Missouri Interviews

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About how long before you actually need to move in is it normal to start looking. I was thinking that if I officially decide on Mizzou, it would be easiest to just take a trip out there at the beginning of the summer to look at some places, and strike up a deal then. It'll be my first time out of university housing, so i'm completely new at this. Will that be cutting it too close?
 
Still no letter as of today 🙁. I'm beginning to get worried that it got lost somewhere, so I emailed and left a message for Kathy on the phone. I hope she doesn't find that to be too annoying...
 
It is pretty strange that you haven't received yours yet. I'm sure Kathy will get back to you about it though.

I had another question about the curriculum. Does anybody remember hearing on interview day that Mizzou recently incorperated some sort of animal handling course into first year, particularly to get students familiar with working around large animals. I was hoping a current student, or someone else in the know could shed some light on this, since i'm not sure if i'm confusing info. from different schools anymore.
 
Hey guys... I wish I would have known about this forum earlier. I was searching for a facebook group, but never found one. I'm glad I finally found this. I got my acceptance letter a week ago exactly. I have an interview with my IS school at the end of this month, but I was very impressed with MIZZOU. If anyone has found a house and needs a roommate whether first year or not let me know, I would be interested.
 
Hey guys! Mizzou is still leading the pack in my list and I'm also thinking about housing. My parents are really, really interested in buying a place out there for me to live in and then reselling it in four or five years. We scoped out a few duplexes and condos about ten minutes from campus and they are ideal for having a roommate or two (as in, everyone has their own room and bathroom and pets are totally allowed). Rent would then go to my mom and dad. Will keep you posted so any interested takers can get in contact with me, but it'd be great to share a place with another vet student!


Hey I would totally be interested. It will be my first year as a vet student at Mizzou... Keep me updated if you haven't found anyone else!!

THANKS
 
About how long before you actually need to move in is it normal to start looking. I was thinking that if I officially decide on Mizzou, it would be easiest to just take a trip out there at the beginning of the summer to look at some places, and strike up a deal then. It'll be my first time out of university housing, so i'm completely new at this. Will that be cutting it too close?

It depends on when you have the money to put down the safety (and possibly pet) deposits. I wouldn't follow my lead on that. I was looking for places all summer long, but didn't sign a lease until two weeks before I was supposed to move. That was a little insane, but I just didn't have the money to secure a place until then. I remember losing a lot of sleep last summer lol.

It is pretty strange that you haven't received yours yet. I'm sure Kathy will get back to you about it though.

I had another question about the curriculum. Does anybody remember hearing on interview day that Mizzou recently incorperated some sort of animal handling course into first year, particularly to get students familiar with working around large animals. I was hoping a current student, or someone else in the know could shed some light on this, since i'm not sure if i'm confusing info. from different schools anymore.

Yes, first year students now have the opportunity to enjoy the wonders of the Clinical Skills course. They start you with cattle (out in the field with no protection from the weather in January! stock up on long underwear, extra gloves, hats, and lined coveralls now, if you can), and then you move through the small ruminants (alpacas, goats, sheep), and that's as far as we've gotten. Next up will be pigs, then several weeks of equine, and then small animals. The class is really just a one credit pass/fail type of thing, but it's a bit stressful because we do have a final exam in it, which is only scary because we can't practice what we've already learned after our 1.5 hour lab session. Eeek. It's pretty fun overall, though!

Edit: I hate to rain on anyone's parade, but based on the situations some of my own classmates have gotten themselves into by rooming with other first year students, I would recommend looking for a roommate who is NOT in your class. Don't forget that you will be in class with the same people for 8-10 hours per day, and you may not necessarily want to go home and see them all over again at the end of the day. There will be second and third and possibly fourth year students looking for roommates closer to the summer months, so I would really keep an eye out for openings then if you truly need or just want a roommate. To each their own, though. 🙂
 
Question:
How much experience do you guys get with exotics/wildlife?
I've read that you don't get much at all, but I thought I remembered during the tour something about some awesome snow leopard surgery and also, because Mizzou's mascot is a tiger, you guys have a connection for working with tigers??

Correct me if I'm wrong.

I'm not totally sure I want to do exotics/zoo/etc. but I wouldn't mind at least having the experience with it so I can know
 
Question:
How much experience do you guys get with exotics/wildlife?
I've read that you don't get much at all, but I thought I remembered during the tour something about some awesome snow leopard surgery and also, because Mizzou's mascot is a tiger, you guys have a connection for working with tigers??

Correct me if I'm wrong.

I'm not totally sure I want to do exotics/zoo/etc. but I wouldn't mind at least having the experience with it so I can know

Not that much. I think even when we get to the small animal portion of the Clinical Skills course, we may only have one day of working one exotics, if we work with them at all (they're still figuring all of that out). We do get quite a bit of information on birds, reptiles, pocket pets, and lab animals in anatomy and somewhat in physiology, as well as in clinical correlations lectures, but you really need to seek out your own hands on experiences. We do have the raptor center on campus, which takes volunteers very willingly and will train you to deal with some very large and sometimes scary birds lol, and then some of the clubs offer wet labs with more exotic animals (ZEW club comes to mind). Also, don't forget that we have to do so many hours of externships in order to graduate, so you'll have the chance to work for an exotics vet during that time, should you choose to do so and should they also choose you lol. Long story short: you will have the opportunity to get some exotics experience, but you will also have to hunt it down for yourself most of the time.

Edit: Oh, regarding the tigers and other wild animals, I'm not sure whether or not you'll see those here. We had a tiger come in for surgery during my first month of vet school, which was cool, but it happened during a lecture, so we didn't get to see it lol. There is a program at Mizzou regarding tiger conservation, but we don't hear that much about it, and it may also be something that you need to track down for yourself. Perhaps through an externship with a zoo?
 
Question:
How much experience do you guys get with exotics/wildlife?
I've read that you don't get much at all, but I thought I remembered during the tour something about some awesome snow leopard surgery and also, because Mizzou's mascot is a tiger, you guys have a connection for working with tigers??

Correct me if I'm wrong.

I'm not totally sure I want to do exotics/zoo/etc. but I wouldn't mind at least having the experience with it so I can know

I go to Mizzou and plan on being an exotics (household stuff not zoo) vet. I turned down other schools with better exotics programs to come to Mizzou because Mizzou gives you MANY MANY weeks worth of "free blocks" to go wherever you want - I've already been to an exotics only clinic for 3 weeks and am going to another place to do exotics only work for another 3 weeks in March. I still have a ton of time off next year to get more exotics exposure after my core clinical rotations are over. When I asked how long the clinical rotations were for exotics stuff at other schools - it was usually around 2-3 weeks total. So yes, Mizzou doesn't have any exotics stuff except for the extracurriculars but there is plenty of opportunity to learn it elsewhere.
 
Would anyone mind posting about the large/food animal case load at the clinic? I'm interested in beef cattle and horses and was impressed with the Temple Grandin setup there. Any info about the food animal/equine stuff would be great!
 
I also loved Mizzou and am still deciding between my IS (Virginia Tech) and Missouri. I also have to hear from 1 more school, but I really think I'll be going to either my IS or Missouri.

I'm with LoungingMarten and would love to hear more about the food animal caseload. I also had gotten the impression that there were lots of opportunities to work with professors in research, is that true?

DickVet, have you turned down VMRCVM?
 
DickVet, have you turned down VMRCVM?

I haven't officially done it, but I have made the decision to do so. I just loved Mizzou way more, and with the prices being pretty similar over the four years I just couldn't see myself choosing VMRCVM over Mizzou.
 
Random Q:

Does central Missouri see alot of tornadoes? As an east coaster they just seem so strange/horrifying to me :scared:, yet some part of me really wants to see one
 
Us middle states in general tend to see a lot of tornadoes... but I can't speak specifically for missouri though

I never understood why people are so scared of tornadoes.. it's actually one of my life's dreams to see a tornado! (from very far away of course, and hopefully one in a field with no one around to get hurt) I'm definitely one of those people who goes outside when the sirens go on

but eh, I did want to be a meteorology major at one point - go Oklahoma!

EDIT: p.s. if we both end up going to mizzou, we should get a storm-chasing group!
 
I've lived here for ten years and although the tornado sirens go off pretty frequently during a certain time of year there have never been any touch downs even remotely close to me. They certainly happen in the midwest but I had more trouble with tornados when I lived in North Carolina. An entire half of my neighborhood was leveled when I was eight or nine (it skipped our house luckily) and we spent a ridiculous amount of time in the basement every year waiting for them to pass. A year after we moved to Missouri our house in North Carolina was leveled by a tornado, luckily the family was on vacation and no one was hurt. There's something very unique about that particular shade of green a sky turns before a tornado hits...it's really creepy how it can go from bright daylight to what looks like midnight so quickly!
 
I lived in Kansas City until I moved to where I go to school. There were tornadoes that touched down but none closer than 5 miles to where I lived. The closest one touched down less than a mile away from me while I was delivering pizza (bad weather doesn't mean the work stops... I quit that job lol).

Now I'm in the Ozarks and the tornado sirens do go off quite a few times during the summer, but the town I'm in is on a hill in a valley, if you can picture it... Everything just sort of goes around us.

As long as you're smart about it, acknowledge the sirens, have a plan if a tornado comes, and don't stand outside staring at the sky right up until it hits you, you should be fine.
 
Just called Kathy today, the letter is probably lost somewhere, so she said she'd sent a copy. By the way, did you guys get confirmation phone calls after you got your acceptance? If so, I guess it means I'm out.
 
I got accepted and never recieved a phone call

good luck zxz i'm crossing my fingers for you :xf:
 
No call for me either, so no worries!
 
Hey all-I know housing was talked about a bit, but I'm wondering if someone could tell me the names of the apartments located right across the street from the vet school. I remember seeing them when I drove up for my interview, but I can't seem to locate them online. I want/need to live somewhere REALLY close to campus because I'm not going to have a car on campus for my first year, and I need something that will work for me. Also, can any current students talk about public transportation in Columbia? I forgot to ask about it when I actually was there visiting. Not having a car is going to suck, but it's just going to have to work for me somehow..blehhh
 
I seem to remember them joking about how bad the public transportation is... don't take my word for it, but I remember one of the really loud, funny professors joking about it

that's all I got!
 
There are a couple different ones. There's The Ashwood, Ashley Ridge, Tara Apartments, as well as South Park Drive Apartments which I believe are owned by Stadium Apartments. They're all along Ashland Drive which is practically on campus. I couldn't tell you much about any of them and none of them really have websites or anything but if you type their names into a search engine I think they're all listed. Hope this helps.
 
Ashley ridge is right across the street. Several students live there and like it. There is also tara apartments which I believe Mizzou owns. On one side of the school, there are lots of houses that people rent rooms out of as well. Those houses are all off of Williams street but I'm not sure how to find out about renting them.

I know several people that live at Katy Place, Kelly's Ridge and KPO properties. These are all really nice places.

There are lots of nice places in Columbia. I would just recommend staying away from the places with lots of undergrads. You will be very stressed at times in vet school and the last thing you will need is lots of noice while you are trying to sleep or study. Stay away from the the areas by the Mall in the NW part of town as some these places really aren't safe. Also, as several current students have mentioned, always tell your future landlords that you are a vet student as several places love to rent to us!

Also, there will be lots of current vet students looking for roomies when summer gets closer. You can send out an email then and try to find someone. I also agree with the above...most people do not work out when they try to live with classmates. Rooming with someone above or below you in vet school is much better for most people.

Check this website for places to live too...it is a message board for the vet school and people sometimes post places to rent https://cvmsecure.missouri.edu/cvmpubservice/

Hope this helps!
 
Thanks a lot guys, this information is very helpful! 🙂
 
Hey all-did everyone receive the e-mail about the interview feedback survey? Are you going to complete it?
 
Hey all-did everyone receive the e-mail about the interview feedback survey? Are you going to complete it?

Yes and yes! It was the nicest survey response ever 😀 I couldn't find much of anything to say wrong about the place
 
I was hoping a current student could explain the whole preceptorship thing that Mizzou seems to be really big on. When exactly do we have open blocks to go wherever for these internships, and how many different ones do you do? Also, how does it actually work when it comes to getting these preceptorships, ie. does the school facilitate with placing you somewhere particular based on your interests?

Also, do most people just go back home or wherever and get some kind of internship for the first two summers? I'm assuming the school doesn't help out as much with that, since its not really part of the curriculum.

Sorry, I have like 1000's of questions, but i'm all curious now 😀
 
I'm not a Mizzou student, but I would imagine that the first summer, most OOS people who want to obtain residency will work somewhere in Missouri to get the $2000 that summer.

Or, wait, would that make it too late to obtain residency by 2nd year? I really don't want a job while in vet school.... so if I wanted residency by 2nd year, would I have to start working in Missouri this summer? Or would I absolutely have to work during school?

Okay, I started off trying to answer a question and now I have all my own questions! Help!
 
lollll thanks for trying. I think I can actually ease your concern on that though. I'm fairly sure that you can wait until the summer after 1st year, and just make sure to earn $2000. They said at the interview that alot of students do a research program the summer after 1st year to gain residency, which provides a stipend well over $2000. So, i'm assuming that if alot of students do that to gain residency, then you won't have to worry about getting a job during the school year (I certainly don't plan to either).
 
Okay so I am going to try to explain this but it might get confusing!!!

First, if you want to become a MO resident, you can just wait til the summer after your first year to make the money. Some students work in the ICU during the school year to make money for residency. Also, several people do the summer research program but there is not always room for everyone...depends on funding and the number of applicants, I believe.

Second, as far as preceptorships/internships....this is where it may get confusing. So at Mizzou we have 11 blocks of book-based learning during the first 2 years. The summers after your first and second years, you will have 6 weeks off (July and August). During this time, you can go and do internships/jobs where ever. Many people do go home during the summer but some stay in Columbia, others travel international or go to other parts of the country for internships. After your second year, you can do preceptorships and those hours can go towards the state of MO's requirements for a license if you want to stay in the state after you graduate (each state has its own requirements for licensing).

When you reach your third year, you will start clinical blocks (in October). There are 12 clinical blocks (each being 6-8 weeks) with 7 required blocks (surgery, small animal med, equine, farm, path, etc.). Then you have 5 flex blocks. You must use 12 of these weeks for electives. The rest of the flex block time can be used to go do preceptorships where ever you would like. You can also use this time to study for boards, travel, take vacation time, etc. It is totally up to you. Our dean of student affairs can help some....if you have particular interests he can point you in the right direction or if you want to go to a certain city (such as Vegas), he may have connections. Other than that, you are pretty much on your own for finding these and applying for them. For exotics, some will require you apply during your first or second year. You can find more about this when you start school. Going to conferences is a good way to meet people and form connections.

I know this is a lot of information but will start to make sense after you have been in school for awhile. Let me know if you have more questions!
 
Thanks alot for that post! That really clears alot of things up for me.
 
A word of caution on the issue of finding a job: While you can definitely wait until the summer after first year to get a job and make the $2,000, I would sincerely suggest that none of you do that. I understand that working while in vet school is totally daunting and not always possible (I'm one of the after hours all-nighters at the ICU, so I feel your pain), but do remember that Columbia is a college town with 3 different colleges in it and a large number of students, many of whom will be looking for summer jobs. There's a rush of job openings at the vet school about 2 months after classes start, and I recommend applying for those while you can before they fill up. Many of my OOS friends in class decided not to risk working their first semester, and now they can't find jobs, and it's only February. Avoid that stress if you can. It's not easy working and going to school, but at least with a job through the vet school, they do limit you to something like 10 hours per week, often with an opportunity to take on more hours if you have the desire to do so. It'll be hard to get that kind of understanding with a non-vet school job, so really think about it.
 
A word of caution on the issue of finding a job: While you can definitely wait until the summer after first year to get a job and make the $2,000, I would sincerely suggest that none of you do that. I understand that working while in vet school is totally daunting and not always possible (I'm one of the after hours all-nighters at the ICU, so I feel your pain), but do remember that Columbia is a college town with 3 different colleges in it and a large number of students, many of whom will be looking for summer jobs. There's a rush of job openings at the vet school about 2 months after classes start, and I recommend applying for those while you can before they fill up. Many of my OOS friends in class decided not to risk working their first semester, and now they can't find jobs, and it's only February. Avoid that stress if you can. It's not easy working and going to school, but at least with a job through the vet school, they do limit you to something like 10 hours per week, often with an opportunity to take on more hours if you have the desire to do so. It'll be hard to get that kind of understanding with a non-vet school job, so really think about it.

Thank you for the advice, would you even recommend moving to Missouri early and working before classes start? I've tossed around the idea, and then I wouldn't have to worry about. PS: I want to work in the ICU, that sounds amazing!
 
Thank you for the advice, would you even recommend moving to Missouri early and working before classes start? I've tossed around the idea, and then I wouldn't have to worry about. PS: I want to work in the ICU, that sounds amazing!

That may not be a bad idea, except there may be some difficulty in finding a job at the beginning of the summer, since that's when everryyyone will be applying (like OnceBitten was saying). Either way, I guess working 8 hrs/week or something like that wouldn't be horrible, and that would definitely rack up the $2000 over the school year.

thanks for the advice, oncebitten
 
That may not be a bad idea, except there may be some difficulty in finding a job at the beginning of the summer, since that's when everryyyone will be applying (like OnceBitten was saying). Either way, I guess working 8 hrs/week or something like that wouldn't be horrible, and that would definitely rack up the $2000 over the school year.

thanks for the advice, oncebitten


Yeah..I thought of that after I posted, haha! My mom just suggested the idea to me the other day. I had never considered moving to Mizzou early up until that point. I'd take a retail job for 15 hours a week, and it would be less of a hassle when classes started because I'd already be situated.

And I really need to go back to work now, at the risk of being fired..whoops!
 
I'm not a Mizzou student, but I would imagine that the first summer, most OOS people who want to obtain residency will work somewhere in Missouri to get the $2000 that summer.

Or, wait, would that make it too late to obtain residency by 2nd year? I really don't want a job while in vet school.... so if I wanted residency by 2nd year, would I have to start working in Missouri this summer? Or would I absolutely have to work during school?

Okay, I started off trying to answer a question and now I have all my own questions! Help!

If you don't want to work during the school year I'm pretty sure they still have a research program where you do a project that lasts all summer and they give the OOS people $5,000 - I think you have to start it a little before you're out of class for the summer break and it will cover your residency requirements.

Remember that even if you move to Missouri early to get your $2,000 made the summer before class starts you still HAVE TO WORK THE SUMMER between 1st and 2nd year even if its only 1 day a week in order to get residency.
 
Another thread about computers for vet school made me think about the issue, and I thought it would be best to see how current mizzou students deal with notetaking...In undergrad i've always done things pretty old school, either take my own notes in a spiral book, or print out the powerpoint slides and take notes directly on them. Do Missouri vet students have access to any printing? Or do you all use tablets or something of the sort?
 
Another thread about computers for vet school made me think about the issue, and I thought it would be best to see how current mizzou students deal with notetaking...In undergrad i've always done things pretty old school, either take my own notes in a spiral book, or print out the powerpoint slides and take notes directly on them. Do Missouri vet students have access to any printing? Or do you all use tablets or something of the sort?

I always took pen-and-paper notes in undergrad too, but quickly took up taking notes on a tablet in vet school. It's nice that I can access my notes from any point really quickly (not to mention, that I won't lose them as easily). In my class, I'd say that it's about 50/50 between computer/non-computer people.

Every student does have access to printing and is given something like a $50 quota per semester which is used very quickly.
 
On the issue of tablets, everyone in my class who has one loves it. However, only one person who bought one for vet school (that I know of) still uses it to take notes because we have a severe lack of outlets in the auditorium, where 90% of your first year will be spent lol. There are just a few outlets by the very front row, and several in the back, I'm told, but I wouldn't count on having one handy. I'd either invest in back up batteries or take notes the old-fashioned way.
 
Thanks for the input. I recently got a new non-tablet computer thanks to an unfortunate house fire destroying my old one 😎 but I love my new comp. and have no intention of replacing it...so i've been planning on sticking with the old fashioned note taking but I just wanted to make sure it was feasible.
 
There are actually quite a few more outlets in the auditorium than there used to be. There are several rows that have them under the seats, a few in the very front and some in back.
Also, tablets are awesome but they come in handy more for second year with pathology and radiology especially. In those classes there will be many ppts that you will need to point things out and this is much more easily done on a tablet than on paper notes. I do have a few friends that wished they had bought a tablet instead of laptop when we were taking radiology. But then there are others that still prefer the hard copy notes.

I believe over 50% of my class uses laptops in class with about half of them being tablets.
 
I was hoping a current student could explain the whole preceptorship thing that Mizzou seems to be really big on. When exactly do we have open blocks to go wherever for these internships, and how many different ones do you do? Also, how does it actually work when it comes to getting these preceptorships, ie. does the school facilitate with placing you somewhere particular based on your interests?

Also, do most people just go back home or wherever and get some kind of internship for the first two summers? I'm assuming the school doesn't help out as much with that, since its not really part of the curriculum.

Sorry, I have like 1000's of questions, but i'm all curious now 😀

So preceptorships are outside of the teaching hospital externships where you are expected to participate in surgery, diagnosis, treatment, and practice management after you done with classwork October of third year (although I think you can get some hours the 6 week period between second and third year, but anyways). If you want a license in the state of Missouri, you have to do 320 hours under a licensed vet in good standing just about anywhere in the US. You have to fill in a form and have them fill in the rest and get it notarized. It then gets sent to the state board, where they are supposed to keep track of your hours. If you have no interest in getting your license in the state of Missouri, then you are not obligated to participate (it's not required to graduate from Missouri, but it is a requirement if you want your license in Missouri if that makes sense).

There's a lot of preceptorships posted, but a lot of it comes from what you are interested in and if you can get some good contacts from networking. Like I'm interested in nutrition and rehab, so I found a vet certified in rehab to go work with for about three weeks in January during a free block (it was also a general small and exotics practice, so I got to see a lot besides just rehab). You can do as many as you have time for and for varying time intervals. You may do some for just a week, or others for a full 6 week block if you have that open, it's between you and the practitioner. You have to do the equivalent of 4 three week electives at the teaching hospital of your choice (in anything from cardiology to orthopaedic surgery to equine surgery to emergency/critical care), so you fit your preceptorship hours in when you're not doing electives or required blocks.

So for example, my 4 electives are orthopaedic surgery elective, equine ambulatory, and 2 EFAST rotations. EFAST (External Food Animal Service and Theriogenology) electives count as both preceptorship hours and elective hours. This is good for me because I'm interested in a couple things that we don't really have at Missouri or don't have formal rotations set up for, like behavior, holistic/integrative medicine, and rehab, so I have more elective/preceptorship time by double dipping with 2 EFASTs. I think I'll be about done with my preceptorship hours with this second EFAST rotation, so in theory, I could just go on a cruise or something for my next free block. :laugh: Which people sometimes do! But usually, you try and fill it up with preceptorships and externships. That's probably kind of confusing, but it all works out in the end.

As for summers, you only have six weeks for summers, so some people do go get a job either "back home" or in Columbia or wherever. It can be with a practice or you can get a totally unrelated job. Some people just take the summer off to travel or to just relax and have fun, which is totally fine too.
 
I finally decided on Mizzou over my IS school!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! MISSOURI HERE I COME!!!!!!!!!!!! :soexcited:
 
I was wondering when is the deadline to accept or decline an offer for Missouri. Is there a different deadline for OOS and IS? i'm OOS and on the waitlist for mizzou and i haven't heard anything since i got my letter and i'm slowly losing it. thanks for the help
 
I was wondering when is the deadline to accept or decline an offer for Missouri. Is there a different deadline for OOS and IS? i'm OOS and on the waitlist for mizzou and i haven't heard anything since i got my letter and i'm slowly losing it. thanks for the help

The deposit for accepted students is due by April 15th, so I imagine you should hear after then! I'm turning down my offer to attend Minnesota, so good luck!! :luck: :luck:
 
Thanks zeebra44 and congrats on Minnesota.
ugh, this is going to be the longest month of my life. :bang:
 
I finally decided on Mizzou over my IS school!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! MISSOURI HERE I COME!!!!!!!!!!!! :soexcited:

WOOHOO, congrats! 😀😀

You should totally join the facebook group (unless you're already in there)

I'm already starting to think about where i want to live and everything, even though its still really far away. so excited
 
To everyone OOS that has already been accepted.. can someone tell me what the fee is to hold the spot? I am waitlist #6 but am curious!! thanks 🙂
 
Congrats Barnsey!!!😀

I too have been searching for a place to live. I'm pretty sure that I'm going to have a roomate, at least for the first year. Can't wait!!
 
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