Need some advice!

[Jshun1234]

Hi, I am new to the forum and I have no idea if it's ok to post this here but here it goes!

Recently I have decided to pursue vet med... so to be clear I will be starting at community college and hopefully move to 4 yr college after 1st year or so. I am located in NYC (queens area) and have been doing alot of research on applying to vet med and getting all the prerequisites done. I see a few problem, first one is that I cannot find any college that has the vet med program in nyc they seems to be all upstate NY or in other state. Second problem is that getting experience working with vet. I have no idea how I can approach this. Would I have to volunteer at local shelter? Clinic? When should I start? And what will I be expected to do when I don't have any back ground education working with animals?

Thank you in advance! =)

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[cowgirla]

The only vet school in NY is Cornell. There are only about 30 schools in the country so most people wind up moving at some point.

If you are looking for a place to complete your undergrad degree, any college will do. It doesn't need to be a degree in "prevet". I'd suggest sticking to SUNY, CUNY, etc to save money.

There are dozens of threads on choosing undergrads and finding experience of you search. There are also many posts about finding experience in greater-NYC area.

 

[Jshun1234]

The only vet school in NY is Cornell. There are only about 30 schools in the country so most people wind up moving at some point.

If you are looking for a place to complete your undergrad degree, any college will do. It doesn't need to be a degree in "prevet". I'd suggest sticking to SUNY, CUNY, etc to save money.

There are dozens of threads on choosing undergrads and finding experience of you search. There are also many posts about finding experience in greater-NYC area.

Thanks for the reply... I did work at front desk at a small vet clinic and when it was busy I used to help the vet with holding the animals, taking weight etc and he was actually kind enough to write me a letter of recommendation and kinda starting point where I decided I wanted to be in that field =) I'm just worried how I should approach getting that experience hours...

 

[Jota93]

Start ASAP with regards to experience. If you have any clinic that is near to you, approach them. Ask if you can speak with the head vet and explain your interest in vet med and why you would like to volunteer at the clinic. Also, branch out. Don't just work at clinics. Look for work involving food animals, wildlife, etc. Nothing better than having an applicant with diverse experiences. If you have an interest in research, you could possibly dive into that later on.

 

[Cubantiger]

Just look up schools in your area, and keep track of their required courses. You don't need a specific degree. I, like most vet students, stuck to Biology as a major. You could be a history major for all they care, just as long as you get those prerequisites in.
As for getting actual experience, the typical path involves volunteering at a clinic, becoming a kennel tech if you like the atmosphere, and then moving up to tech assistant and so on. It's as simple as emailing or calling a practice manager and asking to volunteer. Some practices are pretty chill about it and you just come in to watch. Others may interview you and have you sign waivers due to liabilty issues. It's no biggie, but this experience will be invaluable in your application process.
As said before, take the time to read some of the previous threads. Many good ones are already stickied.
Good luck!

 

[Jshun1234]

Start ASAP with regards to experience. If you have any clinic that is near to you, approach them. Ask if you can speak with the head vet and explain your interest in vet med and why you would like to volunteer at the clinic. Also, branch out. Don't just work at clinics. Look for work involving food animals, wildlife, etc. Nothing better than having an applicant with diverse experiences. If you have an interest in research, you could possibly dive into that later on.

The problem is that right now I have to work to support my family... so I can't start volunteering as of right now... I am assuming volunteering is almost same as working there as part time?

 

[Jota93]

The problem is that right now I have to work to support my family... so I can't start volunteering as of right now... I am assuming volunteering is almost same as working there as part time?

Not necessarily. You could come in on the weekends and work 6-7 hours on a given day. You're not getting paid, so you would be coming in whenever you have the time.

 

[JJ1019]

As for getting actual experience, the typical path involves volunteering at a clinic, becoming a kennel tech if you like the atmosphere, and then moving up to tech assistant and so on. It's as simple as emailing or calling a practice manager and asking to volunteer. Some practices are pretty chill about it and you just come in to watch. Others may interview you and have you sign waivers due to liabilty issues. It's no biggie, but this experience will be invaluable in your application process.

Depending on the state, it's definitely not this simple. I was told I was not allowed to volunteer unless I was getting school credit and had health insurance/worker's comp through the school for the volunteer time. I tried to just walk in and start...no one would take me. I tried for a part time assistant job, no one would take me because I didn't have the experience. No one would let me work for free to get the experience because I didn't have worker's comp coverage...

 

[LyraGardenia]

Depending on the state, it's definitely not this simple. I was told I was not allowed to volunteer unless I was getting school credit and had health insurance/worker's comp through the school for the volunteer time. I tried to just walk in and start...no one would take me. I tried for a part time assistant job, no one would take me because I didn't have the experience. No one would let me work for free to get the experience because I didn't have worker's comp coverage...

Did you try asking to shadow rather than volunteer? Some places aren't willing to take on volunteers for liability reasons, but shadowing implies just standing around observing rather than being hands-on. And even if you start out just watching, once they learn they can trust you they might let you start doing simple things like cleaning up after appointments, and then possibly even offer you a job if something opens up.

 

[JJ1019]

Did you try asking to shadow rather than volunteer? Some places aren't willing to take on volunteers for liability reasons, but shadowing implies just standing around observing rather than being hands-on. And even if you start out just watching, once they learn they can trust you they might let you start doing simple things like cleaning up after appointments, and then possibly even offer you a job if something opens up.

Yeah...no dice. And once I volunteered and shadowed and they could trust me to work hard they still wouldn't hire me because I was applying to school. Rock and a hard place. I got the min hours though and haven't been rejected yet...so we will see how it all works out.

 

[MassDVMMPH]

Shelters are usually looking for volunteers to socialize cats or walk dogs - that would count toward animal hours, if not veterinary hours. Once you've been volunteering for a while, you could ask about helping out the vet who works or donates his/her time there - that's what I did. And volunteering at a shelter shouldn't interfere with any job you have because you can pick the days/times you want to show up. I volunteered at several shelters before I applied to vet school.

 

[MassDVMMPH]

Actually, I didn't even have to ask if I could help out the vet. Once I'd been volunteering at the shelter for a while, one of the shelter workers asked me if I would be interested in helping their vet at their weekly community vaccination clinics - that vet ended up writing one of my recommendation letters.

 

[TheGirlWithTheFernTattoo]

Yeah...no dice. And once I volunteered and shadowed and they could trust me to work hard they still wouldn't hire me because I was applying to school. Rock and a hard place. I got the min hours though and haven't been rejected yet...so we will see how it all works out.

Just keep trying, every now and them go back and reapply to places you never heard back from. I spent a loonng time applying to multiple clinics in my area, several times each if I never heard back. Eventually one of them offered me a job out of the blue when I hadn't gotten a word back from them in the two years I'd been applying (Applied 3 times). Persistence pays off, just don't give up

As a side note: 1) Since you have clinical experience clinics would have a wayyyyy higher chance to hire you. The first one is always the hardest.
2) It is hard because you are in school-If they think they would only have you for a few months they might want to get someone with a longer time frame. I was definitely asked in interviews how long I was still going to be in town for. Going back to what I said, try other clinics? And you could just try and talk with someone at your current clinic and put it all down on the table. How you would benefit them, Why you want a job, and how this job would help you with vet school. I am assuming if you did not get in this year you would still continue working there until the next application cycle? I would recommend telling them that.

 

[JJ1019]

Just keep trying, every now and them go back and reapply to places you never heard back from. I spent a loonng time applying to multiple clinics in my area, several times each if I never heard back. Eventually one of them offered me a job out of the blue when I hadn't gotten a word back from them in the two years I'd been applying (Applied 3 times). Persistence pays off, just don't give up

As a side note: 1) Since you have clinical experience clinics would have a wayyyyy higher chance to hire you. The first one is always the hardest.
2) It is hard because you are in school-If they think they would only have you for a few months they might want to get someone with a longer time frame. I was definitely asked in interviews how long I was still going to be in town for. Going back to what I said, try other clinics? And you could just try and talk with someone at your current clinic and put it all down on the table. How you would benefit them, Why you want a job, and how this job would help you with vet school. I am assuming if you did not get in this year you would still continue working there until the next application cycle? I would recommend telling them that.

I'm a non-traditional and have a job that pays waaaaay better than being a vet assistant. I'm working that job and saving money until I hear a "no" from my school due to lack of experience. If that's the case then yes, I'll take the $ hit and go get a job in a clinic until I get in so I can raise my hours. I realize being away from animals while I wait isn't great but the pay and benefits are worth the sacrifice. My GPA and GRE were good and I had experience in small animals, exotics, and occasional wildlife and equine. Time will tell. Thanks for your advice.

 

[TheGirlWithTheFernTattoo]

I'm a non-traditional and have a job that pays waaaaay better than being a vet assistant. I'm working that job and saving money until I hear a "no" from my school due to lack of experience. If that's the case then yes, I'll take the $ hit and go get a job in a clinic until I get in so I can raise my hours. I realize being away from animals while I wait isn't great but the pay and benefits are worth the sacrifice. My GPA and GRE were good and I had experience in small animals, exotics, and occasional wildlife and equine. Time will tell. Thanks for your advice.

Sounds like you are all set. Good luck!