VTS-EVN: Academy of Equine Veterinary Nursing Technicians
The Academy of Equine Veterinary Nursing Technicians (AEVNT) awards the VTS-EVN, and NAVTA lists it among the fully recognized academies.
The requirement to plan around first is the experience floor: 4 years and 8,000 hours of credentialed work, with at least 70% (5,000 hours) of it in advanced equine veterinary nursing.
Almost everything else in the application — the case logs, the case reports, the skills list — is drawn from that equine caseload, so the years you spend doing equine nursing matter more than your total time in practice.
Credential
VTS-EVN
NAVTA recognition
Full
Tracks
One
Confirm every requirement with the academy
AEVNT at a glance
The Academy of Equine Veterinary Nursing Technicians (AEVNT) awards VTS-EVN.
NAVTA recognition: full. NAVTA’s list places it under “The following Academies have met the NAVTA CVTS requirements for full recognition.”
NAVTA’s description: “AEVNT advances the education and professional recognition of credentialed equine veterinary technicians who display excellence in, and dedication to providing superior nursing care to equine patients.”
AEVNT requirements, from the academy’s own pages
Experience
Applicants need a minimum of 4 years (8,000 hours) of credentialed work experience, with at least 70% (5,000 hours) in advanced equine veterinary nursing.
The academy’s wording
“Minimum accumulation requirement: 4 years (8,000 hours) of credentialed work experience, with at least 70% (5,000 hours) specializing in advanced equine veterinary nursing.”
AEVNT Application Instruction PacketCase log
Applicants submit a minimum of 50, and no more than 75, case logs covering the year immediately before submission.
The academy’s wording
“You must submit a minimum of fifty (50), but no more than seventy-five (75), case logs. These contain information about cases you have worked on over the year immediately preceding application submission.”
AEVNT Application Instruction PacketCase reports
AEVNT candidates submit five (5) detailed case reports, selected from their existing case logs, reflecting equine veterinary nursing.
The academy’s wording
“You must submit five (5) detailed case reports reflecting equine veterinary nursing. These case reports should be selected from your existing brief case logs and include all information covered within that log.”
AEVNT Application Instruction PacketSkills list
All candidates must show proficiency in 100% of category 1 skills and 75% of the skills in categories 2-13 (145 of the remaining 193 skills).
The academy’s wording
“All qualified candidates must show proficiency in 100% of skills in category 1. All qualified candidates must show proficiency in 75% of skills in categories 2-13. This is 145 skills out of the remaining 193 skills.”
AEVNT Application Instruction PacketContinuing education
A minimum of 50 CE hours must be completed within the 3 years before applying, with no more than 10 hours from online courses and at least 10 hours within the year before the May 1 application.
The academy’s wording
“A minimum of fifty (50) continuing education hours must be completed within the last three (3) years immediately prior to submitting this application. *No more than 10 of the 50 CE hours can be obtained through online courses. *At least ten (10) hours must be obtained within one year prior to May 1st application.”
AEVNT Application Instruction PacketLetters of recommendation
A minimum of two letters of recommendation are required, due by March 15 of the application year.
The academy’s wording
“You must obtain a minimum of two (2) letters of recommendation. Letters must be submitted by March 15th of your application year.”
AEVNT Application Instruction PacketApplication
The application deadline is May 1 of the application year at 8 AM CST, with a non-refundable $50 application fee.
The academy’s wording
“The deadline for application submission is May 1st of your application year, 8 AM CST. The candidate will receive confirmation from the board that the application has been received within 24 hours. The application fee is $50.00 and is non-refundable.”
AEVNT Application Instruction PacketExam
The exam is held in December alongside the AAEP/AAEVT annual convention.
The academy’s wording
“The proposed examination date will be in December in conjunction with AAEVT/AAEP Annual Convention.”
AEVNT Application Instruction PacketExam
The exam fee is $150, non-refundable and due by October 1; results are available 4-6 weeks after the exam.
The academy’s wording
“The examination fee is $150.00 and is non-refundable. It is to be paid by October 1st of the application year via PayPal or by check to the AEVNT Treasurer. Information on mailing a check can be obtained via info@aevnt.org. Results will be available 4-6 weeks after completion of the examination.”
AEVNT Application Instruction PacketEach requirement is summarised from AEVNT’s own published pages, as retrieved on the dates listed under Sources. Open “the academy’s wording” for the exact text and its source.
What the VTS-EVN certifies
NAVTA describes AEVNT as advancing the education and professional recognition of credentialed equine veterinary technicians who display excellence in, and dedication to providing superior nursing care to equine patients.
AEVNT's own home page frames the credential the same way: the VTS-EVN goes to applicants who succeed in meeting the criteria through an extensive application and examination.
In practice this is the credential for a technician whose working day is nursing equine patients — the case reports must reflect equine veterinary nursing, and the whole application is built on advanced equine veterinary nursing rather than on general technician work.
4 years and 8,000 hours, with 5,000 in equine nursing
AEVNT's application instructions set the floor as a minimum accumulation requirement: 4 years (8,000 hours) of credentialed work experience, with at least 70% (5,000 hours) specializing in advanced equine veterinary nursing.
The two floors measure different things.
The 8,000-hour total counts credentialed work; the equine share counts only advanced equine veterinary nursing, so a technician in a mixed role can reach the total and still be short on the equine part.
Track the two numbers separately from the start, because the equine share is the one that takes deliberate case selection to build — and note that the printed 5,000 hours and the packet's 70% figure don't sit comfortably together (the last section covers it).
The application: case logs, case reports, the skills list, CE and letters
The application is assembled from your own equine caseload, and its pieces interlock.
You submit between 50 and 75 case logs covering the year immediately preceding application submission, then write 5 detailed case reports selected from those logs.
The skills list requires proficiency in 100% of category 1 skills and 75% of the skills in categories 2-13, which AEVNT works out to 145 of the remaining 193 skills.
Alongside them go a continuing education record of at least 50 hours from the 3 years before applying (no more than 10 online, at least 10 within the year before the May 1 application), at least 2 letters of recommendation due by March 15, and the application itself — due May 1 at 8 AM CST with a non-refundable $50 fee and confirmation of receipt within 24 hours.
A December exam, a $150 fee, and an open question afterward
AEVNT proposes holding the exam in December, in conjunction with the AAEVT/AAEP Annual Convention.
The examination fee is $150, non-refundable, due by October 1 of the application year, and results are available 4-6 weeks after the exam.
The packet's fee structure does state one ongoing obligation: $50 in yearly dues, owed once AEVNT notifies you of a passed score.
What its pages do not state is anything the credential asks of you over the years beyond those dues — no continuing-education, re-examination or time-based requirements — so ask the academy directly what it expects of credential holders down the road before you plan past the exam.
Two AEVNT pages, two different experience figures
AEVNT's own pages, read on September 23, 2026, don't fully agree on the experience split.
The Application Instruction Packet requires at least 70% (5,000 hours) of the 8,000 hours in advanced equine veterinary nursing — but the packet's own figures don't match each other, because 70% of 8,000 hours would be more than 5,000.
The FAQ page's older figures, 75% (3,750 hours) of 8,000, don't match either.
Treat the packet as the operative document and its figures as the ones this page uses, and ask AEVNT directly whether it applies the percentage or the printed hour count — planning against the lower number could leave you short if the percentage is the one enforced.
Pay by VTS specialty
Frequently Asked Questions
How many hours of equine nursing experience does AEVNT require?
AEVNT's application instructions require 4 years (8,000 hours) of credentialed work experience, with at least 70% (5,000 hours) of that time specializing in advanced equine veterinary nursing.
Only credentialed work counts toward the total, and the equine share is measured separately from your overall hours — a mixed role can reach the 8,000 while still falling short of the 5,000-hour equine floor.
How many case logs does an AEVNT application need?
At least 50, and no more than 75.
The case logs cover the cases you worked on over the year immediately preceding application submission, so only cases from that window belong in the log.
The 5 detailed case reports are then selected from those same logs, which makes the log year the foundation the rest of the application is built on.
How much continuing education does the VTS-EVN application require?
A minimum of 50 CE hours completed within the 3 years immediately before you submit.
No more than 10 of the 50 can come from online courses, and at least 10 hours must fall within the year before the May 1 application.
Build the record steadily as you work rather than counting on a late push to cover both limits.
When is the AEVNT exam, and when do results arrive?
AEVNT proposes holding the exam in December, in conjunction with the AAEVT/AAEP Annual Convention.
The examination fee is $150, non-refundable, and is due by October 1 of the application year.
Results are available 4-6 weeks after completion of the examination, so expect to wait about one to one and a half months for the outcome.
How does AEVNT count the equine share of the 8,000 hours?
The Application Instruction Packet says at least 70% (5,000 hours) of the 8,000, but the packet's own figures don't match: 70% of 8,000 hours would be more than 5,000.
The FAQ page's older 75% (3,750 hours) reading doesn't match either.
Work toward the packet's percentage rather than the printed 5,000 hours, and ask AEVNT which one it applies before you commit to an application year.
More VTS Resources
Sources
- NAVTA — List of Approved Academies (retrieved 2026-09-23)
- AEVNT — Academy Of Equine Veterinary Nursing Technicians (retrieved 2026-09-23)
- AEVNT — APPLY (retrieved 2026-09-23)
- AEVNT — FAQ (retrieved 2026-09-23)
- AEVNT — Application Instruction Packet (retrieved 2026-09-23)
Academy list: NAVTA, retrieved 2026-09-23. Page last updated 2026-09-23.