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Smashley224

Smashley224

OSU CVM Class of 2014
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Anyone else having a hard time answering these questions??? This was one of my weak points last cycle as I guess I did not put in enough coping skills or behaviors. I am trying to this time around, but it seems like I don't have many amazing stories to tell. I am also having a hard time writing about a time I failed to show integrity. AAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!!!
 
Yeah, I've been having the same problem. I'm only 25 years old, and I'm supposed to answer all of these deep soul-probing questions in 500 words or less?? It's a struggle. They didn't like any of my answers last year either, so it's doubly hard having to come up with all new material.

Ugh.
 
Yup, had the same problem also. For the integrity question I put:

"We all tell little white lies....and in that way I fail to show integrity" [/lame]
 
One thing I consistently did with all my answers was word them in a way that showed positive characteristics or what positive things I learned from all negative experiences. I'm not sure I would say "I tell white lies". The adcoms could take that to mean you may not own up to medical mistakes in the future. Is there anything non-job related that you can think of that you could use to show how you've learned or grown from the experience? Everyone was a teenager at some point, there must be something there that you can dig up and use. Don't feel like you need to find work related experiences, you can use anything from any point of your life, they want to know what you're like as an overall person, not just a kennel assistant/vet tech/volunteer etc...
 
Thanks for the advice, CatVet! I will keep that in mind!
 
Hey, I think you guys are lucky this year! I hear you have access to the supplemental right from the very beginning. Last year the supplemental was emailed to us after submitting the VMCAS, and we had only ten days to complete it. I remember that school had already started, so I had very little time to complete it and was 😱.

Curiosity got the better of me, so I tried to see if I could log in and see my answers from last year. Turns out I can!

I agree with CatVet on soul-searching from your entire life. Only two of my answers were related directly to working in veterinary medicine, and one discussed a time between high school and undergrad. I remember that I read the questions to some people close to me, and they were able to remind me of times in my life that they witnessed me struggle and grow as a person. Incidents I hadn't even thought of, but that ended up being great writing subjects. Perhaps gathering some outside perspectives could help?

Good luck! :luck:
 
I remember that supplemental app as being quite difficult to complete in 10 days because - reveived mine around mid september and school was getting more involved around that time. Not to mention that you only had ten days to complete it. Trying to say what you want in 500 words was/is not easy, especially cause you can probably say so much about that question. My shortest question was 498 words with the other 3 being exactly 500. My only words of advice would be to answer them as truthfully and as concise as possible. Also have someone else read them over and see what they think. After starring at the same question and answer you wrote, it is hard to see any mistakes or anything that doesn't sound quite right.

Goodluck to all of you.
 
Thanks, Karmapple! That is what I've been attempting to do. This is my 2nd time applying so I feel ya when we were given only 10 days to complete the questions and during the school year. I hope to get in this round, so I am really trying to make my answers good! Thanks for the luck! Hope your first year is great!
 
karmapple said:
Hey, I think you guys are lucky this year! I hear you have access to the supplemental right from the very beginning. Last year the supplemental was emailed to us after submitting the VMCAS, and we had only ten days to complete it. I remember that school had already started, so I had very little time to complete it and was 😱.

Curiosity got the better of me, so I tried to see if I could log in and see my answers from last year. Turns out I can!

Good luck! :luck:
Click to expand...

Wait do you mean that we can start the supplemental before submitting the VMCAS?? Or do you mean that we can start it right away after submitting the VMCAS (instead of having to wait like last year)
 
You can do the supplemental right now. I haven't submitted my VMCAS and am done with mine, just haven't submitted it.

One thing I consistently did with all my answers was word them in a way that showed positive characteristics or what positive things I learned from all negative experiences. I'm not sure I would say "I tell white lies".
Click to expand...

Well I put 'white lies in order not to hurt a friend's feelings' and was assuming they'd realize what I was talking about.

Suppose I'll try to come up with something better though. But I really don't know of any other time when I just blatantly lie to people/go against morality. Or nothing I'd want to tell the adcoms, at least lol.
 
wow I am glad I read this topic... I would have never known they changed the supp application procedure and that it is due Oct. 1st otherwise ahhh stress 😱😱
 
Anyone know what they mean by this:
Respond to each question below in the space provided, but limit each response to 500 words. Please do not add formatting characters or extra lines to your responses. You may input directly into the text box or cut and paste text.
Click to expand...
Do they want NO extra lines at all, as in just one big block of text, or they just don't want 3 blank lines for separation when 1 would suffice?
 
"I applied last year. Do I need to resubmit a new application?

Yes. While we do keep applications on file for one year, reapplicants are required to submit new letters of recommendation. Reapplicants are welcome to use the same references from the previous application, however, the evaluations and letters must be new. Additionally, reapplicants are required to submit updated transcripts only."

That was from OSU's Admissions FAQ page of their website. When it says reapplicants are only required to resubmit updated transcripts does this mean reapplicants do not need to resubmit the supplemental app? That doesn't seem right so I figured it wouldn't hurt to ask.
 
HopefulAg, I took that to mean don't skip any lines at all. To differentiate between paragraphs I just indented a few spaces.
 
Hmm...I guess I'll do that then.

Wonder if the formatting messes up their printers or if they're just testing reading comprehension....the OCD in me reels at no formatting though.
 
HopefulAg said:
You can do the supplemental right now. I haven't submitted my VMCAS and am done with mine, just haven't submitted it.



Well I put 'white lies in order not to hurt a friend's feelings' and was assuming they'd realize what I was talking about.

Suppose I'll try to come up with something better though. But I really don't know of any other time when I just blatantly lie to people/go against morality. Or nothing I'd want to tell the adcoms, at least lol.
Click to expand...

Maybe write about something you did when you were very young and "didnt know any better". make it into some cute little story about a mischievous youngster learning the ways of morality.
 
Maybe write about something you did when you were very young and "didnt know any better". make it into some cute little story about a mischievous youngster learning the ways of morality.
Click to expand...

Actually, that's exactly what I did.
 
Has anyone noticed that they ask for the "last" time you had to make a decision...blah, blah, blah. I was almost done with my response before I noticed this, and I had written on something from 8 years ago. So now I am thinking it has to be recent.
I am thinking of when I moved to go back to school to take my prereques, but that is pretty lame and boring.
Any suggestions?
 
squibby said:
Has anyone noticed that they ask for the "last" time you had to make a decision...blah, blah, blah. I was almost done with my response before I noticed this, and I had written on something from 8 years ago. So now I am thinking it has to be recent.
I am thinking of when I moved to go back to school to take my prereques, but that is pretty lame and boring.
Any suggestions?
Click to expand...

Maybe about the time you fell in love with a married man/woman and you had to make a decision? 😛 Man... that would totally answer every sub-question of that prompt.
 
For the last question did y'all put one experience where you showed all characteristics you listed or a different situation for each? I did a different experience for each, but the wording of the question makes me question myself.

These last two questions are kicking my butt! I finished all the others over a month ago. The last question is the only one that I came any where close to 500 words! All my other answers are 250-350 words. I feel like I need to add to them!! I don't have a great amount of detail in my answer but feel the question is answered sufficiently.

(I think my brain is fried from my PS!)
 
Wow, I'm glad I read this. I too was waiting to submit my VMCAS before starting the OSU supplemental because their instructions indicated you could not begin it until the VMCAS was submitted. Time to start writing!
 
I just submitted my OSU supplemental! What a relief! Those questions were really hard. I had a range of lengths. One and five were both really close to the 500 words.
For the integrity question, i included an example where I didn't listen to exactly what the veterinarian I work for asked me to. It was small, but one of those situations where you're mad at yourself after it happens. i think it applies well because I think of integrity as staying true to your conscience... making sure that you do not just "what's right" but what lets you sleep at night.
The writing center at my school reminded me that with so little space it's important to JUST answer the question and not elaborate too much or go on tangents b/c they wouldn't have provided such a staunch limit w/o the intention of the essays being short. Good luck everyone!!!!
 
Smileystar5 said:
I just submitted my OSU supplemental! What a relief! Those questions were really hard. I had a range of lengths. One and five were both really close to the 500 words.
For the integrity question, i included an example where I didn't listen to exactly what the veterinarian I work for asked me to. It was small, but one of those situations where you're mad at yourself after it happens. i think it applies well because I think of integrity as staying true to your conscience... making sure that you do not just "what's right" but what lets you sleep at night.
The writing center at my school reminded me that with so little space it's important to JUST answer the question and not elaborate too much or go on tangents b/c they wouldn't have provided such a staunch limit w/o the intention of the essays being short. Good luck everyone!!!!
Click to expand...
As painful as reading dozens to hundreds of personal statements must be (sorry, I even hate reading my own), I can't imagine having to read all of those extra essays if they let people ramble on and on. :bang:
 
eventualeventer said:
As painful as reading dozens to hundreds of personal statements must be (sorry, I even hate reading my own), I can't imagine having to read all of those extra essays if they let people ramble on and on. :bang:
Click to expand...

i'm convinced that as time goes on, if they are bored after the first few sentences they probably don't continue reading it. 😀
 
Ok so even though the VMCAS app isn't due until the 2nd OSU says their supp app is due the 1st. Does anyone know if this is also noon on the 1st (like VMCAS) or is it anytime before the 2nd? ahhhh i am so stressed
 
I'm sitting here trying to finish my Ohio essays and they're driving me crazy!! Especially the last two. Trying to be creative and write interesting essays in 500 words or less? It's hard!

Also, it's making me feel like my life has been boring as hell because I can't think of really interesting examples for most of these. I'm falling back on stories that I think are probably pretty cliched.

Although for the "failed to demonstrate integrity" part, I told a story of when I was 7 and decided that I really wanted the My Little Pony I was supposed to give my best friend for her birthday so I hid it under my swingset and then got caught. heh. It makes for an entertaining story. And is still pretty relevant to my life as my family never fails to bring it up whenever I need to be a little more humble. 🙂

Ok, back to writing. I just had to post and say these essays are stressing me out. Probably shouldn't have waited until today to finish them, I know.
 
I too am struggling with the integrity essay. I feel your pain. I'm glad I'm not the only one left cramming my essay writing into a very long and painful night!
 
Yes, the OSU supplemental has caused me much stress in the last week. Ultimately I just picked an example for each question and tried to right it well. There's only so long you can agonize over the possibilities. Good luck to everybody out there struggling on it. Plenty of hours left.
 
smm482 said:
I too am struggling with the integrity essay. I feel your pain. I'm glad I'm not the only one left cramming my essay writing into a very long and painful night!
Click to expand...


I am cramming away indeed, haha. But I have found the pressure is quite motivating and also helps with the creative juices.

Quick question to you all in regards to the integrity question. I wrote about when I posted photos from a work christmas party that definitely should not have been posted, I'm not talking nudity, but definitely lots of alcohol, random poses and a penis necklace (necklace is not specifically listed in my answer). I quickly took them down once I really thought it through and learned my lesson, plus there were grumblings at work. But do you think this is too revealing. That instead of them seeing me learning from my mistakes they will just see a complete and utter lack of professionalism? I want to be honest and put myself out there, but I don't want to put myself out of the running either.
 
Chill1818, I would not use the posting photos online thing.

Last year I talked to OSU for my post-mortem and they said that it is important to think about the age of your audience-- which I imagined to be the 50ish equine vet who interviewed me.

Thinking about what would appeal to that sort of audience helped me. Also thinking about talking to my dad or my boss about what I wrote.

I don't think this essay would appeal to this audience, even though you did learn something.. it just seems scary to me!! :scared:
 
Leave Facebook out of it. Maybe they don't even know about social networking sites (however oblivious you can possibly be in this day and age) and then they would wonder where on earth you posted pictures, etc... sophie is right in pointing out that it's sort of an age-specific response that might not be in your favor.

Can you think of anything else?
 
Yea, my gut was telling me I shouldn't go that direction, but it was the first thing that popped into my head. At the moment, I'm still struggling with finding an appropriate example. Hopefully something come to me, very very very soon 😛 Thank you for input.
 
I went with something that happened when I was on the debate team in high school- going more on the idea of being consistent or not hypocritical in your actions. I think Smileystar5 said something about that same idea of integrity. What you did may not have been "morally wrong" but you felt hypocritical.

I liked this question-- can you tell I have my undergrad in philosophy? (among other things)
 
Little bit of a random question. I understand the supp needs to be submitted today (I'm very much over these questions) and it says not to submit until after VMCAS, but out of curiosity does anyone know how they determine when you actually submit your VMCAS first? When Ohio receives it, is it time stamped or something?
 
Did anyone else have trouble saying what they wanted to in 500 words for the 5th question about characteristics that make a successful vet? I have long since finished all the other essays but am torturing myself trying to make this 5th essay stronger. How many characteristics did you guys list and discuss?
 
Maybe this wasn't the right thing, but I listed a couple and then talked about an experience where I learned to show one of the characteristics. I figure in 500 words it's possible to show a concrete example but it's difficult to really get into all of the things that make a good vet AND give an example where you showed a characteristic and one where you didn't.
 
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Have no idea if I am doing this right, but I listed characteristics I thought were important and then focused on 2-3 that I think are most imporant and incorporated them into a story.

In terms of the deadline, was time zone are we talking about? I'm currently assuming Eastern Standard time.
 
Hmm...wonder if it's a problem to submit before the VMCAS. I never even saw the bit about the VMCAS since a link put me directly on the login page.
 
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