Progress towards vet school

[VetToBe48]

I have been reading this site for a week now comparing everyone's stats and such trying to calm myself down for gaining admission to vet school! I've always wanted to be a vet and have a love for medicine but I didn't take things too seriously and started late in my experience.. I'm a Sophomore pre-vet student at FSU and I do not feel confident in my past performance but am hopeful to present myself as a strong applicant by next year. My stats right now is a 3.26 cumGPA and a 3.4 sGPA, 200 hrs experience, few ECs like AED for entire Sophomore year and pre-vet club freshman (couldn't manage my time right to continue through my sophomore year with a 30+ hr job--- NOT a good excuse) I know I could have done much better if I had put in the effort. Btw mostly A's and B's with one C and one C+. If I manage to get straight A's from here on out taking upper-level science courses for my remaining junior year ( bring my GPA up to 3.53ish), get a good GRE score (honestly don't know how good I'll do-- not a good test taker; I get anxious but I'm working on that), and hopefully 600-800 hrs experience shadowing large + small animal vets) by the time I need to submit my application do you think I stand a good chance for UF? I'm not sure entirely what UF weighs more in an app. The current vets I'm shadowing right now attended there and say they look more closely on GPA. Is this true for nowadays, and would my upward trend stick out enough? Also, how many credit hours shows you can handle a decent course load? I plan on taking 12 credit hrs this Fall that includes 3 science course + their 3 labs. Thanks in advance for any replies. I greatly appreciate them, and good luck to all of you future vets!

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[pinkpuppy9]

There's a sticky thread at the top of the Pre-vet page called "What are my chances?" You'll probably get most answers by posting in there!

I applied to UF as an OOS student, and I was waitlisted with a ~3.6 cGPA and ~3.4 science GPA alongside about 1500 (?) hours in SA, LA, zoo, and wildlife. You will definitely need to bring both GPAs up, but your science one isn't too bad. Your cGPA will hold you back a bit. An upward trend will only do you favors here. While saying you will get only A's from here on out is great, remember to be realistic and have a plan in place in case you don't get straight A's (repeat classes? Take additional classes?). UF doesn't exactly say how they weigh different parts of the application. They do say they recommend at least 500 hours of experience and above 65th percentile in both categories of the GRE. Take a look at their class stats from year to year: http://education.vetmed.ufl.edu/admissions/dvm-specifics/admission-statistics-by-class/

How many credit hours you can handle is very different from person to person, and different depending on what mix of courses you have. Not all schools say they consider "academic rigor," and those that do don't really define what that means very well unless you make a call. Take the load of courses you will do best with. A tough course load won't make up for a low GPA. Good luck!

 

[Maddiegirl]

It's hard to broadly say what stats will get you accepted. Every school is different in what they look for and I've seen stats on the high end and low end both get accepted. I think the key is to distinguish yourself from other applicants in some way. Try to have as much diversified experience as you can. GPA and GRE scores are definitely important, so if you have a lower GPA then it becomes more important to nail the GRE. Take a look at the successful applicant thread where everyone posts their experiences and the schools they were ultimately accepted/interviewed or rejected from. This will give you some idea of the kinds of stats people are getting accepted with.

The next step is to get really solid letters of recommendation! I had a letter from someone I trusted that turned out to be TWO sentences and seriously hurt my application.

As for courseload, consider that vet school loads are anywhere from 19-23 credit hours per semester. So, the more classes you can successfully manage in any given semester with good grades the better. I took a lower load, but worked and was taking multiple upper division biology courses. I've been trying to add more courses each semester to prove to the schools I can do it.

Lastly, write a great personal statement that sets you apart from everyone else. There is a good thread on here about personal statement do's and don't's...I suggest reading it before you start writing to avoid some of the more common mistakes. Remember that everyone on here loves animals (or they should) and the admissions committee members ready hundreds of personal statements. Make your statement stand out in some way. What makes you different, special, unique etc.

When it boils down to it in the end, getting into vet school is really a crap shoot. I've seen candidates that looked great on paper get rejected for one reason or another and I've seen candidates that have low stats make the cut.

Hope this helps. Best of luck.

 

[DVMDream]

Isn't 12 credits just barely considered full-time?

I would say to show that you can handle a "heavy" course load, that you would need to take more around 15-18 credits, however, do NOT do this if it will impact your grades in a negative way.
You are better of getting better grades and raising your GPA than you are to just take a high course load.

 

[KCgophervet]

As for courseload, consider that vet school loads are anywhere from 19-23 credit hours per semester.

Heh I wish. 30 credits this semester, and that's without any electives. Yay vet school.

 

[Ashgirl]

Heh I wish. 30 credits this semester, and that's without any electives. Yay vet school.

Truth. It's funny because a lot of school's (including my own) list the credits as being 18-22 a semester, but then when you actually figure out the hours, you are there in class or lab 30-40+ hours a week. Not sure how that math works to be honest (I know lab isn't worth as much, but it's worth more than they are saying for sure....)

 

[VetToBe48]

Heh I wish. 30 credits this semester, and that's without any electives. Yay vet school.

Wow, that sounds like a lot! Is vet school really overwhelming at first?

 

[Ashgirl]

Wow, that sounds like a lot! Is vet school really overwhelming at first?

Not really. It's as easy as jumping in a tiny puddle of information, kinda like this:

Truthfully, the volume in vet school can be a rough adjustment (for some harder than others), but there is usually always help if you need it, so if you are struggling there are people you can reach for.

 

[DVMDream]

Wow, that sounds like a lot! Is vet school really overwhelming at first?

Vet school can be overwhelming at many times, especially around finals.

The times it has been most overwhelming for me, so far:

-When first starting. It is new and there is a bit of a learning curve
-Second year, specifically all of the information on pharmacology and anesthesia.
-This second semester of third year has really thrown me for a loop. I am currently overwhelmed with finals coming up fast and the start of clinics soon after.

It isn't something that can't be handled. You adjust and adapt and lean on your classmates for moral support. The points where it gets "overwhelming" can come and go. Sometimes you have weeks that are overwhelming. Or an overwhelming year. Or an overwhelming semester. But it isn't something that you should be "afraid" of, you just slowly chip away at the work and progress through and it all works out ok.

 

[VetToBe48]

Vet school can be overwhelming at many times, especially around finals.

The times it has been most overwhelming for me, so far:

-When first starting. It is new and there is a bit of a learning curve
-Second year, specifically all of the information on pharmacology and anesthesia.
-This second semester of third year has really thrown me for a loop. I am currently overwhelmed with finals coming up fast and the start of clinics soon after.

It isn't something that can't be handled. You adjust and adapt and lean on your classmates for moral support. The points where it gets "overwhelming" can come and go. Sometimes you have weeks that are overwhelming. Or an overwhelming year. Or an overwhelming semester. But it isn't something that you should be "afraid" of, you just slowly chip away at the work and progress through and it all works out ok.

 

[VetToBe48]

Thanks for the feedback everyone. Yeeah, I guess adjusting varies with who you are. I can stress myself out easily though. I can't wait whenever I do get into vet school though (I'm a persistent person). Everyone will be in the pursuit together so as long as I've got people with me! Good luck on your finals DVMDream!

 

[deleted498041]

Heh I wish. 30 credits this semester, and that's without any electives. Yay vet school.

36 credits. I love vet school!

Wow, that sounds like a lot! Is vet school really overwhelming at first?

I think it's overwhelming all the time, to be honest. Something that's really key is identifying what facts are important and worthy of your time. It's really easy to get bogged down in all the minutiae. Also, don't be afraid to talk to a therapist/counselor/psychologist/psychiatrist if you need help. Plenty of my classmates have had complete breakdowns at one point in time or another. It's nothing to be ashamed of.

 

[Maddiegirl]

Heh I wish. 30 credits this semester, and that's without any electives. Yay vet school.

EEEK! Where is this?!

 

[KCgophervet]

EEEK! Where is this?!

Spring semester 2nd year at UMN. Though I just recounted and it may be 31 credits... but I think this is pretty common. To be fair, this was our heaviest semester so far, but we've never had less than 23 (I think) credits. That's professional school for ya.

 

[Fly Racing]

The 8-5 (long days) and 9-4 (short days) do take an adjustment, because that is a long time to pay attention! It's not 3 one hour class sessions on mwf and two 75 minute sessions Tuesday/Thursday like you may have in undergrad. It's a full day of class all week long (we actually get one afternoon off every 2-3 weeks).

I think different schools calculate credit hours differently, because we are in classes about 36 hours per week (not including exams) and that's 21.5 credit hours. If we had to take 30 credits, that would probably be over 50 hours of class room time each week.