The Bel Rea Institute of Animal Technology

This school is okay. I recently heard Piper the horse died from having a nail in her foot for too long. It probably could have been avoided if the teacher Liz S. didn't let the students that kiss her ass do whatever they want.

1st Year Female -- Class 1921

University Resource Use/ spending: B, Faculty Accessibility: F

I graduated Bel-rea in 2013 and it was a positive experience for the most part. I will say there is very little hands on training in the most useful areas such as blood draws. It is very important you seek outside additional experience before working. Education was focused on book learning. I have no complaints as far as staff but student debt is a whole other issue. It is not reasonable for a school to charge tuition so high compared to what you will get paid as a vet tech. I had no problem finding a job (which did not care if I was certified or not) but in less than 2 years I am back at school pursuing another direction. I loved what I did but $12/hr is not a living salary especially in the Denver/Aurora area and with as much debt as I collected going to the school. Most techs love their field so you really have to think about why turnover/going back to school rates are so high... Hope this helps!

Alumnus Male -- Class 2000

I agree with a lot of what's been posted here. My personal peeve about BR is that all your real "hands-on" training comes in your last quarter of school. The other Vet Tech program in Denver breaks their internships up throughout the two year curriculum, so you get some theory, then some hands-on intermingled. To me, this reinforces learning, and also lets you know right away if you enjoy different aspects of Vet Tech work or not. Saving it all until the last quarter doesn't make much sense to me.

Overall, I would say I got a decent education at BR, but I could have gotten much the same education elsewhere for half the price, and gotten exactly the same $12.64/ hour job (about average for an entry-level Vet Tech in Denver as of June 2011) at the end of it. Just something practical to weigh against those ads on Animal Planet.

2nd Year Female -- Class 2011

Surrounding City: A, Innovation: F