RVT Advancement Fund

Are you an RVT who wants to explore a new avenue in the animal health care industry but feels your financial situation is holding you back? Maybe you’d like to attend an industry conference, pursue a specialist designation or participate in a new veterinary services initiative, but are in need of monetary support. The RVT Advancement Fund (RVTAF) was established to help OAVT members achieve their professional goals by providing them with financial assistance. Applications will be accepted for consideration through this year’s RVTAF starting on May 1, 2024.   

Interested in applying? Here are a few things to know:

  • Applicants must be a member in good standing with the OAVT.
  • Consideration will only be given to applications requesting support for events/initiatives taking place between May 1st, 2024, and June 30th, 2025. Funding is not available for initiatives that have already taken place.
  • Applicants must provide a report to the RVTAF Committee by July 15th, 2025, outlining how funding helped to enhance their skills or goals as an RVT.

Applications are accepted between May 1st and June 14th. Successful applicants will be notified in early September.

Please refer to the FAQs below for more information.  Should you have additional questions, send an email to RVTAdvancementFund@oavt.org.

Only RVTs in good standing with the OAVT can apply and receive funds.

The reference letters must be from professional or educational sources only. No personal references (family, friends, etc.) will be accepted. Reference letters cannot be submitted by members of the RVT Advancement Fund Committee.

  1. All three letters must be submitted as one file, not as three separate files.
  2. There must not be any words or phrases that provide personal, business, or geographical information. Please ask your references to exclude names of people, places, towns or cities, regions, addresses, and the name of your place of work. Please also ensure that there are no pronouns indicating gender.
    1. Referred to as “identifiers” in the application form.
  3. References should include their names and qualifications, but not the name of the clinic, company, or workplace.
    1. Your references should replace your name and any gender-specific pronouns with the phrase “the applicant” or “the candidate.”
      Example: Instead of “Zena is a hard-working RVT, who takes initiative.” the letter can say “The applicant/candidate is a hard-working RVT….”
      Example: Instead of “She/He makes every effort to encourage new grads to bring forward ideas for clinic improvement.” the letter can say “The applicant/candidate makes every effort…”

Identifiers are excluded and will be redacted to minimize bias in the selection process.

An OAVT committee comprised of RVT members at large will receive all applications. Each committee member individually scores each application and forward their evaluations to the committee chair. The committee will then hold a meeting to discuss the applications and select the recipients. The committee may contact references for more information to help them make their decisions. 

Include documents relating to the costs of your request. i.e. registration fees, estimated travel costs, hotel, or tuition fees, etc. Also, include the total amount of your requested funds in Canadian dollars where indicated in the application.

The committee understands that the exact costs may not be available when submitting your application. Therefore, you should try your best to get an accurate estimate – this may require research on your part.  For example, if you are attending a conference requiring an overnight stay, you could include the cost for last year’s conference and an estimate for a night’s stay at a local hotel.

If you are not selected to receive funds, you can submit one application per year. Fund recipients can apply every 5 years.

Yes, you will be required to submit a report upon completion of the event/experience. This report may be used by the OAVT for promotional, advocacy, or educational purposes. Reports are due by July 15th the following year of receiving funding.

No, the funds must be used for the event identified in the application to occur by June 30th of the upcoming year.  If the event is past this date, then you must wait until the following year to apply. 

All applicants who submit a completed application will receive a response to their application, regardless of whether they are selected to receive funding. 

You should not apply for funding until you have been accepted into your program.

The number of RVTs funded each year will depend on the number of applications received and the amount that each successful applicant is awarded. ­­­­­­

The OAVT does not endorse the use of terms such as VT, Vet Tech, Veterinary Technician, Animal Health Technician, or AHT, as they are not recognized in any OAVT/Ontario laws or regulations. Do not use such terms in your application and encourage your references to refrain from using them as well. The OAVT requests that you only use the credential RVT when referring to yourself or the profession.

Being approved for funding does not guarantee eligibility for CE credits. Please contact laurie@oavt.org to confirm CE eligibility before submitting CE online.

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