Question about pre-reqs

[Gurame21]

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Hey everyone,
I guess I'll start by saying I'm somewhat new to the veterinary world. For the first three years of my undergraduate degree, I was interested in human medicine. I went to a collegiate high school that allowed me to earn my Associate's while earning my diploma. I HIGHLY regret this decision because at the time, I was 16-18 and no where near mature enough to handle college classes and ended up not doing well (B and C level) in a fair amount of my science classes. Now 19, I can only wish that I started college now as I am far more mature and clear on what my goals are and the work that they require. With that idea, I decided that human medicine is just not for me and would much rather care for animals medically than humans. My parents, who thought I wasn't going to be happy as a human doctor, have fully endorsed my decision, saying that it's something they always thought I'd end up doing. Since making that decision, my grades began to skyrocket. I can happily say i've made A's in all my organic, genetics, biochemistry, anatomy, and microbiology classes. In addition to this, while I struggled to find shadowing/volunteering opportunities in human medicine, I've literally had veterinary opportunities flying at me since making my decision. I just became a veterinary assistant at the county animal shelter and will be getting a certification to give rabies vaccines and place microchips in September. All in all, things are going well. My only concern is that I am an exercise physiology major. By the time I made the decision that I wanted to be a veterinarian, I was too far along in my major to realistically consider a switch to something more animal oriented. So my question is, which animal classes should I try slipping into my curriculum so that I at least have some academic experience in zoological classes? I'm working with a limited amount of time here so I can probably only fit in 2 or 3 of the most "important" classes in my already bustling schedule. My next question is whether or not this is even necessary. While a lot of vet schools have a few animal science requirements, a few of them only recommend these classes and do not necessarily require them. Could I hypothetically apply to these schools fufilling only the basic requirements and rely on personal study of things like comparative anatomy/ecology etc.?
Thank you!

 

[orca2011]

I've only really taken one animal related class and that was animal nutrition which I took online after I graduated college. Only a few of these classes are required as pre-reqs by a few schools. So for starters, I'd look into where you think you might apply and then decide if you actually need them. Usually the only one's required are an Intro to Animal Science and an Animal Nutrition course. I took Animal Nutrition because I thought I was going to be able to retake Micro at the same time and would be able to apply to more schools. In the end, I couldn't afford it, so it could be potentially a waste of money if the vet school I'm attending this fall won't consider it acceptable for an exemption from the course when I have to take it in vet school.

If you are worried about being unfamiliar with certain topics, many people say not to worry about it because you learn so much information at a different pace that it almost doesn't matter. Sure, some previous knowledge is probably beneficial, but when you're learning as much information in a few days as you learned in a semester, I feel like it probably doesn't give me you too much of a leg up. I mean, many people get into vet school who haven't taken several animal related classes and are doing just fine. I'd honestly be more worried about Biochem, Endocrine and Physiology classes personally. And probably Immuno.

 

[Gurame21]

Thanks Orca and congrats on getting into a school!

 

[hopefulinva]

Here's a handy little interactive map that allows you to examine the pre-reqs for each vet school.

You don't need to complete any more than what's listed on their pages to be considered for that school. Some places require Animal Nutrition, but not all (none of the places I applied did).

You also don't have to come in as a bio or animal science major to be considered for vet school; as long as you've completed the pre-reqs, you're fine.

That having been said, you may want to consider taking an intro to animal science class (with a lab, if your school offers one). At my school, this class touched on handling, husbandry, nutrition, and production, and while I wasn't really a fan of the last focus, I definitely feel that the other three will help me significantly in the future - particularly because I'm much more comfortable with cats and dogs than sheep and cattle, but at least now I know my way around all of 'em.

I had a lot of fun with my animal behavior and my animal physiology classes, but I don't think either of them delved to a level that will actually help me in vet school. 😉 Still, they were interesting!

 

[heylodeb]

Just take the pre-reqs for the schools you are planning to apply for. There is no need to take anything else if your schedule is already full.

 

[equineconstant]

Like everyone else is saying, you don't really need to worry about an animal-focused major (I'm a psych major!). As long as you fill the pre-reqs for the schools you're applying to, that should be fine. As for sneaking in animal-related classes, I would suggest just flipping through your school's catalog in the biology and animal science (if your school has that) departments for classes you can take that seem useful for vet school.

 

[OwlandPussycat]

As pretty much everyone has said, your main focus should first be fulfilling the required prereqs for the school(s) you want to apply to. It's always nice to go above and beyond the minimum requirements, but if you're going to do that in any area of your application, I would focus instead on your experience hours. I think that earning the extra hours demonstrates more commitment than taking an extra class or two, and will probably be more useful to draw on in the long run.
I say this because I didn't take any animal classes above and beyond the prereqs, and I don't feel like it affected any admissions decisions. Other people might have different opinions, though. I also haven't started classes yet, so I don't know whether the courses you're considering would be helpful during vet school.

 

[bbeventer]

Just take the pre-reqs for the schools you are planning to apply for. There is no need to take anything else if your schedule is already full.

👍

Don't stress yourself out. Just make sure all your pre-reqs for the schools you are applying to are satisfied.