Frustrated

[cerealrhapsody]

So I'm starting to wonder if I'll ever get into vet school. I'm slightly non-traditional (will need an extra year or two to graduate due to a double major). I have a 3.71 overall right now, although my science GPA is considerably lower (hopefully I'll be able to pull it up by the time I apply).

Basically, I'm worried about experience, or my lack thereof. The only experience I have that is worth mentioning is from some shadowing/volunteering I did at a small animal clinic last summer, which equates to about 75 hours. I realize that this is minuscule in light of what I need in order to be competitive, but I'm really struggling to get more. Furthermore, my experience there was really negative. I didn't learn nearly as much as I wanted because nobody (including the vet himself) seemed willing to teach me anything.

I'm only taking 16 credits this semester, but my course schedule is, well...disgusting. Class starts at 7:30 or 8:30 every day, and I get out of class at 5 or 6 pm on most days. How am I supposed to get a job or volunteer position with a schedule like this?? How do you other pre-vets do it?

Furthermore, I've been trying to find volunteer/job opportunities at clinics for about a year now, but, aside from this past summer, nobody seems to want to give me a chance since I have little to no real experience. It doesn't help that I don't own a car. I am hoping to do an internship at a wildlife rehab center this summer, which would give me about 500-600 hours. But I don't see how it's feasible to get experience during the school year, and I only have 2 more years until time to apply.

It just blows my mind how so many pre-vetters out there seem to have thousands upon thousands of hours of experience while still maintaining excellent grades in rigorous required coursework. Is it at all possible that I could get into vet school with only 500 or 1000 hours? If not, how can I get my foot in the door and get some more experience? Any advice on how to land a job/volunteer position at a clinic? I'm thinking about doing a study abroad program at the Cheetah Conservation Fund in Namibia. Would this be good experience? Are there any other ways to get experience that I'm not thinking of? Any advice would be much appreciated!

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[Angelo84]

I got most of my experience on breaks and over summers. Depending on your undergrad you may have about a month off in the winter--if you volunteer during that time you could get 160 hours just during break. I would try to find a place that needs some weekend help that would help you get a few hours during the school year. It should be easier to get volunteer/work experience during the summer as that is both a busier time and the regular techs want vacation. Depending on your state if you are not licensed you will be restricted to vet assistant roles. I would do some cold calling now about winter break and summer--otherwise those slots may be taken. Figure out things you did learn from your previous job--animal restraint, setting up fecals, urinalysis--and highlight those things so employers know they won't be starting from scratch. Also maybe check out emergency clinics in your area they often need part time workers and are willing to do odd hours. I realize most of the above would depend on having a car or good public transport--Good luck!

 

[VeganChick]

Although you do need vet experience, other animal experiences count too. I have been working in rescue for years and that counts as "animal experience." I also work for a local petsitting company and they give me as much or as little work as I need. Every little bit helps!

 

[Malhi]

Even though I had some experience with a vet in India, I was kind of in the same boat as you, cerealrhapsody. I don't have a car where I am in the US and a really busy schedule at school.

I started volunteering at the local shelter that is on a bus line from my home. I started by volunteering in rehab (which I put under animal experience) and then moved on to post-op recovery and physical exams with a veterinarian (which I obviously put under veterinary experience). I had to do 2 years of this and almost never had a weekend free.

Another thing, since I was spending a ton of time at school and had some hour breaks, I asked a professor if I could feed his reptiles for him. He was delighted to get my help and I got to learn how to handle reptiles (animal experience). After a semester, he recommended me to another professor so I was able to do some research with him on naked mole rats. Even though it is just behavioral research, I was able to put it down under veterinary experience because the professor I worked with had PhDs.
I also did a lot of job shadowing with different vets and sometimes had to take long trips and stay at the veterinary hospitals to make sure I was able to show experience with a wide variety of species.

So I guess, my advice is to make the best you have. Try to find a nearby shelter or try to volunteer your time to get some sort of experience in a research setting at your school. It's going to be tough, I know. Sometimes I hated commuting 2 hours to school even on weekends and then going to volunteer afterwards. I stuck it through and have awesome experiences and recommendations because of these experiences.

 

[Malhi]

Btw, What is your area of interest in veterinary medicine?

You could try and get the maximum hours you can in that area and then job shadow vets in other areas to show a greater understanding of the field in general. That is the strategy I went with.

 

[No Imagination]

Ended up costing me an extra year and a half long to graduate undergrad, but I simply worked as a tech while in undergrad. Sometimes had to wait to take classes, and scheduled my classes around work, but in the end, made some $$, learned a lot more by doing then shadowing, fostered great contacts, and got +5,000 hours.

Not sure of your age or location, but for me, part/full time work was the way to go.

 

[VeganChick]

And to echo the "wait another year" thought...you'd be surprised at how fast the year between app cycles goes!!

 

[Electrophile]

Even though it is just behavioral research, I was able to put it down under veterinary experience because the professor I worked with had PhDs.

Did you already apply? Hate to say it, but this IMO should not have been counted as veterinary experience, particularly since they weren't a DVM. PhD=/=DVM. Research experience, yes. Veterinary experience, no. The only time I ever counted anything I did in grad school research as veterinary experience is when we would have a sick animal and one of the Office of Lab Animal Medicine vets (usually a resident) would come over and I'd tag along and ask questions about treatment and things of that nature (which wasn't too often, so I didn't add more than a few hours). Even when I did a collaboration project with one of the Research Animal Diagnostic Lab DVM PhD vets (who is now one of our professors), I didn't count this as veterinary experience because we were doing a research project and not strictly veterinary medicine. JMHO. But ask the adcom adviser to be certain.

 

[Optimistic 13]

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[Electrophile]

I was definitely told the opposite that research is research and veterinary experience is veterinary experience (i.e.-has to be under a DVM), but then again, I didn't do the VMCAS as I only applied to Missouri (they don't require the VMCAS if you're in state). I still fail to see how behavior on naked mole rats is medical scientific research, particularly if it's discovery driven and not hypothesis driven. Not that it wouldn't be interesting research experience...

 

[Malhi]

Hey Electrophile

I did make sure and it is counted under veterinary experience. My research was hypothesis driven but behavioral (can't go into too much detail because I am hoping that it'll soon be a paper). But I also assisted with profusions, brain dissections on mice and assisted with some neurological mechanosensory research that the neurobiology lab was working on.
Again, I can't go into too much detail but naked mole rats differ from other mammals in how they perceive pain and that is of biomedical interest.

 

[VAgirl]

I was definitely told the opposite that research is research and veterinary experience is veterinary experience (i.e.-has to be under a DVM), but then again, I didn't do the VMCAS as I only applied to Missouri (they don't require the VMCAS if you're in state). I still fail to see how behavior on naked mole rats is medical scientific research, particularly if it's discovery driven and not hypothesis driven. Not that it wouldn't be interesting research experience...

For VMCAS, placing research done under a PhD in the veterinary experience section is 100% correct. Whether you agree with it or not, these are VMCAS's rules so it's legit.

 

[lailanni]

Your weekday schedule may be hairy, but you have two whole days on the weekends. Work then. Have any emergency clinics around? Emergency is great because they're open 24-7!

There are many pre-vets that struggle to get into a clinic. Prepare a resume, talk to the office manager, and let them know you're want to work there. If they're not hiring, ask if you do some hands on volunteering on a regular basis. Don't let them shrug you off, it can be hard to get your foot in the door.

Work/volunteer summers and breaks. That's what I did and managed to rack up over 1000 hours within a few summers. First I started as a regular volunteer and then got hired.

 

[Electrophile]

For VMCAS, placing research done under a PhD in the veterinary experience section is 100% correct. Whether you agree with it or not, these are VMCAS's rules so it's legit.

Yeah, like I said, I was told different for Missouri by our adcom adviser and I didn't do the VMCAS, so it never came up. Nice to know I actually had WAAAAY more "vet" experience hours than I thought.

 

[sumstorm]

There is another reason research under a PhD is considered as 'veterinary experience.' Veterinarians DO work in research (actually one of the areas of critical shortage.) I would think behavior would be even more appropriate, since there are veterinary behaviorists, as well. I included my research on turtles as bio-indicators, and on heron rookery abandonment. One is a physio study, the other included pathobiology. My goal in veterinary med is to do pathology research in wildlife populations to contains the spread of diseases such as monkey pox, hoof-and-mouth, west nile, and bse. I think the research I did under PhD's is far more relevant to my goals then the job I work now as a companion animal vet tech. It also helped me a lot when I was working in zoo vet med; I had more research skills for diagnostics than any of the experienced technicians (including liscenced techs.) Even now, if we have a weird case that requires research and contact with distant specialists, I often recieve the research assignment (and I enjoy that aspect of my job far more than the day-to-day patient care of companion animals.)

 

[BayleeVet2B]

For VMCAS, placing research done under a PhD in the veterinary experience section is 100% correct. Whether you agree with it or not, these are VMCAS's rules so it's legit.

OK, so now being the newbie that I am....I mistakenly put my 400 hours of research with rats under the supervision of a PhD under "animal experience". One of my LORs was from my supervisor. Will the adcoms see that it was "vet" experience or should I email the schools I applied to and point out my error!?!?!?

 

[nyanko]

I wouldn't worry about it. I think that most schools will look at the experiences as you described them and classify them on their own, anyway. Hopefully you described the depth of your research well enough.