*MULTIPLE APPLICATION ATTEMPTS + LOW GPA THAT I WORKED VERY HARD TO BRING UP!!!!!*
Age, Gender, State/Country of Residence, Traditional/Non-traditional applicant, # of times you've applied:
28 - F - GA - Non-Traditional - 4th Application Cycle!
1st Application Cycle (Was a senior/graduating undergrad)
(Honestly this cycle was soooo long ago that I have literally no records of it somehow, but I think I applied to probably like 5 or 8 schools and got denied from everywhere except I got Ross Vet Prep and SGU normal admission I think. I decided against going to either of them because of some comments that were made to me during my interviews/as well as I am honestly not an island person and didn't think I would thrive at Ross and my family had a friend whose daughter went to SGU and while she loved it I decided it also wasn't for me).
My GPA's for this cycle were trash, I was burnt out from undergrad I think I legit had like a 2.5 from VMCAS (once again there is somehow no record of this cycle)
2nd Application Cycle (2020):
Applied: 12 Programs (unfortunately cannot access where I applied but I think it was UGA, CSU, NCSU, UTK, Auburn, UF, +others)
Interview Invites: None
Result: Denied from all
Overall GPA: 3.06
Science Prerequisite GPA: 2.78-2.84 (But some schools calculated it as 2.64...)
Last 45 GPA: ~2.81 (YIKES)
3rd Application Cycle (2021):
Applied: CSU, WSU, Oregon, Michigan State, University of Saskatchewan, UTK, NCSU (IS for me this cycle), Auburn, Mizzou, PEI, UPenn, Iowa, Kansas St, Minnesota, UGA
Interview Invites: None
Waitlisted: Iowa (236/264) denied from all others!
Overall GPA: 3.13
Science Prerequisite GPA: ~2.96
Last 45 GPA: ~3.43
4th Application Cycle (2023) THIS CURRENT CYCLE AHHHH!!!!:
*Going to preface this with the fact that I had told myself this was the last time and I saved up a ton of money to apply to as many schools as possible as I felt this was my best chance.*
Applied: Mississippi State, Mizzou, Cornell, WSU, CSU (+CSU/UAF), KSU, UPenn, Iowa, UTK, Midwestern, tOSU, Minnesota, Oregon, Wisconsin, UGA (IS again lol), Auburn, LSU, Michigan State, LMU, Tufts, NCSU, Purdue, UC Davis, Illinois
Interview Invites: Mississippi State, KSU, Minnesota, Michigan State, LMU
Waiting to hear: LMU, University of Minnesota, Mississippi State University, Michigan State University, Midwestern, Iowa State, UGA, University of Wisconsin
Waitlisted: UAF/CSU Program!
Accepted: Kansas State!!!!!!!!
Attending: Undetermined! (Still waiting on my IS and a bunch of other schools!)
Overall GPA: 3.31
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.17-3.41 Depending on the school
Last 45 GPA: 3.56-3.8 Depending on the school
Degree(s):
BS - Biology with a minor in Chemistry
MAS - Master of Animal Sciences (Non-Thesis)
MS - Master of Science in Comparative Biomedical Sciences (Non-Thesis)
Veterinary Experience:
*I've worked at vet hospitals since being a senior in high school so I have racked up quite the hours*
Veterinary Assistant at GP - 4210 Hrs
Veterinary Assistant at Vet Teaching Hospital - 4160 Hrs
Veterinary Assistant/Receptionist at a Holistic Vet Practice - 1200 Hrs
Veterinary Service Trip to Thailand working with Elephants and Shelter Medicine - 80 Hrs
Attended some Pre-Vet Symposiums where we did hands on wet labs under supervision of a vet - ~50-60 Hrs
Animal Experience:
Kennel Attendant/Receptionist at GP - 3600 Hrs
Volunteer Veterinary Appointment Coordinator for a nationwide rescue - 100 Hrs
Volunteer helping lead horses around and help children with disabilities to ride them - 24 Hrs
Volunteer with a dog rescue - 60 Hrs
Volunteer with a horse rescue - 210 Hrs
Research:
CITI Program Certification - 10 Hrs
IACUC ORIS Animal Care and Use Certification - 6 Hrs
Worked for a professor helping to prep and run some samples for her lab for a court case - 84 Hrs
Created my own research project dealing with bat identification - 120 Hrs
Extracurriculars/Awards:
Sorority Member and held positions - 1236 Hrs
President of my pre-vet club for 2 years - 628 Hrs
Member of the National Biological Honors Society - 150 Hrs
Non-Animal Employment:
Current position as a Lead Fleet Coordinator - 4635 Hrs
Graduate Teaching Assistant - 340 Hrs
LORs:
- DVM from the first vet med job I ever had (the vet hospital I started working at in high school and stayed at for a longggg time. This man and this practice are literally family and have supported me this whole time, he has supplied me a letter EVERY single year I have applied and has rooted for me this whole time)
- Supervisor from my job at NCSU's Vet Teaching Hospital
- Current Supervisor at my non vet-med job
- Academic Advisor from Undergrad
- RVT I worked with at NCSU who is currently works in ICU
Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
For my personal statement I wrote about the second time I fell in love with vet med, and touched on how I currently do not work in vet med but this has solidified how much I love it and miss it and belong in that field. I talked about how working at a specialty hospital really fostered my love for specialty medicine and changed my mind from being a small animal GP.
In some of my other essays I definitely touched on explaining that I full own up to my grades and that I did not understand how to manage my time in undergrad, I came out of high school a near 4.0 student who barely had to study to do well and was hit with a reality check in undergrad. I also was too much of a yes-man and needed to realize that I didn't have to literally DO IT ALL. I got way to involved with clubs, took on too many positions and because of that my grades suffered. I spoke a lot about how I tried to prove to myself by doing those masters programs that I could manage my time, work full time and also pay these programs all by myself, which was a hugeeeee point of pride for me.
Specifically for my UAF/CSU essay I talked about how I have worked/volunteered in vastly different communities and that rural medicine is a huge thing for me and I want to be able to start a program to give back to communities that might not have access to affordable or even frequent vet care. I stated how much I love learning about new cultures and local customs (referenced my trip to Thailand and how much the Buddhist faith plays into vet care there, and then also talked about how in South GA where I went to undergrad a lot of people view their animals as work tools--hunting dogs, farm dogs etc--and not family like I did).
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Ultimately, I just want to say. IT IS POSSIBLE. I severely doubted myself a lottttttt and couldn't even imagine a reality where this cycle has happened. To even get the amount of interviews I have gotten has literally blown my mind. Truly be yourself in your interviews, I have had so much opportunity to talk about the experiences I have had that have made me, ME!
I had also fully convinced myself that I was probably going to be waitlisted or denied everywhere once again and I truly had no clue what I was going to be doing in a few months...but here we are.
I kept saying to myself--it just takes ONE YES!! Anyways, I'll end my long post. I truly hope that someone who is walking a similar path to mine sees this and knows that their dreams are valid and possible. My inbox will always be open for anyone who needs a shoulder to lean on, whether you have questions, need to rant or just want to chat!! ♥️
