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Next Steps: Returning after a Career Break

Thinking about returning to veterinary practice after time away - or already preparing for your next steps? 

Next Steps: Returning after a Career Break is a supportive, confidence-building one day CPD event designed to help veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses reintegrate into the profession after two or more years away.

Start Date:
End Date:
Location: RCVS , 1 Hardwick Street, EC1R 4RB
Register here

What is the day about?

As part of the RCVS Next Steps initiative, this event brings together practical guidance, peer support, professional networking, and specialist coaching to help you reconnect with your professional identity and take clear, achievable steps toward returning to the UK Practising Register or the Register of Veterinary Nurses.

You’ll gain tailored insights from RCVS teams, explore common challenges with fellow returners, and take part in dedicated coaching sessions led by Dr Jo Hartley, Executive Coach and former Emergency Medicine Consultant, who specialises in creating meaningful and sustainable careers in clinical settings.

 

What you will get from the day

  • Tools and resources to support a smooth, structured return to practice
  • Support identifying your learning needs and opportunities to refresh or develop skills
  • Guidance for preparing return to work conversations with employers
  • Coaching to rebuild confidence, reconnect with your professional identity and articulate your strengths
  • Practical strategies for maintaining a positive, sustainable mindset during your return
  • A chance to practise and refine your professional introduction and career story
  • Opportunities to network with peers navigating similar transitions
  • A structured CPD plan, with SMART goals that align with your role, personal needs, and longterm development
  • Access to RCVS teams for personalised advice (Academy, Education, Registration, MMI, Standards & Advice, Veterinary Nursing)

Who is this for?

This event is for vets and vet nurses who have been away from practice for two years or more. It supports those who are planning or considering returning to the UK Practising Register or Register of Veterinary Nurses.

Session learning objectives:

1

Utilise appropriate tools and resources 

to support your reintegration into the workplace

2

Identify personal development needs and opportunities

for upskilling or reorientation

3

Prepare effectively

for return-to-work conversations with your employer

Session speaker:

Coaching session learning objectives: by the end of the session, delegates will

1

Assess their current level of satisfaction across different aspects of their working life

using a simple reflective model, recognising areas that contribute to stress, imbalance or overwhelm

2

Apply principles from positive psychology

the science of happiness and evidence on sustainable success to identify practical changes that could help them work more happily and manageably in the present

3

Explore and evaluate tools and strategies that support the design of a fulfilling, sustainable career

one that aligns with their strengths, motivations and values, and helps protect against burnout in the long term

Programme

09:30 - 10:00 : Registration and refreshments

10:00 - 10:40 : Welcome and warm up

10:40 - 11:20 : An introduction to Tailored Adjustment Passports (TAP)

11:20 - 11:30 : Morning refreshment break

11:30 - 12:15 : Your First 100 Days: SMART goals for CDP success

12:15 - 13:15 : Lunch and drop-in sessions with RCVS teams*

13:15 - 14:30 : How to craft a career you’ll love, with Dr Jo Hartley

14:30 -14:45 : Afternoon break

14:45 - 15:45 : How to craft a career you’ll love, with Dr Jo Hartley

15:45 - 16:00 : Thank you and close

Ticket price

Early Bird: £50

For those who book six plus weeks ahead (17/03 – 08/04 inclusive)

Standard: £80

For those booking fewer than six weeks ahead

FAQs

Contact us

If you have any questions regarding this event, or if you have booked a place and can no longer attend, please email the RCVS Events Team: [email protected].

Returning after a career break

Register your place

To purchase your ticket for the in-person CPD day.

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