Choosing which schools to apply to

[tiddlywinks]

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Hi everyone. I'm new here, but I've been reading the other threads and noticed a lot of thoughtful, helpful comments. I'm beginning to apply to schools, and have sort of decided on Penn, Cornell, Tufts, and UC Davis (a long shot). I wanted to ask, first, how many is a good number to apply to. I've heard everything from "not more than 3" to "as many as you can afford" (including 17).

Second, do you have any recommendations for other, 'similar' schools that I could consider? I'm into exotic/wildlife/zoo medicine, not so much into large animal. I'm trying to research schools, but apart from their individual websites, am not really sure what resources to use. I'd appreciate any insights 🙂

 

[tygris]

Hi everyone. I'm new here, but I've been reading the other threads and noticed a lot of thoughtful, helpful comments. I'm beginning to apply to schools, and have sort of decided on Penn, Cornell, Tufts, and UC Davis (a long shot). I wanted to ask, first, how many is a good number to apply to. I've heard everything from "not more than 3" to "as many as you can afford" (including 17).

Second, do you have any recommendations for other, 'similar' schools that I could consider? I'm into exotic/wildlife/zoo medicine, not so much into large animal. I'm trying to research schools, but apart from their individual websites, am not really sure what resources to use. I'd appreciate any insights 🙂

Well first of all, what do you mean by "similar" schools? Because if you're interested in exotic/wildlife/zoo, those may not necessarily be your top choices. If you mean high-ranking/prestigous - I strongly suggest you get thoughts like that out of your head right now 🙂 Many would argue that the "top" schools care minimally about students and most about research grants. And on that note, many tend to give preference to those with a strong research background. That is not to say that they are not amazing schools - obviously they are! But they may be different than what you are looking for. And keep in mind - rankings mean VERY little in the realm of vet school. Every vet school is the top school in its own way, and there are no such things as "safety" or "easy" schools.
It may be easier for us to suggest schools to you if you told us a bit more about yourself. 🙂
As far as the exotic/wildlife/zoo thing goes, I've been told by most zoo/wildlife vets I've worked with that the best plan is to get a solid background in small/large animal medicine and do residencies in exotic/wildlife/zoo afterwards. That's just one opinion on it though. Otherwise, Tufts is a great choice. From what I understand, Colorado has a strong exotics/wildlife program too. But any school you go to will give you a high quality education and if you kick ass in vet school you can work on doing the exotics/zoo/wildlife thing from there.
I assume given your interests you're interested in clinical medicine. Western might be an option for you as well.
As far as #'s of schools goes... well, I think there are many opinions out there and it's difficult to say. Many get in on 1-3 applications, others get in on ~10. I applied to 10 schools, received interview invites from 4 (declined 1 because of high airfare), waitlist rank #8 at one, and was admitted to 2. So the large number of apps didn't seem to hinder me. Of course, I didn't get an invite from Cornell or Penn so I can't say whether or not my high number of apps had an effect on them.
Hope that helps!

 

[ReinaDeLuz]

Hi everyone. I'm new here, but I've been reading the other threads and noticed a lot of thoughtful, helpful comments. I'm beginning to apply to schools, and have sort of decided on Penn, Cornell, Tufts, and UC Davis (a long shot). I wanted to ask, first, how many is a good number to apply to. I've heard everything from "not more than 3" to "as many as you can afford" (including 17).

Second, do you have any recommendations for other, 'similar' schools that I could consider? I'm into exotic/wildlife/zoo medicine, not so much into large animal. I'm trying to research schools, but apart from their individual websites, am not really sure what resources to use. I'd appreciate any insights 🙂

What state are you a resident of? It's always good to start there, the schools you've picked so far are pretty tough to get into! ^_^

As to how many, I have heard it said that if you apply to too many you look "desperate" and if you apply to too few you look like you don't care. I think this is hogwash, and you should apply to all the schools that actually interest you! I happened to apply to nine schools, got into three and am waiting on the alternate list at my state school (UF). Ive known of people who have applied to 15 schools, gotten 15 interviews and like 11 acceptances...so it is doable, but you have to keep in mind that the more schools you apply to, the more secondaries there are, and at times it can seem like you're juggling a lot of different balls! Especially if you are taking courses while you're applying. Good luck! Don't worry too much about it, just check out the schools websites (http://www.aavmc.org/students_admissions/vet_schools.htm is a good place to start) and have fun and relax! (haha as if thats possible ;-))

 

[StealthDog]

I made the gamble of only applying to two schools, got waitlisted at both, and withdrew my waitlist offer from one. So, now all hopes are on one school- my state school- and it is a little stressful. If it works out, great. If not, I might be kicking myself for applying to so few. However, staying near home is really important for me, so that limits my options.

As for exotics programs, I've heard Tufts and Kansas are the best, but Minnesota has the Raptor Center, Wildlife Rehab Center, and two nearby zoos.

Good luck!

 

[Quaggi]

I would definitely recommend applying to more than just those schools, they are all pretty tough to get into, and no matter how good/qualified you feel you are, it really doesnt mean you will get in. what state are you from? if you are from a state without a vet school, don't be afraid to apply to lots of places, i applied to 12 and everywhere that I interviewed completely understood why I had to apply to so many, I don't think it affected my acceptances anywhere. As far as exotics, tufts is probably the best, but there are lots of other schools with great exotics programs, like UF and TN. Just be careful at interviews w/ the whole exotics thing, if you're seriously into it then its fine but there are sooo many people who want to do exotics and not enough who want to do large animal, so if they have to pick between someone exactly like you who likes large animal, or you who doesnt, they are more likely to take the other person (ESPECIALLY at cornell, at least this year, and it was heavily stressed in my kansas interview as well)

good luck with applications, if you have any questions about specific schools etc this is a great place to ask

Bari

 

[birdvet2006]

As for exotics programs, I've heard Tufts and Kansas are the best, but Minnesota has the Raptor Center, Wildlife Rehab Center, and two nearby zoos.

Good luck!

First, I think a really important point is that whatever discipline you're interested in currently - it doesn't matter what vet school you go to! Wherever you get in - go! If you're truly interested in pursuing board certification (and many decide that they are not), you will do things on your own time - away from vet school, that will help you progress in that area. For example, I feel like I am making a good start on a potential career in avian medicine. I feel I know enough and have experienced, read or seen enough to safely see and treat a bird, unlike many who will be graduating alongside me. I have gone to avian conferences, have been a member in the AAV etc. I have done the networking required to potentially help me get my foot in the door at places (and more importantly, to offer some sort of support network in case I am stumped on a case!), and I feel good about it - even though avian medicine is like 1% or less of our curriculum here. 🙂

For exotics, first decide whether you want to focus on zoo & wildlife or on companion exotic pets. I think a lot of people aren't sure where their interest lies within the "exotics" category. Schools with strengths in various areas, clinically at least, usually offer residencies (since they have the board certified specialists required to train residents with).

Avian residencies: Penn, LSU (ECAMS residency at least), UC Davis, possibly North Carolina, Tennessee, (and the non-schools: Angell AMC and AMC NY), and at times maybe Texas. Things are changing in this area constantly, but it's a good thing to check on. ABVP, unfortunately, made a change to their website some time ago and now does not list the qualified residency programmes. 🙁

ACZM residencies: http://www.aczm.org/aczm_training programs.html
-- Cornell, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Ontario Veterinary College, UC Davis, Florida, Montreal, Tennessee, and Wisconsin...and many zoos/similar.

 

[tiddlywinks]

Thanks for all your comments. In response to some of the questions: I am a PA resident. I definitely did not mean that I'm only looking for high-ranking schools - if anything, I realize that my choices are some of the harder ones to get into, which is why I'm looking for several others (that are perhaps more likely to accept me - I know there's no such thing as a safety school). The number of schools I apply to is also restricted by my budget - I don't think I'll do more than 6 or 7.
I'm also considering Illinois-Urbana, Minnesota, Tennessee, Wash State and Wisconsin.
Basically, I will be more than happy to go to any school that takes me. I'm just hoping that that school has strong programs in my area of interest.

ETA: I have great grades/GRE score, but not so much vet experience (300 hours in a small animal practice); ~500 at a wildlife center, and currently interning at a zoo; but the latter two are more animal experience. Anyone in the same situation know of schools that place much more emphasis on the academic criteria?

 

[chris03333]

Thanks for all your comments. In response to some of the questions: I am a PA resident. I definitely did not mean that I'm only looking for high-ranking schools - if anything, I realize that my choices are some of the harder ones to get into, which is why I'm looking for several others (that are perhaps more likely to accept me - I know there's no such thing as a safety school). The number of schools I apply to is also restricted by my budget - I don't think I'll do more than 6 or 7.
I'm also considering Illinois-Urbana, Minnesota, Tennessee, Wash State and Wisconsin.
Basically, I will be more than happy to go to any school that takes me. I'm just hoping that that school has strong programs in my area of interest.

ETA: I have great grades/GRE score, but not so much vet experience (300 hours in a small animal practice); ~500 at a wildlife center, and currently interning at a zoo; but the latter two are more animal experience. Anyone in the same situation know of schools that place much more emphasis on the academic criteria?

Okay if you are a PA resident I would STRONGLY recomend you NOT apply to UC Davis or Washington State as they both rarely take out of state applicants (like 2 at most per class.) You should consider Kansas state which takes lotf of out of state and has a strong exotics program. I would also recommend applying to Michigan and/or Western which take many out of staters (My school, Western does not have a "state residency")

 

[wishes]

I am a PA resident. I definitely did not mean that I'm only looking for high-ranking schools - if anything, I realize that my choices are some of the harder ones to get into, which is why I'm looking for several others (that are perhaps more likely to accept me - I know there's no such thing as a safety school). The number of schools I apply to is also restricted by my budget - I don't think I'll do more than 6 or 7.
I'm also considering Illinois-Urbana, Minnesota, Tennessee, Wash State and Wisconsin.
Basically, I will be more than happy to go to any school that takes me. I'm just hoping that that school has strong programs in my area of interest.

As to how many, I have heard it said that if you apply to too many you look "desperate" and if you apply to too few you look like you don't care. I think this is hogwash, and you should apply to all the schools that actually interest you!

I do not have a state school so I took a good look at what schools accept large proportions of non-residents and started from there. I completely agree with ReinaDeLuz that you should apply to all the schools that interest you and not worry at all about looking desperate. I applied to 15 schools, was accepted at 9 of them, and was seated high on the alternate lists of two other schools. For the most part, there was really no rhyme or reason to what schools accepted me and what schools didn't, but I was accepted at Cornell, Tufts, and U. Penn so I do not think applying to a large number of schools made me seem "desperate." On the other hand, I am in a little bit of a unique position having no state school, so I do not know if this made a difference or not.
As you mentioned you were interested, I would really recommend applying to University of Minnesota. They accept a lot of non-residents, and I their program is fantastic- I loved it there! If you are interested in exotics, you should also consider North Carolina. I have heard that they have a good exotics program, and they do take a fair number of non-resident students.

Okay if you are a PA resident I would STRONGLY recomend you NOT apply to UC Davis or Washington State as they both rarely take out of state applicants (like 2 at most per class.)

This is very true regarding UC Davis. In the most recent statistics I have seen, UC Davis only look one student that was not a California resident. This is not, however, true regarding Washington State. I was accepted there this year as a non-resident/non-contract student. Non-resident/non-contract students typically make up about 10% of the entering class (between 10-12 students), which is not terribly lower than many other schools.

 

[chris03333]

This is very true regarding UC Davis. In the most recent statistics I have seen, UC Davis only look one student that was not a California resident. This is not, however, true regarding Washington State. I was accepted there this year as a non-resident/non-contract student. Non-resident/non-contract students typically make up about 10% of the entering class (between 10-12 students), which is not terribly lower than many other schools.

Guess I am getting out of date on this since Oregon students no longer go to Washington. When I was an applicant the class size for Washington was smaller than 50 and they took WICHE applicants for the few spots left after the state applicants. Guess they have upped the size of the class and were able to include more OOS applicants.

 

[wishes]

Guess I am getting out of date on this since Oregon students no longer go to Washington. When I was an applicant the class size for Washington was smaller than 50 and they took WICHE applicants for the few spots left after the state applicants. Guess they have upped the size of the class and were able to include more OOS applicants.

Good point- it may well be only recently that Washington has started to take more out of state people. I didn't even consider how the dynamics of Oregon now having their own four year program would affect the incoming class at WSU.