How did you stay on track to be a vet?

[Riscatto]

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Don't know if this is the right thread or not, but here goes. I have wanted to be a vet since I was 8 and have worked hard and spent the last few years pursuing this field. I went to tech school to get a baseline. However after what happened during my externship I have lost confidence in my abilities.

I was told I shouldn't be a vet tech and granted that was a few years ago and I don't really care to work with cats or dogs. I have gained some confidence, but lately I freak out when trying to get back into the field. I worry that I'm top notch or I'll mess up in some way. I've always wanted to work in zoo medicine which I have experience, but my back up was equine physical therapy, but I have no experience. I also didn't talk much or really click with people that I've worked with in the clinics.

Now I work in a bowling alley making nothing of myself. How did you guys stay on track even when it felt like an impossible task?

 

[Lupin21]

Don't know if this is the right thread or not, but here goes. I have wanted to be a vet since I was 8 and have worked hard and spent the last few years pursuing this field. I went to tech school to get a baseline. However after what happened during my externship I have lost confidence in my abilities.

I was told I shouldn't be a vet tech and granted that was a few years ago and I don't really care to work with cats or dogs. I have gained some confidence, but lately I freak out when trying to get back into the field. I worry that I'm top notch or I'll mess up in some way. I've always wanted to work in zoo medicine which I have experience, but my back up was equine physical therapy, but I have no experience. I also didn't talk much or really click with people that I've worked with in the clinics.

Now I work in a bowling alley making nothing of myself. How did you guys stay on track even when it felt like an impossible task?

The only way to stay on track in my opinion is keep getting experience in the field to make sure you know what you are in for. School is one thing, but having to practice is another. Make sure what you think it is will match up. Most people explain the dream from an eight year old, but knowing what it actually entails, not just regular GP from small to zoo to large and mixed, plus, plus is generally not accurate. The debt is no joke and is only going higher. More and more funding cuts are an issue. The dream is not the reality, and open eyes are invaluable. So make sure to explore the field and what you expect versus reality, but keep an open mind to other careers. Helping animals can occur in many capacities and doesn't require being a tech or a dvm.

 

[PrincessButterCup]

Don't know if this is the right thread or not, but here goes. I have wanted to be a vet since I was 8 and have worked hard and spent the last few years pursuing this field. I went to tech school to get a baseline. However after what happened during my externship I have lost confidence in my abilities.

I was told I shouldn't be a vet tech and granted that was a few years ago and I don't really care to work with cats or dogs. I have gained some confidence, but lately I freak out when trying to get back into the field. I worry that I'm top notch or I'll mess up in some way. I've always wanted to work in zoo medicine which I have experience, but my back up was equine physical therapy, but I have no experience. I also didn't talk much or really click with people that I've worked with in the clinics.

Now I work in a bowling alley making nothing of myself. How did you guys stay on track even when it felt like an impossible task?

I disagree strongly with the bolded. It's not what you want to do long term, maybe, but you're not doing nothing with your life. You're making money and supporting yourself and that's not nothing.

Do you have the pre-req classes you need for vet school? That might be a good place to start - that, and shadowing equine vets. Get an idea of what that field is like, and give yourself a way to re-enter vet med and reaffirm your desire to be a vet (or maybe decide you want to pursue something else!). Taking the classes you need may help you feel more satisfied or fulfilled, since you'll be actively working towards something.

And if you decide vet med isn't for you - either because of clients, or anxiety, or whatever it may be - that's okay. Don't force yourself into this field if it's not what you want. Explore! Figure out what you want to do with your life. (Easier said than done, right?) The good news? You can already cross bowling alley staff off your list of potential careers. 😉

 

[LabLuv004]

I personally don't think there is just one track to becoming anything. When it's all said and done I bet you'll be glad for all the life you lived out of school before jumping into vet school. I know vets who wish they had taken some time to be young and work before going into their career. You don't have to know right now. Think of this as time to explore. Also, one person's opinion of your ability is not worth your time. Forget that person even said that or aim prove them wrong, whatever you prefer.

I recommend finding an equine vet and building a relationship so you have someone to shadow, ask questions, and possibly get a LOR later on. Figure out what you love about vet med and hold on to that. And if you don't love it, then you can look into other careers. Plenty of people never get any work experience before their career, you are most definitely not making nothing of yourself; you are gaining valuable work experience. Give yourself credit for supporting yourself and thinking about your future.

 

[Vannandy]

The most cliche statement ever... If you enjoy what you do, you won't feel like you're at work. Honestly speaking, you'll always know that you have a schedule and responsibilities for your job. However, if you're set on being a veterinarian, nothing will get in your way on pursuing your DVM/VMD. Debt is a very important issue to consider especially in our generation with high tuition rates. It is important to remember that the graduate within are generation are not destitute. If being a veterinarian is what you truly want to be, darn it I say go for it and then live within your means with your debt after you graduate. I would rather be in debt and love what I'm doing than be a teacher/lab tech/etc. able to pay then bills with the lack of fulfillment. As a veterinary student with plenty of debt, I say if you know deep down that this is what you want to do, go for it. There are plenty of recent grads who are making ends meet. It may not be easy... but another cliche, anything that's worth having doesn't have easy.

 

[DVMDream]

The most cliche statement ever... If you enjoy what you do, you won't feel like you're at work. Honestly speaking, you'll always know that you have a schedule and responsibilities for your job. However, if you're set on being a veterinarian, nothing will get in your way on pursuing your DVM/VMD. Debt is a very important issue to consider especially in our generation with high tuition rates. It is important to remember that the graduate within are generation are not destitute. If being a veterinarian is what you truly want to be, darn it I say go for it and then live within your means with your debt after you graduate. I would rather be in debt and love what I'm doing than be a teacher/lab tech/etc. able to pay then bills with the lack of fulfillment. As a veterinary student with plenty of debt, I say if you know deep down that this is what you want to do, go for it. There are plenty of recent grads who are making ends meet. It may not be easy... but another cliche, anything that's worth having doesn't have easy.

There are actually many graduates in our generation that without a SO or a roommate to help pay rent/mortgage they would be destitute. Simply just "making ends meet" is not an enjoyable way to live. Take it from someone who is there. I'd give anything to have fallen off this train back when I was a pre-vet now looking back. And that is for many reasons more than just the debt involved.

 

[supershorty]

The most cliche statement ever... If you enjoy what you do, you won't feel like you're at work.

Strongly disagree.

OP, I didn't stay on track in the sense of making everything I did be about getting into vet school. I had a 3 year hiatus where I did almost nothing vet-med-related, and I'm really glad because it made me realize that this really was a career path I wanted to pursue (I was on the fence about it when I graduated from college and was working in research). There's not one way to go about it. If you're supporting yourself, you're not doing nothing, you just might not be doing what you want to be doing at this very moment.

Get some shadowing in. Don't freak out about asking a question or making mistakes - everyone makes them. In my lab, we tell new undergrads not to worry about making a mistake because we can pretty much guarantee someone in the lab has made that exact one before.