Va-md

Veterinary Science Graduate Certificate from UofI
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I just got an email on 1/16 with an invitation for an interview! Mine is Friday, Feb. 8 at 11am.

I'm really nervous though, are you guys researching current events in vet medicine, reading over the VA/MD vet school website, etc...? Do any past interviewees have any tips for us hopefuls? I saw on the class statistics for the class of 2011 that 91 applicants were interviewed, and 50 were accepted. I'm feeling like those stats are pretty scary. What do you have to do to mess up your interview so much that you don't get accepted? Do you guys think that they are interviewing just to make sure you're calm under pressure, and to see how you are as a person? Or, are they looking to see that you're well-versed on all the current events too? It's probably a combination of both, actually.

The main reason I'm nervous is I don't have a lot of veterinary experience. My years have mainly been spent working in research labs at school, so I'll feel comfortable talking about my research, but probably won't be so fluent in vet medicine techniques and information.

For anyone who may have interviewed at Va/Md in the past and not been accepted, would you mind posting (or messaging me) what reasons the school gave you for not accepting you?

Long message . . . but I think it'll make me feel better to just talk it out with you guys. Good luck to everyone!
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The main reason I'm nervous is I don't have a lot of veterinary experience. My years have mainly been spent working in research labs at school, so I'll feel comfortable talking about my research, but probably won't be so fluent in vet medicine techniques and information.

Don't worry about it. I have zilch clinical experience, all research. Oodles and poodles of research. I (sadly) didn't even know what Lepto was when they asked me, besides that it was a bacteria and you vaccinated for it - they will usually ask you a basic vet question or two...not like "what suture technique would you use for XXX" more like "so, what do you think about 1 year vs 3 year rabies vaxes?" Very basic stuff. But, clinical stuff aside, I could go on and on about biochemistry, my research, etc. It takes all types. Va-Md loooooooves research!
The questions I definitely remember (during the hot interview...the cold interview was more fun, relaxing, just like a normal gettin-ta-know-ya conversation) were, "Tell us a time you failed and what you did about it", "What is your greatest strength and greatest weakness" and "I see you did work at xxx....tell us why you did that and what you learned from it"

Also - ALWAYS have a question for them when they ask "Do you have any questions?" I asked about the combined DVM/PhD program and they went on for like 5 minutes about it very excitedly and we went overtime ha ha! Figure out things to ask them beforehand. Be excited and give them an opportunity to brag about the school to you.
 
WhtsThFrequency said:
Also - ALWAYS have a question for them when they ask "Do you have any questions?" I asked about the combined DVM/PhD program and they went on for like 5 minutes about it very excitedly and we went overtime ha ha! Figure out things to ask them beforehand. Be excited and give them an opportunity to brag about the school to you.
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(Response to WhtsThFrequency):

So did you apply for the DVM/PhD program? I was looking at that program before too.

Also, when you say "zilch clinical experience", do you really mean no vet experience? What about animal experience? What do you think were the positive aspects of your application that allowed you to be accepted? My GPA is good, it's about a 3.78 right now, and I have 6 semesters + 1 summer of research background. Those are my strong points. But, I didn't do stellar on my GREs, and my clinical experience is at about 100/150 hours.

Also, one more question: how did your interview go?
 
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So did you apply for the DVM/PhD program? I was looking at that program before too.

Actually, I did not, because of some advice I got from several DVM/PhDs (who did them separately) whom I worked with last summer at Wake Forest's comparative medicine department. They said that the risk of such programs is that DVM is very structured, PhD is not. If you try to combine them and have trouble (usually with the PhD end, research not going as planned, etc)….6 or 7 years later you still don't have either degree!

I still plan to do a PhD, but I am going to do it in combination with a residency instead. I believe that mixing very strict, scheduled schooling and the crazy, un-plannable world of heavy research is not a good idea. Residencies and PhDs can be integrated much more easily because they are both "job-like" - does that make sense? However, that is just my opinion.

However, be prepared if they ask you "So....you want to do research, why are you doing a DVM as opposed to PhD?" - They are, of course, not implying that the two are exclusive, they just want you to be able to relate research into VetMed and have a clear understanding of what you are "getting yourself into."

Also, when you say "zilch clinical experience", do you really mean no vet experience? What about animal experience?

I worked for three weeks as an assistant in a vet clinic, and basically did nothing but watch and clean some cages. That's it. So basically….yeah. Zilch ;) I do have a lot of animal personally, so I counted that as my animal experience (dog, cat, 4 snakes, gecko, tarantulas, fish) For example, my dog is fear-aggressive and has separation anxiety, so I talked about how much behavior work I did with her. I also breed geckos, so I talked about that, and how I got interested in exotics. Lastly I worked for a bit in a local pet store. I was the "reptile and freshwater fish expert girl" and had to teach exasperatingly stupid people every day about how to take care of their animals (which made me want to do clinics even less...I don't tolerate idiocy) but yeah, nothing really clinical.

Just odds and ends, nothing very serious.


What do you think were the positive aspects of your application that allowed you to be accepted?

The variety and extent of research I did. From bio-electrochemistry to freshwater mussel conservation. My GPA was good (3.5-3.6) my GREs were quite good also.

I had worked in research for about 5 years, every summer and winter break full-time, and was published while a sophomore in college (third author even – thank you government job!). Funny thing is it wasn't really veterinary related (http://pubs.acs.org/cgi-bin/abstract.cgi/langd5/2004/20/i21/abs/la048478u.html) there I go shamelessly showing off, but -

I think the fact that I was published really helped, because it showed I was serious and not just being a lab monkey for another researcher. I had about the same clinical hour average as you, also.

Also, one more question: how did your interview go?
I was nervous as hell lemme tell you! I stutter and babble quite a bit, especially when I am talking about myself and what I do because I want to say everything at once. But even in the hot interview, they seemed very concerned with making me feel calm. It was much better than I thought. The cold interview was actually *relaxing*! The two profs I talked with were very nice and we had a great conversation about really nothing in particular. They did not ask me any questions out of the ordinary. Besides that stupid Lepto one ;)

Whew! I'm going to give myself carpal tunnel syndrome. If you want to talk more in depth, definitely feel free to PM me (this goes for anyone interested in Va-Md), I love talking about the school and helping advise potentials - the more the merrier over here!
 
My interview experience last year was a lot like that described by the previous poster. When I went in for my follow-up meeting (the "How can I improve my application?" one), they really stressed how great research experience looks. i would definitely NOT worry if you have a lot of it - I wish I had more!

My general vet med question was about feral cats. I've spent thousands of hours doing shelter medicine type work - you'd think this would be a really easy topic for me. Unfortunately, I was really nervous and can be very shy. I think my interview went wrong because I had a very deer in the headlights "Oh no - how do I answer this??" mentality. I even had trouble with the "why do you want to be a veterinarian" question.

They will ask about your greatest strengths and weaknesses - I got asked what my coworkers and friends would name as my strengths or weaknesses. The interview goes by really fast. Try to think before you answer questions. Emphasize the positive as much as possible, but be honest. The "hot" interview is much more stressful than the "cold" one. I liked that the hot one was first - then you could relax a little with the less stressful interview.
 
Thanks for that, Vetmed555! I haven't bought a calendar yet, and saw the date wrong. Good luck with yours!!
 
So has anyone received their interview information email from Joyce yet? The one that you get after you accept the interview? I emailed her Thursday night and she hasn't gotten back to me yet. She's probably busy, but the deadline for responses is this Monday, I just hope she got it!
 
bear90 said:
So has anyone received their interview information email from Joyce yet? The one that you get after you accept the interview? I emailed her Thursday night and she hasn't gotten back to me yet. She's probably busy, but the deadline for responses is this Monday, I just hope she got it!
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I did. If you didn't get it yet, I'd call her.
 
I just got mine yesterday, and I sent off confirmation within a few hours of getting the invite. I think there are just a lot of emails to go through, but I would just go ahead and call on Monday afternoon to let them know you are coming for sure. There is not much in the interview letter anyway except stuff out parking, driving directions and a short description of the interview format.
 
I emailed Joyce last Thursday to inquire if there would be anymore interview invites going out (not that I expected a "yes", I just wanted to hear a final "no") and if not, could I request an appointment with her to review my application and discuss ways to improve it for next year. I have not heard back from her and it has been a week. Should I email her again? Or maybe call?
 
VeganChick said:
I emailed Joyce last Thursday to inquire if there would be anymore interview invites going out (not that I expected a "yes", I just wanted to hear a final "no") and if not, could I request an appointment with her to review my application and discuss ways to improve it for next year. I have not heard back from her and it has been a week. Should I email her again? Or maybe call?
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Yes, I'd contact her again. I would probably call, because I like to know my message is received. But that's up to you, obviously.
 
I talked to Joyce today. She said that all interview invites have gone out but they have not sent out rejection letters because they are waiting for all interview RSVPs to come in. That way, if anyone declines, they can send out a letter to the next person on the list for an interview invite. She said that they will be sending rejection letters out at the end of the month but I am not sure if she meant January or February.
 
VeganChick said:
I talked to Joyce today. She said that all interview invites have gone out but they have not sent out rejection letters because they are waiting for all interview RSVPs to come in. That way, if anyone declines, they can send out a letter to the next person on the list for an interview invite. She said that they will be sending rejection letters out at the end of the month but I am not sure if she meant January or February.
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Well, that's a little promising at least. Maybe you'll get an interview, still!

If you don't, don't be too discouraged. I got denied last year and it really did fell horrible. The admissions people at Va/Md are really good at giving constructive criticism, though, so I'm hoping my application has improved enough to get me in this time.

I take heart in the fact that the vet I've worked with most is an excellent and accomplished doctor and she got in to vet school on her third try. She had a friend in school who didn't get in until her 5th time around, and this friend graduated at the top of her class!

So I'm sure this doesn't make you feel a whole lot better, but you're definitely not alone! Keep trying!
 
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Thanks pandacinny! I am still disappointed but less discouraged than I was about a week ago. I am definitely an "expect the worse, hope for the best" person, so I can't help but still keep my fingers crossed a little.
 
Hi everyone,

I just found the admission process summary report from my drawer and
I want to share this information with you!

Grand total pts available is 2000,

GPA (cumulative, last 45 semester hr, science) 700

GRE 300

Non-Academic Criteris (Vet, animal, & research exp,
extracurricular activities, statement, 3 personal eva) 500

Interview (hot and cold) 500

I think that this will make some of you to start calculating :)
 
Hey guys,

Just wanted to say in these days leading up to your interview:

Good luck!

Relax!

One great thing I found in the interview was that I didn't feel like they were trying to take points away from me, but rather to give them to me. If you feel like they're pushing you, don't freak out. They're probably trying to push you to see if you do crack. And we all do crack, and they're looking for that humanity. It's not a bad thing, they just want to make you work for it to see what you've got. I actually almost enjoyed my cold interview and it felt more like chatting then anything else!

For you Virginia and Out-Of-State people, we'll have cookies out for you and we're going to try to get up to talk to some of you!
Marylanders - so sorry! I wish I could come home to talk with all of you, but I can't :( Just remember you'll be fine as long as you breathe!
 
Damn, you guys beat us to the cookie idea! Guess we 2nd yrs will have to come up with some other form of sugary goodness to offer you interviewees. Or maybe some sedatives :p (just kidding! It's not that bad folks!)
 
lol I practically begged our class president to let us do somthing for the interviewees! We have a schedule though (vet students = obsessive compulsive!) so first years are feeding people on the 6th and 11th and I think the other 4 days are split between you guys and 3rd years. Don't quote me though! That's just my rough understanding.

Bought cookies last night by the way guys! Really wanted to bake for you but Board of Health or whatever says we can't. Oh well, Oreo's rock and I can't bake them!
 
Tomorrow's the day for most of us instate, good luck to everyone! I'll be the one in the light green jacket trying not to puke. :luck:
 
YAAAY good luck!!! So excited! Is anyone taking the tour tomorrow? I'll be the one wearing a black suit with pink pinstripes making faces at all the annoying Hokie stuff... haha Virginia tech is uva's biggest rival!
 
Good luck, in-staters! Come back with positive comments so us OOSers feel comfortable next week! ;)
 
Good luck everyone - and - no puking, Fargeese :p
 
Dude, I will so look for you all in your outfits and holler your online tag name like the complete dork that I am!

Don't worry UVAWahoo, we lurve everyone at vet school, even Hokie vet school!! Pink pinstripes, rock on.

When do you guys, go, in the morning I am guessing? If it is round about "on the hour" I will probly see you as I dash through the halls. I'll probly have my Nine Inch Nails sweatshirt on cause I am in a slightly grouchy mood from two exams this week, but I'll try to at least wave!
 
BTW if you want a nice place to go hang out, get a few drinks - I'd recommend the Cellar over Sharkey's (saw someone mention it on another thread) - not as crazy and a MUCH better beer selection!

Absolutely, positively, the best of luck to you!
 
I'll be interviewing today, too! I'm not till afternoon and won't be there till a bit before noon for a tour, but I'll be there.

No puking, we'll all be fine!! What I can see of Blacksburg so far looks pretty! Yay Va Tech! :)
 
WhtsThFrequency said:
BTW if you want a nice place to go hang out, get a few drinks - I'd recommend the Cellar over Sharkey's (saw someone mention it on another thread) - not as crazy and a MUCH better beer selection!

Absolutely, positively, the best of luck to you!
Click to expand...

The Cellar MOVED? What? Then it's not really the Cellar any more! :(

That was my favorite place--I have fond memories of drinking with my Ancient Greek philosophy professor there. Best Italian and beer selection in Blacksburg!
 
How did everyones' interview go? Mine was iffy.

I think I did MUCH better on the "hot" interview than I did last year. I had thought out answers to all of the questions and I didn't ramble or go "uh...." as much.

What sucks is that last year, I felt really good about the "cold" interview. This year, I think it went pretty terribly. They asked me what portion of vet med I was interested in and I named a few things including public health. They then asked if I had any experience in public health and I said no but that I'd been doing a lot of research on different aspects of veterinary medicine and that it sort of stuck out for me. Neither interviewer looked too pleased with that answer. :( Also, I sort of rambled a bit a couple of times after being told specifically to be succinct. Ugh.

Oh well, I guess. No sense obsessing, I guess. Not much I can do about it now - hopefully everyone else feels better about theirs! ;)
 
I felt like my interview was terrible last year too, but my actual feedback last year was that everyone had liked me, but was concerned that I didn't know enough about the profession. I would not give up hope just yet.

Now I feel kind of bad about saying this, but my interviews went awesome! I did not puke despite my promises, and I was pulling statistics out of my *** like I was the AVMA. That being said, my hot interview only had 2 people rather than 4 like last year, which was much less stressful, and instead of asking questions about the protocol for working as a LA practioner in Africa like last year, I got questions like "What was your favorite class in college?". Total freebie questions. I did get a few harder questions in cold interview but it was still golden. It makes such a difference when your interviewers were actually smiling at you instead of looking constipated and pondering why I was there.

PS, you're right, the Cellar is better, I forgot about it. I am current drinking martinis in Richmond however, whoo-hoo! I am glad that is over!

And I looked awesome in my suit, which helped my self confidence immensely. I am so shallow.

Thanks for the cookies 2011! I couldn't eat them beforehand because of the aforementioned puking thing but they were delicious afterwards.

Oh also, Joyce said that they will be sending out letters on the 15th and if we've gotten nothing we can call on the 18th. I am excited that we are going to only have to wait a week!
 
Fargeese, that's awesome! I'm glad that they went well.
 
fargeese said:
And I looked awesome in my suit, which helped my self confidence immensely. I am so shallow.
Click to expand...

That's not shallow, that's just good sense! Looking good is a total confidence booster, which is why it's so important to buy a suit that fits or have it tailored!! I KNOW that helped me immensely at my KSU interview -- and they accepted me! Plus, I totally wore a leopard print bra underneath so that I could giggle to myself about my dirty secret ;) LOL.

Anyway, congrats to the IS interviewees today, I'm sure you all rocked it!!
 
I made my sister take me suit shopping, she works for a corporate bank and she always looks like a million bucks. I could never have picked my suit out myself. And I was wearing leopard print undies too!

Thanks for the well wishes, I am so glad it is over!!
 
Yaaay! I feel that I did really well too. The cold interviewers were a little, should I say, 'cold', haha. When I walked in and made some little joke about va tech vs uva type thing, the one interviewer said, "Interview over! You aren't allowed to tell us where you went to to school!" After my jaw dropped, he informed me he was just teasing... Great way to start, haha. :rolleyes: Things went a little better after that. They actually turned out to be really cool guys. I did my best, but that makes me kind of nervous... It will make it worse if I don't get in!

Yay for hot suits too... I wore mine all the way home and took a pic to send to my mom. hahaha. Did anyone go on the tour? I thought it was interesting... The building was more industrial looking than I thought it would be. Good luck to everyone, I can't believe I'll know if I'm going to be a vet in about a week! :eek:
 
fargeese said:
Oh also, Joyce said that they will be sending out letters on the 15th and if we've gotten nothing we can call on the 18th. I am excited that we are going to only have to wait a week!
Click to expand...

Seriously?? My interview was at College Park (I'm a MD resident), so I hadn't heard this. Do you think it works the same for Marylanders too?
 
WhtsThFrequency said:
And that is very awesome you guys get to know so early! I'm glad things went well.
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Did you actually wear your NIN sweatshirt today? Because if so, I saw you.:p

I would have said hi, except you looked a little intense and I wasn't sure how to start. "Hi, What's The Frequency? It's me, VAgirl." Haha.

Oh, and I agree about the cold interviewers. Maybe I was just prepped from last years feedback to be grilled by the hot interviewers and relax with the cold. But the hot folks were awesome and the cold folks were kinda intensely serious! Nice folks, all, but I think I may have stumbled a tad as a result. Oh well. :)

And man is Joyce nice!
 
Did you actually wear your NIN sweatshirt today? Because if so, I saw you.
I would have said hi, except you looked a little intense and I wasn't sure how to start. "Hi, What's The Frequency? It's me, VAgirl." Haha.

Yes! C'est moi! It's funny you say intense, everyone tells me that I tend like I'm concentrating on something super hard, or look angry, when I am just walking around with a blank face. I think it is from squinting at too many books ;) But I am just a geeky little teddybear. I was also running around tryin to find a prof who has a letter of rec I need for a summer project (in between classes) so I may have been a little flustered.

Yeah I was wondering hmm...if I see someone wearing the outfits they mentioned should I be like "Dude....I'm What's the Frequency, you're -insert tag name here- " and sound totally nerdy...heh!

Joyce is SUPER nice. Was Dr. Sponenberg doing some of the interviews? I thought I saw him in a conference room. He is such a cool guy. Glasses, poofy beard....he is a pathologist and has a herd of myotonic goats on his farm. He also has a terrible (as in wonderful but makes you go 'oh no, that's wrong') sense of humor. When I walked in and made some little joke about va tech vs uva type thing, the one interviewer said, "Interview over! You aren't allowed to tell us where you went to to school!" I'd bet money that was him. Or Swecker.
 
WhtsThFrequency said:
Was Dr. Sponenberg doing some of the hot interviews? He is such a cool guy. Glasses, poofy beard....he is a pathologist and has a herd of myotonic goats on his farm. He also has a terrible (as in wonderful but makes you go 'oh no, that's wrong') sense of humor.
Click to expand...

I had neither of them. I wrote their names down somewhere, I forget where. But I know for hot I had Dr. Reardon and a very nice lady (head of VVMA, I think).
 
Is anyone interviewing tomorrow at the UMCP campus? I will be there; my interview is at 9:50. I assume we won't go on tours since the real vet campus is in Blacksburg?
 
I did have Dr. Sponenberg! He was serious during the interview but I thought he had a sense of humor underneath. He has this cool tie on with marching blue cows on it... lol I told him I liked it and he said something about it being the "Toros de... *something in spanish*.... lol

He wasn't, however, the interviewer who made the "interview is over" comment. lol.
 
myotonic goats are my favorite! have you seen the "fainting goats" video on utube... it is hilarious. My roommate really wants one. I hope that doctor interviews me next week.
 
Yes I have! I feel so bad laughing at them, but I can't help it
Sponenberg has a bunch of crazy rare livestock on his farm....its his research interest.

Polovet , I assume you are into equine from the name? He's done DNA fingerprinting of horses in Spain, Central/South America, and the US, and is into all the rare breeds that I believe the conquistadors had. http://www.vetmed.vt.edu/Publications/Vitalsigns/march06/index.html#spon

I will never forget the "mummified fetuses are cool beyond words and make great paperweights, my nephew's third grade teacher eventually told me not to send any more - I'm a fun uncle!!" comment from him in Path last semester :laugh:
 
I had Dr. Sponenberg too, he was nice, he didn't get to say much (I was too busy rattling on) but he seemed happy enough with what I was saying. I loved that tie too. I liked my cold interview more, it was Otto L something short and a grey haired guy, they were so much fun. They had obviously been in that room together for some time and they were making all kinds of jokes, which made it much more comfortable for me.

Good luck everyone today and next week! I don't know anything about Maryland, but I would guess they would sent out letters at the same time? Maybe someone from last year can chime in.
 
Dr. Otto Lanz!!! I have such a terrible crush on him (mwahaa). He does our Musculoskeletal/Ortho class. I didn't know he was doing interviews - I wondered why he was all dressed up in a suit yesterday! He's pretty funny. How can you not be when your first name is Otto. :)
 
Maybe I'm wrong, but I thought both of my interviews went pretty smoothly:D. I know, it's only 10 days, but the wait is literally killing me. Oh, Joyce made me tell my "email judgement error" story to interviewees while she laughed:D. In retrospect, it was kind of funny even if it cost me 5 years of my life.
 
So I interviewed yesterday...it went all right. The cold interviewers asked questions that I found very difficult:

Tell about the most difficult person you've ever dealt with.
Tell us about a goal you set for yourself that you didn't achieve.
Tell us about an ethical dilemma that you faced.
Tell us about a difficult problem that you solved.

It went on and on and on. I am awful at those sort of questions because rarely can you predict before the interview exactly which could be asked, since there are hundreds of possibilities. And it's SO hard to come up with an answer to those on the spot; whenever they ask things like that I instantly forget everything that's ever happened in my life. Plus mostly I avoid difficult people...so I didn't think the cold interview went very well (maybe it did, who knows). The hot one was fine; the questions they asked were so much easier!
 
I'm an OOS and have an interview on the 13th.... anyone else interviewing that day?
 
CanadianGolden said:
So I interviewed yesterday...it went all right. The cold interviewers asked questions that I found very difficult:

Tell about the most difficult person you've ever dealt with.
Tell us about a goal you set for yourself that you didn't achieve.
Tell us about an ethical dilemma that you faced.
Tell us about a difficult problem that you solved.

It went on and on and on. I am awful at those sort of questions because rarely can you predict before the interview exactly which could be asked, since there are hundreds of possibilities. And it's SO hard to come up with an answer to those on the spot; whenever they ask things like that I instantly forget everything that's ever happened in my life. Plus mostly I avoid difficult people...so I didn't think the cold interview went very well (maybe it did, who knows). The hot one was fine; the questions they asked were so much easier!
Click to expand...

Are you, by any chance, a Maryland resident who interviewed in College Park? I ask because your cold interview experience sounds almost *exactly* like mine from Thursday! I thought mine went pretty badly, too, but it's encouraging that they sound like they were tough on everyone. Maybe that means it actually went much better than we thought, right?
 
Pandacinny said:
Are you, by any chance, a Maryland resident who interviewed in College Park? I ask because your cold interview experience sounds almost *exactly* like mine from Thursday! I thought mine went pretty badly, too, but it's encouraging that they sound like they were tough on everyone. Maybe that means it actually went much better than we thought, right?
Click to expand...

Mine too....
 
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