What is the Approved Veterinary Assistant designation?

In recognition of the contributions veterinary assistants make to the practice team and to the health of pets, the National Association of Veterinary Technicians in America (NAVTA) has created the Approved Veterinary Assistant (AVA) designation. This designation is currently for the USA and is nationwide. There is, however, a Canadian program that has been approved by NAVTA as well.

Upon graduation from a NAVTA approved veterinary assistant program, a participant is eligible to sit for the Approved Veterinary Assistant designation examination. Upon successful completion of the exam, the participant would be entitled to use the designation AVA and would receive a documenting certificate.

The AVA designation examination was written by NAVTA's AVA committee. The regulations and requirements have been determined by NAVTA. The designation examination is offered here on the VetMedTeam website, on behalf of NAVTA, and is open to all graduates of a NAVTA approved training program.

In order to qualify to sit the final exam, participants must obtain a code from their assistant program which would be used in the VetMedTeam shopping cart. An exam mentor will need to proctor the examination by observing the candidate as the exam is taken. The exam mentor may be a veterinarian, a credentialed technician, an instructor from the student’s program, or a licensed testing center.

To learn more about the process, please visit the catalog page for the Approved Veterinary Assistant Examination. If you have your code and are ready to submit payment for the exam please use the same link as well.

In addition, the AVA FAQ page contains helpful information.