Senior In High School.. Do I Have a Chance?

[RYost234]

Hello,

Ever since I started volunteering at a Animal Hospital, it has been a dream of mine to become a Vet. However, I am frightened by the science courses. I have a 3.3 GPA (never tried in high school), and got a 23 on my ACT. I will 90% likely be majoring in Psych, with the Pre-Med option as well. If I study hard, do you think it is realistic that I can become a Vet? If I don't get accepted into Vet school, the only other career choices I can think of that I would semi enjoy would be PA, or a PT.

Thanks!

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[ameropean_chelsea]

We get a lot of these situations on this forum.

Vet schools don't look at your high school academics, so don't worry about that.

If this is something you really want, you should go into college committed to succeeding in your coursework - science or otherwise. That doesn't mean you need an A on every assignment in every class, but you need to have the work ethic and gumption to get through the hills and valleys. Maintaining a 3.5 GPA is what's usually recommended, I think. When you get to college, start meeting with a pre-vet advisor immediately. Join the pre-vet club or start one. Get your name and your interest out there. Volunteer. Get a job. Study abroad. Do whatever you can to diversify yourself but still stay afloat academically.

I started out not really believing in my ability to do science classes either and it made for a lot of complications in my pre-vet process - ultimately it's worked out in the end. It took me awhile to realize how to study effectively, ask questions (sometimes you have to start with the stupid ones and graduate to really good, stimulating ones), and put in the necessary time that a challenging science curriculum demands. And find a way to build and maintain your confidence.

Basically, it boils down to this: wanting this job, this career, this life is not enough. You need to go one step further and say I will master the things I'm not stellar at and I will prove to myself and everyone else that I can excel. An equine vet who I consider to be a close friend and mentor says this all the time: you've got to put your big girl/boy panties on because it's takes persistence, persistence, persistence. She was right and I value the tough love she gave.

Finally, you have to consider that your interests very well may change during college. The more you get involved in veterinary activities during that time, the better idea you will have if this path is really the one you want to take. There are a lot of things to consider -- especially the financial burden.

Also - you don't have to apply during college or immediately after. There are plenty of people (myself included) who took some time after or even changed careers to come back and do this. Don't feel like you need to rush and overwhelm yourself for this to happen... you need to find the balance between personal life, academics, and extracurriculars that you can handle. I hope not to discourage you, but to give you some realistic insight into what it takes just to get to the brink of vet school.

Good Luck!

 

[Gwenevre]

Also realize that you will have to try in college to have a good GPA. A 3.3 GPA is still decent, but a heck of a lot easier to achieve in high school where you don't have to try too hard. I graduated high school with a 3.7/4.0 (school counted it as a 4.0 after my AP courses) and I had to drag butt and change a lot about my study habits to scrape my 3.5.

 

[katatak]

I did awful in high school... I think I had like a 2.7? I really didn't try... But when I realized what I wanted to do I stopped screwing around and applied myself. If you have the passion and the ability to handle the sciences, go for it. Your high school grades definitely won't deter you.

 

[nyanko]

I did awful in high school... I think I had like a 2.7? I really didn't try... But when I realized what I wanted to do I stopped screwing around and applied myself. If you have the passion and the ability to handle the sciences, go for it. Your high school grades definitely won't deter you.

Same. I didn't give a crap in high school and even in my first go-around of undergrad. Nobody cares what your high school grades are after you get into an undergrad program, and if you actually try you'll probably be fine. But you might need to learn some study habits. I sure did. You should also learn how to take standardized tests better, because a 23 on the ACT is not great and there's the GRE to get into vet school and you'll need to do well.

 

[Gemgrrrl]

I am frightened by the science courses.... If I don't get accepted into Vet school, the only other career choices I can think of that I would semi enjoy would be PA, or a PT.

If science isn't your thing, then you probably won't enjoy pursuing medicine. DVM, PA, PT - it's almost all science and math. Not that you couldn't still do it, but it's going to be a serious grind. You've got plenty of time to make up your mind. See how you like the science gen ed's your first two years, and then go from there. You don't have to decide right now (despite how your parents/teachers/guidance counselor might make you feel).

 

[Aegolius acadicus]

If science isn't your thing, then you probably won't enjoy pursuing medicine. DVM, PA, PT - it's almost all science and math. Not that you couldn't still do it, but it's going to be a serious grind. You've got plenty of time to make up your mind. See how you like the science gen ed's your first two years, and then go from there. You don't have to decide right now (despite how your parents/teachers/guidance counselor might make you feel).

With that being said, a lot of the science gen eds at my undergrad school are mostly weed outs and I don't think anyone really enjoys them. I enjoyed and got a lot more out of my more specific bio classes than I did out of the gen eds.

RYost234, as Gemgrrrl pointed out, you have plenty of time to figure things out. I came into undergrad dead set on a major and course of study, and then found out I didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I would, and I've also ended up really liking things that I never thought I would when I was in high school. College is sort of a learning process in more ways than one. Also, if you aren't sure yet what you want to do, just be aware that while psych is a great field, it is also a very popular course of study, and as such, if you end up relying on your degree for a job at some point, positions related to your degree may be very competitive to get. A lot of other areas are in the same boat in that respect though. On the other hand, it's a good choice for preparation for professional school because you should be able to count most of your prereq classes toward your major. Just something to keep in mind.

 

[Gemgrrrl]

With that being said, a lot of the science gen eds at my undergrad school are mostly weed outs and I don't think anyone really enjoys them. I enjoyed and got a lot more out of my more specific bio classes than I did out of the gen eds.

Gen ed's are weed outs? I always thought the weed outs were O chem, physics and anatomy.

 

[Aegolius acadicus]

Gen ed's are weed outs? I always thought the weed outs were O chem, physics and anatomy.

Oh sorry, I see what you're saying. When you said science gen eds I thought you were referring to the o chem and physics and stuff. My bad.

 

[Gemgrrrl]

Oh sorry, I see what you're saying. When you said science gen eds I thought you were referring to the o chem and physics and stuff. My bad.

No worries. I meant things like Bio and Chem I & II.

 

[Gwenevre]

No worries. I meant things like Bio and Chem I & II.

Depending on where you go, they're weed-outs. For a lot of students, Bio I was a weed-out class. The professor was notorious for being on probation every other year due to failing over half his class.

 

[Gemgrrrl]

Depending on where you go, they're weed-outs. For a lot of students, Bio I was a weed-out class. The professor was notorious for being on probation every other year due to failing over half his class.

At what school?

 

[Gwenevre]

At what school?

Purdue

 

[Gemgrrrl]

Purdue

That's just crazy. I don't know how it could be possible to fail BIO I unless you're just not studying the material at all.

 

[Gwenevre]

That's just crazy. I don't know how it could be possible to fail BIO I unless you're just not studying the material at all.

It was just one of those weird mixes of difficult material with a professor who liked to trick you with the questions. Plus the amount of studying to do for a freshman level class was atrocious. A good 3 hours spent on learnsmarts, 6 hours a week reading the material, more time spent studying the powerpoints. Which I know is nothing compared to vet school, and heck I may be remembering it differently than it really was. But I do remember that for the majority of people I know who took the class had to re-take it.

 

[stenodactylus]

Hello,

Ever since I started volunteering at a Animal Hospital, it has been a dream of mine to become a Vet. However, I am frightened by the science courses. I have a 3.3 GPA (never tried in high school), and got a 23 on my ACT. I will 90% likely be majoring in Psych, with the Pre-Med option as well. If I study hard, do you think it is realistic that I can become a Vet? If I don't get accepted into Vet school, the only other career choices I can think of that I would semi enjoy would be PA, or a PT.

Thanks!

I had a 1.7 high school GPA and never even took the ACTs or SATs and got into vet school. I didn't try in high school at all, and in fact rarely showed up! Your high school GPA is irrelevant to getting into vet school.

I would strongly suggest not to major in psych unless you plan on going for a masters or PhD in psych if you don't get into vet school. Pick a major that will help you get a decent fallback career. The psych majors I know are now all baristas/retail/receptionists. Work hard and plan for both vet school *and* an alternate career. For example, I opted for Wildlife, Fish and Conservation Biology rather than just Animal Science or Biology because it was a small major that taught specific skills useful for many of the job postings for Fish and Wildlife and Fish and Game jobs I thought would be cool. Nearly everyone else I knew in that major is now happily employed in the field. I would suggest looking at job postings in the area you want to live, look for jobs that seem like you would enjoy then see what the desired skills and education requirements are and make your choice of major based on that.

 

[WildZoo]

That's just crazy. I don't know how it could be possible to fail BIO I unless you're just not studying the material at all.

The intro Bio and Chem classes are definitely weed-outs here (Pitt) because there are so many people that start out wanting to be bio majors or pre-med. It wouldn't be sustainable for the upper level classes. It's probably not as severe as at some other schools, and I don't have personal experience with it because I placed out of those classes with high school credit, but I've heard they make it a lot tougher than you would expect for an intro class.

 

[SClENCE]

Everyone loves puppies and kittens. Everyone wants to be a vet.

 

[DVMDream]

Everyone loves puppies and kittens. Everyone wants to be a vet.

???

Do you have a particular point with this statement?

 

[ameropean_chelsea]

Everyone loves puppies and kittens. Everyone wants to be a vet.

 

[Glammyre]

The intro Bio and Chem classes are definitely weed-outs here (Pitt) because there are so many people that start out wanting to be bio majors or pre-med. It wouldn't be sustainable for the upper level classes. It's probably not as severe as at some other schools, and I don't have personal experience with it because I placed out of those classes with high school credit, but I've heard they make it a lot tougher than you would expect for an intro class.

Same at my undergraduate (USI). I remember my Intro to Bio professor telling us on the first day to look left, look right, and only one of the three of us would be passing. To be fair, I think a lot of those were drops. In later semesters, I remember hearing the professors complaining about pre-meds and pre-vets who dropped out because they didn't understand the work they'd need to do to accomplish their dream.

OP, if you want to be a veterinarian, you'll definitely need to take the heavy-duty science classes. I know they sound scary, but if you learn study habits early in the course and take these courses seriously, you should be in a good position.

 

[Country_roads]

I had a 1.7 high school GPA and never even took the ACTs or SATs and got into vet school. I didn't try in high school at all, and in fact rarely showed up! Your high school GPA is irrelevant to getting into vet school.

I would strongly suggest not to major in psych unless you plan on going for a masters or PhD in psych if you don't get into vet school. Pick a major that will help you get a decent fallback career. The psych majors I know are now all baristas/retail/receptionists. Work hard and plan for both vet school *and* an alternate career. For example, I opted for Wildlife, Fish and Conservation Biology rather than just Animal Science or Biology because it was a small major that taught specific skills useful for many of the job postings for Fish and Wildlife and Fish and Game jobs I thought would be cool. Nearly everyone else I knew in that major is now happily employed in the field. I would suggest looking at job postings in the area you want to live, look for jobs that seem like you would enjoy then see what the desired skills and education requirements are and make your choice of major based on that.

I want to 2nd this. I ended up graduating from an alternative high school because I just never went to any of my classes and I wasn't going to graduate if I stayed at traditional. I think I had like 50+ absences once halfway in to my sophomore semester. Obviously, my GPA was horrid. However, ultimately I was accepted to two vet schools.

It's great that your grades from HS are decent, but you need to keep that up, or improve it, in college. Apply yourself, take it all seriously. It actually counts now.

Also, if you're interested in the health field (judging by vet med, PA, PT) don't do psychology...unless you're interested in psychiatry or plan on grad school. I'd suggest biology probably, given your interest in human medicine as well.

Sorry but the Psychology Bachelors are about a dime a dozen these days.

 

[StartingoverVet]

Hello,

Ever since I started volunteering at a Animal Hospital, it has been a dream of mine to become a Vet. However, I am frightened by the science courses. I have a 3.3 GPA (never tried in high school), and got a 23 on my ACT. I will 90% likely be majoring in Psych, with the Pre-Med option as well. If I study hard, do you think it is realistic that I can become a Vet? If I don't get accepted into Vet school, the only other career choices I can think of that I would semi enjoy would be PA, or a PT.

Thanks!

vet school, PA, PT.. none of those are options if you are frightened by science courses.
Figuring out and overcoming that phobia is job number one for you.
You need to take, and excel and lots of science classes.

 

[ssoehnlen]

Do what you truly want to do. Work hard and don't make excuses. Just remember that the ONLY person keeping you from getting into vet school is YOURSELF. There was a point in undergrad I had to tell myself that after a very down semester. I worked my butt off and got accepted. You can do it!

 

[Gemgrrrl]

@RYost234 - all this being said... there is no better feeling than taking a class you've been dreading and acing that s$%*!! Seriously. That's how I was with physics. I literally waited until the last two semesters of my undergrad to take two classes I should have taken first year. I was seriously dreading physics, and scared to death of the professor. Like some others have said about BIO profs, my physics I professor was no joke and took great pleasure in failing as many students as possible. I seriously ran around the room doing victory laps for 5 minutes when I aced his class.

 

[Zora518]

High school is very different from college. You seem very aware that you'll need to have a different mid set in college. As for your high school grades, they'll get you into undergrad, but your undergrad grades (and extra curriculars) will get you into vet school. Do well in school and be as well rounded as possible.