The Society for Veterinary Medical Ethics
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The SVME Student Essay Contest
Founded in 1994, The Society for Veterinary Medical Ethics (SVME) seeks to promote thoughtful and respectful public discussion on ethical issues arising in, and relevant to, the practice of veterinary medicine. In that effort, the SVME has long recognized the importance of student participation and development in the field of veterinary ethics, and so, it has been pleased to host an annual student essay contest.
The Waltham Petcare Science Institute, a division of Mars Petcare, has graciously supported the SVME essay contest since 2006. Waltham will be offering for the GRAND PRIZE (Alice Villalobos Student Essay Award) a $1,000.00 cash award and another $1,000.00 for travel expenses for the GRAND PRIZE winner to attend the SVME's plenary meeting at the VMX conference in Orlando, Florida, USA. The winning essay will also be posted on the SVME website. We at SVME take this opportunity to thank Waltham PetCare Science Institute and Dr. Martin Whiting Global Head of Ethics and Welfare at Mars PetCare for their continued support of the student essay contest.
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2026 Topic: THE ETHICS OF TELEHEALTH In recent years, the rise of telehealth in both human and veterinary medicine has opened up new modes of health care delivery and new ethical questions. Given the range of telehealth services available (telemedicine, teletriage, teleadvice and so on) consider how virtual care differs from in-person care for animal patients and briefly map the pros and cons of each modality, while then expanding on these arguments specifically as applied to telemedicine. What opportunities and challenges are involved in the practice of veterinary telemedicine? What are the ethical stakes and who are the stakeholders? How might expanded telemedicine improve or compromise patient care? Under what conditions and why? With those considerations in mind, make an argument about how the veterinary profession should most ethically adopt and endorse the practice of telemedicine. What guiding principles should apply? What professional, regulatory, or legal guidelines should be put in place? Why and how? Who may ultimately benefit? *SUBMISSIONS DUE OCTOBER 1ST 2026* |
Winning essay and other essays of significant merit will be posted on the SVME web site.
Contest Eligibility
The SVME Student Essay Contest is open to any student enrolled at an institution of higher learning (post-secondary) at the time of essay submission.
General Essay Requirements
Download and print the contest rules here!
1) Essay must be an original work of the student that addresses the assigned topic. AI tools should not be used to write essays to ensure submissions are authentic and reflective of students own understanding and creativity.
2) Essay must be composed in Times New Roman font using the #12 font size, double-spaced, and with 1-inch margins (top, bottom, left, and right).
3) Essay must include a title page that includes identifying information (student name, school, degree program, date of submission, and student email address). All other pages must be free of content that might indicate the author’s identity or institutional affiliation.
4) Not including the title page or endnotes, essay will not exceed 3,000 words in length. Minimum length is 1,000 words. Beginning with the first page of text, pages should be numbered sequentially with the page number placed at the top right corner.
5) Essay must be composed in English. Clear, persuasive writing is valued.
6) A quality essay will critically engage the ideas, viewpoints, and investigations of others who have published on the subject, and these should be carefully documented through appropriate citation. Quotations, citations of references, and unique facts must be documented using endnotes formatted according to the style used in The Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association.
7) Essay must be delivered via email attachment as an Adobe ‘pdf’ document to Contest Administration via info@svme.org. Use the following title in the subject line of the email: “last name, first name: SVME Student Essay Contest.” COMPLETED ESSAYS MUST BE RECEIVED NO LATER THAN October 1, 2026.
Criteria for Selection
Essays are primarily evaluated using the following criteria:
1) Students should develop a position on the question posed in the Topic (see above) through sound and compelling arguments.
2) Essays should evidence research on the topic and an awareness of a multiplicity of views.
3) The length of the essay, and its style, clarity, organization, and coherence should all contribute to the persuasiveness of the work, which should be polished and suitable for publication.
Awards *
All entries meeting eligibility requirements stated above compete for the GRAND PRIZE (The SVME Student Essay Contest) which consists of a certificate of recognition, a cash prize of $1,000.00 (US), posting of the winning essay on the SVME website, and $1,000.00 (US) maximum stipend for travel expenses to attend to attend the SVME's plenary meeting at the VMX conference in Orlando, Florida, USA where a presentation of the winning essay will occur.
Honorable Mention Essays: SVME may also recognize and post on its website non-winning essays of notable merit. No cash prize is awarded Honorable Mention essays.
* Either award may bypass if submitted entries are judged to be of insufficient merit.
Contact Information
Direct correspondence to Contest Administration: SVME Student Essay Committee via email at info@svme.org
Congratulations to our 2025 Student Essay Contest Winner, Raphael Joseph D. Osano! Read his winning essay HERE.
Congratulations to our 2025 Student Essay Contest Honorable Mention, Jomeph Garamu Ararso! Read his winning essay HERE.
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