Help me decide what to do - drop out? transfer? sos.

[vetstudent23]

post deleted.

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[battie]

There is so much to unpack here. But first I want to say this all sucks; I'm sorry you've been put through the life ringer here. I had a few semi-similar events (repeated first year due to academics and my younger sister also committed suicide 2 weeks into second year), so I'll share my thought process.

I knew I didn't have a chance to transfer due to grades. My grades were *bad*. You physically cannot get worse grades then me at Illinois. So I had to adjust the parameters of my success. I went into vet school wanting to be top of the class. Adjusting my self expectations to "good enough" was the main personal driver for my mental health. Then I was seeing an off campus therapist while also doing check ins with the vet med counselor. I should have also parsed down my extra curriculars; but the thought of being alone at home was not happening.

My friend group in Illinois and at home were drastically important. Regular check ins. Reminding me to eat. Letting me cry on demand. Being genuinely honest about where I was mentally and emotionally. My class was amazing in checking in on me on an individual basis throughout the year.

I don't have a ton of advice on how to manage issues with the school itself short of getting a lawyer involved (#notaJD so not legal advice). May be something to consider.

I was told at one point at the end of second year that I may be asked to repeat *again* by the academic committee. I told the dean I would leave if that's the case. Repeating second year was not an option for me. That was the one time where I knew I would not come back. In your case, I believe you have one more didactic year if you're where I think you are. After that, I personally found clinics to be better than the classroom and I had way more personal time. So that may impact your decision.

It also doesn't hurt to contact the other schools you'd consider applying to as a transfer to discuss your specific situation. That's the only way to know if transfer is viable in your situation. Under no circumstance should you express a heavily negative opinion of your current school. Phrase your disconnect as a poor match rather than visceral hate. Unfortunately, you have to play the game in academia to get the prize.

That doesn't feel very helpful to me tbh. But I'm not quite sure anyone will have a perfect fit of advice.

 

[vetstudent23]

There is so much to unpack here. But first I want to say this all sucks; I'm sorry you've been put through the life ringer here. I had a few semi-similar events (repeated first year due to academics and my younger sister also committed suicide 2 weeks into second year), so I'll share my thought process.

I knew I didn't have a chance to transfer due to grades. My grades were *bad*. You physically cannot get worse grades then me at Illinois. So I had to adjust the parameters of my success. I went into vet school wanting to be top of the class. Adjusting my self expectations to "good enough" was the main personal driver for my mental health. Then I was seeing an off campus therapist while also doing check ins with the vet med counselor. I should have also parsed down my extra curriculars; but the thought of being alone at home was not happening.

My friend group in Illinois and at home were drastically important. Regular check ins. Reminding me to eat. Letting me cry on demand. Being genuinely honest about where I was mentally and emotionally. My class was amazing in checking in on me on an individual basis throughout the year.

I don't have a ton of advice on how to manage issues with the school itself short of getting a lawyer involved (#notaJD so not legal advice). May be something to consider.

I was told at one point at the end of second year that I may be asked to repeat *again* by the academic committee. I told the dean I would leave if that's the case. Repeating second year was not an option for me. That was the one time where I knew I would not come back. In your case, I believe you have one more didactic year if you're where I think you are. After that, I personally found clinics to be better than the classroom and I had way more personal time. So that may impact your decision.

It also doesn't hurt to contact the other schools you'd consider applying to as a transfer to discuss your specific situation. That's the only way to know if transfer is viable in your situation. Under no circumstance should you express a heavily negative opinion of your current school. Phrase your disconnect as a poor match rather than visceral hate. Unfortunately, you have to play the game in academia to get the prize.

That doesn't feel very helpful to me tbh. But I'm not quite sure anyone will have a perfect fit of advice.

Thank you for this, really. I know there won't be anything that magically solves all my issues, but it's very reassuring knowing there are others who have been through somewhat similar experiences and managed to survive. I think I'll reach out to a few programs and see what information they can provide on transferring.

I have an old classmate who is actually in the process of suing the vet school, so I'll let her deal with the legal things. I refuse to deal with them any more than I have to.

I appreciate you taking the time to write all this, thank you again.

 

[supershorty]

First of all, OP, I'm so sorry that you've had an overwhelming amount of life thrown at you in the last couple of years. I'm glad that you're taking a year off to take care of yourself.

There is no harm in reaching out to other programs, but I think you do need to have the expectation that transferring would be extremely unlikely if not impossible. While it does happen, it's exceptionally rare, and the few people I know of who did successfully transfer had outstanding grades and were coming from programs that integrated well with where they went in. Be aware that your curriculum may be such that a transfer into the same year at a different program may not be feasible and you'd have to join a class earlier in their curriculum. That's important for the financial aspect of things, too - additional years of schooling will really add to your student debt.

As battie said, absolutely do not say negative things about your program in your communications with others. Tbh, you've provided a ton of identifying information in this post and it would not be difficult for someone to figure out who you are, and I would encourage you to consider editing it to remove some of that, or to dial back on the negative stuff about your program.

In all honesty, although this isn't what you want to hear, I think your most realistic option is to grit your teeth and get through it for the next 2 years where you are. I also found clinics to be much better than the didactic years and you're almost to that. Financially, that is arguably the most responsible decision since it sounds like your current program is your in-state. Remember that you don't need to be the top of your class, you just need to be good enough, and I'm certain you can do that. Of course you can look into transferring, but be very cognizant that transferring is unusual and not a viable option for many people. You've provided some context in your original post that would be a much more sympathetic reason to want to transfer than "I hate my school," so think about that in your communication with other programs.

I wish you the utmost luck regardless of what you decide to do and am sending you a virtual hug.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Oh my heavens. I hope you have access to the best counseling available. Check the conditions of your Leave of Absence whether you are allowed to transfer to another school. I don't know whether you reached a point in your education where transferring is easier (more clinical rotations than didactic lectures), but this is something your student dean should help you with. I hope you will find a way to heal and persevere through this.

 

[sheltermed]

It sounds like you've gone through an immense amount of pain, physically and mentally, and I'm so sorry that things have been so difficult for you. Taking a year off sounds like a good choice.

I would strongly, strongly recommend heavily editing your original post as shorty suggested - I go to your school and know who you are based on what you've written even though we don't know each other personally.

To echo what's been said here, if you are trying to be a veterinarian, just get through the program and leave. It may not be easy, but the curriculum makes it very likely impossible to transfer, and the truth of the matter is that you aren't going to have much of a different experience elsewhere. Other vet schools are very similar, offer (or don't offer) very similar resources to students, and unfortunately admin everywhere are limited by the manpower and funding they have available (which typically isn't much of either). There is just only so much they can do, and they are trying even if it might not seem like it. This is coming from someone that works closely with admin here. If this is what you want, you can do this. If you aren't able to get through the classes, you might start considering an alternate path, which it already sounds like you are doing.

I don't have anything particularly different to add, but since I'm here and at the same school I can offer support to you personally if you need it, just send me a private message.

 

[Drjc1977]

Hey there, I'm a second year vet student and these last 2 years have been the worst years of my life. I don't know if I want to stay in vet school, or transfer, or drop out completely. I am lost and really need some outside input from others who have been through vet school.

So basically, endless horrible things keep happening and I am completely burnt out, but I have no idea what I would do if I didn't become a veterinarian. A month into first year, my mom died twice and had to be put in a medically induce coma for a while (she's good now), there was a shooting at my school, I experienced chronic health issues that lead to being diagnosed with a chronic illness that causes me daily pain, I did so poorly the second semester of second year due to said health issues that I was asked to repeat the whole year (the worst year), I lost my partner unexpectedly to suicide, I had to move out of my apartment and back in with my parents, and on top of all of that I hate this school. I have had endless issues with the registration and financial aid departments (like misplacement of tens of thousands of dollars type issues), I hate the curriculum, I hate the administration department, I hate knowing how horrible everyone's mental health is. It's like everything has been pushing me away the whole time.

Currently, I am taking a year off of school to focus on getting my health issues under control and grieving the loss of my boyfriend. During this time I've been trying to decide what my next steps will be career-wise, and I have yet to come up with any job paths that lead to the stability and various opportunities having my DVM would offer me. I honestly think I could finish vet school. I think I would regret dropping out completely and giving up a spot I worked so hard for, but I desperately do NOT want to go back to my school. I know transferring is super uncommon so I feel like I can't expect that to be a viable option, especially with my poor grade performance second year. I have no idea where to turn right now.

Does anyone have personal experience with a successfully transferring to a different vet school? Are there any schools that are more likely to accept a transfer student? Is paying out of state tuition even worth it? Any guidance on different career paths to look into? Words of wisdom?

Thanks for reading, appreciate you all.

It sounds like you've gone through an immense amount of pain, physically and mentally, and I'm so sorry that things have been so difficult for you. Taking a year off sounds like a good choice.

I would strongly, strongly recommend heavily editing your original post as shorty suggested - I go to your school and know who you are based on what you've written even though we don't know each other personally.

To echo what's been said here, if you are trying to be a veterinarian, just get through the program and leave. It may not be easy, but the curriculum makes it very likely impossible to transfer, and the truth of the matter is that you aren't going to have much of a different experience elsewhere. Other vet schools are very similar, offer (or don't offer) very similar resources to students, and unfortunately admin everywhere are limited by the manpower and funding they have available (which typically isn't much of either). There is just only so much they can do, and they are trying even if it might not seem like it. This is coming from someone that works closely with admin here. If this is what you want, you can do this. If you aren't able to get through the classes, you might start considering an alternate path, which it already sounds like you are doing.

I don't have anything particularly different to add, but since I'm here and at the same school I can offer support to you personally if you need it, just send me a private message.

There is no quick or easy advise to be made here. There is a tremendous amount of burden on your shoulders that has to be dealt with. If you haven't already, consider a counselor/psychologist. If you can, take as much time off of school as possible to give your mind a break; a leave of absence would not be wrong depending on the policy of the school. Changing schools is no a guarantee that things will be better, it could be worse. You are in a multi species medical curriculum that leaves very little room for personal issues to be dealt with. Lastly, evaluate why you hate the school so much. Issues such as messing up a financial aid package happen at all schools. Is your issue with the school and it gives you an outlet to blame or are there some really bad problems with it. I truly wish you well. You an do this.