Class rank/GPA in Lab Animal Residency

[Aronsky]

Hello everyone. I'm a first-year interested in laboratory animal medicine. My school has gone pass/fail, and therefore I will not have a class rank or GPA. How, if at all, will this impact residency prospects (for lab animal med, but also just in general)? Theoretically, we can request a "Dean's letter," which will have a GPA and class rank quintile that they track internally, if we need it for applications but in general we do not have that information. Does "N/A" hurt your application compared to someone with a (good) GPA and class rank?

Thanks!

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[PepeLeMew]

The feedback I received from programs is that overall rank order and GPA are being considered less and less in the overall scheme of the application. There are a handful of schools that now don't have GPA and rank order, and they are fantastic schools with strong track records through the Match.
For lab animal specifically, there is the added bonus the last few years there have been more program positions than applicants which means you are a hot commodity and the programs want you to be interested in joining them! One of the things that seems to matter more is if you were able to visit the program prior to applications either during a summer (ASLAP fellowship as an option), outside summer program, or clinical year externship.