Rising Stars: Meet the Veterinary Students Who Are Changing Vet Med
Every generation of veterinary medicine has a moment when new voices step forward and change the conversation. Vet Candy's Rising Stars program exists to find those voices early — and make sure the profession knows their names.
These are the veterinary students, new graduates, and early-career DVMs who are already doing the work. They are researchers, advocates, innovators, and clinicians who chose this profession with intention and are building something worth paying attention to. We profile them not because they have arrived, but because they are on their way — and this community deserves to watch them get there.
Rising Stars is published annually by Vet Candy, the leading media platform for veterinary professionals, with over 50,000 members across the globe.
The Long Game: Marcus McCaskill Is Building Toward a Mission Bigger Than Himself
The University of Nebraska–Lincoln vet student (Class of 2028) has a goal that most people would call ambitious. He'd probably call it necessary. Marcus is working toward creating a wildlife rehabilitation site and sanctuary, complete with reforestation and habitat revitalization. The kind of thing that takes decades, not semesters. The kind of thing that requires becoming someone capable of carrying it out.
Chloe Link is a Fourth-Year Vet Student. She's Already Worked on Five Continents. And She's Just Getting Started.
Most veterinary students spend their fourth year finalizing rotations, finishing boards prep, and trying to remember what sleep feels like. Chloe Link is doing all of that and arriving at it having already worked as an African mammal zookeeper, contributed to marine mammal rehabilitation, participated in sea turtle conservation, performed wildlife capture and immobilization, and cared for more than 100 species.
Courtney Ford-Franklin is Still in Vet School. She's Already Changing the Profession.
She has not graduated yet. She has not opened a practice, published a paper, or collected a single credential beyond the ones she is still in the process of earning. And she is already exactly the kind of veterinarian this profession needs more of. Meet LSU fourth year veterinary student, Courtney Ford-Franklin, a 2026 Vet Candy Rising Star.
Spencer Stelly Wanted to Be on Broadway. Instead, He’s Going to Bat for Every Vet Student in America.
Spencer Stelly has 416 days until he graduates. He knows the exact number. He also knows exactly what stands between him and that moment, the NAVLE, a mixed animal internship, and a career in emergency and critical care that he has been building toward since he was a kid watching his father run the crime laboratory in Louisiana.
This Vet Student Traded the Basketball Court for the Clinic Floor
Phylicia McInnis has spent her entire life showing up. For her teammates on the basketball court. For the kids in her community who look up to her. For her two fur babies, Coco the dog and Pork the cat, who have no idea their mom is going to be a doctor someday. Now, as a second-year veterinary student at Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine, Phylicia is showing up for herself, and the veterinary profession is better for it.
Jacqui Maisey Moved Across the World for Veterinary School. She Would Do It Again Tomorrow
She Left Canada, Crossed the World, and Named Her Pottery Studio Stinky Boy. She Is Exactly Right for This Profession. A former Division 1 water polo player studying veterinary medicine in Perth, Western Australia, Jacqui Maisey has a lot to say about kindness, credibility, and why resilience is not about toughness.
Anecia Hawkins Is Not Your Typical Vet Student. That's Exactly the Point.
Most veterinary students don't list "actress" as a backup career. Anecia Hawkins has never been most veterinary students. The fourth-year at Lincoln Memorial University College of Veterinary Medicine holds a dual degree in Biology and Theatre, with a minor in Dance. It sounds like an unlikely combination until you hear how she talks about it.
Natalie Smith has always known exactly where she's headed. The world just keeps confirming she's right.
A third-year student at Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, Natalie came into vet school with her eyes already set on the most extraordinary corners of the animal kingdom, and that would be rhinos, pandas, tigers, orangutans. Conservation medicine isn't a career pivot for her. It's always been the plan.
FAQ About Vet Candy Rising Stars
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Vet Candy Rising Stars is an annual program that identifies and celebrates veterinary students and early-career DVMs who are already making an impact in the profession. Each year, Vet Candy profiles a select group of next-generation veterinary professionals — highlighting their stories, their clinical interests, and the work they are doing to move vet med forward.
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Rising Stars features veterinary students, recent graduates, and early-career DVMs who demonstrate exceptional promise, leadership, or innovation in the field. Nominees can be in any specialty or practice area — what matters is the impact they are making and the trajectory they are on.
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Honorees are selected by the Vet Candy editorial team based on nominations from the community, academic institutions, and professional networks.
We look for candidates who exemplify what the next generation of veterinary medicine looks like — curious, driven, community-minded, and unafraid to do things differently.
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Nominations for Rising Stars are accepted through our online form at myvetcandy.com/nominate
You can nominate a classmate, colleague, student, or yourself. We want to hear about the veterinary professionals in your world who deserve a spotlight and tell us who they are and why they belong on this list.
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Vet Candy Rising Stars is published annually every May. The 2026 class is featured now at myvetcandy.com/rising-stars.
Nominations for the next class open later this year, follow Vet Candy on Instagram and subscribe to our newsletter to be the first to know.
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Vet Candy is the leading media and education platform for the next generation of veterinary professionals, founded by Dr. Jill López, DVM, MBA.
With over 50,000 members, the number one veterinary podcast on Apple, and programs like NAVLE Warriors, Career Match for Dream Jobs, and Scrub Squad for first year vet students, Vet Candy is where the profession's future is already showing up.