How important is vet school ranking?

[RTHA06]

Does anyone know how important vet school rankings are when new grads are seeking out residencies and internships? Some of the best schools I have investigated are not ranked very high (Davis, Tufts) but I believe the education is high quality. What does this mean for new grads who are seeking to continue their education through residencies or internships?

thanks

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[chickenboo]

I'm not that sure, since the ranking of the school mainly reflects the research dollars at said school rather than the quality of the teaching. Also, Davis hasn't been ranked, period, for quite some time because of its limited accreditation status. Before it went on LA status, it was ranked #1.

My personal opinion is that at any school, there are going to be good and bad professors, no matter what the ranking. I know that's certainly true at Davis (the school I know most about) and I've heard the same thing from students at other schools. I think you'll end up getting about the same education at any school and the quality of your education depends a lot more on what you put into it. Now, as far as perceptions of others about the school, I'm not sure how much that affects internships/residencies.

 

[Quaggi]

I don't know about Davis, but last year Tufts had the highest rate of grads going on to internships and residencies of all the vet schools. i think its just best to go to the school you like the most, not the school that is ranked the highest.

 

[Bill59]

I'm not sure what ranking you're referring to, but there is no consensus linnear ranking of US schools. They all have their strengths and weaknesses.

Regarding internships and residencies in the US and Canada, where you get your DVM doesn't really matter among the North American schools.

For interships, two things are improtant -- grades in vet school (GPA/class rank) and references. If your considering an intership, start working on your grades first semester first year. At our house, anyone with less than 3.5 was not competitive and several of our picks are usually top of their class. A lot of students don't really think about an internship until 3rd or 4th year, and by that time is mathmatically impossible to change your GPA much.

For residency grades are still important but performance in your intenship as reflected in references is the most important.

 

[chinangel1]

I think she is referring to the US News rankings that they do every few years.
Is there a way to find out what percentage of graduates go on to internships/residencies?

 

[chickenboo]

I wanted to follow up on my last post--I wrote that as I was leaving work and forgot a few things. I just wanted to add that in my own research on the whole internships and residencies thing, I've heard that while grades are important (especially for internships), a lot of hospitals place more importance on that they know/like you, your reference letters, and your letter of intent. I think above all, these places want someone they can work with and teach. So, basically, no, I don't think it's based on where you went to school.

 

[Bill59]

Is there a way to find out what percentage of graduates go on to internships/residencies?

The AAVC has those statistics (http://www.virmp.org/virmp/) although I'm not sure you can access them from their site.

But to give you a general idea, the top schools (>70% of students matching) for this year are (alphabetical order): Georgia, Mississippi, Missouri, New York-Cornell, North Carolina State, Purdue, Tennessee, and Tufts (all in the 70% range).

Most of the other schools are in the 50-70% range. Also, this will vary somewhat from year to year. In other words there is not a lot of difference (and maybe not any stastistical difference) between the schools.

One thing I should have added earlier: many schools don't take their own students as interns (and I wouldn't recommend that anyway). But I doubt that's much of a factor in picking a school for DVM.

 

[chris03333]

You have to remember this is only saying how many graduates go onto internship/residency, it is not saying anything about how many applied versus how many matched. Not everyone at each school feels the need (or wants) to go into internship. What I am saying is that these numbers are by far not a good way to "rank" the vet schools.

 

[Bill59]

Actually, the percentages are the number of students who matched divided by the number of students who applied.

 

[weeziefive]

I dont know if anyone of you have heard of Queensland University in Australia, but thats where the Branch Chief Veterinary Pathologist graduated from at my work(State Diagnositc Lab). If he is able to get a job based on his merit and his ability I dont think a vet ranking means very much. Just bust your hump, get experience and make the most of school.