AVC/UPEI c/o 2024

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.
AVC 2019 grad here, practising in large animal medicine. You will have lots of opportunities for large animal stuff! not to worry. They have teaching cows and teaching horses for labs. In third year you get to declare your interests and in doing so you can pick some specific large animal labs and classes. For 4th year you have a few spots for elective rotations and can pick large animal rotations. I was fortunate enough to get a job in the summer in the large animal hospital. This job also allowed me to work the odd shift in the barn during the school year as well. I got lots of opportunities to be in on cases, watch and participate in surgeries and procedures. You have so many opportunities if you take advantage of some of your down time and head down to the barn, the hard part is heading back up to class! But this was my motivator to get through classes and remind me of what I was working towards! Enjoy the experience. One of my best friends is one of the large animal technicians and I miss AVC so much!
thank you very much, that's really good to hear!! did you feel you saw enough varied farm animal species?
 
thank you very much, that's really good to hear!! did you feel you saw enough varied farm animal species?

2015 grad. The island is predominantly dairy cows with some beef and a handful of large sheep farms. Like the previous poster mentioned, there is plenty of ability to get hands on large animal stuff, including outside of the structured curriculum- lambing for some of the main sheep farms, clubs/wet labs, elective rotations, even milking for local dairies part time, etc. There is actually a lot of LA (dairy specific) research going on there with regards to welfare, mastitis, etc. that you may be able to get in on too (Dr McKenna specifically comes to mind). Actively seek out the opportunities - plenty of my classmates went into large animal practice.
 
Got my acceptance email 12:04 pm est today!!!

For any waitlisted people, remember that there is still a good chance to get accepted since their list moves around a lot.
 
2015 grad. The island is predominantly dairy cows with some beef and a handful of large sheep farms. Like the previous poster mentioned, there is plenty of ability to get hands on large animal stuff, including outside of the structured curriculum- lambing for some of the main sheep farms, clubs/wet labs, elective rotations, even milking for local dairies part time, etc. There is actually a lot of LA (dairy specific) research going on there with regards to welfare, mastitis, etc. that you may be able to get in on too (Dr McKenna specifically comes to mind). Actively seek out the opportunities - plenty of my classmates went into large animal practice.
thanks a lot! I am leaning towards bovine in general so thats good to hear, though it's good to be exposed to other things
 
thanks a lot! I am leaning towards bovine in general so thats good to hear, though it's good to be exposed to other things

I assumed so as most horse people will specify “equine” instead of large animal, but there are a bunch of horses too- there’s a Standardbred track on the island so they’re over-represented but definitely some others come through as well 🙂
 
thank you very much, that's really good to hear!! did you feel you saw enough varied farm animal species?

I was part of the small ruminant club and ended up vice and then president, so I also did a lot of lambing and other small ruminant specific activities. There are lots of clubs, labs, lectures, activities that you will find at AVC. Dr. McKenna is awesome, and if you like dairy he is definitely one to talk to. I also took some dairy specific rotations in 4th year, there is an exceptionally amazing one that I ranked #1 in order to make sure I got in on it, But it takes you to St Hyacinthe in Quebec. It is a ruminant specific rotation where I was fortunate to work with a ton of dairy cows and even a Big horn sheep from a local "zoo". The farms have subsidized care so the government pays for some of their vet bills, which allows you to see a lot of cases that you wouldn't see elsewhere. So worth it to take!! You will love it.
 
I was part of the small ruminant club and ended up vice and then president, so I also did a lot of lambing and other small ruminant specific activities. There are lots of clubs, labs, lectures, activities that you will find at AVC. Dr. McKenna is awesome, and if you like dairy he is definitely one to talk to. I also took some dairy specific rotations in 4th year, there is an exceptionally amazing one that I ranked #1 in order to make sure I got in on it, But it takes you to St Hyacinthe in Quebec. It is a ruminant specific rotation where I was fortunate to work with a ton of dairy cows and even a Big horn sheep from a local "zoo". The farms have subsidized care so the government pays for some of their vet bills, which allows you to see a lot of cases that you wouldn't see elsewhere. So worth it to take!! You will love it.

Word to the wise: St Hyacinthe is a French-speaking school! 🙂
 
no to worry about st Hy, they make sure the clinicians speak English and you have a prof that goes with you from AVC. So French is NOT mandatory! Trust me, we had people who had never spoken French a day in their life!! so don't let that scare you !! 🙂
 
Congrats to all the international students!

Now that the international students have finished the application process, any Canadian residents applying this year on here?

Applied last year, made it all the way to the waiting list but never got a spot. Trying to be optimistic about my chances this year but it's hard. My mentor has been great, and I've gotten to shadow her on a lot of cool calls over the summer but still feel like my experience was lacking on my application. Trying to do as much shadowing as possible while also working full-time through the year, but since I wasn't able to get a job in a clinic I definitely feel like I'm way behind.
 
Hi! Canadian applicant here. I believe we were actually both on the NB waitlist last year together! I feel the same. I’ve improved my grades but still nervous. Keeping our fingers crossed, interview emails are only like 6 and a half weeks away!


Congrats to all the international students!

Now that the international students have finished the application process, any Canadian residents applying this year on here?

Applied last year, made it all the way to the waiting list but never got a spot. Trying to be optimistic about my chances this year but it's hard. My mentor has been great, and I've gotten to shadow her on a lot of cool calls over the summer but still feel like my experience was lacking on my application. Trying to do as much shadowing as possible while also working full-time through the year, but since I wasn't able to get a job in a clinic I definitely feel like I'm way behind.
 
Just declined my acceptance so I hope someone gets some good news soon 🙂
 
Congrats to all the international students!

Now that the international students have finished the application process, any Canadian residents applying this year on here?

Applied last year, made it all the way to the waiting list but never got a spot. Trying to be optimistic about my chances this year but it's hard. My mentor has been great, and I've gotten to shadow her on a lot of cool calls over the summer but still feel like my experience was lacking on my application. Trying to do as much shadowing as possible while also working full-time through the year, but since I wasn't able to get a job in a clinic I definitely feel like I'm way behind.

Yes! very anxious to hear back. I'm wondering when we will hear about interviews. Maybe sometime next month?
 
Yes! very anxious to hear back. I'm wondering when we will hear about interviews. Maybe sometime next month?

Usually the Thursday or Friday right before Saint Patrick’s day! Last year interview invites went out on the 14th of March 🙂
 
Usually the Thursday or Friday right before Saint Patrick’s day! Last year interview invites went out on the 14th of March 🙂
Ah thanks for responding! Good to know. 🙂
 
Has anyone heard about interviews yet? I’ve been patiently refreshing my email all morning lol.
 
Has anyone heard about interviews yet? I’ve been patiently refreshing my email all morning lol.

Nope but I’ve been doing the same thing haha. Last year it came today but other years it was Friday so just depends when they get the chance to meet. He also said in the email could be all the way till end of 3rd week of March so I don’t think we need to worry yet.
 
Nope but I’ve been doing the same thing haha. Last year it came today but other years it was Friday so just depends when they get the chance to meet. He also said in the email could be all the way till end of 3rd week of March so I don’t think we need to worry yet.
Ahaha it’s going to drive me crazy! I have no patience.
 
Has anyone heard anything? Still no email here.
 
No email yet for me as well! probably won't be until next week.

I’m starting to worry cause I don’t know it ever being after the 2nd week of March and the people who get interviews always get the emails first then rejections usually the next day! Hoping they are just running behind schedule this year or something.
 
I’m starting to worry cause I don’t know it ever being after the 2nd week of March and the people who get interviews always get the emails first then rejections usually the next day! Hoping they are just running behind schedule this year or something.
Might be a stretch but maybe COVID-19 has been slowing things down? Like interfering with meetings? I feel at least one person would have posted on here if they did get an interview email, hopefully.
 
Might be a stretch but maybe COVID-19 has been slowing things down? Like interfering with meetings? I feel at least one person would have posted on here if they did get an interview email, hopefully.

yeah I totally was thinking that too! seems to be throwing everything off. just have to wait and see I guess!
 
Also the guy who handles the admissions process is on sebbatical until June and the person who took over for him is new to this and probably not getting much help right now either the virus and stuff going on (as you guys mentioned).
 
Also the guy who handles the admissions process is on sebbatical until June and the person who took over for him is new to this and probably not getting much help right now either the virus and stuff going on (as you guys mentioned).

Ah, I didn’t know! Thanks for sharing!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Also the guy who handles the admissions process is on sebbatical until June and the person who took over for him is new to this and probably not getting much help right now either the virus and stuff going on (as you guys mentioned).

Oh wow I didn’t know Jack was out on sabbatical! That makes alot more sense. I’m attending UPEI right now and everything in-class wise is shut down, including students attending AVC. So I think the admissions board is probably running behind schedule because profs on the committee are having to change their curriculum to online now, which is presumably a lot of work. I wonder if we will even hear back by the end of this week all things considered.
 
Oh wow I didn’t know Jack was out on sabbatical! That makes alot more sense. I’m attending UPEI right now and everything in-class wise is shut down, including students attending AVC. So I think the admissions board is probably running behind schedule because profs on the committee are having to change their curriculum to online now, which is presumably a lot of work. I wonder if we will even hear back by the end of this week all things considered.
I'm even starting to wonder if they'll postpone interviews - UPEI cancelled convocation in May 🙁
 
I'm even starting to wonder if they'll postpone interviews - UPEI cancelled convocation in May 🙁

That’s what I was worrying about as well. Or maybe they offer an online interview via Skype. I guess they’re just trying to figure out what the best move is.
 
I'm even starting to wonder if they'll postpone interviews - UPEI cancelled convocation in May 🙁

I agree! I feel like they will do 1 of 3 things, either not have a huge group like normal come all at once and just have individuals come in one at a time and do in person interviews, or they will do Skype interview and online personality test or just postpone until I later date but I feel like they will have a hard time to postpone because that’s going to push students way too late to find out and to get funding and stuff unless they are going to shorten decision making time between interview and admissions offers!

Just have to wait and see but it definitely adds more stress to an already stressful time waiting for the answer haha
 
I think they’ll probably do Skype interviews for you guys with all of the health concerns going on right now. Even bringing people in in small groups would be a huge risk with the new virus. I tried to go to my interview while sick in November and ended up having to leave early, and it didn’t seem like a big deal at all to reschedule my interview with them over Skype and do the personality test at home - everyone I talked to was happy to accommodate it and I was still accepted! The best part is you can literally do your interview and test in sweatpants 😉
 
I bet they'll do Skype interviews or, if the outbreak slows down, do as they used to years ago and hold interviews over the course of a few weeks, having just a handful of students come in at a time.

Also, my heart literally drops every time I get a notification someone commented on here! Keep expecting people to say they got their interview invite. 😛
 
I’m getting super antsy to hear back. Praying we hear back tomorrow just so it’s over with :joyful: hopefully if they are going to be delayed getting back to us they will let us know!
 
I’m getting super antsy to hear back. Praying we hear back tomorrow just so it’s over with :joyful: hopefully if they are going to be delayed getting back to us they will let us know!
I was chatting with a friend who is a vet student at AVC right now she said that the school plans to open back up in May 4th, and she also said that a few years ago she didn't hear about interviews until the end of March so that may be the case this year too.

What sucks is that I'm not sure if mock interviews will be available from student services this year
 
I was chatting with a friend who is a vet student at AVC right now she said that the school plans to open back up in May 4th, and she also said that a few years ago she didn't hear about interviews until the end of March so that may be the case this year too.

What sucks is that I'm not sure if mock interviews will be available from student services this year

thank you for sharing that ☺any info is useful at this point!
 
Assuming nobody else heard back today? Looks like next week it is. Crossing my fingers
 
Really hoping we will get news back today or tomorrow! I just wanna know haha. Or atleast an email telling us they are pushing back decisions or something.
 
Really hoping we will get news back today or tomorrow! I just wanna know haha. Or atleast an email telling us they are pushing back decisions or something.

I received a bit of information the other day from a friend at AVC and doesn't seem like they know what's going to happen about interviews still. I agree that they should consider emailing us about interview invites and go from there. At least people will know to start prepping for it.
 
I received a bit of information the other day from a friend at AVC and doesn't seem like they know what's going to happen about interviews still. I agree that they should consider emailing us about interview invites and go from there. At least people will know to start prepping for it.

Yes exactly! They could even just send out the interview invites and explain that everything is up in the air but they will keep up posted as the situation develops so we at least know we have one or not, regardless of the method they plan on doing the interviews!
 
Ah congrats!!! What did they say in regards to how interviews will work?

thank you !!! It will be on skype or whatever video call type thing they use and we will do the personality test online as well. They said they will be sometime between mid to late May depending on when you get scheduled !
 
Hi All! Us locals are just hearing back about whether we got an interview or not. I've received one and I'm just wondering how all of yours went and what you did to prepare! 🙂
 
Hi All! Us locals are just hearing back about whether we got an interview or not. I've received one and I'm just wondering how all of yours went and what you did to prepare! 🙂

Hi congrats on the interview! I’m local (New Brunswick) and did the interview last year. For the personality test you can’t really prepare at all. That part kind of freaked me out going into it last time but it was very straight forward, it’s just looking to access your work and school strategies and how you handle different situations and get a better insight to your personality and preferences. As far as the interview goes, it depends who you get but usually it’s focus is around why you want to be a vet, tell them what you know about what being a vet means and they will ask you different questions about your experiences that you wrote on your application. For me, they only really asked about the vet experiences not the general animal ones (since time is limited). It’s really relaxed and more like a conversation that an interview. My 2 interviewers were super friendly and easy to talk to. Hope this helps !!
 
Hi! Congrats to all International applicants on the acceptance and to Canadian applicants on the interview invite! 🙂 Im from New Brunswick and I received an interview invite. It was my first time applying so I would love to get all the information I can get regarding the interview. Thanks in advance!!
 
Hi congrats on the interview! I’m local (New Brunswick) and did the interview last year. For the personality test you can’t really prepare at all. That part kind of freaked me out going into it last time but it was very straight forward, it’s just looking to access your work and school strategies and how you handle different situations and get a better insight to your personality and preferences. As far as the interview goes, it depends who you get but usually it’s focus is around why you want to be a vet, tell them what you know about what being a vet means and they will ask you different questions about your experiences that you wrote on your application. For me, they only really asked about the vet experiences not the general animal ones (since time is limited). It’s really relaxed and more like a conversation that an interview. My 2 interviewers were super friendly and easy to talk to. Hope this helps !!
This was really helpful thank you! Im wondering if the questions regarding your experience were specific? Or did you simple have to elaborate on your experience?
Thanks, Emma
 
This was really helpful thank you! Im wondering if the questions regarding your experience were specific? Or did you simple have to elaborate on your experience?
Thanks, Emma

They asked specific questions! It would depend what kind of experience you had like small animal vs large anima not in regards to like veterinary aspect of it but more so to do with my opinion of stuff related to the general different fields kind of thing but then a few other people who interview had totally different questions about their experiences than me so I think it really just depends who you get. It’s kinda hard to prepare for in that sense!
 
Top