for places with students needing 580 points or more to access the internationally renowned course.
On average, UCD produces 80 graduates who join the Irish veterinary ranks every year.
It is estimated that at least 120 young Irish people – who do not meet those points requirements – travel abroad each year to study veterinary science at universities in the UK and in cities such as Warsaw in Poland and Budapest in Hungary.
In 2022, the Higher Education Authority (HEA) established a process to identify opportunities in the higher education system to build capacity in veterinary medicine and other areas within the higher education system.
The move was prompted by a serious shortage of qualified vets for pets and farm animals facing the Irish veterinary industry, with some practices advertising for more than a year to fill positions.
A number of universities had been seeking to have veterinary colleges on their campuses, including University of Limerick (UL), University College Cork (UCC) and University of Galway.
The decision to establish both colleges in recently-established technological universities will likely be see as a vote of confidence by decision-makers in the new sector.
Mr O’Donovan, said the investment would be “transformative” for veterinary education.
Speaking at the National Ploughing Championships, Mr O’Donovan said: “A lot of people at the moment who want to study veterinary have no choice but to leave the State. They go to eastern Europe, predominantly Hungary.”
The near doubling of places will “undoubtedly ease pressure” on Leaving Certificate students hoping to go into the sector and while the increase in graduates will “relieve a significant amount of pressure” on veterinary practices, he said.
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