Post-mortem reflections

[MonieBalonie]

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On to round 2 for me! I’ve been through several application reviews so far and I keep hearing similar remarks like how I am a “bubble applicant” and everything looks great, apparently just not great enough.

The thing is no one can really give me a major weakness or downfall that I can work on for this next application season. Which is so frustrating. Since I have mostly research experience some schools say I should get more classic clinical time in. Some schools suggest looking into a masters to bring up my GPA (it is average for accepted students). Some have suggested re-taking the GRE (1310). It’s all very scattered advice. I interviewed at 2 schools which resulted in one rejection and one waitlist (I’ve been telling people my interviewing skills are about as good as Sarah Palin’s). So that is the thing I need to work on for those schools but until then I’m wondering what the best thing to do is.

Is anyone hearing similar sentiments or been through this before?

 

[Willowhand]

I haven't been in that situation (I am applying for the first time now), but from my other application experiences and what others have said, I would suggest making sure that there are things about you that really stand out. It sounds as though you're competitive enough to reach the interview stage, so at that point I would be more concerned with showing them personal attributes and interesting individuality -more than what's on paper, as interviews are meant for. If you haven't already, maybe try getting some vet/animal experience in a non-traditional environment, something that is meaningful to you. Then you will not only have that to bulk up your experience on paper, you should also end up with something that is easy for you to discuss enthusiastically and engage the interviewer with.

Just my two cents. Good luck on this round of apps!

 

[katryn]

My best advice is to sit down and have a serious self evaluation session. I'll be onto round 3....the first time I did not do a post-mortem interview, this time I did. Basically, Dean Brace started by asking me what I though I did wrong. Most of what I felt I did wrong or that I could improve on was not exactly mentioned by my interviewers, but he said that if I improved on any or all of the things I felt were my own weaknesses, that I would have a much better shot at getting in. And I feel you on not getting any clear comments. The only clear beatdown I got from my interviewers was that I didn't have a "clear grasp of real life demands on veterinarians." ....What?! Essentially, I opened my big fat mouth without a plan on what to say or not say and it came out...well, garbled is a polite pc word for it.

 

[TrocarKarin]

Maybe consider re-writing your personal statement? If your stats are good, that could be what's holding you back.

 

[bunnity]

Is applying to more schools a possibility? From the successful applicants thread it seems like even really competitive applicants get rejections from some schools - maybe just a broader range of schools would help.
Good luck this year!!

 

[Pandacinny]

Maybe working on your interview skills would help, too. Your undergrad should have a career counseling center where they can give you tips or even do mock interviews. You can also take some public speaking courses or join a public speaking club. I improved my interview skills by writing up a ton of questions on notecards and passing them out to coworkers, friends, and family who would spring questions on me when I didn't expect it. It really helped!

Beyond that, it sounds like you could diversify your experience a little if it's mostly one thing. Research is great, but it wouldn't hurt to add in some more traditional stuff. I think it helps adcoms to see that you've really been working hard on improvement in the year since they've denied you.

 

[susiewaits]

I would suggest applying to those schools as well as some you may have not considered before. I was also a bubble applicant after my first round. According my post mortem (where I was waitlisted), I had decent grades (3.45), decent GRE (1300) and a good amount of experience. They suggested getting more experience so I quit my lab job, got a SA vet assistant job. This year that same school waitlisted me again! But I got into two other great schools that I hadn't even considered in round one of my applications.

 

[sumstorm]

I haven't been through it, but just some thoughts:

If you think you can improve your GRE, do so. If you worked hard for this score, then don't mess with the time and effort it would take.

You might ask for a breakdown on the GPA's accepted....averages are pretty deceptive. You might have people in there with 1 horrible (but excusable) semester that brought their GPA down, lowering the average for the school...or it could be the opposite with a few exceptional GPA's ratcheting it up. If the schools you are interested in will give you a breakdown, you might find that more informative (especially if the breakdown is even more detailed on last 45, science, pre-req, etc.)

Also, might ask for a break down on accepted applicants experience and ask what they consider as breadth and depth.

Is there an aspect of vet med that you are really into? Is there any way to deepen that? It is often easier to talk about the future and your position in the field if there is really something you envision yourself doing. Once you have that, it may be easier to find what will make you stand out as the ideal candidate to learn to do that aspect.

You mentioned research...is your interest research? If so, is there a potential that the vet schools think you would be a more appropriate PhD? I do know a few students have heard 'if that is what you want to do, you should just get the PhD and leave the DVM for someone who wants to practice X.' (please note, not my personal opinion, just something to consider.)

 

[Caninerepro]

I agree with what has been said already, although it is hard to read everyones individual cases, and you didn't give a whole lot of info on you. Your GRE score is just fine. You will find some with slightly higher ones (admittedly myself included) and far far more with lower scores. Who cares, some people are just better standardized test takers than others. I assume you got at least a 4.5 on the written, that does seem to be a cutoff from most schools. How low is your gpa -- under a 3.5 say? Hey mine was a 3.4, so I did a quick MS and had a 4.0 in grad school to be the last thing the comittees saw. How diverse is your clinical experience? That from what I hear is a biggie. it does not have to be 1000 hours in each LA/SA/Wildlife, rt. But if you have even 100 hours in each that is fine, and maybe 1000 in your chosen area of focus. Be fun. and be unusual. The sparkly penny gets picked up. The committees see 1000 applications for 80-120 slots -- how are they going to notice little old you? I also agree, mass applications are the way to go -- how bad do you really want to go to vet school, and how much are you willing to sacrifice (hey i am having to live in the Great White North for four years, but I DO get to go to vet school). I do think it is somewhat random sometimes who gets picked. Me, the first three school I applied to, including my instate, and my in essense home state school, were all rejections. Then the acceptances started rolling in, including from the only school ranked above my instate in the listings. So, apply to many schools, keep trying, and have a killer resume/personal statement. Sounds like you are OK on academics. Good luck and cheers! 👍

 

[MonieBalonie]

Thanks for all the advice guys. I’m really trying to figure out how I can make my application stand out. I’m rewriting my personal statement and definitely working on those pesky interview skills. I downloaded an interview-helping software program offered through the career resource center at my school. It seems so cheesy but I think anything will help 🙄. I won’t be doing research next year but instead trying to gain experience in areas some places think I am lacking, while also focusing on my interest.

I am considering re-taking the GRE because my verbal score didn’t reflect my practice exams, but then again my quantitative was higher on the real test. Hmm…decisions decisions. Some schools take the highest sections. I’m trying to avoid getting a masters so I don’t have to pay for expensive classes. My GPA was 3.69 on the application.

Eventually I want to go in the direction of wildlife/marine/international med. As for my experience at the time of my application, I had 500 hours of research experience towards an honors thesis in manatee endocrinology, about 600 hours total from several wildlife rehabilitation centers and hospitals, only 80 small animal and an abysmal 20 hours large animal (foal unit). Some schools told me they pretty much require 300-400 clinical hours which I don’t have, so that solves that problem.

 

[sumstorm]

Eventually I want to go in the direction of wildlife/marine/international med. As for my experience at the time of my application, I had 500 hours of research experience towards an honors thesis in manatee endocrinology, about 600 hours total from several wildlife rehabilitation centers and hospitals, only 80 small animal and an abysmal 20 hours large animal (foal unit). Some schools told me they pretty much require 300-400 clinical hours which I don’t have, so that solves that problem.

Were the 600 hours vet experience or animal experience? If they were animal...might try the same areas but under a vet, then obviously see if you can't tag in at least 100 hours of SA and LA, or mixed, or...?

 

[nyanko]

You mentioned research...is your interest research? If so, is there a potential that the vet schools think you would be a more appropriate PhD? I do know a few students have heard 'if that is what you want to do, you should just get the PhD and leave the DVM for someone who wants to practice X.' (please note, not my personal opinion, just something to consider.)

Tell me what schools do this so I can avoid them at all costs please. 😳

 

[sumstorm]

Tell me what schools do this so I can avoid them at all costs please. 😳

I think part of it is presenting a case of WHY a dvm is more advantageous than a PhD to the research you are interested in. I was cautioned on this for NCSU, Purdue, and for LSU when I was looking at it a few years ago. Of cousre, adcoms/processes change all the time!