Low GPA/Stress/Work/Rant

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Bonbon567

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Hi everyone. This post might end up being long and rant-ish.

This past year my stress levels have been through the roof, I'm currently in my junior year of undergrad and am applying this cycle. My gpa is pretty low (3.0/3.1) depending how well I do with my remaining credits. Chemistry and math have kicked my butt to say the least..... I have had to work to put myself through school. I live at home but I was financially responsible for school and I feel like this took a toll on me academically not always having enough time for my classes.... And now with my GPA compared to other students I feel like I look dumb and not competitive (I know I'm not the only one in this boat). Reading past accepted stats have also been stressing me out and I just don't know if my generous amount of experience hours can outweigh my crappy GPA. Does VMCAS take into account having to work to put yourself through school? I also have not taken my GRE yet.
Everyone I know with a high GPA has been able to not work and focus on school (parents paying or scholarships)

Sorry this is so long I had to rant and no one I've been talking to understands my constant stress and mental breakdowns.
Any advice/light at the end of the tunnel/cold hard truth would be appreciated.........

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Same boat man, I worked 30+ hrs a week with a 20 credit course load (every semester) and was in a research lab 10-15 hrs a week my entire undergrad education. Thankfully my work was at a vet clinic so I had an insane amount of hours to apply with. Its an incredibly difficult life to live so I understand your stress and concerns. I was completely responsible for my educational costs and I stayed at home during undergrad to save myself some un-needed expenses. I graduated with a cGPA of ~3.2, science GPA of 3.35 and last 45 cred GPA of 3.38. Most of my grades have been a B or better (I think I have 3 Cs and 3 B-). I knew after Junior year there was no way in hell I was applying the summer before senior year because my last 45 cred GPA was pretty sad. So what I did was take a year off between undergrad and hopefully getting into vet school. I worked my butt off senior year to get as many As as I could in my upper level classes so boost up my last 45 cred GPA and Science because I knew my cGPA wasn't going to move too much, then from there it was all about applying smartly (looking at schools that dont necessarily consider cGPA that much or even at all). I'm currently wait listed at 2 schools for this up coming year so I really hope I move off the list so I don't have to reapply but anything is possible. My GRE scores were pretty average so it's not like I have that working for me either. I think it was the amount of experience and exposure to the field that I have given myself that really helped me stand out. I have about 3500 in small animal, 400 in wildlife, 500 in large animal, and about 1500 hours in research (needless to say I barely had a life outside of work, internships, extracurriculars and schooling). I didn't necessarily address my low GPA's in my essays or personal statement, I instead highlighted the best parts of my app in those sections to show how I had physically gone out there to understand the industry and that I was prepared to handle the demanding lifestyle that I had ahead of me.
I definitely found taking a year off to be helpful in more ways than one. I really had a lot of time to focus on my application and perfect it to the best of my abilities. Also with the crazy lifestyle I had lived for 4 years it was nice to just have some down time even though I'm working full time haha. If you have any questions feel free to ask!
 
There are at least a few applicants in the most recent stats thread who were accepted with a lower gpa (I'm one of them). There are probably a least a few of them each year. I liked looking at the stats threads because I could find those people and it made me feel like I had a chance. It worked for me. But if it's stressing you out, then stop looking at other applicants. Stop comparing yourself to everyone else. There are people who get accepted with lower GPAs. So look into schools and apply smart. Work on presenting the strongest application you can. Improve what you can and stop worry about things you can't change.
 
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Same boat man, I worked 30+ hrs a week with a 20 credit course load (every semester) and was in a research lab 10-15 hrs a week my entire undergrad education. Thankfully my work was at a vet clinic so I had an insane amount of hours to apply with. Its an incredibly difficult life to live so I understand your stress and concerns. I was completely responsible for my educational costs and I stayed at home during undergrad to save myself some un-needed expenses. I graduated with a cGPA of ~3.2, science GPA of 3.35 and last 45 cred GPA of 3.38. Most of my grades have been a B or better (I think I have 3 Cs and 3 B-). I knew after Junior year there was no way in hell I was applying the summer before senior year because my last 45 cred GPA was pretty sad. So what I did was take a year off between undergrad and hopefully getting into vet school. I worked my butt off senior year to get as many As as I could in my upper level classes so boost up my last 45 cred GPA and Science because I knew my cGPA wasn't going to move too much, then from there it was all about applying smartly (looking at schools that dont necessarily consider cGPA that much or even at all). I'm currently wait listed at 2 schools for this up coming year so I really hope I move off the list so I don't have to reapply but anything is possible. My GRE scores were pretty average so it's not like I have that working for me either. I think it was the amount of experience and exposure to the field that I have given myself that really helped me stand out. I have about 3500 in small animal, 400 in wildlife, 500 in large animal, and about 1500 hours in research (needless to say I barely had a life outside of work, internships, extracurriculars and schooling). I didn't necessarily address my low GPA's in my essays or personal statement, I instead highlighted the best parts of my app in those sections to show how I had physically gone out there to understand the industry and that I was prepared to handle the demanding lifestyle that I had ahead of me.
I definitely found taking a year off to be helpful in more ways than one. I really had a lot of time to focus on my application and perfect it to the best of my abilities. Also with the crazy lifestyle I had lived for 4 years it was nice to just have some down time even though I'm working full time haha. If you have any questions feel free to ask!


My work has also been in a vet clinic and I have shadowed numerous doctors so my hours aren't the problem (besides exotics those hours are low) I really want to still apply and see if I can by chance get in with my experience and if not I'll see what I need to work on. I thought about pursuing my masters, but then I realized I have no interest in that. This July will mark a year that I've worked as a technician at the clinic I'm currently at so I've racked up the hours with that......
 
Everyone I know with a high GPA has been able to not work and focus on school (parents paying or scholarships)

You'll get a lot of good advice on here from other people, but I will say that I would be careful with ideas like this. Everyone has their struggles in life and high GPA doesn't mean they didn't have to put themselves through school.
 
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You'll get a lot of good advice on here from other people, but I will say that I would be careful with ideas like this. Everyone has their struggles in life and high GPA doesn't mean they didn't have to put themselves through school.

I should've probably clarified that, some people are able to do both and do both well and I guess I just wasn't one of those people.
 
I should've probably clarified that, some people are able to do both and do both well and I guess I just wasn't one of those people.

'Tis fine, I figured you didn't mean it quite like that:)

At some point, you need to take a deep breath and realize that the past is the past. Don't punish yourself by letting it affect your mental health. If you want to get into vet school, you'll probably have to work a little harder and smarter with HOW you apply, but people on here have again and again shown that it can be done.

Instead of letting the accepted applicants thread stress you out by comparing yourself to others and making yourself feel obsolete, look at the successful stories of people who have gotten in with lower GPAs and realize that you can do it to if it is what you want.

There is a lot of power in perspective.
 
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'Tis fine, I figured you didn't mean it quite like that:)

At some point, you need to take a deep breath and realize that the past is the past. Don't punish yourself by letting it affect your mental health. If you want to get into vet school, you'll probably have to work a little harder and smarter with HOW you apply, but people on here have again and again shown that it can be done.

Instead of letting the accepted applicants thread stress you out by comparing yourself to others and making yourself feel obsolete, look at the successful stories of people who have gotten in with lower GPAs and realize that you can do it to if it is what you want.

There is a lot of power in perspective.


Thank you for that I needed to hear that. :)
 
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I should've probably clarified that, some people are able to do both and do both well and I guess I just wasn't one of those people.
VMCAS doesn't do anything, they just process applications fyi. The schools will see that you held a job while taking classes. Like dreamerz said, you have no idea what other people are doing when they're not in class. You can only control what you do, and that's all that matters. I do hate to say this, but it is absolutely not uncommon for students to hold part time, full time, multiple part time jobs, etc. while taking classes. I'm not trying to make you feel bad or stress you even more, but it's the reality of being a college student these days.

At this point, you should look into schools that put more weight on experience, GRE (you can still prep hard and knock it out of the park), and other non-academic factors. You can always choose to repeat classes you did poorly in. If you choose to go down that road, look for schools that replace grades instead of average attempts. Getting into vet school is a bit of a game to an extent...if you play it intelligently, you increase your chances. Good luck.

Side note, but if you're having regular mental breakdowns, there is no shame in seeking counseling to help you deal with the extreme stress you sound like you're under. Best to get those things worked out prior to starting vet school.
 
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I'm in a similar place (lower than average cumulative GPA and science GPA). I was rejected last year and waitlisted this year. I'm deciding not to try again, at least right now, and you should know that that's okay. If you look at all the facts, the debt of the profession, and decide to reassess your career goals and pursue something else - that's not the same thing as giving up. You don't have to stick with vet med, and you're not a failure of you decide to do something else that interests you. I'm not saying you need to give up - just know you don't have to chain yourself to the idea of vet school.

I'll give you the advice I received. My adcom recommended that I get an MS and reapply, because it would allow me to prove to them that I can handle the course load of professional school (which is what they're assessing when they look at your grades). Some master's programs will pay a stipend, and others are fairly inexpensive even to OOS students, so it wouldn't have to be a huge financial undertaking. You can do a 2-year program, rock it, and apply as a much stronger applicant to vet school.
 
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Try to keep the accepted student thread in perspective too. Many of the posts on that thread are from type A over-achievers. They are not representative of the population of veterinary students that successfully matriculated.
 
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I got in with ~3.0 cumulative GPA. I got into one school, out of the country, with a very high price tag, but I got in and here I am.

I will say that it is very important to understand the why behind your grades. Working to support yourself during school is a very admirable thing, certainly. I assume you were working and had little time to devote to studying, hence the weak grades. Adcoms will be wary though, because you need to be able to succeed academically to get through vet school. The classes are harder, there is a ton more material, more credit hours all at once, the stress of adjusting, etc. They want to choose students who have shown they can handle that level of craziness and right now, you haven't really demonstrated that.

Yes, experience hours are worth something. I had a good number of experience hours, too, but that didn't change many minds in my favor. Your best chance right now is to work on your last 45 credits - certain schools like KSU and Minnesota will look more favorably on your application if you have a strong, upward trend. You can point to that trend to say, "Look, I know I didn't do so great there for a while, but I've changed and I can be a good student." That may mean taking out loans to support yourself so you can study. It may mean taking an extra year at school. Are you guaranteed to be rejected this cycle? Absolutely not. But I think it would be a far better use of your time and money to take a step back and re-evaluate how you're going to go about it.
 
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Everyone I know with a high GPA has been able to not work and focus on school (parents paying or scholarships)
If I can be honest, this sentence sounds very whiny.

Unfortunately we all have hardships, I have significant hearing loss, others have lost limbs, or have learning disabilities, or have had parents and close loved ones die mid semester, or needed to be hospitalized themselves for months on end, or like you, have to work to pay for everything. These things make up who we are, but you can't let this define you. I am so much more than my hearing loss, you are so much more than having to be responsible financially. My advice is to remember the other things that make you special for your application. If you work towards it, it'll happen. It might not be the original way you thought (you might have to get a Masters or apply multiple times or retake classes) but it'll happen!
 
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Hi everyone. This post might end up being long and rant-ish.

This past year my stress levels have been through the roof, I'm currently in my junior year of undergrad and am applying this cycle. My gpa is pretty low (3.0/3.1) depending how well I do with my remaining credits. Chemistry and math have kicked my butt to say the least..... I have had to work to put myself through school. I live at home but I was financially responsible for school and I feel like this took a toll on me academically not always having enough time for my classes.... And now with my GPA compared to other students I feel like I look dumb and not competitive (I know I'm not the only one in this boat). Reading past accepted stats have also been stressing me out and I just don't know if my generous amount of experience hours can outweigh my crappy GPA. Does VMCAS take into account having to work to put yourself through school? I also have not taken my GRE yet.
Everyone I know with a high GPA has been able to not work and focus on school (parents paying or scholarships)

Sorry this is so long I had to rant and no one I've been talking to understands my constant stress and mental breakdowns.
Any advice/light at the end of the tunnel/cold hard truth would be appreciated.........

Hi I know you have gotten a lot of criticism for this post (not saying that the critiques are untrue) but I just thought you could use a bit of encouragement. I did the same, worked my way through school at one point, working two jobs and working in a lab and taking a full course load. But you just have to keep your head up and remember what you are working for. Remember that it all WILL pay off in the end. Because of my work schedule I wasn't able to maintain the best grades, I even lost my full tuition scholarship along the way. But just because obstacles come, you can't let that stop you. I know how it feels to look at others and say they are more lucky but like others have said you never know what they are actually dealing with. But I'm here to tell you, instead of stressing, persevere instead. I'm not sure if you are at all religious but praying really helped me. And I was brought through with a GPA that was ridiculously low, a GRE score that was ridiculously average, and contact hours that were much less than most others, and I was still accepted into two schools on my first try. If I would have given up when things got hard I would have never arrived here. Don't give up and good luck!
 
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