Vet Tech Programs in Virginia
AVMA lists 3 CVTEA-accredited veterinary technology programs in Virginia, every one based at a community college and every one awarding an Associate of Applied Science — there is no bachelor's program on the state's list.
All 3 are listed as fully accredited, and Northern Virginia Community College also appears on AVMA's separate distance-education list.
Virginia's license to practice veterinary technology asks for a degree from an AVMA- or CVMA-accredited program plus the VTNE, so this list is the education route into the credential.
Accredited programs
3
Offer an associate degree
3
Offer a bachelor's
0
Status to check
0
Source: AVMA Committee on Veterinary Technician Education and Activities (CVTEA), “Veterinary technology programs accredited by the AVMA CVTEA” and “Distance education programs in veterinary technology accredited by the AVMA CVTEA”, retrieved 2026-09-23. “Status to check” counts programs whose AVMA status line reads anything other than plain full accreditation.
Check the list and the board before you enroll
AVMA-accredited programs in Virginia
AVMA lists 3 accredited veterinary technology programs in Virginia, alphabetically below, with each degree, date and status line exactly as AVMA prints it. A struck-through degree is one AVMA marks as discontinued.
Veterinary Technology Program · Weyers Cave, VA
- Associate of Applied Science
Initial accreditation: November, 1976
FULL ACCREDITATION
Veterinary Technology Program · Sterling, VA
- Associate of Applied Science
Initial accreditation: April 1980)
FULL ACCREDITATION
Veterinary Technology Program · Virginia Beach, VA
- Associate of Applied Science
Initial accreditation: February 7, 2020 · Next evaluation (as AVMA lists it): 2030
FULL ACCREDITATION
From AVMA’s CVTEA program list, retrieved 2026-09-23.
Three programs, all associate degrees, no bachelor's
All 3 of Virginia's programs sit at community colleges, and each awards an Associate of Applied Science: Blue Ridge Community College in Weyers Cave, Northern Virginia Community College in Sterling and Tidewater Community College in Virginia Beach.
That makes the associate degree the only level on the state's list — AVMA lists no Virginia program awarding a bachelor's.
The initial-accreditation dates run from November 1976 at Blue Ridge Community College through April 1980 at Northern Virginia Community College to February 7, 2020 at Tidewater Community College, the newest entry, and AVMA gives Tidewater Community College the list's only next-evaluation year: 2030.
The list prints each program's city, degree, dates and status line.
Anything it does not carry, from schedules to clinical placements, is a question for the school.
Northern Virginia Community College and the distance-education route
Northern Virginia Community College is the one program based in Virginia on AVMA's distance-education list, and its full-accreditation line appears on both of AVMA's lists — the by-state list and the distance list — so the two listings agree.
AVMA names 13 distance programs in all, each listed under the state where it is based, and the full set is listed lower on this page.
For any of them, a Virginia resident needs two answers before enrolling: whether the school admits students living in Virginia, and how it arranges the supervised clinical hours every accredited program requires at a practice near the student.
What Virginia's license asks of a program
Virginia licenses veterinary technicians through the Virginia Board of Veterinary Medicine, part of the Department of Health Professions.
The standard route, licensure by examination, asks for a degree from an AVMA- or CVMA-accredited veterinary technology program plus VTNE scores released to Virginia through AAVSB — so every program on the list above satisfies the accreditation side of that education test.
The second route, endorsement, is for technicians already credentialed in another US jurisdiction: a current unrestricted out-of-state credential, documented recent clinical practice and 16 hours of continuing education — and one wizard option takes a nongraduate who has passed the VTNE, so the accredited degree is not the only way in.
Whether employment as a technician requires the license is not settled on the sources read.
The credential card below renders from the state's requirements page.
Virginia Board of Veterinary Medicine (Dept. of Health Professions)
A license to practice veterinary technology issued by the Virginia Board of Veterinary Medicine, part of the Department of Health Professions — which the research row pairs with the Licensed Veterinary Technician (LVT) designation.
Two routes: licensure by examination (a degree from an AVMA- or CVMA-accredited veterinary technology program), or endorsement for technicians holding a current unrestricted credential from a regulatory entity in another US jurisdiction, with clinical practice in at least two of the past four years and 16 hours of CE in the preceding four.
The VTNE, with scores released to Virginia through AAVSB; endorsement can substitute national exam scores for the program transcript, and one application route takes a graduate licensed elsewhere who has not passed the VTNE. No Virginia-specific jurisprudence exam was found on the page read.
AVMA’s distance-education list
AVMA names 13 programs on a separate distance-education list. Each is listed under the state where it is based. Whether a program admits students living in Virginia, and how it arranges clinical placements there, is a question for the program.
From AVMA’s distance-education program list, retrieved 2026-09-23.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many accredited vet tech programs are in Virginia?
AVMA's CVTEA list, retrieved September 23, 2026, names 3 accredited veterinary technology programs in Virginia: Blue Ridge Community College in Weyers Cave, Northern Virginia Community College in Sterling and Tidewater Community College in Virginia Beach.
Each awards an Associate of Applied Science, and each carries full accreditation.
Accreditation status changes, so check AVMA's own list for the current entry before you apply.
Is there a bachelor's degree vet tech program in Virginia?
No. All 3 of the programs on AVMA's Virginia list award an Associate of Applied Science, and none lists a bachelor's.
The standard license route does not ask for a bachelor's either: the Virginia Board of Veterinary Medicine's examination route takes a degree from an AVMA- or CVMA-accredited veterinary technology program, which the associate degree satisfies.
For degree options beyond this state's list, check AVMA's own national list and the schools directly.
Can I study for the Virginia credential through a distance program?
Northern Virginia Community College is the one program based in Virginia on AVMA's distance-education list, which names 13 distance programs in all under their home states.
Any online route starts with that distance list, so ask each school two questions: whether it admits students living in Virginia, and how it arranges the supervised clinical hours an accredited program requires at a practice near you.
Can I get a Virginia vet tech license without an accredited program?
Yes, through endorsement — if you hold a current unrestricted license, certification or registration issued by a regulatory entity in another US jurisdiction.
The Board's wizard shows a nongraduate option: someone licensed in another US jurisdiction who has passed the VTNE and documented recent clinical practice can qualify without graduating from an accredited veterinary technology or veterinary nurse program, plus 16 hours of continuing education.
A veterinary technology association's certification alone is not accepted.
A first-time applicant with no out-of-state credential should plan on an accredited program.
Is Northern Virginia Community College's vet tech program accredited?
Yes.
AVMA lists Northern Virginia Community College on full accreditation, and the same status line appears on both of AVMA's lists — the by-state list and the distance-education list.
AVMA prints its initial accreditation as April 1980.
Status lines change, so confirm the current entry on AVMA's list before you apply.
More Virginia Veterinary Technician Resources
Sources
- AVMA CVTEA — Veterinary technology programs accredited by the AVMA CVTEA (Virginia section and status definitions) (retrieved 2026-09-23)
- AVMA CVTEA — Distance education programs in veterinary technology accredited by the AVMA CVTEA (retrieved 2026-09-23)
- Virginia Board of Veterinary Medicine — Apply for a License: Veterinary Technology, as summarised on the Virginia requirements page (retrieved 2026-09-16)
Program list: AVMA CVTEA, retrieved 2026-09-23. Page last updated 2026-09-23.