#School of Veterinary Medicine

Penn Vet, Wharton School launch veterinary entrepreneurship program

The School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania (Penn Vet) and the Wharton School are launching a veterinary entrepreneurship program. Created for clinicians, scientists, technologists, and academic leaders, "Leading Veterinary Entrepreneurship" is designed to help veterinary professionals build entrepreneurial skills regarding public health, environmental sustainability, and human and animal well-being. "As the world becomes more complex, so does the role of veterinarians. They are uniquely positioned to ask questions with implications for animal, human, and environmental health," says Andrew Hoffman, who serves as the program's academic director and Gilbert S. Kahn dean of veterinary medicine. "And an entrepreneurial mindset is really critical, really central, to tackling challenges such as food and water security, sustainable farming, climate change, and the advancement of animal welfare." Participants will learn about the importance of opportunity identification, testing, assessment, resource allocation, and leadership competencies required to create an entrepreneurial culture. "I'm hearing a collective recognition from students, alumni, and my own colleagues regarding the role veterinarians can play in the health of communities, both local and global," Hoffman says. "I wanted to develop an executive program with the Wharton School giving veterinarians the tools to drive improvements in public health, environmental sustainability, …