2025 Application Instructions will be available soon! 

Click below for the current application year's application information.

It is imperative that applicants carefully read and fully understand these requirements and the application instructions (linked above).  Submitted applications will be reviewed for completeness and if any deficiencies are noted, the application will be denied without review of Case Logs or Case Reports.

Intent to Apply

Part 1 (due March 15 of the application year)

Proof of Credentialing
  • An electronic (PDF, JPEG, etc.) copy of proof of credentialing (certificate/license/registration) covering every year / hour of work / hour of continuing education must also be submitted as part of your application.
  • The minimum work experience required to apply for certification as a VTS in Internal Medicine is at least three years AND 6,000 hours as a credentialed veterinary technician in the field of Internal Medicine. This experience must be completed within five years prior to application. 
  • In addition to the completion of the Professional History and Employment section of the Part 1 Application Form, further verification of work hours may be required in the form of pay stubs or a letter from your employer(s).
  • Of the 6,000 hours (minimum) of work as a credentialed veterinary technician in the field of veterinary internal medicine required to qualify for application, the applicant must have a minimum of 4,500 contact hours in their specific specialty area. 
  • UNITED STATES APPLICANTS:  You must hold a credential as a veterinary technician (CVT/LVT/LVMT/RVT) issued by a veterinary regulatory authority of one of the fifty US states.  Currently, it is not required that applicants be credentialed by the regulatory authority of the state in which they live and/or practice.
  • CANADIAN APPLICANTS:  You must hold a credential issued by your provincial veterinary regulatory authority.  See the application instructions for links to each Province's regulatory authority.
  • BRITISH APPLICANTS:  You must be enrolled in the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons’ (RCVS) Veterinary Nurse register.
  • IRISH APPLICANTS:  You must be registered with the Veterinary Council of Ireland.
  • AUSTRALIAN APPLICANTS:   In Western Australia, contact the Veterinary Surgeons' Board to complete your registration.  In other Australian states, voluntary registration with the Veterinary Nurses' Council of Australia will meet this requirement.
  • NEW ZEALAND APPLICANTS:  Voluntary regulation and registration are in place in New Zealand for veterinary technicians and nurses working in clinical veterinary practice.  You may join the register via the Allied Veterinary Professional Regulatory Council of New Zealand.
  • OTHER INTERNATIONAL APPLICANTS:  If your country does not currently issue licenses or other registration for veterinary support team members, and you have completed a college-level course in Veterinary Technology or Veterinary Nursing, you may qualify for the Veterinary Technician National Examination (VTNE).  The American Association of Veterinary State Boards (AAVSB) is the organization that administers the VTNE and determines if graduates are qualified to take the examination via the Program for Assessment of Veterinary Education Equivalence (PAVE).  PAVE for Veterinary Technicians defines an "international veterinary technician/nurse graduate" as a veterinary technician/nurse whose degree was conferred outside of the United States and Canada by a recognized post-secondary, professional school of veterinary technology/nursing or equivalent program. A "recognized" school is one that is officially approved by, and meets the educational requirements for credentialing per, the government of its country.
     
    Applicants may qualify to sit for the VTNE via the PAVE program.  After successful passage of the VTNE, they may apply for their credential in one of the states or regions that accepts PAVE reciprocity.  Once the credential is issued, applicants may begin accruing both work experience and continuing education credits in order to qualify for their AIMVT application.
Work Experience
  • All work hours submitted as part of the AIMVT application must have been performed as a credentialed veterinary technician.
  • The minimum work experience required to apply for VTS certification is at least 3 years and 6,000 hours as a credentialed veterinary technician in the field of Internal Medicine. This experience must be completed within five years prior to application.
  • A minimum of 4,500 contact hours in your specialty is required. Verification may be requested in the form of pay stubs or a letter from your employer(s) at the discretion of the Credentialing Committee.  Please see the applications instructions for your application year for information on how work hours are calculated.
  • We recognize that, since the COVID pandemic, some applicants may be working at home for some portion of their time, perhaps doing call-backs or other specialty-specific work. These hours will count towards the total minimum required hours (6,000) working in IM as a CrVT but will NOT count towards your specialty-specific required hours (4,500). Those 4,500 (minimum) hours must be CONTACT hours, meaning you are in direct contact with patients in the veterinary practice.
  • For the application year (October 1 - September 30), applicants must be IN THE PRACTICE IN PERSON in order to work on and collect the appropriate cases needed to apply.
  • Depending on your work experience, you have different requirements for whom may sign off on MASTERY of the advanced skills in your specialty:
    • Option 1 – For technicians who work 75% or more in their specialty, any VTS or DVM from the list may sign off on the skills list.
    • Option 2 – For  technicians who work 55-75% in their specialty, only a VTS or Diplomate in that specialty may sign off on the skills list.
Continuing Education
  • All Continuing Education (CE) submitted as part of the AIMVT application must have been obtained as a credentialed veterinary technician.
  • You must have a minimum of 40 hours of continuing education taken/attended within five (5) years of your Part 1 application date - March 15 of your application year.
  • Over-submission of hours is encouraged in cases of disqualification of any CE submitted deemed as unacceptable or not relevant by the Credentialing Committee.​
  • The content of qualifying continuing education must meet the definition of Internal Medicine (see the definitions of each specialty from the Academy's by-laws). A minimum of 70% of the continuing education must be in the specialty of application; up to 30% of the continuing education may be in general internal medicine topics.
  • Proof of attendance is required. Scanned copies of attendance certificates must be uploaded to the online form. Further verification of CE attendance such as receipts or proceedings may be required.
  • A detailed listing of individual lectures attended is required; CE may not be listed by conference. (i.e. can not list ACVIM 20 hours on the form, actual lecture titles must be included).
  • CE attended before credentialing will NOT qualify.
  • Your own lectures or presentations may NOT be submitted as part of your required CE hours.
  • All CE must be completed within the last five (5) years immediately prior to the application submission deadline.
  • CE must meet RACE (Registry of Approved Continuing Education) certification requirements or its equivalent (as determined by the AIMVT Credentialing Committee). Please go to www.aavsb.org for more information on RACE certification.
  • Online CE is acceptable, as long as it is provided by a VTS or Diplomate and meets the other above-listed criteria.
  • RECOVER certification is acceptable as general internal medicine CE.
  • Fear Free certification is NOT accepted as part of the CE requirement.
  • The Academy offers free CE every other month from each specialty of AIMVT
Feel free to use this spreadsheet template to help track your continuing education/professional development hours prior to your application.
*You will not submit this spreadsheet. It is for your use to keep the information in one place, organized for your submission.
Universal Advanced Skills
  • In 2024, the Academy is introduction AIMVT universal advanced skills (linked above).
  • These are skills that Credentialed Veterinary Technicians (CrVTs) who have been working in their specialty for the minimum required three years must master prior to applying for their VTS.
  • Mastery of these skills must be attested to and submitted as part of part 1 of the application.
  • 50% of the mastered skills must be cited in the applicant's Case Logs submitted in part 2 (see below).
  • This change is part of our ongoing effort to improve the application process for applicants.  To read more about these changes, please visit the main Apply page.

Part 2 (due September 30 of the application year)

Case Logs and Reports
  • See the Application Instructions packet for specific requirements.
Attestation of Mastery of Specialty-Specific Fundamental and Essential Advanced Skills
  • See the Application Instructions packet and the webpage for specific requirements for your application year.
Supporting Documentation of Mastery of Essential Advanced Skills
  • See the Application Instructions packet and the webpage for specific requirements for your application year.
Exam Questions
  • Submit three potential examination questions specific to the area of specialty you are seeking VTS certification in (e.g., Small Animal Internal Medicine, Cardiology, Neurology, Oncology). 
  • Examination questions should represent a thoughtful representation of your advanced skills or knowledge.
  • You are encouraged to submit questions from different domains to demonstrate your knowledge base.
  • Click here to download the Guidelines for Exam Questions
Letters of Recommendation (due September 1st of your application year)
  • Two letters of recommendation from a VTS member of AIMVT, or a Diplomate of the American or European College of Veterinary Internal Medicine (DACVIM). Until there are sufficient numbers of the aforementioned, letters of recommendation will be accepted from the following: VTS members of AVTAA, AVTCP,  AVST, AVECCTN, or ALAVTN; Diplomates in Anesthesia/Analgesia (DACVAA), Emergency & Critical Care (DACVECC), Surgery (DACVS), Clinical Practice (DABVP), or Radiation Oncology (DACVR-O).
  • In the event the applicant does not have access to TWO of the above-listed VTS-es or Diplomates, the Academy will accept ONE of the two required letters of recommendation from a licensed DVM with an additional letter from said DVM stating that no Diplomate or VTS is easily available for the applicant to utilize. 
  • Letters of recommendation are due September 1st and must be sent directly from the recommending party using this link:  https://www.cognitoforms.com/AcademyOfInternalMedicineForVeterinaryTechnicians/aimvtletterofrecommendation