Applying early

[Tiraka]

First of all, hello to all of you in the forum! I have a couple questions that I'm hoping some of you can help me with.

I have just finished my first year of undergrad, but because I entered college with 45 hours of AP credit, I am currently eligible to apply to vet school and will have all of my pre-reqs finished by the end of this year. I have started an application, but am unsure of my chances of acceptance at this point. I have a 3.5 GPA, about 1000 hours of vet experience (2 small animal and a rural equine practice). I will take the GRE in August, and have done well on standardized tests in the past. Animal experience includes 12 years riding and showing horses, lots of shelter work, and I am currently training a service dog. Unfortunately, I did get a C in Organic II, which I took this spring. I plan to apply only to Texas A&M (where I am an undergrad) this year, and will continue to work towards my B.S. and gain additional experience if I am rejected.

I was wondering if any of you had applied after only 1 or 2 years of college, and how schools (especially A&M) reacted to that decision. Also, what is factored into Science GPA? I did my introductory Biology, Chemistry, and Physics classes through AP's, so my only college science classes are both semesters O-chem, animal science, and an animal nutrition class. If only organic (and labs) are considered, my science GPA would be a 2.75 (uggh) - with animal science classes, it would come up to a 3.33. Any opinions on whether it's worth it for me to apply this year, or would it be better to take an extra year to improve my GPA and gain additional experience?

Thanks for any input you can give, and for reading this rather long post

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[ReinaDeLuz]

First of all, hello to all of you in the forum! I have a couple questions that I'm hoping some of you can help me with.

I have just finished my first year of undergrad, but because I entered college with 45 hours of AP credit, I am currently eligible to apply to vet school and will have all of my pre-reqs finished by the end of this year. I have started an application, but am unsure of my chances of acceptance at this point. I have a 3.5 GPA, about 1000 hours of vet experience (2 small animal and a rural equine practice). I will take the GRE in August, and have done well on standardized tests in the past. Animal experience includes 12 years riding and showing horses, lots of shelter work, and I am currently training a service dog. Unfortunately, I did get a C in Organic II, which I took this spring. I plan to apply only to Texas A&M (where I am an undergrad) this year, and will continue to work towards my B.S. and gain additional experience if I am rejected.

I was wondering if any of you had applied after only 1 or 2 years of college, and how schools (especially A&M) reacted to that decision. Also, what is factored into Science GPA? I did my introductory Biology, Chemistry, and Physics classes through AP's, so my only college science classes are both semesters O-chem, animal science, and an animal nutrition class. If only organic (and labs) are considered, my science GPA would be a 2.75 (uggh) - with animal science classes, it would come up to a 3.33. Any opinions on whether it's worth it for me to apply this year, or would it be better to take an extra year to improve my GPA and gain additional experience?

Thanks for any input you can give, and for reading this rather long post

I have to say I don't know much about your situation, but here at UF it is very rare for people to get in who havn't finished at least 3-4 years of undergrad (most dont even get in on their first try!). I know of a few individuals who applied as juniors that were turned down partly for the fact that they were considered just a little too young, so I don't know how adcoms would react to the fact that you will have only finished two years! To be honest, I don't understand the rush to get out of undergrad and into vet school. I think finishing your undergrad is really important, both in maturing you academically (and socially) and in letting you explore different options and just plain have fun before you have to settle down and do nothing but study for four years. Personally, I am super proud of the fact that all the hard work ive put in the past four years have been rewarded with a degree, I certainly wouldn't have wanted to just go to school for a couple of years and then have nothing to show for it.

I would talk to the Texas A&M adcom about your situation, but you might want to just try and take a few more semesters to spread things out, try and get a higher GPA and get more experience. Just my two cents, no need to rush it, if you're serious about it you'll get there in the end!

 

[Ladydvm]

I was in nearly the same situation as you last year- lots of AP credit and advanced testing, and I was ready to apply for vet school after 2 years of undergrad (at 19 yrs old). I hesitated when it came to applying- but I finally decided to, and I'm ever so glad that I did, since I'll be attending vet school in August.

If you think you're ready, go ahead and apply this year. Even if you don't think your GPA is competitive enough now, you can get a handle on the application/interview experience. Then, while you are applying, work on improving your GPA, take the GRE, and broaden your experiences. If you don't get in this time, next time when you apply you'll be prepared for all aspects of the process and have the advantage over some of the first time applicants. Afterall, it doesn't hurt you to apply even if you don't get in- so why not?

As ReinaDeLuz said, it's a good idea to talk to the adcom at Texas A&M. They'll be able to give a better idea of what to expect, and help you decide if you're ready to apply now. They can also give you a better idea as to how your science GPA will be calculated, as most schools do it differently.
Best of luck!

 

[ReinaDeLuz]

Afterall, it doesn't hurt you to apply even if you don't get in- so why not?

I agree with you in that there can be some benefits to getting early experience with applying and interviewing, but at the same time, it can certainly be a big time/financial commitment, especially if you are trying to get better grades/more experience while you're going through the process!

Unless she only applies to Texas A&M this time around, applying just "for the experience of applying" may not actually be worth it, I applied to a few schools and I certainly wouldn't take this process lightly! The time crunch/stress of waiting for an answer wasn't fun...and plane/hotel fare for interviews + the cost of VMCAS and then secondaries can add up to *a lot*!

If you pay careful attention to what you're doing with the VMCAS application, and prepare yourself thoroughly for interviews, you can do just fine applying once (I got into four schools, and this was my first time around!). I personally would not want to go through interviews again either, but maybe I'm a little more introverted than the average person ;-).

 

[bubbles525]

While I do think applying this cycle would give you insight into the application process I'd wait a year. You probably don't have ALL of the pre-reqs for ALL of the schools, becuase some of them require odd classes. NC state for example asks for 6 credits of bussiness (or economics??). There are just so many possibilities and since you have the all of (for most/some schools) or majority of your pre-reqs done you have plenty of time to expand your horizons. In the end the more schools you CAN apply to becuase you have the requirements the better your chances of not only getting in but getting in some place you really want to be. You may find you want to be at a school that does not use terminal surgeries, or maybe you do, maybe you want a school that tracks, maybe you don't etc. You can take one or two classes toward vet school a semster and then take your other credits in other things that you find interesting. Chances are that you'll take a random class to fill a college graduation requirement or just becuase it fits and you'll really enjoy it. A lot of pre-med and pre-vet people I know could not take more classes in that area simply becuase they did not have the time outside of grad school pre-reqs and graduation requirments. The other thing is that you can make life long friends in college and you can do interesting things like study abroad and only going to college for two years cuts back on those experiances. I loved college. I worked my butt off to finish the extra year of classes for my dual degree, double major, and all my pre-reqs. I missed out on more dance classes, buissness classes, economics classes, philosophy classes, ceramics classes etc. becuase my majors and vet school were more important in the long run. You have the opertunity to have a more rich and varried experiance than many pre-health students. I think you should take it. Go abroad a semster you junior year (best thing I ever did and it helped with one or my majors)! apply after your sophomore year if you're dead set but I'd advise spending at least three years in college. Just my honest opinion.

~Marie

 

[Anggel]

While I applaud you for your eagerness to start on the path towards a DVM, I agree with some of the other posts in this thread. My years in undergrad were among the best years of my life. I think undergrad is/can be a wonderful time and you should thoroughly enjoy it.

There are two or three people in my class that were accepted at the age of 19 or 20. I am only generalizing about my classmates and no one else. They seem to be a bit less mature and less able to cope with the rigors of veterinary school. I also think they find it more arduous at times to relate to their slightly older classmates. Obviously academics are of the utmost concern in vet school, but if one has trouble relating to one's peers that can make the road a bit more lonely.

In any event, I offer the last few points merely for you to mull over. Good luck!

 

[2Bsure]

First, I would like to offer congratulations on completing the most of the prerequisites before your second year of school. No matter when you apply, that will look impressive. However, I agree with most of the other comments on this board. It would be best to wait at least until you have started your third year before applying. If what you say is true, you should have no problems getting into veterinary school if you wait one or two years before you apply.

The C your received in organic should not hurt your chances too much if you show high achievement in other areas; however, if you have not taken many other science courses in college it will probably signal, rightly or wrongly, that you still have to learn how to deal with these sorts of classes.

It may be to your benefit to also boost the depth and breadth of your academic and animal experiences. If you are willing to stick around, you should have plenty of time as an undergraduate to go further into the sciences and take courses that don’t follow the pre-vet track. A’s in a few biochemistry classes should more than compensate the C in organic. There are also many exciting and exotic internships you can consider that would distinguish you from many other applicants. I have a friend who is spending time this summer in Chengdu working with pandas. While he received the internship based partly on academic connections, I’m sure you have professors and staff at A&M who can offer great opportunities.

 

[Tiraka]

Thank you all for your input. I've been talking with one of my academic advisors and the veterinarian that I currently work for, and as most of you have suggested, I will take another year before applying. Since my vet pre-reqs largely overlap with my major requirements, this route will give me the time to do a great study abroad, research, or internship, and improve myself as a vet applicant

I expect to be back here with questions in a year or so