Credit hours in vet school

[zuneski]

Hi,
I was just wondering about the required credit hours per semester in vet school. I know that most (if not all) vet students take 25-30 credit hours per semester...that sounds insane (given the difficulty of the courses)! Is it possible to choose to take less credit hours per semester and maybe graduate in 5 years, rather than 4? I'm worried about not getting as much out of each class because I'll be so rushed and so stressed.

This semester I'm taking 17 credit hours - all upper division credit, and I can't imagine taking like 10 more credit hours with classes that are probably 4x as hard...is it as overwhelming as I think it is?

Thanks!

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[twelvetigers]

The hours can fluctuate from semester to semester, and you have a little control over your hours because of electives, but... not that much. If you're in a four year program, you do it in four years. The tuition for that extra year probably would not be worth it anyway.

 

[david594]

Is it possible to choose to take less credit hours per semester and maybe graduate in 5 years, rather than 4?

Nope. They are lockstep programs.

 

[sumstorm]

The only exceptions I have seen are medical cases (and some pregnancies) where things need to be split. Like we have policies about form. exposure in anatomy lab for pregnant/breastfeeding individuals. So, if someone is pregnant/breastfeeding first year, they can elect to take all the other courses, but not the anatomy class or animal production course (LA skills.)

 

[zuneski]

Nope. They are lockstep programs.

:/ I was kinda afraid that that was the answer (although I already anticipated it). I guess I'll have to find some way to deal with the rigorous schedule like everyone else!

 

[karmapple]

I can't imagine taking like 10 more credit hours with classes that are probably 4x as hard

I think you are freaking yourself out here. I wouldn't say that vet school classes are 4x as hard as my upper level undergrad classes. In fact, I can think of some of my undergrad classes that went into much more detail, or that required me to draw extensive diagrams and write essays on the tests as opposed to the multiple choice format we have here (most of the time). It is really more the amount of information in vet school that is overwhelming, not necessarily the difficulty.

I'm worried about not getting as much out of each class because I'll be so rushed and so stressed.

Yeah, when you figure out a solution to that one, let me know.

 

[sumstorm]

Not getting as much out of a class as desired is a common complaint here. The concepts aren't hard (so far) but it is the constant volume of information with little let up. However, the majority of our exams are written or practials, no multiple choice. Just remember that your GPA goal can probably relax a bit.

 

[Jochebed]

I know that most (if not all) vet students take 25-30 credit hours per semester.

I have never taken that many credits in a semester. I don't know that any of my classmates have either. I think my highest was 22. I'm taking 14 I think this semester. Most semesters only have 1-2 four credit classes, a couple 3, a couple 2 and several 1 (electives usually, some P/F). For me, it's not the credit load, it's the shear number of courses to keep track of. But if you frontload (lots of classes 1st and 2nd year) 3rd can be quite nice. I'm only taking like 14 credits, with NO 4 credit classes, 1 three credit class, several 2's and 1's. It's NICE. Oh yea and no labs. VERY NICE.

Is it possible to choose to take less credit hours per semester and maybe graduate in 5 years, rather than 4?

No.

I'm worried about not getting as much out of each class because I'll be so rushed and so stressed.

Vet school is bulemic learning. You binge and purge. That's just the way it is. There's very little you can do about that. BUT, there's more information that sticks than you think and a lot of it repeats. Take my Hemolymphatics class right now. We're learning about large animal anemias. So we're covering a lot of clinical pathology information, parasitology, medicine, etc. Trust me, it comes back. And if it doesn't, you have your notes, texts, friends, etc.

is it as overwhelming as I think it is?

Sometimes, it is exactly that overwhelming. But it's the nature of the beast. You'll find ways to adapt.

Think of it this way - once someone gets into vet school, they almost certainly will graduate. The overall attrition rate (fail and don't come back) is very low. For my class, we have lost none of the original accepted 2011ers permanently. 5 members are in the 2012 class, but they are still there. Of the 3 students that we picked up from the 2010 class, though, only 1 is still with us. Out of a starting 90 that's not so bad.

Sumstorm is right though - part of the survival technique is a relaxed view of your grades (that is unless you would consider an internship...which has it's own problems beyond grades, primarily of financially shooting yourself in the foot for several more years). I came in a mostly A student, magna cum laude bio major. I have gotten MANY B's now (*gasp*) and even (*double-gasp*) several C's!!!! The horror! I've gotten solid D's on 2 major exams in the past. I'm even in the BOTTOM half of my class! Do I like that? Nope...but eh, move on, next class, next exam, just get through it. Fourth year's comin' round the bend and that will be SO much better.

 

[fetch]

25-30 credits a semester? Yikes. That would be 200-240 credit hours total. I don't know what they have you crazy kids doing but my four years back in the dim dark days of the aught decade went:

Year 1: 16 hours, 17 hours
Year 2: 20 hours, 20 hours
Year 3: 18 hours, 23 hours
Year 4: 24 hours, 20 hours

158 hours earned, 123 hours attempted (damn sat/unsat classes...)

 

[KittyRex]

Hate to say it because I don't want to scare you but at Davis, I took 24 units in the fall and I'm currently enrolled in 20 . I won't lie, it was definitely an adjustment and occasionally can be a bit overwhelming (we pretty much rarely have weeks where we don't have at least 1 exam), but I agree with previous posters that the issue isn't that the material is more difficult than undergrad, there's just so much more of it and there's also tons of amazing extracurricular activities so it's really tempting to put too much on your plate. However, it's all absolutely doable with some good time-management skills (Hahah... the thing I struggle with the most). If you can manage taking 17 units of upper division classes in undergrad and do well, then chances are you can absolutely manage a vet school course load.
and speaking of time management... I should really be studying cardio right now

 

[turnandburn]

I have 28 this semester

 

[sofficat]

In vet school I've always had somewhere between 19 and 24 hours each semester. And this is also including the classes that are only 1 or 2 credit hours even though there are HOURS of lab time (surgery!) but "if we didn't make it only 2 hours tuition would be even higher" (not to mention then I'd have, like, 27 hours in one semester)
For me it was actually kind of nice because I was used to undergrad where I would go to school from 8-11 am, then work from 12-6pm, then school from 7-9pm... or other days work from 8-4, school (lab) from 5-9pm... so my first week of vet school I got home at 5 and was like "oh my gosh- I don't have to go to work. I have all evening to study!" It's still nice because sometimes we get out at 3pm and I can nap and clean and still have study time.
This semester we only have 15 hours, but we also only have 6 weeks of classes (then clinics start!)
I think volume of material (not the difficulty level) is the hardest. It is also hard to keep up with 7 or 8 classes too... not to mention that some classes have up to 16 professors as well!

 

[sumstorm]

We have 19 credit hours required regular courses, 2 credit hour required selectives (after finals), and I have 3 credit hour electives (I could add another 2 to that if I wanted.) So 21 required, 24 total.

However, I am not binge and purging data. We build and build and build on a lot of this stuff,so purging just wouldn't be wise for me.

One thing: I had one C this semester, in a 4 credit hour course. I am ranked in the lowest third of my class because of that. So some variations exist in ranking and how good you have to be to be ranked high or have high GPAs. I won't do an internship, but I may do a residency. I am counting on my connections in vet med to enable that, with an upward trend in grades (first semester was really hard for me adjusting from work to academia.)

We also have courses that require far more time, on a schedule (ie can't skip, not optional) than the credit hours dictate. IE one course that is a generally of 6 class hours a week = 1/2 credit hour. Obnoxious.

 

[THEOSU2012]

Hey There,

Here at OSU, I just checked that I have 25 hours this quarter. Which isn't really that bad, we've had more. But we have to have 27 elective hours completed before we enter clinics as well!

With OSU, our credit hours are a little different because we are on quarters, so just a disclaimer.

 

[zuneski]

Well, it’s nice to know that many of you aren’t taking that many credit hours per semester. I’m also glad that most of you are saying that it’s more the amount of work, rather than the difficulty. That makes me feel better…I think . I gotta admit that thinking about getting a final grade of a B (or C!) in a class is a little scary to me…which is pretty lame. I’m really academically competitive so yeah I’ll have to relax with that.
Thanks for all of your tips/comments!

 

[CBRGrl]

Here the hours work out to be about 21 per semester + electives if you so choose (for the first year). I think its important to realize, tho, that the professors really do want everyone to succeed in their classes and are not blind to the amount of material and pressure their students are under. Not all of the classes you take each semester will be drop down fall out hardcore. For example, this year there has certainly been a fair share of hard classes but there are easy ones mixed in as well...radiology, nutrition, professional writing....

I would say here the school is NOT flexible about what classes you can/can't take. Everyone is in all the same classes (unless you decide to pick up an elective) every day for the first two and a half years...then we track either large, small, or general. (I shutter to think of taking 5 years to get the degree, just too much money and time!)

Bottom line? Don't worry about the classes yet. Vet school is nothing like undergraduate and it's hard to think about in terms of "sheesh, 10 more hours than Im currently taking"...because it's a different kind of work. No busy work (at least not so far), no learning for the sake of learning. You will be immersed in clinically relevant systems and classes that are designed to teach you how to practice medicine and be a good veterinarian. Even though it's a lot of work, more than what I faced in my undergraduate or graduate degree, it's a different kind of work because it's all relevant to my interests and goals...and in a lot of ways that makes going to school and class easier.

Just my 2c