American College of Veterinary Surgeons (ACVS): How to Become Board-Certified

ACVS certifies surgeons in small animal surgery and large animal surgery, the two specialties AVMA lists under the college.

The choice matters early, because ACVS residents train in a curriculum: the Small Animal Curriculum, or the Large Animal–Equine Emphasis and Large Animal–General Curricula, each with its own procedure minimums.

AVMA counts 2,588 active ACVS diplomates as of December 31, 2025, and lists 1,167 under small animal and 530 under large animal.

Those two figures do not add up to the college total, so read the split exactly as AVMA prints it rather than as a complete breakdown.

ACVS treats an internship of 12 months' duration, or its equivalent, as the prerequisite to enter a residency training program.

The residency itself is a minimum of three years, which ACVS counts as 156 weeks of supervised training, postgraduate education and clinical experience in veterinary surgery.

There is also a clock on the whole thing: all resident training requirements must be met within six consecutive years of the start of the residency.

Read together, that means planning on the internship year plus three residency years at minimum, with the six-year limit as the outer bound.

ACVS allows an alternative residency that must meet the same criteria as the traditional program but may run longer than the consecutive 156 weeks, up to twice the typical time.

It is not a shortcut around the residency, and it does not waive the internship prerequisite.

It is a way to satisfy the same requirements over a longer period, which the standards describe as allowing a significant degree of flexibility.

Anyone weighing it should check the six-year limit on meeting all resident training requirements against the schedule they have in mind.

During the residency, surgical procedures are logged in the Resident Training Log: at least 400 in the Small Animal Curriculum, or 300 in the large animal curricula, with minimums in each core category.

Certification also needs a scientific manuscript accepted in an approved journal.

The credentials application gathers the log, proof of passing Phase I, the publication and letters of reference, against an annual August 1 deadline, within five consecutive credentialing cycles after the residency.

Phase I Surgical Knowledge can be taken at any time during the residency, optimally in year two, and must be passed within six years of the residency's start.

Phase II Surgical Competency comes after the residency and accepted credentials, with a case-based section and a practical section graded separately.

Diplomates certified by ACVS in 2016 or later hold time-limited certificates.

The first one runs until the sixth December 31 after the examination, and each successful round of maintenance of certification brings a revised certificate for five years.

Maintenance of certification follows ACVS's own policies and procedures, so check them before the first certificate's end date.