The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies (abbreviated as the Dick Vet) is the veterinary school within the College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland.
The School was ranked first in the UK in the ShanghaiRanking's Global Ranking of Academic Subjects 2022 – Veterinary Sciences, second in the UK by the QS World University Rankings 2023 for Veterinary Science, first in the UK for the sixth year running by the Guardian League Table 2022, and second in the UK for the second year running by the Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide ranking for Veterinary Medicine.
Contents
History
Originally called the Highland Society's Veterinary School, Edinburgh, the Dick Vet, as it came to be known, was established by William Dick, a former student of the anatomist John Barclay of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh. The first regular classes at the school were begun in November 1823, although lectures to small groups of students had been provided for four years prior to this date. That first session of regular classes was financed by student fees and a grant from the Highland Society of Scotland at Edinburgh, of which John Barclay was a director. Mary Dick, William's elder sister, was reputed to have been instrumental, from the early days, in the administration of the school.
Clyde Street
In 1833, William Dick, who was by then a successful veterinary practitioner and teacher, paid for construction of purpose-built accommodation near the site of his father's forge in a Clyde Street courtyard. William lived adjacent at 15 Clyde Street. (Today Multrees Walk is approximately where Clyde Street was.) This was the base for the school until it moved to its next site at Summerhall in 1916. In 1839, his school officially became a college and William Dick was given the title professor. By the time of Dick's death in 1866, the over 2000 students he had taught were to be found throughout the world. Among them were the founders of veterinary schools in Australia, Canada, Ireland and the United States. On his death, Dick bequeathed his college in trust to the Burgh Council of Edinburgh.
It was officially named Dick's Veterinary College following a request made by his sister, in 1873, in response to a crisis caused by the establishment of the rival New Veterinary College set up by alumnus and former Principal William Williams. Williams had taken with him the majority of the students, and the library. The two schools existed amicably within 100 m of one another in Edinburgh's New Town until 1904, when the Williams' school moved to Liverpool, England, forming the basis of the University of Liverpool Faculty of Veterinary Science. The Royal (Dick) Veterinary College was incorporated by Act of Parliament in 1906.
Summerhall
Orlando Charnock Bradley was principal of the Dick Vet when it moved in 1916 to the south side of Edinburgh, to another purpose-designed building, at Summerhall.
On 10 May 1951 the college was reconstituted as The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, and officially became part of the University of Edinburgh, and became a full Faculty of Veterinary Medicine in 1964. Reorganisation of the university in 2002 resulted in the abolishment of Faculties, and the Dick Vet once again became The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, one of the four Schools within the College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine.
In 2009, Scottish Television filmed a five-part documentary at the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies. Some of the cases shown on the documentary follow a wild swan needing an endoscopy, a horse in emergency colic surgery, a skunk being neutered, a chameleon with an eye infection, and the removal of a tumour near a cat's heart.
William Dick Building
The William Dick Building, was opened for teaching in September 2011 by Anne, Princess Royal and sits on the Easter Bush Campus. It contains purpose-built facilities for veterinary teaching, including a clinical skills laboratory, anatomy facilities and two lecture theatres. It holds a canteen which is open to staff, students and the general public. The Scottish figurative sculptor Andy Scott (sculptor) created the original artwork Canter for the facility's opening.
National Avian Research Facility
In September 2013, the National Avian Research Facility was opened on the Easter Bush campus in partnership with the Pirbright Institute. NARF's mission is to improve the productivity, health and welfare of poultry through research on host-pathogen interactions, avian genetics, development and physiology using state-of-the-art technologies.
Charnock Bradley Building
The Charnock Bradley Building is a hub for the Easter Bush Campus, providing a home for the Roslin Innovation Centre, Easter Bush Science Outreach Centre (EBSOC) and the Easter Bush Gym. Opened in May 2018 by the Princess Royal the building contains office and laboratory space. Located in front of the building sits Canter a sculpture by Andy Scot, who is best known for The Kelpies. it was unveiled in May 2018 at the same time as the building opened and the 15 ft steel statue of a horse's head forms the centrepiece of the entrance plaza.
The Easter Bush Science Outreach Centre (EBSOC) was opened on 1 May 2018 by the Princess Royal. EBSOC is a purpose-built teaching laboratory, which offers interactive curriculum linked learning experiences for school pupils and community groups.
People
Notable alumni
Joseph Henry Carter (1857–1930), President of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons in 1920
Min Chueh Chang (1908–1991), clinical fellow in agricultural science, co-inventor of the combined oral contraceptive pill and winner of the Albert Lasker Award
Robin Coombs, (1921–2006, grad. 1943), who devised the ′Coombs test′, a critical diagnostic test for use in haematology and blood transfusion
John Boyd Dunlop, (1840–1921, grad. 1859?60), inventor of the first practical pneumatic tyre, and founder of Dunlop Rubber Company
Sir Frederick Fitzwygram, (1823–1904), president of the RCVS (1875–1877) and as such unified the veterinary profession
George Fleming (1833–1901, grad. 1855), founder of the Veterinary Journal in 1875, architect of the 1881 Vet Surgeons Act
James Law, the first professor of veterinary medicine in the United States (Cornell)
James McCall, established the Glasgow Veterinary College in 1862
Duncan McNab McEachran, (1841–1924, grad. 1861), co-founder of the Upper Canada Veterinary School in 1863, founder of the Montreal Vet College in 1866,
Albert E. Mettam, (1866–1917) first principal of Royal Vet College, Dublin
Prof William Christopher Miller Professor of Animal Husbandry at the Royal Veterinary College, London
Hamish Moore, (grad. 1975), maker, musician and teacher of Scottish Bagpipes, especially the Scottish Smallpipes.
Notable staff
Prof Robert Stewart MacDougall (1862–1947)
Prof William McGregor Mitchell (1888–1970)
Prof David Frederick Cottrell (1947–2009)
Neil Hudson (politician), Member of Parliament – first vet elected to the House of Commons since 1884.
Prof Susan Rhind OBE is the Director of Veterinary Teaching and Chair of Veterinary Medical Education
Directors
From amalgamation with Edinburgh University in 1951 the role became first director then dean of faculty rather than principal of the college.
William Dick (veterinarian) from 1823 to 1866
Col James Hallen 1866/67
William Williams (veterinarian) from 1867 to 1873
Thomas Walley from 1874 to 1894
John R. U. Dewar from 1895 to 1911
Orlando Charnock Bradley from 1911 to 1937
Robert G. Linton (acting 1938/39)
Sir Arthur Olver from 1939 to 1945
Donald C. Matheson (acting 1946)
William McGregor Mitchell from 1947 to 1951 as Principal and 1951 to 1958 as Director of Vet Education
Alexander Robertson (veterinarian) from 1958 to 1964 as Director and 1964 to 1970 as Dean
Frank Alexander Dean 1970 to 1974
Ainsley Iggo 1974 to 1977
Ian Stuart Beattie from 1977 to 1980
Keith Dyce from 1980 to 1984
James T. Baxter 1984/85
Ainsley Iggo (second term) 1985 to 1990
Richard Halliwell (veterinarian) from 1990 to 1994