How many credit hours per semester should I take in college?

[akina]

I heard that if you want to be in vet school, you have to take at least 15 hours per semester and do well because it makes you look like you can handle a lot of work since vet school requires you to take ~20 hours per semester?

I'm a junior now and I'm finding it really hard to take 15+ credit hours because the majority of my classes are upper division which means the subject matter is harder and there's a lot of studying in order to keep up with each class. Maybe it's the fact that I'm taking 6 classes...

For the next semester, I'm planning on taking 15 hours (5 classes), but I also want to take animal nutrition by correspondence since the University of Texas (Austin) doesn't offer these kinds of classes.

Will taking 12 hours (4 classes) plus a course by correspondence make me look bad? I have one year to complete the correspondence course.

Also, would it look bad if I took a semester off for an internship at a zoo or something like that? I really need more experience with animals. I barely volunteer at the animal shelter because I don't have time.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[sumstorm]

I can't help with the credit issues, since my school is one of those weird 'unit' or 'term' schools where each class is worth either 1/2 or 1 credit. I took overloads each term. Because of the limits on my school that typically meant 3 sciences and a humanities/social science. I did an intership at a zoo, 12 hours a week, but not in place of a term, just for a credit.

I worked full time or greater all 4 years of college, and my grades suffered for it (3.4) but I graduated with research honors. I also TA'd and RA'd (on top of work) my JR and SR years because the TA position reduced my lab fees and the RA position paid room/board. I am not a traditional student, since I graduated in 2001 and am currently taking some courses online to complete pre-reqs that have changed since my graduation.

If there is one thing I could change about my undergrad experience, it would have been to work less and to do interships each summer instead of working 2-3 jobs.

 

[twelvetigers]

As long as you remain full time (or do something legitimate and worthwhile) then I wouldn't worry about having less than 15 credit hours a semester. Just do well in the hours that you have!

 

[charismarl]

I agree with twelvetigers...I don't think it would be recommended to consistently take the minimum number of credits but I think it's more important that you do well in what you are taking. On the flip, adcoms want to see that you can manage a heavy course-load because you take about 8 classes a semester in vet school (varying credit numbers of course). It's a fine balance but you have to make it work for you. As long as you get all the pre-reqs in I think it is much more important to have a high GPA.

I don't know much about correspondence classes but it seems to me that as long as you are taking the class through an accredited university and you stay full-time at your main school, then adcoms will look at your transcript as you taking 12+(correspondence credits)=~15. I think that's cool!

 

[168135]

I know the AVC here in Canada runs a little differently. I emailed them because I was going to end the year with 24 credit hours and then I took a 6-credit course in the summer, and they said that as long as I have 18 in that year, I'm fine.

I'm taking five courses now, I work part-time, I bowl once a week and I'm a member of the bio society. I'm going to start making random visits to a vet clinic soon so that I can observe surgeries.

I'm debating on dropping organic chem without academic penalty... (studied my butt off, could do all of the work in the notes and the books, and my room mate and I barely passed), but I'm scared that it might look bad if I'm only taking 4 courses this semester. If I get a hundred on the final, I'll get an 87 in the course

 

[david594]

I know the AVC here in Canada runs a little differently. I emailed them because I was going to end the year with 24 credit hours and then I took a 6-credit course in the summer, and they said that as long as I have 18 in that year, I'm fine.

Seriously? Thats good to know.

I am working on my AVC app right now and was worried they might not like my excuse of taking some pre-reqs during a 9 credit semester(with 2 being labs). But I have taken a total of 33 credits in the last year, so hopefully it will all be a wash.

 

[HopefulAg]

I took 15 - 18 hours every semester and the adcom said that was about what they expected from undergrads.