The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies was founded in 1823 by William Dick (1793 - 1866), the first veterinary school in Scotland and only the second in Britain. It was first established in Clyde Street (a site now occupied by the Edinburgh Bus Station at the northeastern corner of St Andrew Square), moving to new buildings at Summerhall at the eastern end of the Meadows in 1916. These facilities having become overcrowded and outdated, teaching moved in 2011 to purpose-built premises on the Edinburgh BioCampus at Easter Bush, 5½ miles (9 km) south of Edinburgh, alongside small and large animal hospitals which had been established there some years previously.
Affectionately known as the 'Dick Vet', the School was merged into the University of Edinburgh in 1951 and is now part of the College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine, one of the top biomedical research centres in the world. The School offers five-year undergraduate programmes, one-year taught postgraduate programmes and research degrees, together with Continuing Professional Development opportunities. Around 100 students enter the undergraduate programme annually.
The £42-million teaching building extends to 11,148 sq. m (120,000 sq. feet) over two storeys. It includes two steeply-raked lecture theatres, a library, numerous tutorial and study rooms and teaching laboratories and post-mortem facilities. A statue of William Dick and stained glass depicting the history of the school were transferred from the Summerhall building and installed in the double-height foyer.
The school is also home to a Veterinary Oncology and Imaging Centre established in 2009 and the £2-million Jeanne Marchig International Centre for Animal Welfare Education which opened in 2011. Research is undertaken in collaboration with the adjacent Roslin Institute. The school also operates a 250-ha (618-acre) livestock farm at Langhill, a mile (1.7 km) to the east.
