Successful Applicant Stats - Class of 2020

[sheltermed]

29 yr old male, CA resident, 1st time applicant.

Applied: UC Davis, Colorado, Michigan State, VMCVM
Interviews: UC Davis, Michigan State, VMCVM (declined)
Rejected: UC Davis (after interview)
Waitlisted: N/A
Accepted: Michigan State, Colorado
Attending: Michigan State

Overall GPA: 3.89
Science GPA: 3.9
Last 45 credits: 3.95

GRE (Q/V/W): 154/158/4.0 (I think?)

Veterinary Experience:
200 Hours shadowing in a SA clinic
250 Hours LA
130 Hours shadowing a lab animal vet
120 Hours LA/public health with the USDA. I was really hoping to get more last summer but the bird flu died down before I could get cleared to work.

Research Experience:
100 Hours doing sample prep, making whole mount slides of mammary glands, and quantifying structures. Was interning under a PhD student doing a pilot study about the effects of alcohol on breast cancer development.
200 Hours using a scanning electron microscope to analyze hair diameter.
100 Hours studying kidney disease in obese rats. Did a lot of PCR and running of gels.

Animal Experience:
7000 Hours training and utilizing Military Working Dogs
400 Hours rodent colony management
100 Hours volunteering in an animal shelter

Non-Animal Employment:
5000 Hours of Law enforcement in the United States Marine Corps
1500 Hours in construction
80 Hours as a group tutor for general chemistry

Awards/ Honors/Extracurricular:
Not really anything for extracurriculars. I’ve got a wife and 2 kids and barely any time as it is.
Departmental Citation
Dean’s List/President’s List for most terms
Awarded scholarship for being in the top 4% of my class entering university
Chemistry Student of the Year at community college
Various military awards

LORs:
Lab Animal Vet I shadowed
Professor I took 2 classes (and did very well with), and I interned with one of his PhD students
Supervisor/ Lab manager where I worked in her lab and rodent colony

Personal Statement:
I really stuck quite closely to the prompt. I don’t think my writing is anything special. Talked about my late start getting into vet med, an injury that ended my military career and how I overcame that, and my wide range of interests in the field.

I'm really surprised that UC Davis rejected you. Did you have a file review (not that you need one)? Either way, congrats on the acceptances! They are clearly well-deserved from your stats!

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[vetmedhead]

I'm really surprised that UC Davis rejected you. Did you have a file review (not that you need one)? Either way, congrats on the acceptances! They are clearly well-deserved from your stats!

I don't know teep and don't want to speak for him, but he may not have interviewed well at UC Davis's MMIs. I have a friend who interviewed there who said she felt it was a more intimidating atmosphere than some other interviews she went to (mind you, she absolutely loves Davis and all those involved in the school, and would also add in a heartbeat that the interviewers were nice even if the interviews felt intimidating).

In my own personal experience, some schools put weird weights on interviews. I know at TAMU if you score in the bottom ~20%(ish?) of interview scores then you are automatically rejected even if your other scores are absolutely stellar. This may cause issues for candidates who don't always interview well or who were sick/jetlagged/nervous/etc.

All that being said, your stuff looks awesome Teep! You should be proud of yourself and your hard work definitely shows. I bet your family is so proud of you!

 

[Lucy410]

I'm really surprised that UC Davis rejected you. Did you have a file review (not that you need one)? Either way, congrats on the acceptances! They are clearly well-deserved from your stats!

I believe applicants' stats (specifically, their last 45 units GPA, science GPA, and LORs) only get them to the interview stage for Davis. After the interview the decision seems to be based on how the candidate performed in the MMIs, which at vetmedhead said, can be pretty intimidating.

From the Davis website: "At the conclusion of the MMI interview process, all applicants will be ranked based on their MMI scores and offered admission based on their rank."

 

[rockatiel]

I would have screwed me up some MMIs. That much I know. I respect anyone who's lived to tell the tale, accepted or not.

 

[sheltermed]

I would have screwed me up some MMIs. That much I know. I respect anyone who's lived to tell the tale, accepted or not.

I'd probably be in the same boat. Sounds like they really put you on the spot or something. I don't know much about them!

 

[vetmedhead]

I would have screwed me up some MMIs. That much I know. I respect anyone who's lived to tell the tale, accepted or not.

I'd probably be in the same boat. Sounds like they really put you on the spot or something. I don't know much about them!

MMIs are simultaneously really fun and very scary. It was great to be able to move to another station if you screwed up a question, but also horrible to have to deal with time limits, new prompts, and new interviewers. I get along well with strangers and sometimes have a difficult time establishing a rapport for a longer period of time (so I'm good for ~10 minutes of conversation where it's mostly me talking, but bad with ~1 hour where it's a lot of someone else asking me multiple questions), so MMIs play well with my "social skill set", as it were. For others this is definitely not the case and MMIs can be very challenging for those who do better with more time to get to impress themselves upon interviewers.

 

[vetmedhead]

MMIs are simultaneously really fun and very scary. It was great to be able to move to another station if you screwed up a question, but also horrible to have to deal with time limits, new prompts, and new interviewers. I get along well with strangers and sometimes have a difficult time establishing a rapport for a longer period of time (so I'm good for ~10 minutes of conversation where it's mostly me talking, but bad with ~1 hour where it's a lot of someone else asking me multiple questions), so MMIs play well with my "social skill set", as it were. For others this is definitely not the case and MMIs can be very challenging for those who do better with more time to get to impress themselves upon interviewers.

I should also add that I definitely screwed me up some MMI questions. At one I told the interviewers the first thing I would ask someone I was interviewing for a job was whether or not they liked tomatoes.

 

[sheltermed]

I should also add that I definitely screwed me up some MMI questions. At one I told the interviewers the first thing I would ask someone I was interviewing for a job was whether or not they liked tomatoes.

Omg!! Just a random oops under pressure? I hate tomatoes. Raw ones, at least. I'll eat ketchup or tomato sauce, but not like, fresh tomatoes in a salad or on a sandwich. Blech

 

[Teepster87]

I'm really surprised that UC Davis rejected you. Did you have a file review (not that you need one)? Either way, congrats on the acceptances! They are clearly well-deserved from your stats!

All the schools I applied to that interviewed were MMI schools. I had Davis as my first interview and really didn't think that I did poorly. So I'm assuming I didn't answer some of their questions in the manner that they wanted them answered. I know like 20-25 people in the class of 2019/2018 and they were all as shocked (or more shocked in a few cases) than I was that I got rejected. But oh well that's life. I like to think that it wasn't me doing poorly, but that everyone else had really stellar interviews
I went to MSU and completely crushed their MMI, so I don't know what's up.

That all being said, I really liked MMIs. I tell everyone that they're kind of like roller coasters. They look pretty scary and intimidating as your waiting for them, but afterwards you realize that you kind of enjoyed it.

I'm also originally from Michigan, so it'll be nice to be close to my side of the family for a few years. My wifes side is all in norcal, where we live now.

 

[vetmedhead]

Omg!! Just a random oops under pressure? I hate tomatoes. Raw ones, at least. I'll eat ketchup or tomato sauce, but not like, fresh tomatoes in a salad or on a sandwich. Blech

Half oops, half me being serious. My reasoning was that I would want someone to feel comfortable interviewing with me, so "get to know you" questions would be a good idea.

Also, I hate tomatoes and would like to know if I was interviewing someone that I clearly would never get along with.

 

[vetmedhead]

All the schools I applied to that interviewed were MMI schools. I had Davis as my first interview and really didn't think that I did poorly. So I'm assuming I didn't answer some of their questions in the manner that they wanted them answered. I know like 20-25 people in the class of 2019/2018 and they were all as shocked (or more shocked in a few cases) than I was that I got rejected. But oh well that's life. I like to think that it wasn't me doing poorly, but that everyone else had really stellar interviews
I went to MSU and completely crushed their MMI, so I don't know what's up.

That all being said, I really liked MMIs. I tell everyone that they're kind of like roller coasters. They look pretty scary and intimidating as your waiting for them, but afterwards you realize that you kind of enjoyed it.

I'm also originally from Michigan, so it'll be nice to be close to my side of the family for a few years. My wifes side is all in norcal, where we live now.

Someone once told me that if a school goes through the effort of interviewing you and then decides that it does not want you, the school may not be a good fit for you regardless of how you feel about the school. They are not necessarily interviewing someone to see if they could probably make a decent veterinarian (though of course they pay attention if that doesn't seem like the case at the interview), they are interviewing to see if that person fits with the culture of their school and the types of veterinarians they want to claim as alumni. The person interviewing could be someone who would make a stellar veterinarian but the school may see someone who will be successful, but not their cup of tea. When you interview, you are demonstrating yourself to a school - as you are. If a school sees that and dislikes it, it is not always a comment on you but rather a comment on how the school's ideas fit with yours.

Also, agree with you on MMIs. They were a hoot and a half, though intimidating at first glance!

 

[mht2k3]

I'm also originally from Michigan, so it'll be nice to be close to my side of the family for a few years. My wifes side is all in norcal, where we live now.

Not sure if you already know this, or if it applies to you, but you might be able to get instate tuition for 3 out of the 4 years you are there. I'm also originally from Michigan, but now a resident of Maine (where my wife's family lives). I talked to MSU and they told me that since I graduated high school in michigan and my parents have lived in michigan since my graduation of high school (even though i'm not a dependent for them) I'm eligible for instate tuition after living in michigan for a year. They said my first year would be out of state, but during that first year I'm allowed to request being switched to in state.

 

[Teepster87]

Not sure if you already know this, or if it applies to you, but you might be able to get instate tuition for 3 out of the 4 years you are there. I'm also originally from Michigan, but now a resident of Maine (where my wife's family lives). I talked to MSU and they told me that since I graduated high school in michigan and my parents have lived in michigan since my graduation of high school (even though i'm not a dependent for them) I'm eligible for instate tuition after living in michigan for a year. They said my first year would be out of state, but during that first year I'm allowed to request being switched to in state.

Thanks for posting this, maybe it'll benefit someone else here. I already got converted to instate tuition thanks to their veteran friendly residency policies

 

[mht2k3]

Thanks for posting this, maybe it'll benefit someone else here. I already got converted to instate tuition thanks to their veteran friendly residency policies

nice!

 

[DVMDream]

Someone once told me that if a school goes through the effort of interviewing you and then decides that it does not want you, the school may not be a good fit for you regardless of how you feel about the school. They are not necessarily interviewing someone to see if they could probably make a decent veterinarian (though of course they pay attention if that doesn't seem like the case at the interview), they are interviewing to see if that person fits with the culture of their school and the types of veterinarians they want to claim as alumni. The person interviewing could be someone who would make a stellar veterinarian but the school may see someone who will be successful, but not their cup of tea. When you interview, you are demonstrating yourself to a school - as you are. If a school sees that and dislikes it, it is not always a comment on you but rather a comment on how the school's ideas fit with yours.

Also, agree with you on MMIs. They were a hoot and a half, though intimidating at first glance!

Meh... maybe to the above. I say that because I interviewed at Western my first application cycle and was waitlisted. My second application cycle, I interviewed with them and had a real bitch of an interviewer, she seriously did not care what I had to say. She had to keep asking me to repeat what I stated. Even the student who was with her who was also interviewing me had an appalled look on her face and attempted to help repeat my answers because the lady just did not give a **** and wasn't paying any attention. I was rejected that year. I can't recall if I did an application review that year or not, but damn that experience was horrible... I wonder if she is even still at that school. I would never be able to recall her name. And some of the things she said during the interview, I really hope that is more just her personal opinion and not an indication of how the school feels as well.

 

[psilovethomas]

Not sure if you already know this, or if it applies to you, but you might be able to get instate tuition for 3 out of the 4 years you are there. I'm also originally from Michigan, but now a resident of Maine (where my wife's family lives). I talked to MSU and they told me that since I graduated high school in michigan and my parents have lived in michigan since my graduation of high school (even though i'm not a dependent for them) I'm eligible for instate tuition after living in michigan for a year. They said my first year would be out of state, but during that first year I'm allowed to request being switched to in state.

Do you have this in writing from the registrars office? I've never heard of this and doesn't follow the rules of residency in Michigan.
https://reg.msu.edu/roinfo/notices/Residency.aspx

 

[mht2k3]

Do you have this in writing from the registrars office? I've never heard of this and doesn't follow the rules of residency in Michigan.
https://reg.msu.edu/roinfo/notices/Residency.aspx

I dont have it in writing, I just called up the registrars office and thats what they told me. I will call them back today and if they still say its true I'll ask for something in writing.

 

[psilovethomas]

I dont have it in writing, I just called up the registrars office and thats what they told me. I will call them back today and if they still say its true I'll ask for something in writing.

Okay, wouldn't want you to get screwed over by something that was only said verbally .

 

[mht2k3]

Okay, wouldn't want you to get screwed over by something that was only said verbally .

I just called them back. They again reassured me that this is the case, but also cautioned that there is no clear cut rule and that its done on a case by case basis and so he can't give me anything in writing because of that. He thinks that I would qualify though based on what I told him about my past. Kind of hard to just go ahead with it and then learn a year later that they don't think I qualify! He said that if I'm admitted, I can apply for instate fee status and they should be able to tell me one way or the other before I need to decide what school I'm going to, so I guess I'll just go with that.

 

[emlady09]

VMRCVM does MMIs as well, and their decisions are based ENTIRELY on MMI scores. If you make it to the interview round the worst that can happen is you get waitlisted, but after you get invited to interview their decisions are based on your MMI quantitative scores....that really freaked me out. I met someone who had applied 2 cycles ago and didn't make the cut by 1/10th of a point.....

I went through the VMRCVM MMI last cycle. I actually enjoyed it, thought I did stellar! When I did my file review I found out I was just below where I needed to be....all because I was nervous the first few questions. They may seem really intimidating, but you're really just having a conversation with someone for a few minutes.

 

[heyyimhayley]

I should also add that I definitely screwed me up some MMI questions. At one I told the interviewers the first thing I would ask someone I was interviewing for a job was whether or not they liked tomatoes.

Just in case there are adcoms lurking this page... If you signed a non-disclosure, you shouldn't share that that was a question on the Internet.

On the topic of MMI's I personally loved that interview! I only did them at MSU, so I don't know how it is at other schools, but this is coming from someone who was TERRIFIED, thought I would just sit there in silence for 8 minutes... I came out of the interview feeling awesome. Some rooms obviously were better than others, but even the harder rooms were not nearly as bad as I had imagined.

 

[vetmedhead]

Just in case there are adcoms lurking this page... If you signed a non-disclosure, you shouldn't share that that was a question on the Internet.

On the topic of MMI's I personally loved that interview! I only did them at MSU, so I don't know how it is at other schools, but this is coming from someone who was TERRIFIED, thought I would just sit there in silence for 8 minutes... I came out of the interview feeling awesome. Some rooms obviously were better than others, but even the harder rooms were not nearly as bad as I had imagined.

Job interviews were not the topic of the MMI question, they were something I was tangentially discussing in the interview.

 

[ilikecake]

Those of you who were accepted- how much space did you dedicate in your personal statement to your goals and objectives in your career? I want to practice general mixed practice, possibly emergency medicine, but it's not exactly something that is unique and I know it won't make me stand out. Should I go into a lot of detail, or focus the majority of my space on the things the set me apart?

 

[vetmedhead]

Those of you who were accepted- how much space did you dedicate in your personal statement to your goals and objectives in your career? I want to practice general mixed practice, possibly emergency medicine, but it's not exactly something that is unique and I know it won't make me stand out. Should I go into a lot of detail, or focus the majority of my space on the things the set me apart?

I think it might be hard to get a good gauge on what to put in your PS from what others may have done, since they tend to vary a lot from person to person. I would write what you feel is important to you and what you think represents you well. I personally didn't talk much about my career goals, while I know others who wrote a significant portion of their PS about them.

 

[pinkpuppy9]

I would have screwed me up some MMIs. That much I know. I respect anyone who's lived to tell the tale, accepted or not.

I hated my MMI. I got what their angles were for each of the scenarios as they were pretty obvious, but I really don't think they're a good way of demonstrating who the applicant is. It went by fast and was less intimidating than I thought, but yeah I'm not a fan. That's only one school, though...maybe other schools have different methods of doing MMIs. One scenario in particular was kind of ridiculous actually, but we signed a non-disclosure so I can't openly complain

 

[Cephal0pod]

Those of you who were accepted- how much space did you dedicate in your personal statement to your goals and objectives in your career? I want to practice general mixed practice, possibly emergency medicine, but it's not exactly something that is unique and I know it won't make me stand out. Should I go into a lot of detail, or focus the majority of my space on the things the set me apart?

Yes.

Set yourself apart, but show how those experiences relate to what you are interested in, what you learned from them that will help you in your veterinary career, etc. Your area of interest doesn't have to be super unique - you just need to be able to show that you understand it, have experience with it, and have good reason for wanting to pursue it.

Also important to note that you won't have room to go into a ton of detail... the end stages of personal statement writing literally come down to word selection at times in an attempt to trim down characters. Think about what big ideas you want to convey, and from there, think about what level of detail you actually need to convey those ideas.

 

[cowlover24]

21 yr old female, PA resident, 1st time applicant.
I had really low GRE scores and I was super worried about it but it all worked out so don’t give up, you got this
For those just applying, if you have any questions about a certain school that I had experience with, please do not hesitate to message me!

Applied: Penn, Ohio, Iowa, Illinois, Mississippi, VMRCVM, Tufts, Cornell, Lincoln Memorial, Purdue, and Missouri
Interview Invites: Ohio, Iowa, Illinois (declined), Mississippi (declined), VMRCVM, Lincoln, Purdue and Missouri
Rejected: Penn, Cornell, Tufts
Waitlisted:VMRCVM, Iowa (accepted off)
Accepted: Ohio, Iowa (from waitlist), Lincoln, Purdue and Missouri
Attending: OHIO STATE!

Degrees:B.S. Biology, Minors: Chemistry and Mathematics
*I also went to a small Liberal Arts school in case that helps anyone out

Overall GPA: 3.77
Science GPA: 3.82
Last 45 credits: 3.92

GRE(Q/V/W): 154 (56%) /145 (25%)/ 3.0 (15%)
*by far the weakest part of my application

Veterinary Experience: 1055 hours total
-LA Shadowing: 160 hours
-SA Shadowing: 255 hours
-SA Veterinary Assistant: 560 hours
-HSVMA-RAVS small animal spay/neuter/vaccine field clinic on the Spirit Lake Indian Reservation (ND): 80 hours

Research Experience: 240 hours total
Worked in the field by trapping deer mice in havahart traps in a field, deep forest and the edge of a forest to study the effect habitat selection has on the prevalence of Borrelia burgdorferi (Lyme bacterium). I collected the ticks off the mice and then sent them to be tested for Borrelia burgdorferi.

Animal Experience: 4238 hours total
Pet-Sitting: 840
Farmwork (volunteer): 2500
4-H (showing cows): 800
IPM: 31
Camps: 40
Poultry/AI: 27

I did not live on a dairy farm but lived about 2 miles away from one and really enjoyed helping out with chores. I showed cows in 4-H for a five years. IPM stands for Integrated Pest Management and I rode around with a county extension agent from NY and we went from farm to farm studying flies that bother cows (ex: faceflies), It didn’t seem like a big deal but it came up in two of my interviews and how interesting it was (entomology is important in vet med!). I worked at a horse camp for a week one summer to get some more experience with horses. And I became a certified poultry technician and took the artificial insemination course to help my application, both course were really fun though!

Non-Animal Employment:
Lifeguard: 4000
Tutor: 200
WSI (Swim lessons): 500
*I worked about 25 hours/ week during my junior and senior year of undergrad.

Extracurriculars / Etc:
Biology Club
Beta Beta Beta Biological Honor Society
Dead Alchemist Society (Chemistry Club)
4-H
Dairy Quiz Bowl
PAS (Pennsylvania Academy of Science), presented my research here
I spent more time working to pay for undergrad than I did participating in events.
*I just listed my extracurriculars from undergrad but I did include extracurriculars from high school on my VMCAS application (sports and clubs) because I was involved in much more than in undergrad.

Awards:
Deans List (every semester)
Experiential Learner of the Year (Freshman Award)
Freshman Chemistry Award
Outstanding 4-H Dairy Member Award
VIP Award
Student Council Award
*Most awards I received were from senior year of high school to help pay for college, I did include some on VMCAS but not all of them.

LORs:
Academic Advisor
Vet from SA hospital I was an assistant at
Mathematics Professor
Research Advisor
LA Vet I shadowed

Personal Statement:
I started off with a quote from the LA vet I shadowed saying “Hey, this is going to smell.” It was the first time I was exposed to the smells involved with post-calving and of course it was the first day I ever road with the LA vet. I wrote how I was naive about what veterinary medicine was about, as I thought it was a one-dimensional profession and I did not appreciate the side that the general public misses. Then I went into writing about my trip to ND, as I traveled over 1500 miles by myself and I related the poverty I saw in ND to the farmers I have experience with back in PA. I tied it all together with the fact that there is so much “behind the scenes” work in vet med and it’s not all about helping sick puppies but also includes difficult conversations about financial implications. Then I wrote about how my perspective of vet med changed a lot over the years.

 

[superkelpie]

21 yr old female, TX resident, 1st time applicant.
I wasn't going to post here originally, but read so many of these in preparation for my cycle so I figured I'd share! I was a little worried having so little large animal experience would hurt me, but for everyone who lives in/goes to college in a really urban area, it's okay to not have a ton of LA experience! I don't get super detailed (for privacy reasons) but if you have any specific questions feel free to PM me!

Applied: Ohio State, Missouri, Wisconsin, Texas A&M (IS), NCSU
Interview Invites: A&M, Ohio State, Missouri
Accepted: Ohio State, Missouri, Wisconsin, A&M, NCSU
Attending: NCSU

Degrees: A.B. in Evolutionary Biology, minor in Classical Studies

Overall GPA: 3.95
Science GPA: 3.96
Last 45 credits: 4.0

GRE(Q/V/W): 170 (98%)/163 (92%)/ 5.0 (93%)

Veterinary Experience: 1754 hours total
-SA GP shadowing: 370
-SA cardio shadowing: 120
-SA surgery assistant: 960
-SA ECC shadowing: 28
-SA neuro shadowing: 60
-Low cost vx clinic: 50
-Clinical pathology shadowing: 42
-Equine shadowing: 112
-Lab animal vet shadowing: 4 (literally listed everything)
-SeaWorld vet shadowing: 8

Research Experience: 600 hours total
-Vertebrate genomics lab: 480--worked on the genomics of canine osteosarcoma for a senior thesis
-Pharmacology lab: 120--worked on the effects of diet on cocaine sensitization in rat models (in high school).

Weirdly got asked way more about my high school research than my (much more intellectually interesting/veterinary related) college research... if you list high school stuff like this make sure you go back and read your old papers/brush up on methods/etc!

Animal Experience: 423 hours total
Dog-walking/sitting: 280
Dog kennel worker: 108
Behind the scenes tour at a zoo (with keeper/animal interaction): 6
Wildlife rehab volunteer: 10
Volunteering with the polo club (horses): 15
Transplant sx shadowing (I shadowed human surgeons performing on a pig, so counted this as animal experience): 4

Also listed pet ownership on A&M's supplement (dogs/birds)

Non-Animal Employment:
Babysitting: 80
Intramural Referee: 180

Extracurriculars / Etc:
Pre-Veterinary Society (President/VP)
College newspaper (Various leadership positions + covered the football team for the sports section)
Sorority (+leadership)
Other high school stuff (only in VMCAS--I think TMDSAS asked nothing before HS with the exception of vet/animal exp)

Awards:
My school doesn't do the Dean's List thing, so I listed the "4.0 for the year" award x2 and a research scholarship to work on my thesis. Had very few things to list here!

LORs:
SA surgeon
SA surgeon (worked at the same hospital but knew me in different capacities)
SA cardiologist (different referral hospital)
Organic chem professor
*TMDSAS asks for only 3, and A&M told me that they prefer just vets so they only got the first 3 LORs

Personal Statement:
Kind of a flowery metaphorical thing (which is specifically what NCSU tells you not to do, something I found out after I had made multiple revisions oops) that tied together why and what I was interested in veterinary medicine, as well as specific situations that I felt prepared me for the field. I recommend only getting 1 or 2 people to read it because getting too much feedback (at least for me!) ends up being overwhelming and pulling your PS in too many directions.

 

[pibble-love]

I wasn't going to post here originally, but read so many of these in preparation for my cycle so I figured I'd share!

Same here! I guess now that this thread is going again, I'll post my stats too! And this will hopefully give some of the low GPA people some hope. Don't give up!

21 y/o female, DE resident, 1st time applicant

Applied: UGA, Tufts, Cornell, LMU, UMN
Rejected: Tufts, Cornell, UMN
Interview Invites: LMU
Waitlisted: LMU
Accepted: UGA
Attending: UGA!!

Degrees: Pre-Veterinary Medicine & Animal Biosciences; Minor: Biology

Overall GPA: 3.39
Science GPA: 3.38
Last 45 credits: 3.49

GRE (Q/V/W): 151 (45%) /158 (79%) /4.0 (56%)

Veterinary Experience: 2,402 hours
Delaware Department of Agriculture training sessions - 8 hrs
International emergency zoonotic disease outbreak control intern - 80 hrs
Cattle castration on university farm - 5 hrs
Dairy production course (2 labs supervised by vets) - 8 hrs
Small animal vet (GP) - 50 hrs
Equine vet - 50 hrs
Large animal vet - 176 hrs
Mixed practice vet - 2025 hrs (started working for him when I was 16 until I was 20)

Research Experience: 645 hours
Poultry research - foam depopulation and disinfection trials

Animal Experience: 1,631 hours
Pet sitting - 18 hrs
Dairy management through a dairy production course - 32 hrs
SPCA (during college) - 8 hrs
During an internship, I visited a few farms and listed them all separately, but I explained this in the description section:
-Showhorse barn - 4 hrs
-Rehabilitation barn - 8 hrs
-Main barn where I spent most of the summer working with racehorses - 460 hrs
PetsMart Pet Care Associate - 725 hrs
Dog training - 24 hrs
SPCA (during high school) - 136 hrs
Helped around Ag teacher's farm in HS - 36 hrs
Helped my neighbor maintain her bird rescue (from about age 12-14) - 180 hrs

Non-Animal Employment: 390 hours
Campus creamery - 300 hrs
Calzone shop - 90 hrs
(didn't include the many hours I spent babysitting in high school)

Extracurriculars / Etc:
Alpha Zeta co-ed professional ag fraternity (Treasurer)
College of Ag mentor program (mentor)
Taekwon-Do club (Treasurer for 3 years, President for 1)
Intramural sports (flag football, volleyball, dodgeball)
Canine Companions for Independence (puppy sitter)
National Honor Society in high school (Treasurer - see a trend here?? lol)
National FFA Organization (all 4 years of HS)
Field hockey (team captain one year - HS)
Softball (team captain one year - HS)
Also listed some of my hobbies like kayaking, hiking, swimming, etc. I was told that they want to see that you have hobbies!

Awards/Honors/Scholarships:
Included all of my FFA awards from high school competitions
Dean's list
2 scholarships that I received for all 4 years of undergrad

LORs:
Mixed practice vet that I worked over 2000 hrs for
Animal Science professor (did research and an internship with him)
Biology professor
(Unfortunately, I was only able to get 3 because the few other vets that had promised me eLORs ignored my multiple attempts to contact them via email, phone, etc. when the time finally came for me to apply )

Personal Statement:
Started off saying how all of my experiences from the time I was young until now have strengthen my desire to become a vet. Talked about working at the mixed practice vet's office and how I learned crucial personal skills while interacting with clients; discussed some of the routine and crazy things I saw there and how I had to come to terms with the fact that "you can't save them all". Discussed working with the LA vet and how adaptability is crucial in vet med, especially when you don't have an office to work in! Talked about the goals I have for myself in the field of vet med (Army Vet Corps wooo!) and how my military background shaped that.

 

[VetMed1]

First, congratulations to everyone who just got accepted to Vet school!!!!!! That is an amazing accomplishment and I hope you are all screaming with job and very proud of yourselves.

I have a question, and I am not sure if this is the right place to ask. I already know about the what are my chances thread and will post my stats later.

So my question is, what do you all think is important to the schools and what they look at more, your invidiual letter grades you got in science courses or your GPA's? I ask because my GPA is a 3.61 (that is not including any of my classes yet for this semester, I will recalculate once they're over) but I have a couple bad grades. My GPA has remained high though since I am taking elective courses to try and keep my cumGPA and last 45 higher. So is it that they look mainly at the GPA's, or do they look at your GPA, see you have a 3.6 but then look and see a couple of bad grades and go, 'oh this person did not do well in theses classes these two semesters'. I really don't know, and this year has been rough. If anyone knows, I would love to know what you think! Again, I will post in the what are my chances thread later.

Also, if anyone is willing to share their actually letter grades for their classes with a similar GPA that would be SUPER helpful!!! Thank you all in advance.

 

[alohacat319]

First, congratulations to everyone who just got accepted to Vet school!!!!!! That is an amazing accomplishment and I hope you are all screaming with job and very proud of yourselves.

I have a question, and I am not sure if this is the right place to ask. I already know about the what are my chances thread and will post my stats later.

So my question is, what do you all think is important to the schools and what they look at more, your invidiual letter grades you got in science courses or your GPA's? I ask because my GPA is a 3.61 (that is not including any of my classes yet for this semester, I will recalculate once they're over) but I have a couple bad grades. My GPA has remained high though since I am taking elective courses to try and keep my cumGPA and last 45 higher. So is it that they look mainly at the GPA's, or do they look at your GPA, see you have a 3.6 but then look and see a couple of bad grades and go, 'oh this person did not do well in theses classes these two semesters'. I really don't know, and this year has been rough. If anyone knows, I would love to know what you think! Again, I will post in the what are my chances thread later.

Also, if anyone is willing to share their actually letter grades for their classes with a similar GPA that would be SUPER helpful!!! Thank you all in advance.

Not sure what exactly you're counting as bad, but I had a C in biochem sem1 and a C in Ochem sem1. But I followed up with an A in biochem sem2 and a B+ in Ochem sem2. I had a handful of Bs in other classes as well. My cumGPA was a bit higher than yours... But I don't think my two Cs really did much to my chances at all. Sure it would be better to not have them, but I ended up getting accepted to four schools so it wasn't that bad. Don't stress over your grades that you already have. You can't change them, so just try to do well in the rest of your classes. A 3.6 is a fine GPA.

 

[VetMed1]

Not sure what exactly you're counting as bad, but I had a C in biochem sem1 and a C in Ochem sem1. But I followed up with an A in biochem sem2 and a B+ in Ochem sem2. I had a handful of Bs in other classes as well. My cumGPA was a bit higher than yours... But I don't think my two Cs really did much to my chances at all. Sure it would be better to not have them, but I ended up getting accepted to four schools so it wasn't that bad. Don't stress over your grades that you already have. You can't change them, so just try to do well in the rest of your classes. A 3.6 is a fine GPA.

Thank you for your response. Well, this past year has been rough all around for many different reasons, so that attributed to some bad grades. I have over 100 units completed, with the majority of those being A's (about 20 courses). I also have 4 B's, 2 C's from one semester, and a D in another semester. I am now retaking that class I received a D in, and currently have an B+ (my end grade will either be a B+ or A-, but that depends on how the final goes). One of my classes I am taking right now I am not doing well in at all. That is the one I am worried about. Yes I hate these grades, and I wish I did not get a couple bad ones, but I tried my best with the teachers I had........if you get the picture. If this one class goes badly again, I will have to retake it this summer again. I just worry about having several bad grades on my record, even though my retaking them (like the one I am now) I have done a LOT better. It is at a different school, upper division, and with a great teacher this time. Thank you for any advice or help you can offer.

 

[Chalupa_Batman]

I guess I'm a little late, but I always wanted to be one of the awesome people on here so I'm gonna post my stats anyway.

Me: 21 yr old female, IL resident, 1st time applicant.

Applied: Cornell, UPenn, Tufts, University of Minnesota, University of Illinois, University of Prince Edward Island, Lincoln Memorial University, University of Virginia/Maryland, Washington State
Interviews: UPenn, Tufts, University of Minnesota, University of Illinois, University of Prince Edward Island, Lincoln Memorial University, Washington State (initially declined the invite but was offered a phone interview, so I did that instead)
Waitlisted: Washington State, UPenn
Accepted: Cornell, Tufts, University of Minnesota, University of Illinois, University of Prince Edward Island, Lincoln Memorial University, UPenn (admission to class of 2021)
Attending: Cornell
(This was a hard decision for me because I will be financing everything through loans and yet I really didn't feel like my in-state school was a good fit for me. Fortunately, Cornell gave me several scholarships that bridged the cost-gap. I definitely recommend waiting to see your financial aid award before turning down a school.)

Overall GPA: 3.57
Science GPA: 3.49
Last 45 Credits: 3.8?

GRE (Q/V/W): 166/161/5.5

Veterinary Experience: 947 hrs total
Summer Intern at a Small Animal Clinic - 403 hrs
Kennel Technician in Small Animal Clinic - 400 hrs
Student Intern at University Research Animal Clinic (small, food, exotic/avian) - 144 hrs

Research Experience: 795 hrs total
Independent Research Project in Genetics - 750 hrs
Assisted with a senior capstone project in engineering - 45 hrs

Animal Experience: 19,580 hrs total
Summer intern in an animal shelter - 260 hrs
Dressage Rider/Working Student/Trainer - 19,320 hrs

Non-Animal Employment:
Retail Sales Associate - 220 hrs
Prospective Student Overnight Stay Hostess - 409 hrs

Awards and Honors:
Illinois State Scholar
AP Scholar with Distinction
Suburban Conference Academic Achievement Award
National Merit Commended Scholar
Dean's High Honors and Dean's Honors List
National Society of Collegiate Scholars Invitee
Summer Undergraduate Research Grant
Various Scholarships

Extracurriculars:
Vice President of Pre-Vet Club
Peer Mentor for Science and Engineering Students
Standards Board Member in Sorority
Volunteered with a program that taught disadvantaged children how to read

LORs:
Vet from the small animal clinic that I worked at and interned with
PI from the genetics lab I worked in
Microbiology Professor
Academic Advisor

Personal Statement:
I opened by talking about how I have a single mom who never attended college and how the values she instilled in me and the support she gave me led to my passion for veterinary medicine. I then talked about my responsibilities as an intern in the small animal clinic and how being able to assist with surgeries led to my interest in specializing in soft tissue surgery. In my second body paragraph, I talked about some of the experiences I had while shadowing the lab animal vets. In the conclusion, I pretty much talked about being intrinsically motivated and how I view everything I do/learn as a way for me to become the best vet ever. I'm sure it was riveting.

 

[mildredjrt]

First time applicant, 25yo from CA

Applied: UC Davis, Western, Oregon, Washington, Wisconsin, VA-MD
Interviews: Western, VA-MD
Declined Interview: Yeah, right...
Rejected: UC Davis, Oregon, Washington, Wisconsin
Accepted: Western, VA-MD
Waitlisted: None
Attending: VA-MD

Degrees: B.S. in Zoology

Overall GPA: 3.0
Science GPA: 2.8
Last 45 credits: 3.0

GRE: V: 165 Q: 151 W: 5.5

Veterinary Experience:
Small animal: 1,622
Aquatic animal: 518

Research Experience:
Long term ecological research lab
Parasitology lab

Animal Experience:
Small animal: 84
Aquatic animal: 1,536
Wildlife: 128

Non-animal Employment:
Whole Foods
Docent
Tutor

Extracurriculars/Etc:
Algal curatorial intern
Board member for grant organization
Dean’s List for a quarter

LORs:
Veterinarian from humane society (1 year)
Aquatic veterinarian (2 years)
Former boss (4 years)

Personal Statement:
I treated my PS like a cover letter for a job. I focused on the qualities that make the vets I work with such stellar veterinarians—specifically, I addressed how I meet (or am still acquiring) these qualities. I also addressed my GPA upfront, and treated it as a learning experience.

And yes, I am SO EXCITED about attending VA-MD!!!

Congrats!! My overall GPA is similar to yours and I am so nervous that it won't be enough, but seeing that you got in gives me hope! I have similar work experiences and references to yours so if I can ace my PS maybe I have a chance!

 

[Koala1010]

Congrats!! My overall GPA is similar to yours and I am so nervous that it won't be enough, but seeing that you got in gives me hope! I have similar work experiences and references to yours so if I can ace my PS maybe I have a chance!

I also got in with a 3.56 or somewhere around there so definitely not the worst thing in the world to have

 

[Jessikaran]

So i got swept up in preparing for the fall and realized i never posted on here! (which is what i dreamed of doing for a good 2 years lol)

21 year old female, 1st time applicant, NY resident


Applied: Iowa State, Cornell, Tennessee, Virginia Tech, Kansas State, Ohio State, Illinois, Western
Interviews: all (except for Cornell who doesn't do interviews)- i declined Iowa and Illinois.
Rejected: none "officially" but not called off the waitlist for Cornell or Virginia
Waitlisted: Cornell, Virginia Tech, Kansas State, Tennesse
Accepted: Western, Kansas (pulled off a day or two later), tennessee (called off a week later) and Ohio State
Attending: OHIO STATE!!! GO BUCKEYES!

Degrees: B.S. in Biology

Overall GPA:3.59
Last 45:3.66
Science GPA:3.43


GRE (Q/V/W): 159/154/4.0

Veterinary Experience: 977 hours
270 hours- shadowing ambulatory equine veterinarian - equine
147 hours- volunteer lab animal technician at research facility on campus - lab animal i.e. rats and mice
80 hours- volunteer at VIDA spay and neuter clinic in Nicaragua - small animal and large animal
480 hours- Kennel assistant/Hospital assistant at emergency animal clinic- small animal emergency

Animal Experience: 4,759 hours
4500 hours- Working on a farm since 9th grade- horses, goats, pigs, sheep, rabbits - i rounded down but still felt awkward about putting this many hours in :/ BUT no one mentioned anything about it being weird in any of my interviews!

180 hours- Volunteering on an alpaca farm, administering medicine and vaccines- alpaca and sheep

20 hours - volunteer at Humane society, walking dogs
54 hours - volunteer at Equine facility for disabled children- Hippotherapy
5 hours- 4-H equine judge- horses

Research Experience: 302 hours
192 hours- Research assistant in a genetics lab focusing on alpaca genome
110 hours- field research in south Africa on wild cats

Extracurricular/Awards:
activities chair of Pre-vet society
Phi Mu fraternity
Middle school mentor
incoming freshman mentor
teaching assistant for biology for 2 years
Phi Eta Sigma honor society
Published Essay
Dean’s List for a total of 5 semesters

Non-Animal Employment:
300 hours- pharmacy tech
200 hours- American eagle assoc.

LORs:
DVM- Lab animal vet
DVM- Ambulatory Equine vet
PhD- Professor for biology class that I taught
PhD- Professor for research lab I was in and owner of alpaca farm I volunteered at

Personal Statement:
I wrote about all my diverse and unique experiences within the field of veterinary medicine then i tied them together to show how relatable things are despite the species and focused on the qualities that each veterinarian i worked had in common and how that made this field in particular remarkable. throughout the essay, i demonstrated how i possessed these qualities as well. I also shed light on the innovative ideas i watched and talked about how i would contribute. I think it was decent, but not my best work.

 

[RoryCat]

Hard to believe I actually get to post here!
All stats are from time of actually applying.


25 year old female, 2nd time applicant (1st applied for class of 2018), Kansas Resident (originally Florida Resident for class of 2018)

Applied: Kansas State, Purdue, Oklahoma State, U of Florida, Ohio State, Cornell
Interviews: Kansas State
Rejected: Purdue , Kansas State, Ohio State, U of Florida and Cornell
Waitlisted: OKLAHOMA STATE
Accepted: OKLAHOMA STATE (call off waitlist on 4/21)
Attending: OKLAHOMA STATE

Degrees: 2013, B.S. in Biochemistry from Purdue University

Overall GPA: 3.42
Last 45: 3.59
Science GPA: 3.37

GRE (Q/V/W): 156/150/3.5
Note: was planning on retaking if I did not receive acceptance this year.

Veterinary Experience: 816
56 – Small animal vet assistant
270 – Shadow at feline only clinic
370 – Small animal vet assistant during summers
120 – Volunteer at Purdue’s Oncology Dept

Animal Experience: 248
48 - Busch Garden Summer Experience
200 - Horse Farm Volunteer

Research Experience: 2720
2480 - Laboratory Research Associate
240 - Undergraduate Research

Extracurricular/Awards: 4056
24 - Biochem Big Buddy
4032 – Dance Company Member
Dean’s list/semester honors
Scholarship

Non-Animal Employment: 108
108 - Webmaster

LORs:
DVM- Feline only clinic
DVM-Clinic spent summers at
PhD- supervisor at work
MS- Academic advisor

Personal Statement:
Note: This time I wrote what I wanted to, not what I thought the admissions committee wanted to hear or what others thought I should write – not to say I didn’t take suggestions but if they didn’t feel right I thanked them and moved on. Last time, I took so many suggestions that I felt my PS was no longer MINE.

I started off stating that even though I was devastated on the outcome of my first application cycle, I did not wallow in my sorrows and I gratefully accepted a research associate position at a medical school in Kansas working in a clinical diagnosis lab. I then briefly went in to my childhood background on why I wanted to be a veterinarian and how being homeschooled from 6-12th grade provided me certain advantages by instilling a lifetime of loving to learn. The bulk of my PS was about personal growth from last cycle to this cycle. I can come across as a very shy and insecure person; however, working in the clinical lab really helped me develop confidence and a voice. Believing in yourself is very important and even though I knew I didn’t have the strongest application, I felt confident this cycle unlike last time. I truly think this made a huge difference. If nothing else think positive! Who know what can happen!

 

[Shreddr22]

I guess I'm a little late, but I always wanted to be one of the awesome people on here so I'm gonna post my stats anyway.

Me: 21 yr old female, IL resident, 1st time applicant.

Applied: Cornell, UPenn, Tufts, University of Minnesota, University of Illinois, University of Prince Edward Island, Lincoln Memorial University, University of Virginia/Maryland, Washington State
Interviews: UPenn, Tufts, University of Minnesota, University of Illinois, University of Prince Edward Island, Lincoln Memorial University, Washington State (initially declined the invite but was offered a phone interview, so I did that instead)
Waitlisted: Washington State, UPenn
Accepted: Cornell, Tufts, University of Minnesota, University of Illinois, University of Prince Edward Island, Lincoln Memorial University, UPenn (admission to class of 2021)
Attending: Cornell
(This was a hard decision for me because I will be financing everything through loans and yet I really didn't feel like my in-state school was a good fit for me. Fortunately, Cornell gave me several scholarships that bridged the cost-gap. I definitely recommend waiting to see your financial aid award before turning down a school.)

Overall GPA: 3.57
Science GPA: 3.49
Last 45 Credits: 3.8?

GRE (Q/V/W): 166/161/5.5

Veterinary Experience: 947 hrs total
Summer Intern at a Small Animal Clinic - 403 hrs
Kennel Technician in Small Animal Clinic - 400 hrs
Student Intern at University Research Animal Clinic (small, food, exotic/avian) - 144 hrs

Research Experience: 795 hrs total
Independent Research Project in Genetics - 750 hrs
Assisted with a senior capstone project in engineering - 45 hrs

Animal Experience: 19,580 hrs total
Summer intern in an animal shelter - 260 hrs
Dressage Rider/Working Student/Trainer - 19,320 hrs

Non-Animal Employment:
Retail Sales Associate - 220 hrs
Prospective Student Overnight Stay Hostess - 409 hrs

Awards and Honors:
Illinois State Scholar
AP Scholar with Distinction
Suburban Conference Academic Achievement Award
National Merit Commended Scholar
Dean's High Honors and Dean's Honors List
National Society of Collegiate Scholars Invitee
Summer Undergraduate Research Grant
Various Scholarships

Extracurriculars:
Vice President of Pre-Vet Club
Peer Mentor for Science and Engineering Students
Standards Board Member in Sorority
Volunteered with a program that taught disadvantaged children how to read

LORs:
Vet from the small animal clinic that I worked at and interned with
PI from the genetics lab I worked in
Microbiology Professor
Academic Advisor

Personal Statement:
I opened by talking about how I have a single mom who never attended college and how the values she instilled in me and the support she gave me led to my passion for veterinary medicine. I then talked about my responsibilities as an intern in the small animal clinic and how being able to assist with surgeries led to my interest in specializing in soft tissue surgery. In my second body paragraph, I talked about some of the experiences I had while shadowing the lab animal vets. In the conclusion, I pretty much talked about being intrinsically motivated and how I view everything I do/learn as a way for me to become the best vet ever. I'm sure it was riveting.

Congrats! See you at orientation classmate

 

[mmmdreamerz]

That is intimidating. I put "small and large animal pet-sitting" as one of my experiences, and when I went back after submitting, I realized I only mentioned feeding and turning out horses (regarding the LA part). However, I cared for goats and calves (totally forgot to list that) and resorted to mentioning that on the supplemental application hoping I don't get called out for saying "large animal" instead of "equine" on the main application.

I hope I'm not in too much doodoo for that slip...

Relax. We can all second guess everything we do/say. At this point its done, no point in stressing on it.

 

[DogsandCatsandHorsesOhMy]

23y female, 1st time applicant, New York resident

Applied: Davis, Cornell, North Carolina, Wisconsin, VA-MD, Illinois, Kansas, Georgia, Penn, Tufts, Florida, Ohio, Iowa (I think that's it...)
Interviews: Penn, Tufts, Ohio (declined), Kansas, Iowa (declined), VA-MD (declined), Illinois (declined)
Rejected: Davis, NC, Florida
Waitlisted: Wisconsin (removed self), Georgia (removed self)
Accepted: Cornell, Penn, Tufts, Kansas

Attending: Not sure. Between Cornell and Penn, split 50% 50%. It changes everyday.

Degrees: Double major (BS in bio, BA in math)

Overall GPA: 3.46 (well-regarded undergrad)
Last 45: 3.67
Science GPA: 3.5

GRE (Q/V/W): 161/168/5.5

Veterinary Experience:
Vet assistant at a SA general practice (600hrs)
Shadowing SA gen practice (500hrs)
Shadowing equine vet and practice (90hrs)
Shadowing specialty vet (40 hours)
Shadowing lab animal vet (40 hours)

Research Experience:
250 hours internship
50 hours shadowing

Animal Experience:
animal shelter (40 hours)

If you don't mind my asking, where did you attend for your undergrad?