This fall, Arkansas State University plans to welcome its first Doctor of Veterinary Medicine class, launching Arkansas' first veterinary college and putting a full DVM program much closer to the Memphis region. The new school is the result of years of planning and construction on A-State's Jonesboro campus, and university leaders say it is designed to widen access to large- and small-animal care across the Mid-South. Local clinics and agricultural operations are expected to benefit from shorter trips for specialty care and a stronger pipeline of veterinarians in training.
Arkansas State says it has received a Letter of "Reasonable Assurance" from the American Veterinary Medical Association's Council on Education, clearing the way to recruit and admit students for a Fall 2026 start. "We are thrilled to have received our Letter of Reasonable Assurance, which allows us to begin recruiting and admitting students for entry this fall," Dean Heidi Banse said, according to Arkansas State University. The university says students who enroll will enter a four-year, competency-based DVM curriculum and will receive provisional accreditation once classes begin.
New Building, Barns, And The First Class
The veterinary college will operate out of a new 56,000-square-foot teaching facility that includes laboratories, a surgical skills area, flexible classrooms, and dedicated barns for large-animal training. ASU System notes that the $33.2 million building broke ground in March 2025, topped out in October 2025, and is on schedule for move-in this summer ahead of fall classes. The plan is to admit roughly 120 students into the inaugural class while A-State ramps up clinical partnerships across Arkansas and the broader region, according to ASU System.
Closer For Memphis Pre-Vet Students
Locally, the launch is being framed as the nearest accredited veterinary medicine option to Memphis, cutting what had been a multi-hour haul down to a far more manageable drive. The Memphis Business Journal reported that the new school puts a DVM program just across the state line, and route calculators show the drive from Memphis to Jonesboro is roughly 70 miles, or about an hour and 15 minutes by car, according to TravelMath. Local educators say that kind of commute could make clinical rotations and future hiring easier for Mid-South employers.
Why State Schools Are Boosting Vet Capacity
State officials and veterinary educators point to ongoing gaps in animal-care coverage, particularly in rural, food-animal, and mixed practices, and say additional training seats are part of the fix. A 2024 analysis commissioned by the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges projects that current educational capacity will lag behind projected demand through 2032, a data point advocates cite when pushing for new programs, according to AAVMC. In the same spirit, Mississippi State's veterinary college has highlighted a $32 million state investment, describing it as part of a regional push to grow veterinary training and services, according to Mississippi State University College of Veterinary Medicine.
What Applicants And Clinics Should Know
A-State has opened applications for its inaugural DVM cohort and says the teaching building is expected to be ready for move-in by early July, with a ribbon cutting planned before fall classes begin. For Memphis students on pre-vet tracks and for area clinics looking to hire, the closer campus is being promoted as a chance for shorter commutes during clinical rotations and a more direct pipeline of graduates into Mid-South practices, according to the University of Memphis.
