Squibby's super cool introduction has made me want to play!
I agree with leaving out stats overall - my GPA and GRE don't define me as a person. If they did, I'd be pretty damn insulted after the eight rejections I've suffered so far, each probably (if not certainly) given out before anyone read about my experiences or glimpsed at my PS.
However, if they did bother to read that section, they would see that...
- I have about 104 hours of animal experience (not counting pet ownership, of course)
- I have one (long) summer of research with tick borne disease (
F. tularensis!)
- I have two years working at a SA clinic and doing everything
- I have also traveled for two weeks to Central America to perform spays and neuters and provide other veterinary care to pets in impoverished or isolated areas
- I shadowed a LA vet for a summer, and I shadowed a SA/acupuncture vet in Montana for two weeks
- I did a pre-vet internship at the teaching hospital through the university I attend
- I shadowed clinical pathology rotations for a few hours one summer (~15)
- I worked for 2 years at an Antech lab located in the vet school
- I was an unofficial lab manager for one summer (I was supposed to do research, but ended up doing POs and paperwork instead)
Of all these experiences, my time at the diagnostic lab probably meant the most to me. I have loved seeing all the different aspects of vet med, but it really solidified my interest in microbiology, pathology, and clinical diagnostics in general. It's very frustrating to know that the only way to become a pathologist is to first get a DVM or DO/MD, the latter two I have little or no interest in.
Anywho, I'm 25 and I have been married for 4 years. I met my husband in high school. I owe him a lot - he's amazing and makes dealing with this stuff so much easier for me.
We have three pets - two black DLH kitties and a Pembroke Corgi. She has two different colored eyes (blue/brown) and was featured in my first avatar on the forum.
We live in a house in a nice neighborhood and I love it here, though we do plan to move out of Oklahoma someday.
No kids - waiting until I finish vet school/residency/whatever. Hopefully, we don't have to wait forever.
I will have two degrees come May - a B.S. in Zoology (which I finished last May) and a B.S. in Microbiology.
My favorite movie is Amelie (but I also have a soft spot for Rocky Horror Picture Show) and my favorite bad at this moment is either Vampire Weekend, Franz Ferdinand, or Ben Folds. I love AltNation on satellite radio. I also enjoy reading classic books - Tolstoy, Dickens, Hemingway, Salinger, Austen - and I hope I can feel 'caught up' someday since I spent most of my adolescence reading Stephen King.
I have pink hair - just for fun, and probably not permanent, but I do rather enjoy it. It will be brown soon for my hopeful interview(s?) but probably won't stay that way. Maybe I'll try purple...
Most of my friends are dudes - I call them my 'mantourage.'
I'm very picky about keeping my textbooks in perfect condition. I lent my biochem book for one of said 'dudes' last semester, and it came back with worn corners and a bent cover.... NOT pleased.
This process has been difficult, but I remain a steadfast optimist and all around cheerful person. I like to joke around, and I never take anything too seriously, though I do complain a lot.
Oh, and I only use Burt's Bees. No chemicals! I'm allergic to something found in Chapstick, Blistex, Carmex, etc. and it makes my lips puff up.