20 Questions Series

I'd like to ask a wildlife/zoo vet what kind of opportunities there are after vet school and if he can work full time in his specialty or if he has to divide it out with a small animal clinic.

 

What kind of job do they have (private practice, public sector, industry, academic...) and what percentage of their take-home salary goes to loan repayment? (e.g. loan payment amount divided by (salary minus taxes).)

 

For research vets, why did you choose to get a dvm instead of a phd, or why did you choose to get both?

 

What is a 'typical' week (hours, number of cases seen, what they actually spend their time doing)? What sacrifices they've have to make because of their career? What they wish they would have known before getting into the profession?

 

I would want to ask women vets how they decided when to have kids (how they allowed for it with maternity leave, etc.), and how they balance their family lives and work now. This is one thing I think about all the time because my SO and I really want to have kids some day but I don't foresee any time in the near future I'll be able to do it. I can't have kids while I'm in school, I want to do an internship/residency after, and I can't take time off for it when I'm just getting started following that... I guess that puts me well into my 30s and my SO into his 40s. AAHHHHH I hate thinking about it

 

where do you see the field of veterinary medicine in 20 years?

 

I would second this question. I would have written it myself, but I couldn't figure out how to phrase it.

 

What opportunities are there in toy poodle medicine?

 

Man, you crack me up. If you need help with the Bio GRE and are willing to travel, I will personally tutor you!

As long as you keep me laughing.....

 

I'm going to the caribbean for vet school in May, so no more GRE Bio for me! Lol.

 

How many times did they have to apply before being accepted?

 

I second this question

 

Since I already missed the 'seconding'...

Did they have a job in vet school? If so, what type? Did they work as assistants or employees at the vet school, in research etc?

 

Are their specific career goals before getting into vet schools the same as those after graduating from vet schools? for example, right before you got into vet school or when you were a first year, you thought you want to do a residency in this field in the future, but by the time you graduated, your mind changed and decided to go into another specific field.

 

Seconded! And not only what did they do, but what do they recommend doing, or wish they'd done for work during school?

 

Have their opinions on ethical issues from before/during vet school changed since working professionally as veterinarians?

What, if any major changes do they predict or hope for in veterinary medicine (any fields)?

 

What was that first year out of vet school like? Did you feel the school you graduated from prepared you for real life vet med? Do you wish you payed more attention to something, if so what?

 

What's your favorite thing about your job? Least favorite?