DeVries received his BSc in agriculture for the University of British Columbia in 2001. Immediately following, he began graduate studies in the Animal Welfare Program at the University of British Columbia. After receving his PhD in 2006, he worked for one year as a postdoctoral researcher at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. In 2007, he was appointed as faculty with the University of Guelph. In his academic position DeVries is involved in research and teaching in the areas of dairy nutrition, management, behavior and welfare.