Factors when picking a school

Veterinary Science Graduate Programs from U. of I.
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whyrightmeow

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So I am in my first year and there are a few things I wish I would have considered before I made my final decision. These are only my opinion, and I won't be offended if yours varies. I am only posting this because I wish I would have read something like it before I made my decision.

I am at The Ohio State University right now as an out of state student.

Positives:
Can apply for resident tuition next year
Great school, nice facilities
Curriculum includes Professional development - basically a 1 credit course on a variety of topics including stress, time managment, finances, etc
Parking is right outside the building
Parking pass is a hang tag, so carpoolers can share 1 tag between several cars
24 hr access to building
Nice recreational facility/wall climbing
Social worker available 24/7 (for when you finally have that meltdown)

Negatives:
Quarter system (not semesters) - this complicates everything. Plus you don't finish until June.
Can only leave for 3 weeks over the summer - so any externship must be in-state unless it is HIGHLY unusual.
Lockers are tiny; a normal bookbag will not fit into them. It is also very crowded when everyone is trying to get to their locker at the same time. (seems minor, I know, but its the little stresses that are the worst)

Things I wish I would have asked:
Is anatomy lab structured, or do you just get a dog and a book? (Our canine anatomy lab is, in my opinion, poorly structured)
Are tests returned to students, or is it against honor code to write down questions from the test? (At OSU vet school no tests are returned, EVER. This bothers me after every test, since I like to know what I got wrong and what the correct answer was - this may have been a deal-breaker for me)
How much (live) animal interaction is there for first year students?
Do you buy class notes or are they posted online so notes can be taken directly on a laptop? (I was amazed at needing to buy 80% of my notes, when I came from an undergrad school that I never once bought a course pack for)
Is the schedule set, or does it change from day to day? (Our schedule has a main theme, but basically changes a little each day)
 
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I think you may face some stigma. And I (personally) would be worried with the COE coming up for renewal (and the drama surrounding that process) that the schools may not get accredited as planned.

That being said, it is only February, and you have until April 15 to decide for sure.
 
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haley120892 said:
Thanks so much for your input! I am definitely going to hold onto my wait list spots, but I do not want to lose my place by not paying the deposit and sadly it is overly expensive ($1250). I have talked to a few students and all of them speak very highly of the both the school and their experiences, which sadly is making my decision harder! (I almost wish someone would give some honest negative feedback about the school lol!) I attended a smaller undergraduate school that recently had issues with one of the program in general. Long story short they were put under probation and it is still under some stress. This program has been around for a long time, which just goes to show that even the oldest programs can have issues and it makes me wonder if I am just being neurotic!
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There was a thread on LMU when the vet school was first opening...here
Keep in mind those opinions are based on conjecture more than anything, since last year's class was the first. Really I don't think you're going to get a good picture of what an education there is like until their first class graduates. Personally I would hold out as long as possible (you do have until April 15th) and see if you get off of either waitlist. But ultimately it is your decision.
 
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WildZoo said:
There was a thread on LMU when the vet school was first opening...here
Keep in mind those opinions are based on conjecture more than anything, since last year's class was the first. Really I don't think you're going to get a good picture of what an education there is like until their first class graduates. Personally I would hold out as long as possible (you do have until April 15th) and see if you get off of either waitlist. But ultimately it is your decision.
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Thanks I am planning on doing just that! I am wondering though how many people hear before the April deadline, I get the impression that it is extremely rare am I wrong there?
 
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haley120892 said:
Thanks I am planning on doing just that! I am wondering though how many people hear before the April deadline, I get the impression that it is extremely rare am I wrong there?
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It depends on the school. Some wait until the deadline to pull anyone off the waitlist, some will notify as people turn down their spots. Of course a good chunk of people don't actually decide until April, so that is another reason why the waitlists tend to move more then.
 
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I agree with others about attending a new school. Yes, I applied to Midwestern, and I do think they have a good program, and if they had been my only acceptance, I would have gone. That said new schools come with a pretty high price tag (I'm not sure what the tuition for LMU is, but MWU is really high), and while both schools will likely become accredited, what if they don't? Also, I understand the deposit is high, but what is the tuition difference between LMU and the wait listed schools? It may be worth it to lose the deposit money for less debt over 4 years. I wouldn't turn down the LMU acceptance, but if you get into one of the wait listed schools, I'd probably jump on it if I were you.
 
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Jilary said:
I agree with others about attending a new school. Yes, I applied to Midwestern, and I do think they have a good program, and if they had been my only acceptance, I would have gone. That said new schools come with a pretty high price tag (I'm not sure what the tuition for LMU is, but MWU is really high), and while both schools will likely become accredited, what if they don't? Also, I understand the deposit is high, but what is the tuition difference between LMU and the wait listed schools? It may be worth it to lose the deposit money for less debt over 4 years. I wouldn't turn down the LMU acceptance, but if you get into one of the wait listed schools, I'd probably jump on it if I were you.
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That is exactly what all of my teachers said lol. I just know my parents will completely disagree with me if I jump ship after paying such a high fee, but I think if I express that it is where I would rather be I could win the argument...I really need to just win the lottery tonight and poof problem solved! Ultimately if nothing comes of the waitlist situations, I will probably attend LMU just because I did like it and I have no desire to apply again.
 
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haley120892 said:
Thanks I am planning on doing just that! I am wondering though how many people hear before the April deadline, I get the impression that it is extremely rare am I wrong there?
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Thought so too. I am in the same thought process right now. I got waitlisted at Illinois and Minnesota, and got accepted at Midwestern. I really liked Midwestern, but I am worried about the stigma surrounding new schools. To my knowledge Minnesota doesn't let people know until April 25th and I'm kinda hopeless regarding Illinois. That being said, I'll wait until beginning of April but then pay the deposit. I don't want to turn down an acceptance just because it's a new school. We might have a couple of extra hoops to jump through when getting our first job, but not getting a DVM at all is too much of a risk that I'm not willing to take. That, and I liked the school and the area.
 
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haley120892 said:
That is exactly what all of my teachers said lol. I just know my parents will completely disagree with me if I jump ship after paying such a high fee, but I think if I express that it is where I would rather be I could win the argument...I really need to just win the lottery tonight and poof problem solved! Ultimately if nothing comes of the waitlist situations, I will probably attend LMU just because I did like it and I have no desire to apply again.
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catnips said:
Thought so too. I am in the same thought process right now. I got waitlisted at Illinois and Minnesota, and got accepted at Midwestern. I really liked Midwestern, but I am worried about the stigma surrounding new schools. To my knowledge Minnesota doesn't let people know until April 25th and I'm kinda hopeless regarding Illinois. That being said, I'll wait until beginning of April but then pay the deposit. I don't want to turn down an acceptance just because it's a new school. We might have a couple of extra hoops to jump through when getting our first job, but not getting a DVM at all is too much of a risk that I'm not willing to take. That, and I liked the school and the area.
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I definitely agree about holding on to your waitlists and seeing what happens. I really wish I could give my UMN and Illinois seats to you! Since I can't, good luck to both of you! I hope you hear something before April 15th! :luck:
 
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MustangJumperPony said:
I definitely agree about holding on to your waitlists and seeing what happens. I really wish I could give my UMN and Illinois seats to you! Since I can't, good luck to both of you! I hope you hear something before April 15th! :luck:
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Thank you! :xf:🙂 I am holding onto those waitlists for dear life - I loved UMN!
 
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WesternU first year input:

Pros:
  • PBL: I love getting involved in the cases. I personally feel that I retain more information this way and am way more motivated to study. Since starting PBL studying is never a chore. I almost never experienced this in undergrad where I had the traditional style of learning. I really like how the clinics are also integrated to supplement the PBL case at the time. If we have an optho case that week we are likely to have a clinic learning how to do eye exams. All our other additional information that week (histology, lecture, molecular and cellular biology class and anatomy obviously) will be focused on that subject so the book learning sticks and is actually interesting.
  • Hands on experience: lots of it, both in clinics and in outside clubs. As @rwwilliams mentioned first years have the opportunity to go to S&N clinic if they want. There is always something going on every week.
  • Professors: they are very supportive, available and helpful.
  • Small class size
  • Location: pro and con. You are close to Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego and the mountains. Vegas if you really need to get out.

Cons:
  • PBL: also a con. Finding things for yourself can be chore. Sometimes I want to be spoon fed information. Sometimes it can be frustrating because you're not sure if you're studying relevant information that you will need for the exams. When we do get lectures I appreciate them.
  • Pomona: its not the prettiest place to go to school. I am nearby (10 mins) in Montclair which I like. I know other students are in Claremont, Chino or Rancho so there are places to reside that are perfectly fine but Pomona itself is not in the greatest location. We have security on campus all the time so its not so much an issue of safety but if I had a choice I would would put Western somewhere nicer and it would pretty much be perfect.
  • IPE: this is an inter professional class that the whole school goes to to. I wish we didn't have to meet as often or at all. I understand the importance of communication between professions but the way that the cases are designed do not properly include veterinarians. When I go I feel like it wastes my time, its more of an annoyance than anything.
 
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I wondered if anyone could give their input on Kansas State? I think my decision is coming down to K-state vs. Tufts, and I liked schools a lot, which is making this so hard!
 
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I'm personally interested in hearing more about Wisconsin and Illinois. My heart is set for Wisconsin, but I'm a little concerned about the proposed tuition hike, as Illinois would be $30k cheaper for me in the long run (which, in the grand scheme of massive debt, may be negligible but right now seems worthy of consideration). I'm interested in small animal and/or equine medicine, and a very well-liked equine vet I shadowed told me that UIUC really isn't great for their equine cases. I've heard the same from the owner of the horse rescue I volunteer for, but these are opinions of just two individuals, so I'd like to hear from UIUC students about the equine caseload as well.

Please and thank you! 🙂
 
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GrizzlyMaya3 said:
I'm personally interested in hearing more about Wisconsin and Illinois. My heart is set for Wisconsin, but I'm a little concerned about the proposed tuition hike, as Illinois would be $30k cheaper for me in the long run (which, in the grand scheme of massive debt, may be negligible but right now seems worthy of consideration). I'm interested in small animal and/or equine medicine, and a very well-liked equine vet I shadowed told me that UIUC really isn't great for their equine cases. I've heard the same from the owner of the horse rescue I volunteer for, but these are opinions of just two individuals, so I'd like to hear from UIUC students about the equine caseload as well.

Please and thank you! 🙂
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You can always do rotations/externships at schools with great equine programs.
 
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GrizzlyMaya3 said:
I'm personally interested in hearing more about Wisconsin and Illinois. My heart is set for Wisconsin, but I'm a little concerned about the proposed tuition hike, as Illinois would be $30k cheaper for me in the long run (which, in the grand scheme of massive debt, may be negligible but right now seems worthy of consideration). I'm interested in small animal and/or equine medicine, and a very well-liked equine vet I shadowed told me that UIUC really isn't great for their equine cases. I've heard the same from the owner of the horse rescue I volunteer for, but these are opinions of just two individuals, so I'd like to hear from UIUC students about the equine caseload as well.

Please and thank you! 🙂
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$30k is not negligible. If you paid it over 10 years and the interest was 6.8%, the interest would exceed $10k. Accepting an extra $40k of debt because "you already have a lot so what's a little bit more" is not a good idea.

I can't speak of UIUC's equine caseload, but I doubt it's so poor that it would hinder your education.
 
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haley120892 said:
So I guess I am curious to hear more updated opinions on LMU and how graduating from the school will impact job opportunities and what not! Any opinions would be great!
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The biggest turn off about LMU for me is what I've heard about their clinicals... keeping in mind this is just what I've heard. A good portion of the final two years depends on getting experience in clinics in the surrounding area, which may work fine for other schools with a decent number of nearby busy clinics to send students (I've been told that this is similar to how Western runs things). However, Harrogate doesn't seem large or wealthy enough to really support a system like that such that students can still expect to get a good bang for their buck in experience. That's the biggest reason I decided to decline my interview there, even though I don't live that far away and the tour is reportedly very nice. (I've also heard some rather unsettling rumors about why a new vet school was established so close to an existing one in such an underpopulated area... but I don't suggest basing any decision like this on rumors, especially when they come from UTK alums.)

Take this for what you will, but all of this came from a member of one of the AVMA accreditation teams (an Auburn alum, mind you). He did at least tell me that it's still worth going to in the absence of an acceptance from any other vet school, so if it's your only choice (or you just really loved the place) don't feel bad about attending. As for whether it will impact future job opportunities, in some cases, yes it will. Some of the older vets out there don't think highly of the newer schools until they've met or heard of enough competent grads. Other vets, though, will give you the same fair shake they give to anybody. Hard to guess which of those camps your dream job will end up falling into, but getting into no school will certainly not help you find out.
 
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geldedgoat said:
The biggest turn off about LMU for me is what I've heard about their clinicals... keeping in mind this is just what I've heard. A good portion of the final two years depends on getting experience in clinics in the surrounding area, which may work fine for other schools with a decent number of nearby busy clinics to send students (I've been told that this is similar to how Western runs things). However, Harrogate doesn't seem large or wealthy enough to really support a system like that such that students can still expect to get a good bang for their buck in experience. That's the biggest reason I decided to decline my interview there, even though I don't live that far away and the tour is reportedly very nice. (I've also heard some rather unsettling rumors about why a new vet school was established so close to an existing one in such an underpopulated area... but I don't suggest basing any decision like this on rumors, especially when they come from UTK alums.)

Take this for what you will, but all of this came from a member of one of the AVMA accreditation teams (an Auburn alum, mind you). He did at least tell me that it's still worth going to in the absence of an acceptance from any other vet school, so if it's your only choice (or you just really loved the place) don't feel bad about attending. As for whether it will impact future job opportunities, in some cases, yes it will. Some of the older vets out there don't think highly of the newer schools until they've met or heard of enough competent grads. Other vets, though, will give you the same fair shake they give to anybody. Hard to guess which of those camps your dream job will end up falling into, but getting into no school will certainly not help you find out.
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That's my thought this school is better than nothing. Applying another cycle really isn't an option for me, I just don't have the money to spend on applications and interview trips. I really did like the school it was beautiful. Clinics to me were explained rather fast and honestly I was more concerned about interviewing than anything else, but what I understood is alot of the places they have working with them are spread out in different locations. A lot being in Kentucky and some being a bit further away, so it almost seems like you will be going out elsewhere to do the clincs, similar to med students going out and doing rotations at hospitals not necessarily by their school. like I said though this was presented while I was a little distracted so it could be a misinterpretation of it.

I recognize that some employers will also frown upon the initial graduates, but in the long run I do not aspire to be a world renowned veterinarian whose success is reinforced by where they attended school. As many people have recently told me, people don't take their animals to a vet and care where they got their degree. They truly just care that they have the license and degree of a veterinarian.
 
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wolfpackprevet said:
Alright, here we go. We have an amazing class and an awesome faculty in my experience so my cons list will be short. Here's my background so you can put my run down into perspective. I'm an equine/mixed large focus first year student who grew up in the area and went to NCSU for undergrad.
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Thanks so much!! It sounds like the perfect place for me!! I'm interested in small animal, but it sounds amazing. Besides tuition, another main factor for me is getting hands on experience. In my state, Penn doesn't do hands on till later in the program, I believe. This is great. Thanks!
 
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catnips said:
Thought so too. I am in the same thought process right now. I got waitlisted at Illinois and Minnesota, and got accepted at Midwestern. I really liked Midwestern, but I am worried about the stigma surrounding new schools. To my knowledge Minnesota doesn't let people know until April 25th and I'm kinda hopeless regarding Illinois. That being said, I'll wait until beginning of April but then pay the deposit. I don't want to turn down an acceptance just because it's a new school. We might have a couple of extra hoops to jump through when getting our first job, but not getting a DVM at all is too much of a risk that I'm not willing to take. That, and I liked the school and the area.
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I am from AZ and was back at home over winter break. Having worked as a vet tech for a long time, I have quite a few friends in the area that are vets. I was hanging out with some of them and all of them have had positive things to say about MWU. So, for being a new program, it seems to at least be making a decent impression on the vets in the surrounding area. Having said that, it is still expensive. And if you happen to get off the waitilist, I would probably pick an already established program, simply because you don't know how vets in say Maine, Wisconsin, Florida, etc are going to feel about the school. So just because local vets can see the program and the few I have talked to have positive things to say, doesn't meant that all will.
 
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DVMDream said:
I am from AZ and was back at home over winter break. Having worked as a vet tech for a long time, I have quite a few friends in the area that are vets. I was hanging out with some of them and all of them have had positive things to say about MWU. So, for being a new program, it seems to at least be making a decent impression on the vets in the surrounding area. Having said that, it is still expensive. And if you happen to get off the waitilist, I would probably pick an already established program, simply because you don't know how vets in say Maine, Wisconsin, Florida, etc are going to feel about the school. So just because local vets can see the program and the few I have talked to have positive things to say, doesn't meant that all will.
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Definitely, if I get called off the waitlist at an established school, I'll go there. Although I had to decline to interview at couple of established schools because of location. Husband (and kinda me too) didn't want to live in a small Southern town if I had any other options (even if that option is MWU- it would've been too much of a difficulty to adapt to that culture for us and he would've had nothing to do). But the schools I am waitlisted at are great in every way.

At this point they are all OOS, so I will be in debt my whole life no matter which one I go. 🙁 It's distressing, but I don't want to risk applying again because my grades are below average. So I am very glad to hear the local vets had good things to say about MWU. 🙂 It makes me feel way better about attending MWU. The hospital and the school really did seem great, I'm glad they are keeping it up. I felt pretty bad about getting waitlisted but I guess if I don't get called off, it's not a death sentence.
 
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DVMDream said:
I am from AZ and was back at home over winter break. Having worked as a vet tech for a long time, I have quite a few friends in the area that are vets. I was hanging out with some of them and all of them have had positive things to say about MWU. So, for being a new program, it seems to at least be making a decent impression on the vets in the surrounding area. Having said that, it is still expensive. And if you happen to get off the waitilist, I would probably pick an already established program, simply because you don't know how vets in say Maine, Wisconsin, Florida, etc are going to feel about the school. So just because local vets can see the program and the few I have talked to have positive things to say, doesn't meant that all will.
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but honestly, for the most part where you go doesn't matter. Hiring is not based much on your "education".
People were all up in arms when Western showed in L.A., and now people are fine with it.

I was talking to the head of a very large vet hospital group in the Jersey area and he said he assumes anyone coming out of school knows the basics, all he really cares about is how they will fit in with other people in his hospitals.

The money issue is completely different story of course.
 
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StartingoverVet said:
but honestly, for the most part where you go doesn't matter. Hiring is not based much on your "education".
People were all up in arms when Western showed in L.A., and now people are fine with it.

I was talking to the head of a very large vet hospital group in the Jersey area and he said he assumes anyone coming out of school knows the basics, all he really cares about is how they will fit in with other people in his hospitals.

The money issue is completely different story of course.
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I really hope that'll be the case. I mean it might not be everywhere, but it's nice to hear there are some vets that could care less about where you graduated.

Yeah, the money issue. I'm screwed on that part. :bang: I'm constantly going between episodes of "yaaay I'm gonna be a vet" and "Nooo I'm gonna be in debt forever".
 
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DVMDream said:
Calm, pregnant teen, calm... it will be ok. Don't let those pregnancy hormones get to you... 😛
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I don't know what happened, everything went red and when my vision cleared my hand hurt and there was a hole in my wall
 
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StartingoverVet said:
old man is getting confused. :wideyed:
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images
 
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StartingoverVet said:
justifiable arson? is there such a thing? good luck with that.
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I had a dream a few nights ago about a spider...

For some reason there was this giant sink right next to my bed and I noticed a really large spider in the sink, but since it was a giant sink I could drown the giant spider.... so I turned on the water and drowned the spider... then got into bed....

Well giant spider had baby giant spiders... and they started appearing all over the place... and started coming into the bed....
then I woke up....

And didn't go back to sleep... ugh... hate spiders.
 
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DVMDream said:
I had a dream a few nights ago about a spider...

For some reason there was this giant sink right next to my bed and I noticed a really large spider in the sink, but since it was a giant sink I could drown the giant spider.... so I turned on the water and drowned the spider... then got into bed....

Well giant spider had baby giant spiders... and they started appearing all over the place... and started coming into the bed....
then I woke up....

And didn't go back to sleep... ugh... hate spiders.
Click to expand...
Oooo.. I wanna psychoanalyze this....
 
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DVMDream said:
I had a dream a few nights ago about a spider...

For some reason there was this giant sink right next to my bed and I noticed a really large spider in the sink, but since it was a giant sink I could drown the giant spider.... so I turned on the water and drowned the spider... then got into bed....

Well giant spider had baby giant spiders... and they started appearing all over the place... and started coming into the bed....
then I woke up....

And didn't go back to sleep... ugh... hate spiders.
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a spider in dreams is a symbol of the mother, but of the phallic mother, of whom we are afraid; so that the fear of spiders expresses dread of mother-incest and horror of the female genitals

I think I am gonna stop right there.... before I get banned.
 
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DVMDream said:
I had a dream a few nights ago about a spider...

For some reason there was this giant sink right next to my bed and I noticed a really large spider in the sink, but since it was a giant sink I could drown the giant spider.... so I turned on the water and drowned the spider... then got into bed....

Well giant spider had baby giant spiders... and they started appearing all over the place... and started coming into the bed....
then I woke up....

And didn't go back to sleep... ugh... hate spiders.
Click to expand...
I think the take away message from that dream is "don't kill spiders". I'm terrified of them, but fascinated at the same time. I won't kill them and I have an agreement with the spiders in my house, I won't kill them and they respect my space. So far it seems to be working.
 
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Jilary said:
I think the take away message from that dream is "don't kill spiders". I'm terrified of them, but fascinated at the same time. I won't kill them and I have an agreement with the spiders in my house, I won't kill them and they respect my space. So far it seems to be working.
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oiscT5o.gif


This peacock spider appreciates you.
 
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katatak said:
WesternU first year input:

Pros:
  • PBL: I love getting involved in the cases. I personally feel that I retain more information this way and am way more motivated to study. Since starting PBL studying is never a chore. I almost never experienced this in undergrad where I had the traditional style of learning. I really like how the clinics are also integrated to supplement the PBL case at the time. If we have an optho case that week we are likely to have a clinic learning how to do eye exams. All our other additional information that week (histology, lecture, molecular and cellular biology class and anatomy obviously) will be focused on that subject so the book learning sticks and is actually interesting.
  • Hands on experience: lots of it, both in clinics and in outside clubs. As @rwwilliams mentioned first years have the opportunity to go to S&N clinic if they want. There is always something going on every week.
  • Professors: they are very supportive, available and helpful.
  • Small class size
  • Location: pro and con. You are close to Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego and the mountains. Vegas if you really need to get out.

Cons:
  • PBL: also a con. Finding things for yourself can be chore. Sometimes I want to be spoon fed information. Sometimes it can be frustrating because you're not sure if you're studying relevant information that you will need for the exams. When we do get lectures I appreciate them.
  • Pomona: its not the prettiest place to go to school. I am nearby (10 mins) in Montclair which I like. I know other students are in Claremont, Chino or Rancho so there are places to reside that are perfectly fine but Pomona itself is not in the greatest location. We have security on campus all the time so its not so much an issue of safety but if I had a choice I would would put Western somewhere nicer and it would pretty much be perfect.
  • IPE: this is an inter professional class that the whole school goes to to. I wish we didn't have to meet as often or at all. I understand the importance of communication between professions but the way that the cases are designed do not properly include veterinarians. When I go I feel like it wastes my time, its more of an annoyance than anything.
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Wow! A first year on SDN? I was starting to think I was the only WesternU kiddie on here 😉

If it makes any difference, I just wanted to add that I did my first spay yesterday and felt so 100% comfortable with the entire procedure. I knew the names of what I was touching, I knew how to tell if I had exteriorized the ovary enough or if I needed to break down the suspensory ligament, and I felt like I'd done a great job at the end of the procedure. I have friends at other schools that absolutely freak the first time they're scrubbed in and cutting. I think I felt so comfortable because I knew and had had practiced every little step on cadavers or models prior to this, several times.
Also, because of the S/N experience I got first and second year, I'm super comfortable doing castrations now, without any help or needing to be watched.
 
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