The ESAVS was founded in 1991 by three veterinarians, one from academia and two from small animal practice. The basis of its foundation was the belief that any veterinarian, regardless of their income, country of residence or the veterinary school they attended, could attain first rate professional competence and success according to ability or achievement with the support of state-of-the-art training at an international postgraduate veterinary school designed to enable upward professional development for all.

The ESAVS of today demonstrates that this ambitious aim has been amply realised. ESAVS stands as a broadly-based, international, non-profit organisation, which is quite different from the commercial CE providers which have emerged in recent years. ESAVS has succeeded in coupling the desire for self-improvement and the thirst for knowledge amongst veterinarians in a way that can be likened to the "the charm of anticipated success”, as presented by Alexis de Tocqueville (The American Dream), which spurs students towards professional excellence. This philosophy and the outstanding teaching quality of the ESAVS have drawn over ten thousand veterinarians from all over the world to the study programmes and courses of the ESAVS.