Post Bac Pre-Med Programs for Vet School Prerequisites

[713698]

Hi all,

I apologize if my questions may have been repetitive to others who may already have posted something similar, but I hope some of you can share your thoughts.

My Background:
I got my Bachelor's Degree in Applied Computer Science from Illinois State University in December 1999 with a cumulative GPA 3.24 and a major GPA 3.2. I worked in the Information Technology field in Chicago and NYC serving the Health Care and Commercial Banking businesses since my graduation. Two months ago, I finally had had enough of IT and decided to pursue my dream to become a vet. I started volunteering in a city-run animal shelter since. I am ready to move out of NYC as long as my next destination will give me a better shot to get into vet schools. I am even willing to relocate to a place where it can give me a better chance to get into vet school.

Questions:
1. Do vet schools only consider applicants who complete a formal post bac pre-med program? Can people apply for vet schools after they complete all the Math and Science prerequisites in schools that do not offer post bac pre-med programs?

2. What post bac pre-med/pre-vet programs have a good reputation and a high acceptance rate to vet school?

3. Are there any respected post bac pre-med programs in NYC area, other than the one by Columbia? Any successful stories from those who finished post bac pre-med in NYC and entered vet schools?

4. What is your opinion of completing post bac pre-med prerequisites in one of the VMCAS schools and then apply for vet school?

Your advice is truly appreciated!

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[pinkpuppy9]

Hi all,

I apologize if my questions may have been repetitive to others who may already have posted something similar, but I hope some of you can share your thoughts.

My Background:
I got my Bachelor's Degree in Applied Computer Science from Illinois State University in December 1999 with a cumulative GPA 3.24 and a major GPA 3.2. I worked in the Information Technology field in Chicago and NYC serving the Health Care and Commercial Banking businesses since my graduation. Two months ago, I finally had had enough of IT and decided to pursue my dream to become a vet. I started volunteering in a city-run animal shelter since. I am ready to move out of NYC as long as my destination will give me a better shot to get into vet schools. I am even willing to relocate to a place where it can give me a better chance to get into vet school.

Questions:
1. Do vet schools only consider applicants who complete a formal post bac pre-med program? Can people apply for vet schools after they complete all the Math and Science prerequisites in schools that do not offer post bac pre-med programs?

2. What post bac pre-med/pre-vet programs have a good reputation and a high acceptance rate to vet school?

3. Are there any respected post bac pre-med programs in NYC area, other than the one by Columbia? Any successful stories from those who finished post bac pre-med in NYC and entered vet schools?

4. What is your opinion of completing post bac pre-med prerequisites in one of the VMCAS schools and then apply for vet school?

Your advice is truly appreciated!

Hi! Welcome to SDN.

1. For the vast majority of schools, you can apply with only the pre-reqs completed and no degree, so I'd say no, you do not need a formal post-bac program. Edit: you already have a Bachelor's degree, so you'd qualify for any schools that require one. Your degree can be in any major you so choose.
2. Go to whichever school will be cheapest for you. No one school necessarily has a higher rate of acceptance over another, there's a number of factors that would go into that data that kind of make it impossible to truly compare schools. You get accepted by doing well in the classes you take, regardless of which school you choose to take them at. Caveat: most schools require your upper level pre-reqs (biochem, genetics, etc.) to be taken at a 4 year university, so watch out for that. Some schools do look at 'curriculum rigor,' but it's typically not a huge part of the admissions process. The schools that do this will mention so on their websites.
3. No answer for this.
4. Again, I suggest you do your pre-reqs wherever you can do it cheaply. That could mean a community college near you. The benefit of taking classes at a VMCAS school is having more access to the pre-veterinary advisers, but the same advisers are typically available to anyone via email.

 

[dyachei]

Questions:
1. Do vet schools only consider applicants who complete a formal post bac pre-med program? Can people apply for vet schools after they complete all the Math and Science prerequisites in schools that do not offer post bac pre-med programs?

2. What post bac pre-med/pre-vet programs have a good reputation and a high acceptance rate to vet school?

3. Are there any respected post bac pre-med programs in NYC area, other than the one by Columbia? Any successful stories from those who finished post bac pre-med in NYC and entered vet schools?

4. What is your opinion of completing post bac pre-med prerequisites in one of the VMCAS schools and then apply for vet school?

1. Some schools require degrees. Check with the schools you want to apply to before forgoing that option. Most don't

2. It doesn't really matter.

3. Some of the schools have post bac pre-vet programs but it really isn't as popular as it is with human med.

4. Go for it. Complete pre-reqs wherever you can and get good grades.

 

[CalliopeDVM]

Questions:
1. Do vet schools only consider applicants who complete a formal post bac pre-med program? Can people apply for vet schools after they complete all the Math and Science prerequisites in schools that do not offer post bac pre-med programs?

2. What post bac pre-med/pre-vet programs have a good reputation and a high acceptance rate to vet school?

3. Are there any respected post bac pre-med programs in NYC area, other than the one by Columbia? Any successful stories from those who finished post bac pre-med in NYC and entered vet schools?

4. What is your opinion of completing post bac pre-med prerequisites in one of the VMCAS schools and then apply for vet school?

Your advice is truly appreciated!

1. A pre-med or pre-vet program isn't required. Many other countries don't even have such programs, and their students are still eligible to go to US vet schools. You may or may not need a Bachelor's, but you already have a degree, so that's a moot point.

2. It doesn't matter where you go, as long as the courses are acceptable academically (check with the school), and you get good marks. There isn't a school reputation that increases your chances of getting in, so go to wherever it will be cheapest for you. (The cost savings will make a huge difference in a very costly process. I had a Bachelor's degree previously to returning to school to get my pre-reqs for vet school; I never actually completed a B.Sc, let alone in a pre-med or pre-vet program.

3. n/c

4. See my answer to point 2. Go wherever it is cheapest (including living costs, etc). The only exception might be if it will affect your in-state status to a less expensive university.

 

[missdarjeeling]

2. What post bac pre-med/pre-vet programs have a good reputation and a high acceptance rate to vet school?

I don't know about acceptance rates at all. As far as reputation goes, Bryn Mawr's post-bac pre-med program is one of the best. I looked into it a long time ago, and although they say it's meant for any pre-health student, it really only works for people who are solidly pre-med. It only had the bare bones basic courses you need for med school, and the vet schools I was interested in required more coursework, like microbiology, genetics, etc., so I would've had to go somewhere else to take extra classes anyway. I had also looked into the Rutgers post bac programs, particularly the one in Newark, and it was the same story. They'd have you do biology, general chem, organic chem, and physics, but that was basically it. The program didn't allow for extra classes. I recall it being pretty much the same at Columbia, too.

The bottom line is that it's likely not worth your while to do a formal post-bac program. Most of them are geared towards pre-med, so it's possible you'll be missing courses that the schools you're interested in require. And they're very expensive. A few years back, Bryn Mawr's program was over $20k, and that didn't cover all the courses I would've needed. I got all my prereqs, including a couple of classes beyond what Bryn Mawr would've offered, for much less by simply going to a state school as a second degree student in biology. Since you already have a degree, it'd be to your benefit to keep tuition costs as low as possible. I'd take a look at what schools you might be interested in and find out how they feel about second degree students taking classes at community colleges.