Bel-Rea Institute of Animal Technology

Bel Rea has really taught me a lot. The curriculums can be challenging but the teachers are always there to help. I really enjoyed my studies at Bel Rea because faculties are friendly and they make it worth your while. It's not a walk in the park but I felt I was prepare for anything after that. Thank you so much Bel Rea.

Like every school there are some quirks that will drive you nuts. But overall this is one the best places to get a solid Veterinary Technician education. They will prepare you for a solid start to a potentially very lucrative and rewarding career.

My daughter is earning a terrific education from Bel-Rea! Very happy the school is local for us! Sad in house classes are so sparce due to Covid...

The campus is efficiently laid out and the staff has been amazing. I'm so happy to be going here.

I really liked the campus. Small. great.

I am a current student at Bel-Rea and every time I have to go on campus, the staff is very respectful. Everything is a little crazy with the COVID-19 pandemic right now. But everyone at Bel-Rea is doing their best to be as helpful as possible.

I have always wanted to be a vet I am 12 but I hope to go here

The staff at the front desk and all throughout all areas made the application process quick and painless. They were always available for help and very friendly. They keep it very clean and really help you get where you're going. Very friendly staff, and animals! I cant wait to finish my education here.

Decided to go back to school to get another degree and always wanted to be a vet tech. This school and the teachers will drain every ambition and dream you have out of you. Let’s start off by saying when I went back to school I was 28. I had the support system so I didn’t have to work that much. Choose Bel Rea if you want an expensive online course but in a classroom. Teachers only read from the manuals and are not interested in students understanding. One of the best teachers was let go because she was more concerned with students mental health. All of the students I was attending with were very stable and eager for a future as a vet tech. Many of the students had higher aspirations. I can speak none of our students had mental health issues but were striving to understand the curriculum. When my parents and I were researching the program the graduation rate was higher and it has dropped down to 66 percent. I have one degree already and never had difficulties in school and even graduated high school early. I applied myself, I’m 30 years old and went into this and have been paying for it myself. I barely worked so I could study. The reason I’m saying these things is I want to warn other students that this school is not academically supportive. You’re paying them to show you nothing and gain nothing in return. Be prepared to watch a ton of YouTube videos and just have instructors read out of a manual word from word. If you ask a question be prepared for the teachers not even to answer you or to look at you like you are not smart. It was like high school all over again except the teachers were the ones in the gossip pool. I regret giving up my 50k year job to try this school out. Thanks Bel Rea for sucking every dream and ambition I had out of me. I will also mention that I was on high honors for a good year but did not want to pay 30k for this education to be belittled by teachers and treated like you’re just another body. I got out with a year left, granted I’m paying an extra 5k on future credits I will not receive which is whatever we all signed a student contract. You do not get hands on training with animals, you take care of them meaning; you clean about 50-60 rodent cages for a week. If I wanted to sign up for a cleaning service I do it at home with my guinea pigs. You do have to volunteer which isn’t an issue but during volunteering you follow someone around and don’t get to do anything, I signed up with VCA to do this. Basically you’re a body for 2 hours and they end up letting you go home early. Save yourself 20k and go to Lowry community college. Had a lot of friends transfer there and they couldn’t be happier.

If your reading this with interest please look into other schools with cheaper tuitions or go threw your workplace to gain this degree. A lot of people I know have had to take these classes over and over again and have taken longer than 2 years To graduate. I am paying over $3000 for three weeks of this school, they will try there best to point to the law saying they can do this legally but there are many other schools that will not do this to you if you drop out before a certain day. If you are working full time DO NOT GO HERE. My grades turned out fine, but by the third week I realized the classes are designed in such a way it is almost impossible to work 40 hours and study the amount of time needed to pass. They have fired teachers for being to easy on these classes, Angela the medical terminology teacher really enjoys watching people fail (I’m sure this sounds like a sad excuse to express my frustration towards a specific person but I promise this is a honest review of the way this person runs her class) so if you have her class make sure to drop it and enroll under one of the other teachers, they teach this class just aswell if not in a better more retainable way rather than rushing you threw as much information as they can! Overall this school will not help you succeed any more than the other cheaper options for this will. Again you can and should do this other ways, chances are you will get better grades and retain more of the information as it will be taught to you in a well paced appropriate manner. I hope this post helps someone not go threw what I did, please don’t sacrifice your time and money to this school. Also while your looking into this school look at the graduation rate just over %60! Ouch! Very happy to say after a week away from this school I’ve already started at a practice and offered paid and/or extremely affordable options to reach my goal as a practicing vet tech. You can and will have amazing opportunities in this field without ever stepping foot threw their doors.

This school is holding my records hostage for my final payment. They really cant do this and Im getting legal advise now but I wouldnt go here not really an accredited school.

Dont want to go to

Awesome. If you love animals and medicine, go to Bel Rea. Dr. Bob Taylor is a Diplomat in Veterinary Medicine. None better. Well, maybe Dr. Kevin Fitzgerald, the hardest working veterinarian in show business! ?

Hi I’m looking to attend this program in the fall but was wondering if you have dorms at this facility?

I have a sick dog. Can I make an app for her to come in and be seen

2012- I have been enjoying it.

They kicked me out due to a mental illness that didn’t know I had for over 10 years... I told them when I enrolled that I had a mental illness... come a month into the program, they kick me out because of my mental illness... tell me to pay over 1000$ and I can’t use the remainder of my scholarship that THEY awarded me... Was also told that it would be very difficult due to my mental health to get my DEA certification... Will be graduating in a couple more years with my Vet Tech Degree from Penn Foster... for 1/6 of the cost for the entire program... OH and the books for Penn foster are included in your tuition... belrea, it does not include books into your tuition... Think twice before enrolling if you have a medical/mental health disability.

Very good little school, in a safe area. As a graduate I can honestly say your chances of getting a job once graduated are EXTREMELY high. More than half our graduating class already had jobs lined up BEFORE graduating. In regards to the actual schooling experience there is definitely a little of the good, the bad, and the fantastic. For the good the campus has undergone some fantastic renovations, with an extra classroom added and some cosmetic work to one of the buildings. In class there is an appropriate amount of hands on experience (the school has a wide variety of on-campus animals to work with), but this school really goes above and beyond to line up volunteer and shadowing experiences right into your hands, especially if you feel you need more practice, AND these are fantastic networking opportunities! In addition, this school offers AMAZING laboratory classes. You learn an incredible amount but I will not lie--these courses are challenging! But the experience you gain is a major factor in why so many facilities hire this school's graduates. For the bad, most of it comes down to the scale of the facility. Because it is a small campus it does allow everyone to become a tight-knit little community, but at the same time it limits staff flexibility. Because it is not a larger campus the limitations on staff also limit the scheduling times for classes. You WILL have a flexible schedule, it just won't be as flexible as you think. Mostly because the quarterly schedule makes you feel like you're moving at a breakneck pace. This isn't necessarily an issue for most students, but for students with children this can be particularly difficult to work around, especially if it is a single parent household. In addition there are some course policies that can be rather harsh, but most of this is necessary for both the school's accreditation and for the fairness to other students. If you go here you will be frustrated at least once, but I think it's a small sacrifice when you know you will have a job at the end of it all. Which is hard to say for some universities! And for the AMAZING it has to be the staff. They want you to succeed and they want you to be honest. (Seriously, they are blood-hounds for cheating--they will find you, and they will kick you out. A common saying at the school is that if you are willing to cheat to pass a test, who knows what you'll do to an animal. And this is extremely accurate.) They want you to be a good vet tech and they want to know you did it honestly. The professors give lots of opportunities to help struggling students and guidance from their personal experience. If you work hard they will be there to help.In addition the administrators are awesome too! Sometimes life throws a curveball and interrupts your studies, but the administrators do their best to help accommodate. They can help you with almost anything. Counseling, finding roommates, adjusting schedules, and in general just helping sort your life out! Ultimately, I would highly recommend this school! I have a few nitpicks here or there, and a couple of moments I remember were frustrating, but in the end I am satisfied with my education. AND the staff will be there to help if you ever need guidance navigating the job market, both before and after you graduate!

This is a very challenging program. That I am grateful every day to have been able to attend. The teachers are amazing and the curriculum can be challenging but enjoyable. I encourage anyone who has a great love for animals to look into this program. You will go into an amazing and exciting field.

I Graduated from Bel-Rea in 2004, and although it was a difficult school to get through, really hard classes, I had an instructor that tutored me every Tuesday for an hour, on any and all subjects. If it had not been for Scott helping me with my classes, I don't think I would have passed. At the time, it was a very good school, not sure how it is now.

Really helped prepare me for working in the field, I’m working at a clinic and started in a specialty department at a large ER/GP practice. I did not have previous experience in a vet clinic and at the end of internship had the basic skills to contribute to a team. Be ready in the program for science heavy curriculum, putting in the leg work to do clinical work while attending class, and that it’s a medical profession - not just seeing cute animals, which is where I think a lot of people get caught up and drop out of the program, or leave bad reviews. Be prepared for a challenging, but rewarding 2 years!

I value what I learned during my time at Bel-Rea, it has helped me succeed in my externship and beyond. It is a hard school with difficult classes but that just prepared me more for the VTNE.

The administration is very discriminatory towards women.

I’ve been going here for about a year now and this school is extremely overwhelming and overpriced for what your getting in return . I’m normally an honors student at other colleges but this place is ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS. You can go to any other accredited program and get the same education for a lower price as well as be AVMA accredited and take the board exam(VTNE) . Only a quarter of the students in your classes will actually pass the program. Go look at the graduation rate . It sucks ! These people just like to take your money because they rather see you fail so that you have to pay $250 per credit to retake a course so if your course is 5 credit hours that’s $1250 you have to pay out of pocket with no aid and it will be due by the time you start classes that following quarter. It’s a shame because there are SOME really good teachers here but the place is WAY TOO mis managed. I don’t think the money that you pay for your tuition is even distributed properly because majority of the equipment and models your working with, are broken and missing parts or out of date. My guess is, it goes straight to the administrations pockets . I’m literally so close to failing out of this program but I’ve already invested a lot of money and my credits won’t transfer so I’m trying to stick it out so I don’t have to start all over, I moved 2,000 miles away from home to go here. You also don’t choose your classes like you would think. They are VERY understaffed and when your “choosing your classes” , they give you a paper with only one class time to choose from for each class. I wish I would have read more reviews and payed more attention to the negatives that people say about this school , because 99.9% of them are true . They will make the program seem so exciting and great until you actually attend. Do yourself a BIG FAVOR and just look elsewhere for this type of education. Because all the students here get scammed and are upset. Morale is bad here. Literally right before classes all the student just complain about being here and about how they are extremely broke trying to attend this school.

My experience at Bel Rea was great. I feel it gave me all of the knowledge I needed for small animal medicine. The labs were great for all the classes as well. As long as you put in the work and you try the teachers are willing to help. I feel Bel Rea did lack in the part of large animal the professor was great for the labs and he is a very experienced cattle vet, but it was hard to follow his lectures. I hope this was a helpful review of you are looking into Bel Rea. Devlin Anderson, CVT

Hands down the best Vet Tech school I know.

Waste of time. They ran me around even though I had all my information in order. This place was not what it’s been cracked up to be.

Bel-rea is very near and dear to my heart. I learned everything there is to know about being a Veterinary Technician. There are many resources to help students not only during school but long after graduation. Dr. Hemming is a brilliant Veterinarian and it pains me to see that anyone would say a negative word against him (Large Animal Teacher). Yes, his class is difficult because he is too smart for his own good and passionate about what he does but just like anything in life, his class is a right of passage. I will not sugar coat it. Being a technician is not easy & therefore of course, neither is the schooling to be one. Bel-rea prepares you to be a competent technician in the practical sense not just books and test taking. As a technician, you must learn to deal with many Veterinary styles and practices in order to succeed. Being a CVT is not just playing with puppies and kittens. You have lives in your care on a daily basis so it's only right that the schooling for such is taken just a seriously. I passed the VTNE my first time thanks to Bel-rea. If you're willing to take it seriously, apply yourself, and utilize all available aid, you will excel as a technician in the real world. Bel-rea produces the cream of the crop and weeds out the rest. Which anyone should appreciate especially if you are to trust them running anesthesia on your beloved pets.

This is a good school for getting prepared to take the VTNE. Be aware, however, that it is NOT A REGIONALLY ACCREDITED SCHOOL In other words, there are almost no schools that will accept transfer credits from Bel-Rea. I was disappointed when I later wanted to pursue my undergrad and found that NONE of my Bel-Rea credits would transfer to the school I am attending. It's not just my school either, there are only a few schools that will transfer credits from Bel-Rea, and those are in the Denver area. This was not made clear to me when I applied to Bel-Rea. In fact, they proudly proclaimed how they were an "accredited" school. I just didn't know the difference between "accredited" and "regionally accredited," so admittedly it was my lack of knowledge that got me into that pickle. It was also not well communicated that (in some states--my own included (Wisconsin)) one needn't get a degree in order to sit for the VTNE. You can just work a couple of years as a veterinary assistant, and then study and sit for the exam. This would have saved me well over $20,000 when all was said and done. I'm not saying Bel-Rea is a bad school. In fact, I would say it prepared me wonderfully for the VTNE, and it also prepared me well to get my undergraduate degree in Biology. It just REALLY bothered me that they were not more upfront about their lack of Regional Accreditation. I payed a lot of money for my degree from Bel-Rea, and NONE of the credits transferred... ugh. Whether or not it was worth it is a matter of opinion, I suppose.

AMAZING!! I absolutely loved going to school here! The teachers are great and the staff really builds strong connections with its students. Lectures were small and everything was really hands on! The best school out there, hands down!! I LOVE BEL-REA!!

There's a particular teacher (large animal class) who is either unwilling or unable to perform his duties. He fails to teach the material. Test materials don't match up with syllabus. The administration just shrugs and says "we went through his class too". That's not an acceptable answer. I hear there are students who fail the certification exam due to this teachers inability to teach about large animals. The administration needs to take action here. An employee is not performing their job satisfactorily. Many, many students have brought this issue to your attention. Do something about it, now!

Bel-Rea was a tough program, but it was well worth it. I felt very confident in my skills at my internship and workplace as a veterinarian technician. With everything I learned and hands on experience I was able to pass the VTNE with flying colors. I would recommend this school if becoming a technician is your dream.

I did a lot of research before going back to school. After touring the campus and talking with admissions, I knew Bel-Rea was the right choice for me. With small class sizes and instructors who are willing to help you with anything, I'm glad I chose Bel-Rea!

This school is the WORST when it come to helping students succeed. Administrators and teacher do everything they can to make sure the students have an uphill battle to be successful as soon as they start classes. Even when students are maintaining a 93% in a class, they will fail if they miss one to many classes because of sickness, a death in the family or even just a misunderstanding . Most of the instructors have smug, almost hateful attitudes towards student that actually are good students but need a little help in specific courses. Instead of help you get responses like "what do you want me to do about it" or "you just need to learn to function with less sleep". I would never recommend this school to anyone for any reason. It is not worth the price. You get no help from the facility, and they just want to take your money and then watch you fail, even though the money you are giving them is paying the worthless teachers.

All of the instructors and staff are willing to help everyone, and they made me feel like part of a family. It is a lot of studying but the reward is so gratifying. My time there was some of the best times that I have had. It has prepared me for a career that I truly love.

I'm so glad after retiring from the military that I used my 9/11 GI bill to attend Bel Rea! The classes were difficult but the school has in place many unique tools to help students succeed. Personally, I used tutoring services provided by other students and teachers then became a tutor myself. There were many job and volunteer opportunities available that reinforced the curriculum which helped me to obtain my dream job only 3 weeks after graduating! Thank you Bel Rea! If you are serious about becoming a Veterinary Technician I strongly recommend Bel-Rea Institute of Animal Technology.

I've competed my class work & off to my internship! I feel prepared for my experience due to the up-to-date classes I took at Bel-Rea

Dad checking in to see what is in store for my daughter at your school. I have questions about accreditation and total cost vs what a vet tech can earn in income as well as what those three letter certifications mean? lvt cvt or something like that. After scanning reviews, it appears a downgrade in comments over last 3 years?

Love It to the MAX!

Does anyone know where to rent near by at a fair price? Daughters from out of state and she start in june. Of course her safety is my #1 priority. Thanks

This schools main focus is on money! I owe $10,000 for 3 months of school. Graduating rate is beyond low. Teachers do not help - you're on your own if you don't understand material. They say credits transfer but they don't. I was in awe when I first started at belrea, but they offer no better education than a community college. Plus they almost try to fail you to steal your money - I was in the hospital for more than 3 days and they terminated my enrollment but were sure to send me a bill! DO NOT ATTEND THIS HORRIBLE SCHOOL!

The teachers and staff are horrible.

I agree with what Stephanie said. I've been here for a year now and it's about all I can take. I'm leaving school and taking the punishment with me. The tutors are lousy and don't help at all. When you ask questions they completely go off topic or talk about how they struggled with different subjects and they don't care to help as long as they get their hours. The management doesn't care about the students. Teacher morale is so low that it affects their teaching. They go off topic, talk about how horrible it is to be a vet. tech. and the long/short term problems that come with being a vet. tech. They recently fired one of the 2 teachers who genuinely care about the students and their success in school and their future career. They are woefully understaffed. This is a school that is supposedly dedicated to animal care, yet they do not care enough to even properly care for the animals that they have. They meet the minimum AAHA requirements to be accredited by them and they do not aspire to be any better than the minimum requirements. I would say student morale is low, and it is at a pathetic level, every single student regrets spending the insane amount of money for tuition alone, but then you have to buy specific scrubs from the book store, they are cheap material and do not last, for $50 a set. Books are just as expensive as they are at any college, and then you never open them, there are no rentals, or buy back programs. I suggest getting you education elsewhere. You will save money, and be happier. This is no longer the best school for veterinary technicians.

Big waste of time and money. This school is 100% unnecessary to work as a technician, unless the title of CVT, RVT, or LVT matters to you. It won't get you any farther than someone with on the job training. Hindsight is 20/20, knowing what I do now I would never ever have gone to this school. If you are seeking a higher education do yourself a HUGE favor and invest your time and money into a real education at a real college or university.

The management doesn't care about the students. Teacher morale is so low that it affects their teaching. They recently fired one of the 2 teachers who genuinely care about the students and their success in school and their future career. They are woefully understaffed. This is a school that is supposedly dedicated to animal care, yet they do not care enough to even properly care for the animals that they have. They meet the minimum AAHA requirements to be accredited by them and they do not aspire to be any better than the minimum requirements. I would say student morale is low, and it is at a pathetic level, every single student regrets spending the insane amount of money for tuition alone, but then you have to buy specific scrubs from the book store, they are cheap material and do not last, for $50 a set. Books are just as expensive as they are at any college, and then you never open them, there are no rentals, or buy back programs. Spend your hard earned money getting the same education elsewhere. You will save money, and be happier. This is no longer the best school for veterinary technicians, no matter what is said on TV.

It's an A+++ school!!!

I have been attending Bel- Rea since April of 2013 and i love this school . This school is extremely hard to get through you cannot slack off . If you are looking for a school that you can attend and have some sort of life outside of it it wont happen ! You need to be serious when attending this school as you should be since you are going to be working with animals lives :] I think alot of people don't realize how difficult this field is to work in . I would say if you are planning on attending this school make sure you are serious because its alot of money to spend if you are not .

I am about to go into my internship, so about 6 months from graduation. I LOVE LOVE LOVE this school. The teachers only want you to succeed, and all you have to do is ask and they are happy to tutor with you! If you don't want to tutor with a teacher they have an excellent program of students who can tutor you as well. This school is not easy and if you are not prepared to bust your ass for two years don't waste your time enrolling. I have held a part time job, been dealing with probation and all the classes/ community service that goes along with it and while I have been busy it is NOT impossible. The school is challenging because they want to produce top of the line vet techs. The majority of the teachers are also bel Rea grads and I feel it makes them more sensitive to your situation as they have gone through it themselves. All the staff is very professional but also fun and they all treat you like adults!! That being said they have no patience for those who are not willing to try or take their schooling seriously. I feel like anyone who hated/ hates this school is not truly dedicated to a career as a vet tech or not willing to put in the effort to complete the program again it is not easy but totally worth it!!!!

I attended this school at the age of 23 and went for the entire two years. This school was next to impossible. Previous college experience was 100x more positive than this schooling. The female"professors" were rude,unprofessional and seemed to almost want to set students up for failure. Never have I had such an experience as I did the two years at Bel-Rea. I wish the experience was more positive and fulfilling as my past schooling was. The price I paid for this school, is to me now, EMBARRASSING. But as always others will have a much more positive experience. I recommend other schools.

Ihave friends that speak highly and they were extremely motivated to attend.

First and foremost I would like to express that I was not a student that lacked motivation. I was very excited about attending this school and I have worked in a vet clinic for years. I went to tutoring sessions and had a fabulous support group with other students that attended belrea. I attended this school in 2010 and I felt it was a horrible waste of time and money. I felt the school was very rude and unprofessional. The school was extremely overwhelming. I felt they WANTED you to fail so you were forced to retake the class which cost thousands of dollars. Once, I over heard a teacher telling another teacher that she couldnt even pass the test they were giving us. The financial aid department is completely off track. They have no idea what they are doing. (They sent my socal security card out to multiple strangers) The teachers are usually previous students, so they lacked maturity and professionalisim. I can't express enough how unprofessional the school is. They nickle and dime you for just about everything. The teacher's play favorites with students. Coming from a regular college this school is absolutely nothing how i imagined. The school takes up your entire life. I have no idea how I paid my bills and put gas in my car as I was not able to carry a job with my frequent schedule change every quarter and the amount of books you have to buy that you may only open once or twice. I felt the teachers were very unhelpful and as for the lady who was in charge ( i can not recall her name) she was just terrible. She could care less about the students. The library teacher was literally INSANE. She had to be bipolar. I'm not kidding. She was a nutcase. All i have to say is this school is horrible and I would never in my life recommend this school....ever. ever. ever.......ever!!