UGA pre-requisite expiration

[Awapi]

Hi all! I have a very specific question about UGA (Georgia) vet school and pre-requisites for non-traditional (read: older) applicants - I know it's a long shot to find someone with the same background, but I thought someone in here might have experience with the situation I'm in.

A brief background on me: I am currently the animal/human disease epidemiologist for a state health department. Since undergrad I have served in the Peace Corps, gotten a masters degree, and have worked both internationally and domestically for CDC, NGOs, and the state health department in a variety of disease focuses, but mostly zoonotic disease. I've always had an interest in veterinary medicine, but until this point it hadn't fit in the broader picture of the goals I had for the future. I'm set to apply for vet school next cycle (2016 application, 2017 fall start date). I am only applying to UGA for a variety of reasons, including but not limited to being in-state.

My question is about pre-requisites. I have all of them, but they are all over 10 years old (I graduated undergrad in 2005). I am taking a few "refreshers" while working fulltime including Biochemistry and a couple of advanced biology classes. It's only really realistic for me to take one class at a time while working.

Finally, the specific question: the UGA website says that all science pre-requisites have to have been taken in the last 10 years. However, when I reached out to them, the very kind and helpful admissions person told me that was only true if you did not complete a bachelors degree and that I would be fine as-is with my classes that are over 10 years old. I just wanted to reach out here and see if anyone had applied to UGA with pre-reqs over 10 years old and if you had any "hidden" issues that would be helpful to know about? I trust and appreciate the input from the admissions person, but my mind thinks about additional issues that she may not know about (like if the VMCAS doesn't let you enter grades over 10 years old or something crazy like that).

Additionally - just out of curiosity - I've heard that some schools with time limits for pre-requisites will give wavers if you have been in school since or worked in a relevant field. Has anyone been successful with getting one of these waivers from any school? I think I could qualify if needed and was just curious what others experiences have been just in case I decide to apply to other schools as well.

Thanks so much in advance!

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[BullTerrierMomma]

I applied last cycle and I'll be starting in a few weeks at UGA's CVM. I don't remember them having the 10 year requirement last year...maybe they did and I somehow missed it??? Anyways, I finished my AA in 2006. I took Gen Chem I and Gen Bio I as part of my AA (probably in 2005) and I didn't have any issues with those classes being accepted. Granted, they still would've been within the 10 year requirement since I applied in 2014. All of my other classes were taken within the last 3 years. A lot of my upper level courses were taken online (I'm in an online microbiology program @ UF) and I had to submit info on those to get them approved. That was easy enough to do and I will say that the admissions staff at UGA are very helpful and nice. If they said it's no problem that your courses are 10+ yrs old, I'd think you'd be okay. I didn't deal with any problems in regards to my old courses or my online courses during the whole process.

 

[Awapi]

Thanks so much BullTerrierMomma and congratulations on your acceptance!

This was really helpful, I feel pretty good about it now given your experience, what admissions told me, and what I've researched online. I agree - the admissions staff has been fantastic, I happened to be in Athens for a work meeting and they made time to meet with me and discuss everything. I have only emailed them a couple of times, but they have always responded within a few hours - pretty impressive given that I'm sure they receive a lot of emails on top of their normal duties.

Thank you again for responding and good luck next year - I hope to overlap with you at some point

 

[BullTerrierMomma]

Thanks so much BullTerrierMomma and congratulations on your acceptance!

This was really helpful, I feel pretty good about it now given your experience, what admissions told me, and what I've researched online. I agree - the admissions staff has been fantastic, I happened to be in Athens for a work meeting and they made time to meet with me and discuss everything. I have only emailed them a couple of times, but they have always responded within a few hours - pretty impressive given that I'm sure they receive a lot of emails on top of their normal duties.

Thank you again for responding and good luck next year - I hope to overlap with you at some point

Thank you and good luck to you as well!

I agree, they are really great at getting back to everyone super fast!

I also wanted to point out, in case you didn't think about it, you should check with UGA again next year before you actually apply. They can always change their requirements, rules, etc. It would really suck if you spend all that time and $ applying and they changed their stance on the 10 year requirement.

Just out of curiosity...what route are you thinking of going in vet med? I'm asking because of your previous work experience. I was thinking about going the public health route, I'm really into parasites and zoonotic diseases. It's part of the reason I majored in microbiology and minored in entomology & nematology. I was wondering if you had any input on that area of vet med from your personal experience? You can PM me if you want ;-) Thanks in advance!