- Joined
- Dec 1, 2012
- Messages
- 18
- Reaction score
- 27
Hi Everybody!
I have a fun story: I was a multiple-liberal-arts major, moved across the country and got an M.S. in Psych, realized that wasn't for me, worked at a software firm for a year to gain residency (for tuition purposes) in my state, and now I'm going back to school to get all the post-baccing done for pre-vet!
This is going to be HARD.
Like, super crazy. I have from January to application time to get a lot of hard science done. Call me crackers, but I'm DOING IT. Full time. On loans. It's gonna be a rough 9-10 months.
And what I need during that time is to get actual veterinary experience, as much as possible.
(I have loads of animal experience, mostly equine, but plenty with other animals too--I just hear that I need hours with actual vets before application season, and I have none of that.)
Question one: Does volunteering at a wildlife center count as vet experience? Volunteers do help out with simple procedures on sick/injured animals (sub-q, euth, intake exams, med administration, etc), so it seems very vet-y to me, definitely not your typical animal experience, but we are not under direct supervision of a vet. So where will this go on my apps?
Question two: I know I need clinic hours, but my class schedule is going to be wacky. Do you all have any thoughts on how to work around that? I can't find any vets who work on the weekend in my immediate area. Would an emergency facility allow shadowing on nights/weekends?
Question three: What kind of work in the clinic is preferred in the admissions process--i.e., what will get the biggest "bang for the buck," veterinary volunteering-wise? Surgery shadowing? Client visits? Do they even let you participate in client visits usually? (More generally: What to expect?)
Question four: What's the best way to approach vets that don't already know you for such opportunties? (e.g., my vet cats' vet isn't available for shadowing during times I would be available, so I would have to look elsewhere in the community)
Question five: What would you ballpark as a reasonable number of documented vet experience hours for applying to a good vet school? (Let's say, for the sake of this example, that your GRE scores and grades and such are fine and dandy, and that you've got animal experience, shelter experience, etc)
Thanks so much, folks. Really excited for this paradigm shift in my life. I'm going to do what I always WANTED to do! What I'm good at! What I'm thrilled by!
Huzzah!
I just have to...get there.
I have a fun story: I was a multiple-liberal-arts major, moved across the country and got an M.S. in Psych, realized that wasn't for me, worked at a software firm for a year to gain residency (for tuition purposes) in my state, and now I'm going back to school to get all the post-baccing done for pre-vet!
This is going to be HARD.
Like, super crazy. I have from January to application time to get a lot of hard science done. Call me crackers, but I'm DOING IT. Full time. On loans. It's gonna be a rough 9-10 months.
And what I need during that time is to get actual veterinary experience, as much as possible.
(I have loads of animal experience, mostly equine, but plenty with other animals too--I just hear that I need hours with actual vets before application season, and I have none of that.)
Question one: Does volunteering at a wildlife center count as vet experience? Volunteers do help out with simple procedures on sick/injured animals (sub-q, euth, intake exams, med administration, etc), so it seems very vet-y to me, definitely not your typical animal experience, but we are not under direct supervision of a vet. So where will this go on my apps?
Question two: I know I need clinic hours, but my class schedule is going to be wacky. Do you all have any thoughts on how to work around that? I can't find any vets who work on the weekend in my immediate area. Would an emergency facility allow shadowing on nights/weekends?
Question three: What kind of work in the clinic is preferred in the admissions process--i.e., what will get the biggest "bang for the buck," veterinary volunteering-wise? Surgery shadowing? Client visits? Do they even let you participate in client visits usually? (More generally: What to expect?)
Question four: What's the best way to approach vets that don't already know you for such opportunties? (e.g., my vet cats' vet isn't available for shadowing during times I would be available, so I would have to look elsewhere in the community)
Question five: What would you ballpark as a reasonable number of documented vet experience hours for applying to a good vet school? (Let's say, for the sake of this example, that your GRE scores and grades and such are fine and dandy, and that you've got animal experience, shelter experience, etc)
Thanks so much, folks. Really excited for this paradigm shift in my life. I'm going to do what I always WANTED to do! What I'm good at! What I'm thrilled by!
Huzzah!
I just have to...get there.