Mizzou or Ok

[zxz130]

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So, I just got an email from Kathy offering me a seat at Mizzou. First off, I just want to thank SDN for helping me through deciding between KSU and OkSU. I'd feel really bad going back on my initial decision to go to Oklahoma after everyone had been so helpful. 🙁
Thing is I fell in love with Mizzou when I interviewed there and was my first choice afterwards. I'm really excited about this opportunity. However, Kathy has told me that there will be an increase of $10,000 the first year!!! That makes me really apprehensive about gaining residency after my first year. If I do get residency though it will be a better financial choice. However, I am only a PR as of now, not a citizen so I won't have voter registration which I think is required. Anyways, any advice would be greatly appreciated!

 

[zeebra44]

So, I just got an email from Kathy offering me a seat at Mizzou. First off, I just want to thank SDN for helping me through deciding between KSU and OkSU. I'd feel really bad going back on my initial decision to go to Oklahoma after everyone had been so helpful. 🙁
Thing is I fell in love with Mizzou when I interviewed there and was my first choice afterwards. I'm really excited about this opportunity. However, Kathy has told me that there will be an increase of $10,000 the first year!!! That makes me really apprehensive about gaining residency after my first year. If I do get residency though it will be a better financial choice. However, I am only a PR as of now, not a citizen so I won't have voter registration which I think is required. Anyways, any advice would be greatly appreciated!

From what I've read, that increase is just for out of state tuition. I am pissed about the $10,000 increase, but after gaining residency the first year (easy to do at Mizzou), I'll still be saving myself $70,000+ over Minnesota, so it's definitely still worth it to me. Once you gain residency, your tuition at Mizzou drops to $17,780 a year. I'm not sure about your voter registration status. I'd call and talk to a residency counselor at Mizzou.

 

[that70sfan11]

well congrats!

I also had to pick between Mizzou and OkSU and it was a very tough choice as I loved Mizzou as well.

However, my reasons for choosing OkSU will not help you.
1. residency at OkSU = easier on my life and overall cheaper (though they were close)
2. I had a for-sure roommate at OkSU but not Mizzou
3. OkSU is closer to my friends/family/boyfriend

so I know that doesn't help, but I certainly won't judge you for choosing Mizzou because it is an awesome school and again, I almost chose it as well despite the above mentioned reasons.

Good luck deciding!

 

[zxz130]

well congrats!

I also had to pick between Mizzou and OkSU and it was a very tough choice as I loved Mizzou as well.

However, my reasons for choosing OkSU will not help you.
1. residency at OkSU = easier on my life and overall cheaper (though they were close)
2. I had a for-sure roommate at OkSU but not Mizzou
3. OkSU is closer to my friends/family/boyfriend

so I know that doesn't help, but I certainly won't judge you for choosing Mizzou because it is an awesome school and again, I almost chose it as well despite the above mentioned reasons.

Good luck deciding!

Thanks for the input though! I e-mailed the residency officer at Mizzou, but he hasn't gotten back to me 🙁. A lot of it will depend on what he says. It just feels so risky with this new increase in tuition. But I guess that just how things are.

 

[NiennaDimple14]

first off, congrats on the offer. I'm jealous. I know this probably won't help you at all but if I was going strictly on tuition, even if I had been accepted to my instate school, UF, I would probably have picked Mizzou. After that one year, the tuition at Mizzou would have been cheaper than at my instate school. I checked for UF, instate tuition is $23,217.38, so Mizzou wins (Then again a tiny part of me is saying go to OKSU so I might be able to get that spot, since i'm still on the alternate list)

Good luck on your decision

 

[zxz130]

So, on the website I saw this as a estimate for living expenses.

Room & Board $9,950
Books & Supplies $1,570
Personal & Transport. $6,400

The room and board seems reasonable, but the other 2 categories seems a bit much. In fact the books & supplies increases each year over the 4 years to $4,050 the final year. Can anybody going to Mizzou verify that things really cost this much or is it something that your lifestyle dictates?

 

[OnceBitten]

The amount that you'll spend on books, supplies, and transportation is HEAVILY based on lifestyle. We're technically in the last week of first year right now (yay!), and I have spent a total of $300 on books, less than $50 on supplies, and I have no idea how much on transportation outside of the $800 all-season tires I had to buy this winter when I realized my Florida tires weren't cutting it... but I think I'm hitting WAY under the mark for these categories, and most other people are, as well. A lot of this is because many of us don't buy books we don't think we need, and you'd have a big sib here at Mizzou to tell you which books they did fine without and which books they needed. Unless you're one of those people who needs to have every book for every class, you can really reduce the cost on being a vet student. I would expect this cost to increase as we edge into 3rd and 4th year, however, due to the need to get a stethoscope, mini-notebooks in which to take notes about patients (a staple of clinics), and a whole new wardrobe based on the foundation of dress pants and button up shirts/blouses and very comfortable shoes.

Does that help?

As a side note, congratulations on both acceptances, and good for you for focusing so much on the very serious debt you'll be entering into, no matter which school you choose. Honestly, as much as I love Mizzou, if I couldn't get residency here when I could get residency and a cheaper tuition in OK, I'd go with OK... but that's me.

Best of luck!

 

[zxz130]

The amount that you'll spend on books, supplies, and transportation is HEAVILY based on lifestyle. We're technically in the last week of first year right now (yay!), and I have spent a total of $300 on books, less than $50 on supplies, and I have no idea how much on transportation outside of the $800 all-season tires I had to buy this winter when I realized my Florida tires weren't cutting it... but I think I'm hitting WAY under the mark for these categories, and most other people are, as well. A lot of this is because many of us don't buy books we don't think we need, and you'd have a big sib here at Mizzou to tell you which books they did fine without and which books they needed. Unless you're one of those people who needs to have every book for every class, you can really reduce the cost on being a vet student. I would expect this cost to increase as we edge into 3rd and 4th year, however, due to the need to get a stethoscope, mini-notebooks in which to take notes about patients (a staple of clinics), and a whole new wardrobe based on the foundation of dress pants and button up shirts/blouses and very comfortable shoes.

Does that help?

As a side note, congratulations on both acceptances, and good for you for focusing so much on the very serious debt you'll be entering into, no matter which school you choose. Honestly, as much as I love Mizzou, if I couldn't get residency here when I could get residency and a cheaper tuition in OK, I'd go with OK... but that's me.

Best of luck!

That helps a lot! Thanks for all the info, I was thinking those costs seemed a bit ridiculous , but just wanted to verify that. I definitely will be paying OOS tuition for OK all 4 years if I go. So OK residency is not an option.
I know for Missouri residency you need to make $2000. How hard is it to get a job that's vet related and make that? Thing is my grades/GRE are the main things that got me in, so I can't compete with those people with so much experience also looking for jobs at the teaching hospital. If you could shed some light on that, that would be great. I know at the interview everyone said it was really easy... but I know they were supposed to say that... 😛

 

[eventualeventer]

Somewhat OT, but my impression is that most schools budget more than the average person needs for living expenses because it is much easier to borrow less than that amount than to borrow more. E.g., UC Davis allows more than $9000/10 months for housing, and I expect to spend more like $6-7000/10 months for rent. VMRCVM is an exception - their website gives an estimate of $11,000 for ALL expenses.

 

[OnceBitten]

That helps a lot! Thanks for all the info, I was thinking those costs seemed a bit ridiculous , but just wanted to verify that. I definitely will be paying OOS tuition for OK all 4 years if I go, it's a stipulation on the acceptance letter. So OK residency is not an option.
I know for Missouri residency you need to make $2000. How hard is it to get a job that's vet related and make that? Thing is my grades/GRE are the main things that got me in, so I can't compete with those people with so much experience also looking for jobs at the teaching hospital. If you could shed some light on that, that would be great. I know at the interview everyone said it was really easy... but I know they were supposed to say that... 😛

I actually work at the teaching hospital, so if you want a job in the ICU, I'm your girl LOL. Jobs in the ICU open up to students in October, and you apply with a little information sheet and cover letter in September. They prefer to give openings to people who are both out of state and who need the experience... or so it seems to me. I was VERY low on the experience side and was also accepted for a high GPA and GRE score above everything else, and many people with more experience than I had at the time were turned down from the job. It's anecdotal evidence, but they really do love being able to teach those who are invested in learning. I would definitely mention your current lack of experience in your cover letter, but then counter it with how your desire to gain this experience will ultimately make you a driven, willing worker who shows initiative to help whenever the opportunity presents itself, and how this, ultimately, will make you a valued member of the team. That was true for me, as well as a good number of the people I work with now, and they really respect that.

As another tip, apply for the position early. It doesn't mean that you'll get a call from the captain of the crew offering you a position sooner (or at all), but it does show them how interested you are in the position. I believe they pass out the information sheet they want you to turn in with your cover letter during orientation week. Get it out of the way and impress them all at the same time, I say. 🙂

As for getting other vet related jobs (there are several lab jobs that open up within the school each year, several student representative positions opening throughout the year, as well as clinics in Columbia who may or may not be hiring), I don't know of anyone who is struggling to make the money. I do know of a few people who are choosing not to make the money or gain residency (why, I don't know...), but that is by choice. I do recommend getting a job in the fall when job application rates are lower, if you decide to get a job outside of the university, because a few of my friends have had to scramble a bit to find employment so late in the year (outside of the school), but it's doable.

As a final note, I would definitely pick Mizzou over OK if you can't gain residency at either school... but I am heavily biased and know little to nothing about OK, so take it with a boulder of salt LOL.

 

[zxz130]

Wow! Thanks for all the tips Oncebitten, seriously! Honestly, even though I hate to admit it, it will come down to being able to gain residency or not, mainly because of that new $10,000 they decided to plop onto the OOS tuition rate. So, if I can't get residency I will be going with Oklahoma, but if I can I will be heading to Mizzou.
On a side note, do Mizzou Vet students get discounts at the teaching hospital/Pet food. Not important in the decision but still nice to know.

 

[OnceBitten]

Wow! Thanks for all the tips Oncebitten, seriously! Honestly, even though I hate to admit it, it will come down to being able to gain residency or not, mainly because of that new $10,000 they decided to plop onto the OOS tuition rate. So, if I can't get residency I will be going with Oklahoma, but if I can I will be heading to Mizzou.
On a side note, do Mizzou Vet students get discounts at the teaching hospital/Pet food. Not important in the decision but still nice to know.

LOL Again, as much as I love Mizzou, I would make the call based on money, as well. That extra $10,000 per year will likely triple by the time we pay it off with interest, and that is not a small amount of money. You've got a good head on your shoulders, that's for sure.

We do get a very minimal discount (I think about 7%) at the teaching hospital. There are cheaper clinics around town that a good number of my friends use to save money, but I choose to spend more for visits at the VTH for two reasons: I think it's vital for our own vet students to see normal, daily, often boring cases on top of the crazy, amazing, once-in-a-lifetime cases that get referred to us, and I work there and know the standard of care is up to my expectations.

As for food, we get HUGE discounts on that. I use Hill's for my cat, and I pay $8 every month and a half to two months for a bag of kitten food, and all of the money from that goes to benefit SCAVMA so we can have cool lectures and "free" lunches and dinners and social activities. There are also some programs that will give you one free bag per month (Natura is one that comes to mind), and there are others that also have huge price reductions, so I wouldn't worry about being able to afford food. We also get big discounts and free samples of heartworm/flea/tick/etc. medications, if that's a concern.

 

[zxz130]

Haha, well for me tomorrow as I try to call and get a hold of the residency counselor. One last question (I promise!) before I go to sleep. I heard that the school year at Mizzou is ridiculously long, like only 6 weeks off in the summer.
Is this true? I guess you guys really get the tuition money's worth.

 

[OnceBitten]

Haha, well for me tomorrow as I try to call and get a hold of the residency counselor. One last question (I promise!) before I go to sleep. I heard that the school year at Mizzou is ridiculously long, like only 6 weeks off in the summer.
Is this true? I guess you guys really get the tuition money's worth.

No worries. I'm a night owl (hence the preference for an overnight ICU job), so you're really giving me a nice study break LOL.

Unfortunately, you're largely correct about the lengthy school year at Mizzou. The summer after first year is ~8 weeks long, but then I think the summer after second year is 6 weeks, and then summers after that don't truly exist LOL. We also get much shorter Thanksgiving and winter breaks than some of the other schools, and we're in class a lot later into the summer.

However, I think it's for a good reason. The years are more lengthy for us because we cram 3 years of lecture into a little over 2 years so that we can have just about 2 years in clinics. This is a big benefit that Mizzou offers, particularly as we'll have already had a year of putting all of that lecture information into practice in the clinic before we take the NAVLE, whereas students at a school with 3 years of lecture and 1 year of clinics (and longer vacations) will have just started clinics when they take the NAVLE. I'm not sure whether or not it actually affects the pass rate on the exam, but I'll definitely be glad to have an extra year to put all of this lecture information into practice before being tested on it in a clinical format.

 

[Lissarae06]

Just thought I would throw my 2 cents in. At Ok you get 30% off at the teaching hospital. I'm pretty sure you get free or $5 hills and purina is free. I don't know about flea and tick though. I thought about applying at Mizzou but I didn't think the 2+2 was right for me.

 

[zxz130]

Alright, so I got off the phone with both the residency advisor and Kathy. Supposedly, I shouldn't have a problem changing residency. As a PR, all I need to do is provide my Permanent resident card as opposed to my voter's registration along with all the other residency things. I just hope the school/residency office doesn't shaft me while I'm mid-way through school, but I guess that's the risk I run.
Thanks everyone for the input. Even though I'm a little scared, very excited for the opportunity at Mizzou!