Murdoch people

[lostbunny]

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Hey dudes,

I'm sorry if this is on a previous thread, but I wasn't able to find answers to my questions!

1. For those of you that are applying/have applied to Murdoch, are you including a 1-page cover letter with your CV (like you would for a job), or did you use the 500-word personal statement as your cover letter? Or did you not include a cover letter at all? (I've emailed the admissions office, but I'm impatient, and its nice to know what others are doing too!🙂 )

2. For those of you that are International (or domestic, but know the answer!), when did you apply and when did you hear back? It looks like in past threads from a few years ago people got their acceptances in December and near the end of the year, but I'm sending my application in for the June 30th deadline. How soon do you think I could hear back (and I'm aware of the rolling admissions too 🙂 )?

3. In WA, is a schooner 425mls or is that what you consider a middie? (I know the Victorians have it all backwards 😉)

 

[sunshinevet]

3. In WA, is a schooner 425mls or is that what you consider a middie? (I know the Victorians have it all backwards 😉)

I can't really help much for the first two questions but I sure can help with this one!!! 😛 Thats a middie over here! Pretty much every state in australia has different ideas of what a schooner, middie or pint is. Ridiculous! Obviously the easiest way to avoid this is to order your beer in steins. That doesnt change 😀

One unfortunate thing about coming to Murdoch is the price of drinks. I am from glorious canberra, which boasts pretty much the cheapest drink prices in Australia... and I came to perth, where alcohol is more expensive than anywhere else! Its not at all uncommon to pay 10-15 for a pint of beer or cider, and $7 per shot of lowrange spirits is considered "cheap". A bit depressing for us poor uni students 🙁

 

[Dsmoody23]

Y'all speak American.

 

[lostbunny]

Dsmoody23, dankie vir jou hulp. Maar ongelukkig vir jou Ek is nie American.

sunshinevet, or any other Murdochers, I'm checking out the Murdoch website- but I can't seem to find any info on student clubs and that sort of things. Are you guys big on clubs and social stuff- but just don't publish it?

I heard that you do have a very active social student life, and there's a rep in every year or something of the likes?

I just feel like living vicariously. 🙂

 

[sunshinevet]

Haha, and im totally avoiding clin path...

Murdoch in general is completely **** as far as student clubs and a social scene goes. The vet school however, is a totally different kettle of fish, and our clubs etc aren't to be found on the web 🙂

We have a really really active student organisation, the Murdoch Veterinary Students Association. There are reps and social reps in each year (2 per year) as well as a commitee with treasurer, secretary etc. Its super active, and is involved in fundraising, social events, co-ordinating all the things you need (scrubs, overalls, stethescopes etc). There is a social event nearly every week of semester run by the MVSA (not so much in the few weeks coming up to exams though).

We also have lots of student run interest groups, with varing levels of activity. Probably the most active are:
VBMA - business group
MAVS - SA surgery group
MAWS - wildlife group
Bovine interest group

We also have a welfare group, a holistic med group, and equine group, a porcine group and i think a couple of others im forgetting about? We also have student reps for Hills and Royal canin that run things throughout the semester.

So no matter what your interest, theres usually something there for you, and if theres not, you are more than welcome to start something and peers are generally extremely supportive! For instance, both the surgery and porcine groups are really new, and have gathered a great amount of support from the student body.

But yeah, we are extremely, extremely social. Everyone knows everyone in the vet school. A lot of "mature age" students are afraid that they wont fit in with the "younger" students - but in my experience, they are some of the most mischievious!!! 😀

 

[lostbunny]

weee! sounds super fun! Totally just creeped the facebook page. You are right though- didn't find much lol.

😀

 

[Dsmoody23]

Dsmoody23, dankie vir jou hulp. Maar ongelukkig vir jou Ek is nie American.

Well, all y'all o'er thur, can jus' go-on bout yer business.

A'ight.

 

[lostbunny]

Well, all y'all o'er thur, can jus' go-on bout yer business.

A'ight.

 

[lostbunny]

Sunshine vet- did you guys have to submit a CV with your application (as a domestic?)?

 

[CanadianHope]

Bumping this thread to ask if anyone knows when Murdoch will start sending out acceptances or rejections for Feb 2012 intake?

 

[lostbunny]

Bumping this thread to ask if anyone knows when Murdoch will start sending out acceptances or rejections for Feb 2012 intake?

They try to respond about a month after the application deadline.

 

[jazzmaple]

Bumping this thread to ask if anyone knows when Murdoch will start sending out acceptances or rejections for Feb 2012 intake?

Hi CanadianHope, I received a non-acceptance (aka rejection) email in late December of last year. I still have my heart set on Murdoch and am getting ready to reapply. Good luck! 🙂

 

[PetPony]

I read a blog about Murdoch, but I don't really understand the curriculum. Why do you have to take gen ed like courses there, like philosophy? Sorry if this is the wrong thread for that though..

 

[sunshinevet]

I read a blog about Murdoch, but I don't really understand the curriculum. Why do you have to take gen ed like courses there, like philosophy? Sorry if this is the wrong thread for that though..

Hmmmm I don't know what blog you're talking about, but it could be one from the "old" curriculum, where there was some scope for electives to be taken in the first year of the course. That is no longer the case, and there is definately no gen ed courses in the curriculum any more. The first year used to be more gen ed with courses such as "foundation units" and ethics, etc, but they have been cut from the 5 year curriculum.

 

[sunshinevet]

I just realised people might be interested, so I'll post the curriculum here:

YEAR 1:
Semester 1:
Anatomy 1
Physiology 1
Biochemistry
Veterinary professional life

Semester 2:
Anatomy 2
Physiology 2
Animal Systems 1: Animal Production Systems

YEAR 2:
Semester 1:
Nutrition and Toxicology
Processes in Animal Disease
Animal Systems 2: Animal behaviour and welfare
Veterinary professional life 2

Semester 2:
Immunology
Parasitology
Bacteriology, Virology and Mycology

YEAR 3:
Semester 1:
Diagnostic Pathology
Pharmacology
Animal Systems 3: Public Health and Epidemiology
Veterinary professional life 3

Semester 2:
Anaesthesia, Emergency and Critical Care
Surgical Secrets (basic surgery course - god knows why they called it that!)
Small Animal General Practice
Diagnostic Imaging

YEAR 4:
The classes are no longer taken in semester blocks so I'll just list the classes taken:
Small Animal Medicine and Surgery
Equine Medicine and Surgery
Cattle and Camelid Medicine, Production and Surgery
Small Ruminant Medicine and Production
Reproduction and Obstectrics
Avian, Wildlife and Exotics
Intensive Industries Medicine and Production
Veterinary professional life 4

YEAR 5:
A year of rotations through the veterinary hospital. Plus veterinary professional life 5.

 

[PetPony]

It was called something like "Don't throw me in the briar patch." I think it's a few years old now.

Thank you for the schedule. I was a little hesitant about the gen ed courses, but that seems more like what I'd want. Thank you.

 

[Nexx]

That is the blog of a user on here (probably former user), quakk.

He would have graduated last year but he made the difficult choice to not finish his degree at Murdoch (or continue vet med) two years ago now.

As Sunshine said the technical 'vet course' no longer requires you to take electives as part of the degree -- they require a year of pre-req courses prior to enrolment in vet which usually still encompasses some sort of elective coursework.

For many international students this pre-req year has already been completed and they can gain entry into the 5 year program.

Not that it matters now, but international students prior to this curriculum change (such as myself) were granted exemptions for certain courses that had overlap with previous study such as (electives, biochem, cell biology, statistics, ethics, etc)

 

[jazzmaple]

Hi, I wasn't really sure where to post this but I am planning to visit Australia, specifically the Murdoch campus in May or June of 2012. Does anyone have any advice on flights, getting around while I'm there, or affordable hotels near the campus? Or any general advice at all would be greatly appreciated.

 

[lostbunny]

Yay!! Aussie aussie aussie! oi! oi! oi!

I flew here for about $1800 (one way) with Air Canada in July of 2010. Not sure how much of an independent traveler you are, but I'd suggest trying to find your own flights online (expedia, webjet, etc) to find the cheapest. I called a travel agent to see if he could get me a cheaper rate and he quoted $2000 and said that was the cheapest I could get...

An American friend flew with Virgin and he got it for about $600 which is unbelievably cheap- I still think he lied a bit about this, but do expect anything close to $900-$1000 one way. I haven't yet taken a Virgin flight- but do make sure there is entertainment on board- the flight is upwards of 18-25h depending where you're flying from... so those extra dollars towards the extra comfort of meals included and movies is absolutely worth it! 😀

Getting around in Oz is super easy- in Sydney I got a transit pas for about $53 AUD which gave me unlimited access to bus, train and ferry for 5 days. Check out the transit website for Perth, I'm sure there's something similar.

If you're going to be doing a bit of traveling around Australia, again- cross country transit is really easy. There are Greyhounds and 'backpacker' hop on- hop off buses (ex. oz experience), and xcountry trains (ex.indian pacific) which give you lots more leg room than a bus... and of course flying is always the fastest, fairly cheap and non-environmentally friendly way to travel! Jet Star travels all over the country for reasonable prices.

As for accommodation, I strongly recommend staying at a hostel. Australia is huge on the backpacker culture and there will be numerous hostels around the city. Check out hostelworld.com, with some places if you book online, you get a cheaper rate. Its about $25 AUD per night for a bed - room sizes vary but usually about 4-6 is the norm for a share room. YHA hostels are generally reliable- but are on the pricier end. Base X hostels are everywhere but super backpacker trashy. 😛

Lastly, message sunshinevet if she hasn't seen this already. She'll be able to give you the total low down on city life in Perth!

 

[sunshinevet]

Damn it, i typed a response then my internet connection reset and I lost the lot! DAMN IT DAMN IT DAMN IT!!!

Anyway. YAY your coming to visit Murdoch!!! The campus itself isn't very impressive but don't be put off by that lol!!!

I reckon your best bet is to stay in Fremantle. Fremantle is a 20min bus ride to the campus, and is the tourist hub of perth. Lots of things to see and do, places to eat and drink and shop (avoid the markets though - overpriced tourist traps, no good stuff!!! 😡) and you'll be able to find accomodation for every budget and taste! The bus route is direct (ie, down one road) and not too expensive (I think around a dollar for the journey). The bus also goes every 15min or more often. There is also a train service into the city from fremantle or from near the uni which departs every 15 minutes. So I think public transport here is pretty good.

I think its a shame your coming here in May/June, as you won't be able to enjoy our awesome beaches! 🙁

I find perth an awesome place to live - did you apply again this year jazzmaple? If so fingers crossed 🙂

 

[lostbunny]

Damn it, i typed a response then my internet connection reset and I lost the lot! DAMN IT DAMN IT DAMN IT!!!

telstra?


😉

 

[sunshinevet]

Actually Iinet. But my connection is bad, because its a wireless one and there are extenuating circumstances, lol. So annoying.

Also, lostbunny, are you moving over here for start of uni in feb to do animal science? 🙂

 

[lostbunny]

Actually Iinet. But my connection is bad, because its a wireless one and there are extenuating circumstances, lol. So annoying.

Also, lostbunny, are you moving over here for start of uni in feb to do animal science? 🙂

I'm all over the place... sooo. I'm going to msg you lol.

 

[lostbunny]

jazzmaple,

also wanted to ad (since i'm in the process of figuring out visa stuff for myself 😛) you'll need to get a tourist visa before coming to Australia. Check out the website (www.immi.gov.au) for the visa thats best for you (I think tourist visas can be either 3 or 6 months... thats what it is for Canadians at least). You can do it all online and it literally took 3 hours to get my 'visa acceptance' email.

Feel free to msg if you've got any more questions 🙂

 

[Miss Mustang]

Hi everyone.

This is about the only forum i have read with Murdoch vet studentsi n them. I have been accepted at murdoch and got mostof my subjects exempt from prevet, except for cell biolobgy. The course i took at UQ didnt meet their criteria so next semester i need to only take cell biology. Im curretly in QLDand have never been to murdoch and Perth. I was wondering if the students here could share their experiences in vet at Murdoch...how they like the facilities and teaching there etc 🙂 Ihavent been able to find many student view etc...so was hoping maybe I will hear from u guys 🙂

cant wait to start at murdoch 😀

 

[jazzmaple]

I'm so sorry for the huge delay in my response, I currently have 3 jobs and the slowest computer ever! I had looked a lot into Fremantle as a possible place to live when I applied to Murdoch in 2010 and will keep it mind when planning my visit. I'm weeks away from purchasing my roundtrip plane ticket to Perth! Just have to wait on my tax refund. How safe are the hostels in Perth? It is possible that I will be traveling alone and would think a hotel might be more safe, though much more expensive.

I'm disappointed I will be traveling during your winter and will miss out on the beautiful beaches. However, it seems to be the cheapest time to fly to Australia and if I can love Perth in winter, my least favorite season of the year, then I could love it anytime 🙂 Besides, I live in Florida and we have some pretty amazing beaches ourselves... without all the scary life threatening creatures.

I have not reapplied to Murdoch yet. When I applied in 2010 I had just earned my bachelors degree in Zoology but had next to zero veterinary experience. It was my plan to visit in 2011 and then apply again after making sure that I loved the school and location. But financially, I wasn't ready to make it happen. Now, I have been working my butt off and have tons of experience at an animal hospital and at a spay/neuter clinic.

So now I'm going to make my journey halfway around the world to visit Murdoch and Perth and make sure its right for me. Keeping my fingers crossed because I have been doing nothing but consuming nearly every thought with learning vet med in Australia! I'm so excited and can't wait to buy a plane ticket! Then it will be set and I can plan the other details!

 

[jazzmaple]

Do you happen to know if I'll need a tourist visa for only traveling there for 2-3 weeks?

 

[kakurubird]

Do you happen to know if I'll need a tourist visa for only traveling there for 2-3 weeks?

Americans need an ETA for any tourist visit up to three months which you can apply for online here: http://www.eta.immi.gov.au/index.html

 

[lostbunny]

How safe are the hostels in Perth? It is possible that I will be traveling alone and would think a hotel might be more safe, though much more expensive.

I'm disappointed I will be traveling during your winter and will miss out on the beautiful beaches.

Beaches are still beautiful in the winter!!!

Hostels in Australia are very safe, and traveling around Australia alone as a female is perfectly safe as well! I came to Australia in 2010 on my own, and I hostelled in Brisbane and Sydney, and had no problems whatsoever.

Not sure if you've hostelled before, but the cheapest option is to just pay for a bed, and you'll be in the same room as other travellers. Most hostels have all girls rooms, and generally most of the bigger hostels have lockers in the room itself so you can lock up your passport, laptop and hair straightener lol.

If you want to stay on your own, you can get single rooms I think, but hosteling is way more fun when you meet people- and you'll have buddies to explore the city with!!

So in general, coming to Australia alone is safe- just as long as you take basic no-brainer precautions, like don't take out $500 dollars and flip through it in your wallet, be aware of your surroundings, and don't walk around alone at night. Aussies are really friendly, lovely people!!! 🙂

Do you happen to know if I'll need a tourist visa for only traveling there for 2-3 weeks?

Yes you definately will need a visa. You can do this online, check http://www.immi.gov.au . There are 3 month and 6 month tourist visas, and it doesn't take long to get your visa approved. Every time I've applied for an Aussie visa, I get a response within like 5 hours.

Good luck, and if you need any Aussie travel help, please don't be afraid to ask or message me!! 🙂

ETA:
Generally YHA hostels are a pretty high standard hostel, but they're in the higher range of hostels. You can get a membership (google YHA or youth hostels) and you can get a card that gives you discounts on your stays at any YHA hostel in the world, and also sometimes deals on other things like Greyhounds and stuff. Base X is another popular hostel, but the last one I stayed in was dirty (granted it was an old building transformed into a hostel)- though by booking online with them I saved like $10... and every dollar counts when you're traveling!! 🙂

 

[jazzmaple]

Generally YHA hostels are a pretty high standard hostel, but they're in the higher range of hostels. You can get a membership (google YHA or youth hostels) and you can get a card that gives you discounts on your stays at any YHA hostel in the world 🙂

Hmmm... I'm 30 but feel and look youthful, think I'll still get away with staying at a youth hostel?

Filed my taxes today, should get refund within a week! Then buying my plane ticket ASAP! I can't wait to visit Murdoch!

 

[lostbunny]

Hmmm... I'm 30 but feel and look youthful, think I'll still get away with staying at a youth hostel?

Filed my taxes today, should get refund within a week! Then buying my plane ticket ASAP! I can't wait to visit Murdoch!

its called "Youth Hostel Association" but thats just the name of the 'cooperation' if you will. Its not only for young under 20's lol. Check out hostel.com to get reviews on hostels, or get a Lonely Planet/travel guide- they give pretty good descriptions of places and many many hostels cater to 'mature travellers'. I stayed at a few house-like hostels in New Zealand- basically when it comes to hostelling there are *many* options. If you want to hotel-it, thats cool, but hostelling will save you $$$!! have fun!!

I had a lady, that was about 60+ that was backpacking on her own, staying in my room with 4 other girls. In fact many of the hostels I stayed at had many 30+ people. So hostels aren't just for 'youths'!!

 

[jazzmaple]

its called "Youth Hostel Association" but thats just the name of the 'cooperation' if you will. Its not only for young under 20's lol. Check out hostel.com to get reviews on hostels, or get a Lonely Planet/travel guide- they give pretty good descriptions of places and many many hostels cater to 'mature travellers'. I stayed at a few house-like hostels in New Zealand- basically when it comes to hostelling there are *many* options. If you want to hotel-it, thats cool, but hostelling will save you $$$!! have fun!!

I had a lady, that was about 60+ that was backpacking on her own, staying in my room with 4 other girls. In fact many of the hostels I stayed at had many 30+ people. So hostels aren't just for 'youths'!!

Lol, that's what I figured. Thanks, I will check it out! I looked into hotels in Perth and they are outrageously expensive! One of my jobs is for a hotel and even with the discount it's still way too expensive.

I will probably be traveling sometime during the last week in May or first week or 2 in June. I know it is winter but what is the weather typically like then? I've always heard the winters in Perth are very mild, just wondering so I can plan to pack as light as possible. Thanks again!

 

[lostbunny]

Lol, that's what I figured. Thanks, I will check it out! I looked into hotels in Perth and they are outrageously expensive! One of my jobs is for a hotel and even with the discount it's still way too expensive.

I will probably be traveling sometime during the last week in May or first week or 2 in June. I know it is winter but what is the weather typically like then? I've always heard the winters in Perth are very mild, just wondering so I can plan to pack as light as possible. Thanks again!

Yeah Perth is actually like THE most expensive city in Australia and the reason being is because its so isolated. I mean its a normal city and all, but its all the way in WA and far from the east coast where most of Australians are.

Anyways www.bom.gov.au is the weather/meteorology website. In winter during the day you won't need more then pants and a jumper/hoodie, and at night you might need a light jacket. I checked here: http://www.weatherzone.com.au/climate/station.jsp?lt=site&lc=9225 and it seems like it generally goes down to 9 degrees C (sorry I dont know it in F lol) but thats like in the middle of the night- dead of winter. During the day in the winter it goes up to 20C or so when the sun's out... so winter is pretty warm but thats me comparing to what I know as winter .... a Canadian winter!

May/June I believe is like juuuust getting into winter so you'll be fine with pants and a hoodie I would think!