First Choice

Simple question.

Just curious if any of you current/past SGU students chose the school as your first choice. As in, you wanted to attend SGU over any other school.

Originally Posted by drwildlife

Simple question.

Just curious if any of you current/past SGU students chose the school as your first choice. As in, you wanted to attend SGU over any other school.

It wasn't my first choice, I did apply in the States first. I know of a few people in my class who just applied to SGU though. It's a big decision to move down here which shouldn't be taken lightly. That being said, I don't regret it at all, and I'm happy I made the decision. If I stuck around and reapplied to the States, I would have always had it in the back of my mind that I could have been a year (or more) ahead.

For me it was my first choice because I'm still in the pre-veterinary (undergrad) here at SGU. One of the huge pros is that I bypass the GRE and I don't have to reapply to vet school and wait around for admission. I'm currently finishing up my last term of prevet this term and I'm entering SVM Term 1 with SGU in Fall 2011.

SGU is my first choice! I've heard such great things about the school. The friends I have that graduated from their DVM program said they have had a lot more hands-on experience then most schools offer. Because I'm a non-trad (won't start until I'm 31) I need all of the hands-on experience I can get! Of course, working in a Veterinary clinic helps, too!

I was wondering if anyone knows if getting into a surgery residency is more difficult for an SGU graduate considering that it's an out of state school. Are there any stats on this?

Thanks

J

At first, St. George was not my first choice university. I am currently applying to 6 US schools and then SGU and Ross. Ross, after doing further research, is quickly becoming my last choice. SGU on the otherhand, is quickly becoming one of my top choice schools. I'm still waiting to hear from the US schools to make a final comparison based on location, curriculum, costs, etc. but from what I've seen, SGU is freakin' awesome. Tuition is similar, if not cheaper than most out-of-state tuitions, the curriculum is fair and encompasses a lot of hands on activities even in your beginning years, and I dont know about you guys, but living on an island with top-rated beaches, rainforests, and waterfalls sounds like paradise to me. Plus you spend your 4th year clinicals at the US school of your choice! Sure there are a few 3rd world limitations, but it sounds like an overall awesome experience and from those I've met that have gone to the school, nobody has had trouble working in the US after going to SGU.

Originally Posted by nondragger

I was wondering if anyone knows if getting into a surgery residency is more difficult for an SGU graduate considering that it's an out of state school. Are there any stats on this?

Thanks

J

Hey, I don't know exactly how hard a surgical residency would be to get, but I've worked with a few veterinarians who worked with recent graduates of SGU, and they all said that the graduates they have seen from SGU have excellent surgical skills and were very intelligent veterinarians. I feel like you shouldn't have too much trouble getting a residency if your skills end up as good as theirs after graduating from SGU.

I am curious if you transferred into the Pre Vet program at St George or if you started right from the first year of pre vet, and what kind of animal experience did you have? having not to take the GRE is a relief, is the pre vet program just as competitive as the actual DVM program?

I felt that sgu's pre vet program prepared me for first term of vet.

At this point, I'm waitlisted at Auburn, still need to interview with Virginia, and I'm accepted to SGU...

And for some reason, I can't really find reasons why I would choose Auburn or Virginia over SGU. I know generally people choose US schools over Caribbean schools... but why? Everything I hear about SGU is awesome!

SGU was my first choice, not only due to their prevet program butive worked with 2 SGU grads who were awesome and had only great things to say about the school.

Originally Posted by Zpearl

At this point, I'm waitlisted at Auburn, still need to interview with Virginia, and I'm accepted to SGU...

And for some reason, I can't really find reasons why I would choose Auburn or Virginia over SGU. I know generally people choose US schools over Caribbean schools... but why? Everything I hear about SGU is awesome!

~95% of US MDs match for US residency programs compared with ~47% of SGU MDs.http://www.nrmp.org/data/resultsanddata2010.pdf

Originally Posted by bamboozle4

~95% of US MDs match for US residency programs compared with ~47% of SGU MDs.http://www.nrmp.org/data/resultsanddata2010.pdf

Fail. This is the veterinary forum, hon. Although we obviously have internships/residencies/matching too, your data doesn't help much.

Originally Posted by bamboozle4

~95% of US MDs match for US residency programs compared with ~47% of SGU MDs.http://www.nrmp.org/data/resultsanddata2010.pdf

Yeah this doesnt answer for veterinary students. In fact, many students and faculty who encounter SGU students during their 4th year clinicals find that the SGU students were much more knowledgable and experienced in surgery and everyday procedures. I think that the lack of vet schools in the US allows SGU students a chance as great as any US student to get residencies.

Originally Posted by WhtsThFrequency

Fail. This is the veterinary forum, hon. Although we obviously have internships/residencies/matching too, your data doesn't help much.

now thats not fair, what if a student was planning on picking their vet school based on eventually meeting a significant other? here it would likely mean either a med or a vet student (and med far out number us!). it might be very useful to know that said SO only has a 47% chance of getting a residency post graduation.

No, obviously not. But not everyone has a choice. Way your options carefully. Make sure you're ready for island life. It's not Hawaii either.

School wise SGU has always been my first choice, the students groups and overall atmosphere (from what I can tell not having been accepted yet) have always made it seem like the ideal vet school for me. I did apply to my regional vet school first though, simply becasue I'm pretty sure the vet program in Quebec Canada is among the least expensive, if your a Quebec resident. But both times I applied in Quebec I missed getting an interview by just a couple of points. They only look at your GPA to decide wether or not you get an interview so I find SGU approach much more appropriate for determining if a person will make a good vet. I have my interview tomorrow and am really hoping to get accepted for August 2012