What are my chances?

[neocia]

So my question is, how important is it to have the majority of your experience coming from your main field of interest? I would love to get accepted to a school with an exceptional equine program but I'm not sure if my lack of actual equine vet experience will hold me back or make me seem less dedicated or under-informed about the field.

I don't think it could hurt your chances, especially if at the interview or in your personal statement you note something like "Although I've only just had a taste of equine med, I have worked with horses for years and feel this is my passion, excited to learn more about equine med, etc etc."
Especially because so many folks are going into small animal private practice these days...

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[VetGirl33]

Hi everyone...I have a few interviews coming up but am nervous because my stats seem pretty average for the schools I am interviewing with. They seem to interview and wait list a lot of people based on looking at the acceptance threads from prior years for these shcools. So I feel like nothing about me will stand out and going to my interviews may just be a waste of time.
I am interviewing at Iowa State, Michigan State, and Ohio. I am OOS for all, but want to stay in that area to be close to family. I also saw on a prior year thread (several years ago) that someone got called off Iowa's wait list at #59.. Just curious if anyone knows what type of GPA will get you in or what it takes to get waitlisted at these schools if you are OOS (and how far down they might go to call someone off the wait list) . The school's websites give averages for accepted students, but I would suspect the stats for OOS must be higher than the overall averages that are published since those include mostly in state students.. Thoughts?

Biology major with minor in biochem
Stats as calculated by Iowa:

Sci GPA: 3.67
Last 45: 3.53 (lower due to a C in calculus. But got an A in pre-calc.)
cum GPA: 3.65

GRE: 159 V, 155 Q

Vet Experience:
1200 hours as a vet tech at SA hospital, lots of hands-on , including some exotics

Animal experience:
volunteer at shelter working with cats and dogs - 300 hrs
paid work at a kennel - 200 hrs
shadowed at a dairy farm 20 hrs

Research: 3 credit hours under supervision of a Biology Professor

 

[yugen]

Hey guys.. t

Thought I'd repost my stats to see if anyone had any advice on how to become a more competitive applicant. I posted this before but I think everyone was pretty busy getting their applications in at the time. Any feedback would be super appreciated. My major goal right now is to diversify my experience and raise my GPA. Thanks ahead of time.

GPA
Cumulative, current: 3.25
Science. projected (Physics I & II, O. Chem I & II, Bio I & II, Biochem): ~ 3.50
Last 45, current: 3.53

GRE: taken once
V: 161 (87%)
Q: 158 (72%)
A: 5.0 (93%)

Veterinary Experience
- ~700 hours with wildlife vet (birds are cool!)
- ~1000+ SA vets, working as a tech
- ~100 hours with equine vet

Animal Experience
- volunteer at a horse rescue when possible
- worked at a herpetology captive breeding center throughout high school

Research
- 1.5 years microbio research (paid)
- 5 months of cell laboratory work (unpaid)
- 4 months of public health research (paid)
- 2 months of ecology and animal zonation research (unpaid)

Employment
- most of this falls under the research or veterinary experience (i work as a tech at a small animal clinic and have had multiple research employment positions.)
- pet care associate right out of high school at the local pet store

Awards/ Honors
- a couple lucky breaks here and there; no graduation awards or honors
- biology research fellowship

Letters of Recommendation
- researcher (PhD)
- wildlife vet (DVM)
- professor (PhD)
- two small animal vets (DVM)

 

[Doktor Timo]

Hello everyone! I have a question regarding my chances of getting accepted to a school by stating my main interest (at this time of course) as equine. I have a lot of "animal experience" with horses (at least 3000 hours and is continuously growing) but I have very limited experience with equine vets (because there are so few of them in my area). I would say that I have about 30 hours of equine vet experience at this time because of the vets that have come in (sometimes from hours away) to treat the horses at that barn where I lease my horse. On the flip side, I have quite a bit (~1200 hours) of small animal vet experience because I work at a clinic that is primarily SA. I won't be applying until the 2016/2017 cycle, and I will definitely be taking every opportunity to get equine and other large animal experience in the coming years.

So my question is, how important is it to have the majority of your experience coming from your main field of interest? I would love to get accepted to a school with an exceptional equine program but I'm not sure if my lack of actual equine vet experience will hold me back or make me seem less dedicated or under-informed about the field. Additionally, I am wondering if stating equine as my main interest (and subsequently not having a large amount of experience) would hurt my chances of getting accepted to any school? I am just wondering about your thoughts on the matter, and if any of you have had any experience with this problem!

Thank you so much!

I don't see a problem with saying that you're interested in equine med, as long as you don't seem dogmatic or close-minded. The people looking at your application want to know that you're realistic and you've seriously considered the career you're trying to pursue. If you make it sound like you're 100% equine and nothing will change your mind, you'll sound naive. Because the truth is that it's really hard to know what you want to do until you've spent a lot of time in school and seen all the options.

But if you present it in a way that shows that you're leaning towards equine based on your experience but you're still open to other fields, you should be fine.

 

[sorasea]

Hey guys.. t

Thought I'd repost my stats to see if anyone had any advice on how to become a more competitive applicant. I posted this before but I think everyone was pretty busy getting their applications in at the time. Any feedback would be super appreciated. My major goal right now is to diversify my experience and raise my GPA. Thanks ahead of time.

Your GPA is your only glaring weakness right now, IMHO. Depending on which schools you're applying to, you might miss GPA cutoffs (e.g. NCSU's cutoff for OOS applicants is 3.4). Your experience seems fairly diverse and considerable to me already, so I'd just focus on pulling up academic numbers in the short time you have left before the next cycle. Good luck!

 

[sorasea]

Hi everyone...I have a few interviews coming up but am nervous because my stats seem pretty average for the schools I am interviewing with. They seem to interview and wait list a lot of people based on looking at the acceptance threads from prior years for these shcools. So I feel like nothing about me will stand out and going to my interviews may just be a waste of time.
I am interviewing at Iowa State, Michigan State, and Ohio. I am OOS for all, but want to stay in that area to be close to family. I also saw on a prior year thread (several years ago) that someone got called off Iowa's wait list at #59.. Just curious if anyone knows what type of GPA will get you in or what it takes to get waitlisted at these schools if you are OOS (and how far down they might go to call someone off the wait list) . The school's websites give averages for accepted students, but I would suspect the stats for OOS must be higher than the overall averages that are published since those include mostly in state students.. Thoughts?

Biology major with minor in biochem
Stats as calculated by Iowa:

Sci GPA: 3.67
Last 45: 3.53 (lower due to a C in calculus. But got an A in pre-calc.)
cum GPA: 3.65

GRE: 159 V, 155 Q

Vet Experience:
1200 hours as a vet tech at SA hospital, lots of hands-on , including some exotics

Animal experience:
volunteer at shelter working with cats and dogs - 300 hrs
paid work at a kennel - 200 hrs
shadowed at a dairy farm 20 hrs

Research: 3 credit hours under supervision of a Biology Professor

I didn't apply to any of those schools, but I just wanted to say that if you feel like your stats are average for those schools, that's a) actually a very good thing, and b) all the more reason to attend the interviews. The average vet student may have your pre-vet stats, is probably white/middle-class/female, and wants to go into SA med, but that's exactly how averages work -- a lot of successful applicants fit that mold and perhaps you're one of them! Plus, the interviews are absolutely your chance to show you're a mature, intelligent, and driven pre-professional beyond your paper application. It's way too early to feel defeated. Good luck!

 

[Must Love Lucy]

I don't think it could hurt your chances, especially if at the interview or in your personal statement you note something like "Although I've only just had a taste of equine med, I have worked with horses for years and feel this is my passion, excited to learn more about equine med, etc etc."
Especially because so many folks are going into small animal private practice these days...

Thank you!

 

[Must Love Lucy]

I don't see a problem with saying that you're interested in equine med, as long as you don't seem dogmatic or close-minded. The people looking at your application want to know that you're realistic and you've seriously considered the career you're trying to pursue. If you make it sound like you're 100% equine and nothing will change your mind, you'll sound naive. Because the truth is that it's really hard to know what you want to do until you've spent a lot of time in school and seen all the options.

But if you present it in a way that shows that you're leaning towards equine based on your experience but you're still open to other fields, you should be fine.

Thank you for the advice!

 

[VetGirl33]

I didn't apply to any of those schools, but I just wanted to say that if you feel like your stats are average for those schools, that's a) actually a very good thing, and b) all the more reason to attend the interviews. The average vet student may have your pre-vet stats, is probably white/middle-class/female, and wants to go into SA med, but that's exactly how averages work -- a lot of successful applicants fit that mold and perhaps you're one of them! Plus, the interviews are absolutely your chance to show you're a mature, intelligent, and driven pre-professional beyond your paper application. It's way too early to feel defeated. Good luck!

Thank you for the words of encouragement. You're absolutely right... being "average" is not a disqualifier. So I need to make the best of the opportunity to interview. I appreciate your feedback!

 

[stealthoscope]

Let me know what you guys think of my stats. I'm a bit worried that my GPA is holding me back, and want to know how I can make up for it in other areas! My IS is Cornell, and I'm also looking at Tufts, Illinois, VMRCVM, and Michigan.

Cumulative GPA: 3.40
Science GPA: 3.22
Last 45: 3.51

GRE: V160 (84%), Q157 (69%), W5 (93%)

Veterinary Experience:
1000 hours as a veterinary assistant at a mixed practice clinic (majority small animal, but about 100 hours large animal)
40 hours working at an equine hospital
100 hours working with a veterinary oncologist
50 hours shadowing at a small animal clinic

Animal Experience:
~7000 working/riding at a horse barn (huge estimation, have been working here for 14 years)
40 hours interning at a zoo

Employment:
1 year as a biology lab intern (introduction to biology and animal structure classes)
1 year in retail
1 year as a receptionist at a college

Awards/Honors:
A bunch from high school but nothing special

Letters of Recommendation:
Owner/trainer at the barn I've been going to for the past 14 years
Veterinarian I currently work for
Biochemistry professor

Hi there! I think you have a shot at Cornell, especially since you have the advantage of being IS. There are a couple things that I would like to mention, though.

Your GPA is a little bit lower than average for Cornell, but definitely not bad, although your science GPA might be cutting it close. I would focus on taking some GPA-boosting classes if you can, especially if the ones that were bringing your GPA down were prereqs like organic chemistry (that was my situation). They sort of understand that organic chemistry and gen chem are really hard, and if you can show a lot of improvement in later science courses, you should be just fine. I think Cornell recommends 70th percentile for the GRE Quant section, so you're right around there; Verbal and Writing look good.

You should look into making a list of your extracurricular activities and thinking about which ones give you transferable skills - for instance, in one of the supplemental essays for Cornell, I wrote about partner dance and how it factored into communication and reading cues from other people, and tied it into dealing with clients as a doctor. The Cornell supplement has five short essays with different prompts, and since you will already have written a personal statement about why you want to be a veterinarian, I personally think it's beneficial to focus on some of your non-animal related experiences, or at least elaborate very specifically on things that have stuck with you.

Another big thing is that, for Cornell, you will need way more letters than that. They want you to have a letter from every "significant experience" that you list on the supplemental application. I ended up having five letters on the supplement.

 

[yugen]

Your GPA is your only glaring weakness right now, IMHO. Depending on which schools you're applying to, you might miss GPA cutoffs (e.g. NCSU's cutoff for OOS applicants is 3.4). Your experience seems fairly diverse and considerable to me already, so I'd just focus on pulling up academic numbers in the short time you have left before the next cycle. Good luck!

Thanks!

 

[Woogba68]

Hello.... I applied this cycle but after a couple of rejections I have lost a lot of confidence and might be applying again next cycle. I just wanted to post my stats and see what you guys think! Let me know where I could improve and any recommendations you might have for where I should try applying next time! Thanks!

Cornell is my IS and I have a BS in biology

Cum. GPA: 3.73
Science GPA: 3.55
Last 45 GPA: 3.86

GRE: 157 V, 152 Q (Definitely could use some improvement...)

Vet Experience:
420 hrs at a small and exotics practice
60 hrs LA
300 (and counting) at a SA specialty and emergency practice

Animal experience:
30 hrs at a shelter
200 hrs working at a Petco
100 hrs working in a lab animal room at my college

Research: about 300 hours on iguanid evolution and a comparison of morphological and molecular analyses of their evolution. Did not publish a paper but I did present the research

Other activities:
Working in a frozen yogurt shop, tennis, pre-vet club, avid reader (and member of campus book club)

So, what are my chances?!

 

[Shepherd Lover]

Hello.... I applied this cycle but after a couple of rejections I have lost a lot of confidence and might be applying again next cycle. I just wanted to post my stats and see what you guys think! Let me know where I could improve and any recommendations you might have for where I should try applying next time! Thanks!

Cornell is my IS and I have a BS in biology

Cum. GPA: 3.73
Science GPA: 3.55
Last 45 GPA: 3.86

GRE: 157 V, 152 Q (Definitely could use some improvement...)

Vet Experience:
420 hrs at a small and exotics practice
60 hrs LA
300 (and counting) at a SA specialty and emergency practice

Animal experience:
30 hrs at a shelter
200 hrs working at a Petco
100 hrs working in a lab animal room at my college

Research: about 300 hours on iguanid evolution and a comparison of morphological and molecular analyses of their evolution. Did not publish a paper but I did present the research

Other activities:
Working in a frozen yogurt shop, tennis, pre-vet club, avid reader (and member of campus book club)

So, what are my chances?!

Where all have you applied to?

 

[WildZoo]

Hello.... I applied this cycle but after a couple of rejections I have lost a lot of confidence and might be applying again next cycle. I just wanted to post my stats and see what you guys think! Let me know where I could improve and any recommendations you might have for where I should try applying next time! Thanks!

Cornell is my IS and I have a BS in biology

Cum. GPA: 3.73
Science GPA: 3.55
Last 45 GPA: 3.86

GRE: 157 V, 152 Q (Definitely could use some improvement...)

Vet Experience:
420 hrs at a small and exotics practice
60 hrs LA
300 (and counting) at a SA specialty and emergency practice

Animal experience:
30 hrs at a shelter
200 hrs working at a Petco
100 hrs working in a lab animal room at my college

Research: about 300 hours on iguanid evolution and a comparison of morphological and molecular analyses of their evolution. Did not publish a paper but I did present the research

Other activities:
Working in a frozen yogurt shop, tennis, pre-vet club, avid reader (and member of campus book club)

So, what are my chances?!

Hmm. The only things I can pick out are that your GRE scores could use a little improvement, as you said (though they're certainly not bad) and that your vet experience hours are a tad on the low side. Not according to what most schools post on their websites, but just from what I've seen around here, shooting for 1000 hours seems to be the goal, and you want that to be fairly varied too. What schools did you apply to and get rejections from? Don't give up hope yet if you're still waiting on others, because your stats actually look pretty good. If you do end up needing to reapply, definitely get file reviews from the schools that rejected you.

 

[Woogba68]

Where all have you applied to?

I was rejected from Cornell and UTK, and I am waiting on Wisconsin, NCSU and MSU (I had an interview there last month)

 

[bakedjps]

Hello! I'm just reposting this because I didn't really get any feedback last time. I'm applying next year for class of 2020, and I would like to know my chances with these stats specifically first, and then also as well as advice for improvements.

Academics:
cGPA: 2.9
sGPA: 3.0
last 45 GPA: 3.8
Verbal: 162 (89%)
Quant: 165 (90%)
Writing: 4.5 (80%)

Vet hours:
250 spayneuter clinic
250 wildlife medicine internship

Animal hours:
20 hrs animal shelter
300 hrs lab animal tech

Research:
750 hrs biophotonics (publication)
350 hrs bioengineering senior design project
400 hrs molecular bio lab

I've been retaking a couple prereqs so the sGPA may be a tiny bit higher for schools that do grade replacement (michigan and minnesota). Other than that, I'm basically looking at schools that don't look at cGPA (UC davis, louisiana, iowa, kansas) and a couple other ones.

I know my vet hours are weak and I'm trying my best to find another clinic to get experience in.

Also, does anyone know schools that like research experience?

Thanks in advance guys! really appreciate the help this thread has provided me.

 

[Doktor Timo]

I was rejected from Cornell and UTK, and I am waiting on Wisconsin, NCSU and MSU (I had an interview there last month)

When you say you were rejected by UTK, do you mean you got an interview and didn't get in or you didn't even get an interview? If you didn't get an interview that kind of surprises me, because your numbers look good. And UTK doesn't really care that much about the GRE. Certainly not as much as Cornell.

 

[Woogba68]

When you say you were rejected by UTK, do you mean you got an interview and didn't get in or you didn't even get an interview? If you didn't get an interview that kind of surprises me, because your numbers look good. And UTK doesn't really care that much about the GRE. Certainly not as much as Cornell.

I didn't even get an interview at UTK. I was a little surprised by that too. I expected the Cornell rejection, but I thought I had a shot at UTK.

 

[WildZoo]

I didn't even get an interview at UTK. I was a little surprised by that too. I expected the Cornell rejection, but I thought I had a shot at UTK.

Perhaps it was something in the subjective (Phase 2) portion of the evaluation? I don't have all of your objective stats so I can't calculate what your Phase 1 score would have been, but based on the info you gave us I think it's unlikely you were disqualified in Phase 1.

http://www.vet.utk.edu/admissions/procedure.php

 

[PreVet_ISU]

Hey guys.. t

Thought I'd repost my stats to see if anyone had any advice on how to become a more competitive applicant. I posted this before but I think everyone was pretty busy getting their applications in at the time. Any feedback would be super appreciated. My major goal right now is to diversify my experience and raise my GPA. Thanks ahead of time.

Just curious - how did you get research paid positions in undergrad? I'm trying and it seems impossible.

 

[Gwenevre]

Just curious - how did you get research paid positions in undergrad? I'm trying and it seems impossible.

It all depends on the lab. I found a poultry behavior lab that paid me, but I know a good number of labs in my area offered class credit or publishing opportunities.

 

[pinkpuppy9]

It all depends on the lab. I found a poultry behavior lab that paid me, but I know a good number of labs in my area offered class credit or publishing opportunities.

TBH, I'd totally take the publishing opportunities. I'm pretty sure all of the schools drool over applicants with good experience, grades, AND publications haha.

 

[Gwenevre]

TBH, I'd totally take the publishing opportunities. I'm pretty sure all of the schools drool over applicants with good . experience, grades, AND publications haha.

I would have if I didn't have bills to pay.

 

[pinkpuppy9]

I would have if I didn't have bills to pay.

Touche

 

[yugen]

Just curious - how did you get research paid positions in undergrad? I'm trying and it seems impossible.

A lot of networking and a little bit of luck. I found at larger universities research positions were more competitive.

 

[PreVet_ISU]

Off topic, but is there a link somewhere floating around of schools that have rolling admissions?

 

[pinkpuppy9]

Off topic, but is there a link somewhere floating around of schools that have rolling admissions?

St. George's does! That's the only school I know of off the top of my head

 

[Gwenevre]

I think a couple of the Island schools do rolling admissions?

 

[Skimble]

I think a couple of the Island schools do rolling admissions?

Ross does as well, but I'm not sure about St Mattews.

 

[Gwenevre]

St. Matthews does too, just checked their website

 

[PreVet_ISU]

What's the scoop on those island schools... legit or no?

 

[Skimble]

What's the scoop on those island schools... legit or no?

An accredited school is legit no matter where it is located. Sometimes island life can be difficult though, from what I understand.

 

[pinkpuppy9]

What's the scoop on those island schools... legit or no?

Searching the threads can find you very thorough discussions about the island schools.

Long story short: The stigma seems to be dying. I have been told bad things by current vets who do hiring, and I have been told good things by current vets that take on 4th year students for externships. I totally agree-an accredited school will get you the education you need. However, there are a whole host of factors you need to consider for an island school that don't really apply for US schools.

 

[PreVet_ISU]

Yeah that's more along the lines of what I was thinking. I understand that accreditation means you satisfy so many obligations with some sort of consistency, but I thought I'd ask you guys that are applying this round because you are the ones that most likely have considered these schools yourselves and have done the research that I haven't quite yet.

 

[pinkpuppy9]

Yeah that's more along the lines of what I was thinking. I understand that accreditation means you satisfy so many obligations with some sort of consistency, but I thought I'd ask you guys that are applying this round because you are the ones that most likely have considered these schools yourselves and have done the research that I haven't quite yet.

I personally haven't considered any island school because I do not want to be out of the country. @jmo1012, care to weigh in?

 

[jmo1012]

all 3 island schools are legit and have been around for years. they all graduate excellent veterinarians and mediocre veterinarians, just as US programs do. see the current SGU thread for my post about attending an island school before considering applying. you're not just applying to veterinary school, you are applying to change your entire life for 3 years. do not use these programs as a stepping stone to transfer into a US program, transfer seats are few and far between and theres often stiff competition. then you're just stuck being miserable (had a few of these classmates).

i applied because i did want to go to another country for 3 years. seemed like an amazing opportunity to be immersed in another culture while earning my DVM. i personally loved it, but its not a decision to take lightly.

@allygator13 ?

 

[DVMDream]

all 3 island schools are legit and have been around for years.

I agree that SGU and Ross are great schools.

Only other island school I can recall off the top of my head is St. Matthew's and I don't agree it is a good school... based on it not being accredited and other things I have heard from people who have been at that school.

 

[pinkpuppy9]

all 3 island schools are legit and have been around for years. they all graduate excellent veterinarians and mediocre veterinarians, just as US programs do. see the current SGU thread for my post about attending an island school before considering applying. you're not just applying to veterinary school, you are applying to change your entire life for 3 years. do not use these programs as a stepping stone to transfer into a US program, transfer seats are few and far between and theres often stiff competition. then you're just stuck being miserable (had a few of these classmates).

i applied because i did want to go to another country for 3 years. seemed like an amazing opportunity to be immersed in another culture while earning my DVM. i personally loved it, but its not a decision to take lightly.

@allygator13 ?

Would you say you were well received by NCSU students, as were your classmates at whatever school they ended up at? The 4th year island students I've met usually say everyone welcomed them, but I have always wondered if that was just 'tour appropriate' talk.

 

[dyachei]

The 4th year SGU peeps at UTK were well received, too.

We rotated with them and it was fine. Just like with my class, there are always a few people that have issues, but that is any vet school.

 

[allygator13]

all 3 island schools are legit and have been around for years. they all graduate excellent veterinarians and mediocre veterinarians, just as US programs do. see the current SGU thread for my post about attending an island school before considering applying. you're not just applying to veterinary school, you are applying to change your entire life for 3 years. do not use these programs as a stepping stone to transfer into a US program, transfer seats are few and far between and theres often stiff competition. then you're just stuck being miserable (had a few of these classmates).

i applied because i did want to go to another country for 3 years. seemed like an amazing opportunity to be immersed in another culture while earning my DVM. i personally loved it, but its not a decision to take lightly.

@allygator13 ?

Yes! I agree with this... I personally love it down here but I know a lot of people that hate it. One girl in my class even left a month or two into first semester because she couldn't handle the island life. Strongly consider what you're getting into, but also if you end up coming here, come in with a good attitude. It takes adjusting but it's an awesome place to be! And when I was out on a catamaran snorkeling and having a blast in October, I was so glad to be where I am

Just remember all schools have their strong and weak points as far as teaching goes, but accreditation is accreditation and we are all getting the same education.

 

[jmo1012]

I agree that SGU and Ross are great schools.

Only other island school I can recall off the top of my head is St. Matthew's and I don't agree it is a good school... based on it not being accredited and other things I have heard from people who have been at that school.

i dont know very much about the SMU program admittedly, but the SMU 4th years i've worked with have all been on top of their game and great people. its not accredited, but that does take A LOT of money. they have substantially fewer students to fund that stuff. is that a great reason? not really. but few people i've know from there have good things to say and are good DVMs
[don't take the extra debt and foreign licensing exams lightly though kids, they are a HUGE deal despite what your starry eyes may want to believe]

Would you say you were well received by NCSU students, as were your classmates at whatever school they ended up at? The 4th year island students I've met usually say everyone welcomed them, but I have always wondered if that was just 'tour appropriate' talk.

for the most part well received. some people are better than others. most clinicians dont care - the bit that trips me up is when a very specific thing has been taught here that wasnt necessarily emphasized (or the opinion of our professor) in our classes. that occasionally leads to grumpy clinicians.

 

[gemurra]

Hey guys! I was just looking for some feedback on my chances of getting into vet school (obviously haha). I'm currently in my second year of undergrad as an Animal and Veterinary Science major and Wildlife Biology minor but with my amount of hours I am technically a junior i guess. I'll be applying to vet school this coming rotation, and while i'm not expecting to get in early I'd really love to.

Cumulative GPA: 3.65
Science GPA: 3.5 (still have 4 more science classes to finish up before applying so this will hopefully get better)
Not sure of my last 45 yet cause i'm not done with it
I've only taken a practice GRE but i got a 151 for math and a 158 for verbal, not great but it was my first go at it.

I have about 600 hours with two different small animal vets combined, and 200 with a large animal vet. I'm gonna have more hours with the small animal vet by the time i apply (probably like 200). Both small animal vets have really great recommendation letters for me. In addition I have about 600 hours worth of large animal experience through my time with my schools dairy science club/show team and being a TA for a livestock showmanship class, and another 400 hours of exotic animal experience doing an internship at Riverbanks Zoo (worked with elephants, giraffe, zebra, tapir, etc.). I am doing research with a PhD student studying golden lion tamarin behavior as well. I doubt this counts but I also have a lot of experience training dogs, I've taken several obedience classes with my border collie.

Finally, I'm also involved in a lot of clubs. I am active on the Dairy Show Team and in the club itself and will be running for show chair this spring. I am a member of Chi Omega, Tigers for Tigers club, and the Pre-vet club. I also tutored for my schools academic success program for biology and chemistry.

I will be applying to UGA, Mississippi State, and Tuskegee. I go to Clemson right now so I am not technically in-state, but all three of these schools have seats for a certain number of south carolina students to have instate tuition.

I think that covers everything about me! Thanks for your feedback!!

 

[yugen]

Hey guys! I was just looking for some feedback on my chances of getting into vet school (obviously haha). I'm currently in my second year of undergrad as an Animal and Veterinary Science major and Wildlife Biology minor but with my amount of hours I am technically a junior i guess. I'll be applying to vet school this coming rotation, and while i'm not expecting to get in early I'd really love to.

Cumulative GPA: 3.65
Science GPA: 3.5 (still have 4 more science classes to finish up before applying so this will hopefully get better)
Not sure of my last 45 yet cause i'm not done with it
I've only taken a practice GRE but i got a 151 for math and a 158 for verbal, not great but it was my first go at it.

I have about 600 hours with two different small animal vets combined, and 200 with a large animal vet. I'm gonna have more hours with the small animal vet by the time i apply (probably like 200). Both small animal vets have really great recommendation letters for me. In addition I have about 600 hours worth of large animal experience through my time with my schools dairy science club/show team and being a TA for a livestock showmanship class, and another 400 hours of exotic animal experience doing an internship at Riverbanks Zoo (worked with elephants, giraffe, zebra, tapir, etc.). I am doing research with a PhD student studying golden lion tamarin behavior as well. I doubt this counts but I also have a lot of experience training dogs, I've taken several obedience classes with my border collie.

Finally, I'm also involved in a lot of clubs. I am active on the Dairy Show Team and in the club itself and will be running for show chair this spring. I am a member of Chi Omega, Tigers for Tigers club, and the Pre-vet club. I also tutored for my schools academic success program for biology and chemistry.

I will be applying to UGA, Mississippi State, and Tuskegee. I go to Clemson right now so I am not technically in-state, but all three of these schools have seats for a certain number of south carolina students to have instate tuition.

I think that covers everything about me! Thanks for your feedback!!

your stats seem pretty solid!
i would just keep up that GPA and retake the GRE. i'd want something in the 158+//158+//4.5+ range. i'd imagine you can probably get your quantitative score up pretty easily with a little bit of prepping beforehand.
your experience seems well rounded, as well! keep up the great work and good luck!

 

[gemurra]

your stats seem pretty solid!
i would just keep up that GPA and retake the GRE. i'd want something in the 158+//158+//4.5+ range. i'd imagine you can probably get your quantitative score up pretty easily with a little bit of prepping beforehand.
your experience seems well rounded, as well! keep up the great work and good luck!

Thank you!!! Good luck to you too

 

[superkelpie]

Hi guys! I'm a junior and planning to apply this upcoming cycle, and I mostly wanted to get some feedback about whether or not my experience was diversified enough. I have a bunch of different small animal specialty experiences, but I'm not sure whether it all lumps into a "small animal" category and my application won't be well-rounded enough. I also don't have a ton of animal experience, but I think it might be too late at this point to try to get more. Here are my stats!
Cumulative GPA: 3.94
sGPA: 3.95
GRE: 163V/170Q/5.0A

Vet Experience:
960 hours working in SA surgery dept at a referral hospital
300 hours shadowing SA general practice
100 hours shadowing equine referral hospital
70 hours shadowing SA cardiology
60 hours shadowing SA neurology
50 hours working for low cost vaccine clinic
40 hours shadowing veterinary clinical pathologist
30 hours shadowing SA E/CC
8 hours shadowing at SeaWorld (should I even include this since it's so few hours?)

Animal Experience:
300 hours working at doggie day care facility
100 hours volunteering at SA general practice (kennel stuff)
80 hours working with rats in a research lab
80 hours volunteering with therapy dogs at an elderly home
30 hours helping out a friend who has horses

Other stuff:
I'm currently doing genomic research related to canine cancer (not under a DVM) for my senior thesis, I write about the football team for the school paper, I'm in a sorority on campus, I'm involved in leadership with the pre-vet club, and my favorite kind of chocolate is dark Any feedback will be appreciated!

 

[Gwenevre]

Hi guys! I'm a junior and planning to apply this upcoming cycle, and I mostly wanted to get some feedback about whether or not my experience was diversified enough. I have a bunch of different small animal specialty experiences, but I'm not sure whether it all lumps into a "small animal" category and my application won't be well-rounded enough. I also don't have a ton of animal experience, but I think it might be too late at this point to try to get more. Here are my stats!
Cumulative GPA: 3.94
sGPA: 3.95
GRE: 163V/170Q/5.0A

Vet Experience:
960 hours working in SA surgery dept at a referral hospital
300 hours shadowing SA general practice
100 hours shadowing equine referral hospital
70 hours shadowing SA cardiology
60 hours shadowing SA neurology
50 hours working for low cost vaccine clinic
40 hours shadowing veterinary clinical pathologist
30 hours shadowing SA E/CC
8 hours shadowing at SeaWorld (should I even include this since it's so few hours?)

Animal Experience:
300 hours working at doggie day care facility
100 hours volunteering at SA general practice (kennel stuff)
80 hours working with rats in a research lab
80 hours volunteering with therapy dogs at an elderly home
30 hours helping out a friend who has horses

Other stuff:
I'm currently doing genomic research related to canine cancer (not under a DVM) for my senior thesis, I write about the football team for the school paper, I'm in a sorority on campus, I'm involved in leadership with the pre-vet club, and my favorite kind of chocolate is dark Any feedback will be appreciated!

Include everything! Your Sea World experience is awesome, as it diversifies your experience. Your academic stats are extremely competitive as well. I would advise continuing to diversify your experiences by including some more LA, specifically food animal and some more equine, to help round out your vet hours.

 

[scienceep15]

Hi all, thinking of applying next cycle please let me know if you think I would be competitive and feel free to critique me, any help is appreciated! Completing my degree in may, these are my stats thus far:

Female: 21
Graduating in May with BS in Biology Emphasis in Health & Medicine

cumGPA: 3.81
Science & Math GPA: 3.77
Last 45: 3.87
GRE: 151 V/156 Q/ 4.5 A (leaves much to be desire- standardized testing isn't my strong suit!)
Avg Courseload: 15.47 hours

Vet Experience
-600 hours small animal and exotic (I work as a Vet tech at a local small animal clinic and 2 of our doctors are exotic specialists)
-60 Hours Horse & Large Animal

Animal experience:
-100 hours at SA shelter
-150 Equine/LA (family member owned farm)

Other/Extracurriculars (not sure if schools are interested in this...?)
-President of Student Athlete Advisory Committee (1 yr), member (4yrs)
-Undergrad research project in chemistry (150 hours)
-Member of Leadership on Campus club (4 yrs)
-Member of Students for Biological Sciences (3 yrs)
-Math and Reading Tutor for elementary children (300 hours)
-Special Olympics Volunteer (200 hours)
-Volunteer at local retirement home for women (50 hours)
-Worked as Vet Tech (1.5 yrs) and in Campus transcript office (3 yrs)
-Deans List (2 yrs)
-National Honors Society in high school

 

[thecatastrophist]

Hi all, thinking of applying next cycle, please let me know if you think I would be competitive and feel free to critique me, any help is appreciated!
Will be completing my undergrad degree in Biology this May! These are my stats thus far:
cumGPA: 3.84
Science GPA: 3.76
Last 3 semesters: 3.87
GRE: 155V/157Q/4.5 A (leaves much to be desired, standardized tests definitely are not my strong suit!)
Avg. Course load: 15.14 hours

Vet experience:
-500 SA
-400 Exotic Avian
-35 LA/Equine

Animal Experience
-100 Hours at SA shelter
-150 Equine/LA (family member owned a farm)

Others/Extracurriculars (not sure if schools are interested in this...?)
-125 hours on undergrad research project in chemistry
-Played 2 Varsity Sports in undergrad (NCAA DII)
-Work as a Vet Tech at SA/exotic specialty clinic
-President of Biology Club at undergrad
-4 year member of Leadership Club
-100 Hours volunteer w/ Special Olympics (should I include this on app?)
-100 Hours volunteer as Math & Science tutor for middle schoolers (include this or no?)

The VMCAS application is very thorough. You should include EVERYTHING, including those extracurriculars and especially the research (many schools view research favorably). The VMCAS has a special section devoted to extracurriculars and other employment. You should include everything. Keep in mind that many schools rank certain experiences differently. You should cast your net broad when it comes to listing experiences. Schools can look at the experiences they like and can ignore the ones that aren't relevant to *their* application process. But, an activity that might not matter as much to one school might make you stand out against other applicants at another.

Your grades and GRE scores look pretty good to me, honestly. The grades are fine without question. I know people get picky about GRE scores, but yours aren't too low so I wouldn't think that you should retake them unless it seems like the schools you're interested in have significantly higher GRE stats for their accepted applicants.

Your tutoring experience, research experience, and leadership experience definitely stand out to me. Yes! Include it! Tutoring can make a case for your people skills, and many vet schools care about citizenship, which can be demonstrated by commitment to volunteer activities. Every competitive applicant will probably have good grades and large amounts of experience. It's your job to demonstrate on your application that you're a unique candidate beyond that. Every experience and hobby counts.

 

[scienceep15]

The VMCAS application is very thorough. You should include EVERYTHING, including those extracurriculars and especially the research (many schools view research favorably). The VMCAS has a special section devoted to extracurriculars and other employment. You should include everything. Keep in mind that many schools rank certain experiences differently. You should cast your net broad when it comes to listing experiences. Schools can look at the experiences they like and can ignore the ones that aren't relevant to *their* application process. But, an activity that might not matter as much to one school might make you stand out against other applicants at another.

Your grades and GRE scores look pretty good to me, honestly. The grades are fine without question. I know people get picky about GRE scores, but yours aren't too low so I wouldn't think that you should retake them unless it seems like the schools you're interested in have significantly higher GRE stats for their accepted applicants.

Your tutoring experience, research experience, and leadership experience definitely stand out to me. Yes! Include it! Tutoring can make a case for your people skills, and many vet schools care about citizenship, which can be demonstrated by commitment to volunteer activities. Every competitive applicant will probably have good grades and large amounts of experience. It's your job to demonstrate on your application that you're a unique candidate beyond that. Every experience and hobby counts.

Thank you so much, the feedback is greatly appreciated! Best of luck to everyone who applied this cycle doing interviews and waiting for notifications!

 

[lukeybear123]

First Time Applicant
21 year old, female, New York resident

Biology/Pre-Vet Major, Chemistry Minor
cGPA: 3.73
sGPA: 3.91
last 45 GPA: 3.88

GRE: pending
NCSU Online Animal Nutrition Course: -A

Veterinary Experience:
1200 hr SA and wildlife
50 hr shadowing equine specialist
200 hr shadowing exotic specialist

Animal Experience:
1200 hr SA and wildlife
80 hr exotic
50 hr equine
120 hr safari wildlife (went to Africa)
600 hr fostering SA

2 semesters of research at Molloy College
Omicron Alpha Zeta member (honors society)
Chi Beta Phi treasurer (science honors society)
Attended UPenn Summer VETS Program
Volunteer at Cohen's Childrens Medical Center
4 year Junior Fire Department Member
American Pre-Veterinary Medical Association Member
Volunteers for Wildlife Member
NY Wildlife Handling Certificate
AAHA Certificate of Achievement for the AAHA Parasite Counselor Program

I'm applying to Cornell, UPenn, NCSU, Ohio, Colorado, Virginia Tech. Do you think I'm out of reach from being accepted? Does anyone have any comments or suggestions to help me enhance my application? Its a little too late to get more hours in with the work overload I'm experiencing but I'm open to hear whatever anyone has to say. Thanks.