You may have heard the nation faces a shortage of doctors. It also faces a shortage of veterinarians. LSU is taking steps to address the problem.
"There is a big shortage of veterinarians in Louisiana and indeed the U.S. and the world," says LSU School of Veterinary Medicine Dean Oliver Garden.
Garden says they are responding by nearly doubling class sizes.
"We laid the focus on expanding our classes from 120 per year to 200, up to a maximum of 220," Garden said.
He says they received 1,500 applicants last year. The main problem --- a lack of space and professors. LSU is committing millions to expanding its surgical training center, its classroom space, and hiring more faculty.
Garden says they have $2.2 million from the state, but they need more.
"We are also requesting an additional $10 million in order to complete these roles", he said, "and we’re obviously putting some of our own money into the mix as well."
Garden says they are also increasing scholarship offerings to attract qualified students.
