Careers

Working at VCA California Veterinary Specialists - Carlsbad

Our San Diego County hospital is located in Carlsbad, a coastal community with near-perfect weather and two world-class resorts. It supports economic development yet sets aside 40 percent of its land for open space.

It has attracted an international theme park and has become the golf capital of the world. Carlsbad has a commuter train, great bus service, and the busiest single-runway airport in the nation. A great place to live, with miles of beaches, terrific shopping, and excellent schools.

Veterinary Specialists and Specialty Technicians

Veterinary Specialists are a cornerstone of the care provided by VCA Animal Hospitals. With more than 85 specialty hospitals and over 600 board certified doctors, we are able to offer every available treatment option to patients and their families. Our 3,700 credentialed veterinary technicians and veterinary technician specialists deliver exceptional patient care and are the backbone of every VCA Animal Hospital.

We know you have questions about a career with VCA, so we have assembled some FAQs.

Interested in current openings for veterinarians or technicians at VCA Animal Hospitals? Visit www.vcacareers.com and search by location or job title.

"As a specialist, I rely on the VCA support system that is critical to my professional development, including extensive continuing medical education and direct contact with my regional medical director. For business related support my hospital manager and regional operations director are always available, and I love meeting people and expanding my network within the VCA family."

Why Work for VCA

  • A choice among medical plans, dental plans and vision plans
  • Health Savings Accounts (HSA) and both healthcare and dependent care Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs)
  • Company-paid life insurance and the option to purchase supplemental life insurance
  • Short-term and long-term disability plans
  • 401(k) plan with company match
  • Voluntary plans including supplemental medical plans, identity protection, prepaid legal service and more
  • VCA supported employee assistance program
  • Ability to transfer within VCA hospitals across North America
  • An impressive pet care discount for employee pets

Professional development for veterinarians includes online medical content, attendance at national conferences, as well as leadership development. For technicians, VCA offers various forms of continuing education support, including many online options, and scholarships to attend Penn Foster’s Veterinary Technician/Assistant programs.

VCA veterinarians practice medicine their way, with no corporate restrictions, quotas, or flowcharts. We provide excellent equipment and support, and let you take it from there. VCA offers flexible compensation options including production plans without negative accrual.  We want your paycheck to be a reward for a job well done, not a cause for stress.

Extending care into our local communities is the ethos of what we do, and what we stand for, and it goes far beyond our hospital doors. We believe the power of healing comes from more than medicine. That’s why the welfare of pets in need (and the people who love them) is important to us. Read more about https://vcahospitals.com/about-us#social-responsibility .

VCA Pet CancerCare Alliance
  • A nationally collected organization of colleagues that is improving communication and collaboration throughout the group. You will not be alone but will have access to dozens of colleagues to help guide your decision making. 
  • Industry partners in the veterinary oncology space are now recognizing the power of VCA's oncology network in both the quality and quantity of case accruals. More and more clinical trials are available for those who are interested. 
  • A network this large allows for some career flexibility if life finds you in need of relocating.
    Learn more about VCA's PetCancerCare Alliance

VCA Partnership with Varian in the Fight against Pet Cancer
The VCA Animal Hospitals partnership with Varian provides advanced pet cancer radiotherapy treatment at select specialty hospitals.
Many VCA Pet CancerCare™ Centers will install a fully integrated suite of Varian products, including its ARIA® and Eclipse™ software platforms and TrueBeam® or Halcyon™ radiotherapy systems. VCA board-certified oncology teams will develop individualized treatment plans for pets using advanced software (Varian Eclipse), proprietary machine learning, artificial intelligence, and patient-specific computed tomography scans.
Learn more about this partnership: https://vcahospitals.com/press-center

We understand how important health and well-being are to every associate. We also know that well-being is comprised of many different elements: physical, mental, financial, community, and career satisfaction. At VCA, we ensure that associates have tools and resources for use in personal situations and by hospital groups. We are committed to making a positive difference in the lives of associates, our hospital communities, and the profession as a whole.

Externs

Our specialty practices are enthusiastic about hosting veterinary student externs. Veterinary students in their 3rd or 4th year of school can apply for an externship with VCA Animal Hospitals as part of their formal externship blocks. Start your application online at www.vcacareers.com.

We know you have questions about externships with VCA, so we have assembled some FAQs.

Extern FAQ's

Many students use their externships as an extended interview, and we strongly encourage this! Please let your VCA recruiter know of your interest, and they can help set up externships with practices that might be a good fit after graduation. If you have not met a VCA recruiter, please email us at Recruiting@vca.com.

At this time, we are unable to provide housing for veterinary student externs, but our network of up to 1,000 hospitals means you can most likely find an externship opportunity in an affordable city or one in which you have a friend or relative!

At this time, we are unable to provide stipends for student externs. 

Interns

As the largest postgraduate provider of veterinary education in North America, VCA believes in the benefit of one-year paid internships for veterinary graduates, providing intensive training and real-world practice experience. In 2019, VCA engaged 183 interns, and of those interested in residencies, 85% found a placement as a specialty intern or resident following their internship.

We know you have questions about internships with VCA, so we have assembled some FAQs.

Intern FAQ's

All VCA internship programs go through the VIRMP match, so your application should start at https://www.virmp.org/. 

Our dedicated internship director is available to help you navigate all phases of your internship, from initial placement to your post-internship options. As a VCA intern, you will receive a competitive salary and unparalleled support from your VCA team.

We definitely want to meet you as we move through the match process. If you are able to visit the hospital, we would really enjoy spending time with you. If meeting in person is not possible, video interviews and tours can be arranged. If you have externship blocks you can spend with us, that’s even better! Your VCA recruiter can help coordinate a visit, so if you have not met your VCA recruiter, please email us at Recruiting@vca.com.