Our name has changed, but our mission hasn’t. Veterinary Career Services is now LWA Advise, led by Laura Anderson.

Welcome to The Candidate Vault

Whether you’re seeking new opportunities, exploring career paths, or preparing for your next move, the Candidate Vault is designed to equip you with everything you need for success.

Your Key to Finding the Perfect Position

I look forward to helping you find the perfect job. My goal is to learn about your priorities in a position and match you with a hospital and a role that fits you best. To begin the process, I would love to chat about your goals, expectations, and experience.

It is equally important for me to understand what your interests are outside of the hospital. Do you like to ski, hike, or possibly paddleboard? Do you want to have a beautiful yard or prefer the city lifestyle?

I have worked with many of my clients for years, so I know all about their hospital culture, what kind of veterinarian they are looking for, and what kind of personality will thrive in their world. With your best interest at heart, I consider all of this information before proceeding with the process!

The Interview Process

The Complete Interview Process Roadmap

How to Prepare a CV

BODY

Contact Information – It is important to only include current contact information. It is a good idea to highlight the best way to reach you and if there are time/date considerations, that should be noted as well.

SUMMARY/INTRODUCTORY PARAGRAPH

This should be short but provide insight as to your career goals and interests. If you have had certain accomplishments throughout your career and they position you well to achieve future goals, this would be great to include.

EDUCATION

Academic institutions should be listed with the most recent/current institution first. It is important to list degrees received or expected and the relevant dates. Also, include any important accomplishments or specific focus under each school. Only include your GPA if it is above 3.7 and you have been at that school within the last 2-3 years. Class rank can also be included if impressive (top 10).

PROFESSIONAL EMPLOYMENT

Start with your current or most recent position. List the name of the hospital or academic institution, location, and relevant dates. Below this list the title of your position. This should be followed by a brief paragraph that describes the scope of your responsibilities while in that position. Follow with bullet points describing contributions and accomplishments. If any of these can be quantified, this is a good idea.

PRESENTATIONS

List separately Abstracts and Lectures.
Include the title, the name of the conference or program, the location of the presentation and the date.

PUBLICATIONS

List separately Textbooks and Book Chapters.
Include the list of author(s) highlighting your name, title, publisher, and date.

HONORS AND AWARDS

Start with the most recent award.
Include the name of the honor or award, a brief description of the honor or award, where it was given, by whom it was given and the date.

PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS

Include any leadership or committee positions. If the name of the organization is not self explanatory, include a brief description. Also, include a brief description of the scope of the responsibilities of the position and the dates.

VOLUNTEER EXPERIENCE

Include experience which is relevant to your professional goals starting with title, organization, location, dates and description of responsibilities. It is best to stay away from religious or political volunteer work.

REFERENCES

If your references have agreed to be included on your CV, list their name, position, place of employment, the nature of their relationship with you, their email address, office phone number and cell phone number. It is best to include references from your most recent position and the past two or three positions. Professional references only. For candidates who want to keep their interest confidential, do not include any references nor mention that they will be provided upon request. This will be handled separately.

CV | Do’s and Don’ts

Add a little personality where possible
Make it readable by using a combination of paragraphs and bullet points. For each hospital or academic institution, provide a brief paragraph that details the scope of responsibilities. Then create bullet points with important aspects of the position. If appropriate, preface accomplishments with a heading such as Contributions or Accomplishments. Only include duties and accomplishments which support your professional goals and interests.
Be consistent with formatting such as caps, bold, alignment, etc.
Use no more than two fonts
Have adequate white space i.e., create a three-four line between each section
Use at least one-inch margins
If you are interviewing for both academic and private practice positions, have two different CV’s prepared
Have a colleague review your CV
Be honest

Interview Tips

Advice from Laura’s Podcast

In this short podcast, Laura share’s her insights that she has gleaned from years of feedback from veterinary hospitals about what makes a great impression when veterinarians are interviewing. She also shares insights as to what gives a negative impression.

Tips from Dr. Jessica Larson, DVM, DACVIM

It is great to hear what Dr. Larson has to say about her interviewing process when she was considering job opportunities. Her honesty is so appreciated. She discusses what she wishes she had asked the hospitals after making both good and not so good decisions along her career path.

Interviewing tips with Dr. Jessica Larson, DVM, DACVIM:

10 Interview Tips from VCS

To assist you with interviewing success, we have put together a list of 10 Interviewing Tips for Veterinarians

Be 5 to 10 Minutes Early, but No More. Plan to arrive a little early at the hospital for your interview, it will give you a little extra cushion and relieve the stress of being late. However, if a candidate arrives too early, it can add stress to the Veterinarian/Interviewer as many people are uncomfortable with people waiting for them.
Be Prepared. More than likely an interview agenda has been sent to the candidate. The candidate should research the veterinarians with whom they will be interviewing or if the candidate is working with a recruiter, this information will be provided. This information will help candidates identify areas of common interest between the parties which creates a more comfortable atmosphere.
Dress Professionally. First impressions are very important. Being overdressed is better than being under-dressed. A coat/sport jacket is recommended for both men and women. No blue jeans, no sandals. No heavy perfume or cologne. Many people react to strong scents and nothing can shorten an interview like a headache.
Leave Your Cell Phone in the Car. Not only are cell phones a distraction, many professionals consider it disrespectful for a candidate to check their cell phone at various times throughout an interview. A candidate needs to be focused during an interview.
Firm Handshake and Direct Eye Contact with Everyone. These mannerisms are important as they convey confidence, friendliness and respect. No eye contact can make people uncomfortable as if the other person is hiding something. This will translate into how a veterinarian interacts with clients.
Listen. Do not talk too much. It is important to listen to what the hospital team is saying. Sometimes, candidates get nervous and talk too much. This means they are not listening and often reveal too much information.
No Negative Talk. Hospitals do not want to hear negative comments about a candidate’s former employer or colleagues. If a candidate were to do this, it is likely this candidate would also shed the next hospital in the same light. Furthermore, today, veterinary hospitals want to hire positive people, not negative.
Be Prepared to Talk about Past Mistakes. No one is perfect. Everyone makes mistakes. Hospitals want to hear about a few of those mistakes, how the doctor accepted responsibility for those mistakes, what they learned from a difficult case or a difficult client and what they would do differently. Many veterinarians will ask candidates to talk about this.
A Short List of Questions. Candidates should have a short list of questions to ask at the end of the interview, such as protocols for client and RDVM communication, paperwork and other such concerns. This shows that they have done their research, that they listened throughout the interview and that they are interested. However, not too many questions. Be respectful of the Veterinarian/Interviewer’s time.
Do Not Ask About Compensation. This is a red flag for prospective employers. They want their veterinarians to be excited about their work, the team and the hospital, not how much money they will make. This will be addressed at a later stage. If a candidate is working with a recruiter, the recruiter will know this information in advance.

Interview Process with VCS

Walkthrough of the Process

Interview with Laura Anderson – During this interview, Laura will focus on learning about the candidate’s top priorities in a position and a hospital. She will also ask questions about the candidate’s personality and in what type of environment they feel they would thrive. Laura will also ask about their lives outside of the hospital including what hobbies they plan to pursue and any priorities for their families.
Laura will prepare a list of opportunities that she feels will be great options for the veterinarians and where they will fit in with the existing teams.
After the veterinarian has reviewed the hospitals, they will give Laura their feedback as to which positions they would like to pursue. Laura will begin to arrange phone interviews with the candidates and the hospitals.
Laura will speak with both the hospital and the candidate after each phone interview to determine the next step.
If all parties are interested, an onsite interview will be scheduled at the hospital. Laura will work with everyone to coordinate this. Most hospitals will also invite the candidate’s partner to visit the area as well, although they will not be invited to the interview.
Laura will follow up with both the hospital and the candidate after the interview. If the candidate is interested in receiving an offer, Laura will convey this to the hospital and any specific information the candidate would like to see in the offer.
The candidate will receive an offer from the hospital. If there are questions, they have the option to speak to Laura or if they prefer, they are welcome to speak directly to the hospital. Laura will share her thoughts on the offer and provide any help with negotiating that is needed.
Once the offer letter is accepted, an employment agreement will be forwarded to the candidate. Laura will also assist in negotiating with this if needed.
It is a priority for Laura to keep in touch with candidates after they start their new positions so if she is needed in any way, she will be there.

Offer Letter Contents

Proper Format

A short introductory paragraph extending a warm welcome to the potential employee is included at the beginning of the letter. This is followed by:

LOCATION OF EMPLOYMENT – If more than one hospital.

COMPENSATION – Base Salary plus Production – This includes the amount of the base salary per year and how it will be paid (weekly, biweekly, etc.). Production Pay includes the production percentage on what services (there can be several different percentages on various services depending upon the hospital) and how it will be paid.

ESTIMATED STARTING DATE

SIGNING/RELOCATION BONUS – This will include an amount, the date(s) that it will be paid and any stipulations as to why the candidate might need to repay it (i.e., the employee ceases to work for the hospital before a specified date).

TIME OFF – Paid time off and the option for unpaid time off. If the employee will be studying for boards, the amount of time allotted for this and the compensation during this time will be described.

BENEFITS – Brief description of what benefits are provided and for programs the employee is eligible for. Typically, a benefits summary is attached.

CONTINUING EDUCATION – A specified amount of money for continuing education programs and the time allotted. It is important to know if this is included in the PTO benefit mentioned previously.

DUES AND FEES – This will include an amount for dues and fees. Some hospitals delineate this as “discretionary funds.”

NON-COMPETE – This will include a length of time and a radius in miles by which you must agree not to compete with this employer.

Introduction to the Negotiation Process

Negotiating is not a bad word.

It is expected in most situations where an offer is extended by a veterinary hospital to a veterinarian. From what I have seen over the past 20 years is that most privately owned veterinary hospitals have become much more flexible as to how their compensation packages are structured. I believe that this is positive for the industry as it allows veterinarians the opportunity to be compensated in a way that works best for them and their families. I can offer tremendous insight as to what the salary ranges are in today’s market, a range of production percentages, signing/relocation bonuses, and what is typically included in a benefits package. I also do negotiate on behalf of the veterinarians with whom I work if they prefer.

Before The Negotiation

Prioritize what you would like to negotiate. Have an idea of where you would like to end up.
Start with negotiating your salary first and then move on to the benefits, one element at a time.
It is important to know that you usually cannot negotiate the entire job offer.
Begin at the top of your predetermined salary range. Aim high, but be realistic.
Remember that negotiation is about listening to each other and respecting the needs of both parties.
Avoid demands, threats, and defensive behavior. The outcome should benefit both parties.
Respect the other’s position. Make sure you hear them clearly.
The tone should be conversational and not confrontational.
Never give an ultimatum.
Never back the hospital into a corner.
It is best to take at least 24 hours to reflect upon the offer.
It is best to negotiate over the phone, not via email.

The Negotiation Process

Always acknowledge that you have received the offer and thank them for it.
Make positive comments about the hospital, the position, and the team.
Highlight your enthusiasm for the position.
State clearly what you have questions about in the offer. Provide insight as to why you would like to make the change(s).
Negotiate one point at a time.
Start with the salary.
Reinforce the value you will bring to the company, the impact you will make and the potential revenue you will generate.
If the hospital is reluctant to meet your salary request and you are still within your minimum range move on to other aspects of the compensation package.
Be sure to include a few benefits in your proposal that are less important to you and that can be dropped as a concession to the employer as salary negotiations continue.
If the employer cannot initially agree to your compensation requests you can discuss and agree on a guaranteed review within a specific time period, usually three or six months. This salary review should be stated in writing as part of the job offer.
Know when to stop and consider the best offer on the table. To carry on beyond this point could cause ill-feeling and damage any future relationship.
Get the final offer in writing and make sure it is signed by the appropriate person who has the authority to make the offer.

Hospital Culture

8 Questions To Ask Surrounding Culture

These questions can be helpful during an interview. They are taken from a podcast in our series “Is Veterinary Medicine Ready for a Chief Culture Officer?”

What happens when there is a problem that needs to be solved? Ask for an example and listen for cues if that resonates with you. Consider who was asked for input.
What happens when there is a conflict?
What happens when there is a performance issue?
Can you describe inter-department communication?
What happens when someone leaves the hospital?
When a client complains, how is it handled, and by whom?
How are emergencies handled when they walk in the door?
What is the turnover rate among specialists, emergency veterinarians, technicians, nurses, front office, in addition to other staff?

Interview Advice from Kristen Mashburn, A Company Culture Consultant

Kristen Mashburn, Founder of Company Culture Consultant, shares the three best questions to ask when you’re being interviewed. It’s a great way to hone in on some of the most important factors of company culture without overwhelming the interviewer with questions.

Organizational Value Tips from Joey Rick, Chief Culture Officer at PartnerMD

Joey Rick, the first-ever Chief Culture Officer at PartnerMD, explains the fundamentals of workplace culture, how this differs from workplace climate, and strategies that can be implemented to improve workplace culture. Joey also provides questions that veterinarians can ask when they are interviewing to help research the culture of a veterinary hospital.

VETERINARY RESIDENT ROADMAP TO INTERVIEWING

You’ve made it to your third year of residency—congratulations! After years of hard work and long hours, you’re finally approaching the moment where you get to choose what’s next. But let’s be honest: navigating job offers, interviews, and practice options can feel overwhelming.

That’s why I created this free guide: “Veterinary Resident Roadmap to Interviewing.”

After 24 years recruiting for veterinary specialty hospitals, I’ve seen the industry change dramatically, especially with the rise of corporate groups and the growing number of high-quality, privately owned practices. This guide walks you through how to evaluate opportunities, prepare for interviews, and ask the right questions, so you don’t just accept a job, but find the right one for you.

Whether you’re seeking mentorship, work-life balance, competitive compensation, or a strong mission-driven culture, this guide is packed with practical insights and tips to help you take the next step with confidence.