RANT HERE thread

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vampyrica said:
🥹🥹 the pressure is on!!

(@elisaholdthevet)
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I love the idea of making content cause i enjoy sharing what i know with people but the idea of making videos is exhausting

Used to have a fairly successful (for me) tumblr back in the day…maybe i can revive that for vet school lol
 
So I understand this is going to be a super unpopular opinion, but here we go 🫣

I did pay for Dr. Katie's service. Do I think it's more than a little predatory? Yes. Did she also help me get into vet school? Also yes.

I paid $2000 for her to help me. The way that I looked at it, if I had to apply for a third round it would be another $2000 in application fees, so it might as well have been worth it. She helped me convince myself to not go for UC Davis or Cornell, which saved me $300 in application fees which was nice. At least when I did it, she had 2 other people helping me with my stuff, one who is a book editor in real life and one who does interview prep for businesses (neither of them know much about vetmed tbh, which was good and bad.) I was 2 years out from college, so I didn't have a university advisor able to help me do this stuff, nor did I know that some of y'all on SDN would help.

She also has a nice long list of scholarships that are applicable to only select people, and she encouraged me to apply for one I had never even heard of, and I got $1500 from it. She kept me on track with the 35 essays I had to write, to the point that I clicked submit on VMCAS a month before it was due (the cycle before, I submitted 2 days before.) When I got interviews, she sat down with me every week for 6 weeks to help me prepare, including the day before my interview during her lunch break. Honestly, she seemed to fight tooth and nail to help me get where I wanted to be, and it was nice change from most of my other "supporters" while applying.

She also promises lifelong mentorship, which I have taken advantage of already. She helped me figure out a way to study for Anatomy, and helped me write an essay for a couple summer programs I'm applying for. She's even offered to have me come in to extern at her clinic for a couple weeks. I think that part of it is more of a you get what you put in, but hey I paid my own money for it and I'm gonna use it.

In my mind, it was worth it. Between saving money on schools I didn't have a chance to get into and that scholarship, I only "paid" $200. She's probably put at least 40 hours of work into helping me, so $5/hour is pretty cheap lol. The fact I didn't have to apply again, and got in under the wire for the stupid-ass BBB/Grad Plus Loans stuff is priceless to me.

Would I pay the $4800 I guess she's charging now? **** no. Is she capitalizing off of pre-vets who are scared of not getting in? Oh yeah definitely. Do I believe she really is trying to help those who sign up for her program? Yes.

Anyway, just another perspective. You're welcome to disagree, and I'm not here to act like she's a god or anything, but I don't regret it 🤷‍♀️

I'm also not gonna mention the 'not considering Tuskegee an HBCU' on her substack thing cause yeah that was wild
 
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kitzsuna said:
I love the idea of making content cause i enjoy sharing what i know with people but the idea of making videos is exhausting

Used to have a fairly successful (for me) tumblr back in the day…maybe i can revive that for vet school lol
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It is. I keep trying to convince my husband to revive his show Review Rabbit. He tried once and after a full day of filming, nothing useable.
Tip-don’t make a live rabbit the host of a film review show 😝
 
madrigal01 said:
So I understand this is going to be a super unpopular opinion, but here we go 🫣

I did pay for Dr. Katie's service. Do I think it's more than a little predatory? Yes. Did she also help me get into vet school? Also yes.

I paid $2000 for her to help me. The way that I looked at it, if I had to apply for a third round it would be another $2000 in application fees, so it might as well have been worth it. She helped me convince myself to not go for UC Davis or Cornell, which saved me $300 in application fees which was nice. At least when I did it, she had 2 other people helping me with my stuff, one who is a book editor in real life and one who does interview prep for businesses (neither of them know much about vetmed tbh, which was good and bad.) I was 2 years out from college, so I didn't have a university advisor able to help me do this stuff, nor did I know that some of y'all on SDN would help.

She also has a nice long list of scholarships that are applicable to only select people, and she encouraged me to apply for one I had never even heard of, and I got $1500 from it. She kept me on track with the 35 essays I had to write, to the point that I clicked submit on VMCAS a month before it was due (the cycle before, I submitted 2 days before.) When I got interviews, she sat down with me every week for 6 weeks to help me prepare, including the day before my interview during her lunch break. Honestly, she seemed to fight tooth and nail to help me get where I wanted to be, and it was nice change from most of my other "supporters" while applying.

She also promises lifelong mentorship, which I have taken advantage of already. She helped me figure out a way to study for Anatomy, and helped me write an essay for a couple summer programs I'm applying for. She's even offered to have me come in to extern at her clinic for a couple weeks. I think that part of it is more of a you get what you put in, but hey I paid my own money for it and I'm gonna use it.

In my mind, it was worth it. Between saving money on schools I didn't have a chance to get into and that scholarship, I only "paid" $200. She's probably put at least 40 hours of work into helping me, so $5/hour is pretty cheap lol. The fact I didn't have to apply again, and got in under the wire for the stupid-ass BBB/Grad Plus Loans stuff is priceless to me.

Would I pay the $4800 I guess she's charging now? **** no. Is she capitalizing off of pre-vets who are scared of not getting in? Oh yeah definitely. Do I believe she really is trying to help those who sign up for her program? Yes.

Anyway, just another perspective. You're welcome to disagree, and I'm not here to act like she's a god or anything, but I don't regret it 🤷‍♀️

I'm also not gonna mention the 'not considering Tuskegee an HBCU' on her substack thing cause yeah that was wild
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I'd be willing to bet money* that you would have gotten into vet school just fine on your own.

*Not $4800.
 
madrigal01 said:
So I understand this is going to be a super unpopular opinion, but here we go 🫣

I did pay for Dr. Katie's service. Do I think it's more than a little predatory? Yes. Did she also help me get into vet school? Also yes.

I paid $2000 for her to help me. The way that I looked at it, if I had to apply for a third round it would be another $2000 in application fees, so it might as well have been worth it. She helped me convince myself to not go for UC Davis or Cornell, which saved me $300 in application fees which was nice. At least when I did it, she had 2 other people helping me with my stuff, one who is a book editor in real life and one who does interview prep for businesses (neither of them know much about vetmed tbh, which was good and bad.) I was 2 years out from college, so I didn't have a university advisor able to help me do this stuff, nor did I know that some of y'all on SDN would help.

She also has a nice long list of scholarships that are applicable to only select people, and she encouraged me to apply for one I had never even heard of, and I got $1500 from it. She kept me on track with the 35 essays I had to write, to the point that I clicked submit on VMCAS a month before it was due (the cycle before, I submitted 2 days before.) When I got interviews, she sat down with me every week for 6 weeks to help me prepare, including the day before my interview during her lunch break. Honestly, she seemed to fight tooth and nail to help me get where I wanted to be, and it was nice change from most of my other "supporters" while applying.

She also promises lifelong mentorship, which I have taken advantage of already. She helped me figure out a way to study for Anatomy, and helped me write an essay for a couple summer programs I'm applying for. She's even offered to have me come in to extern at her clinic for a couple weeks. I think that part of it is more of a you get what you put in, but hey I paid my own money for it and I'm gonna use it.

In my mind, it was worth it. Between saving money on schools I didn't have a chance to get into and that scholarship, I only "paid" $200. She's probably put at least 40 hours of work into helping me, so $5/hour is pretty cheap lol. The fact I didn't have to apply again, and got in under the wire for the stupid-ass BBB/Grad Plus Loans stuff is priceless to me.

Would I pay the $4800 I guess she's charging now? **** no. Is she capitalizing off of pre-vets who are scared of not getting in? Oh yeah definitely. Do I believe she really is trying to help those who sign up for her program? Yes.

Anyway, just another perspective. You're welcome to disagree, and I'm not here to act like she's a god or anything, but I don't regret it 🤷‍♀️

I'm also not gonna mention the 'not considering Tuskegee an HBCU' on her substack thing cause yeah that was wild
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genuine question for you my beloved mads, what information do you feel she gave you that you didn’t already know? were your applications pre- and post-“program” dramatically different?
 
soupshark said:
I could tell jokes. Keep the work environment light

Maybe I could help with paperwork... maybe
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Personality hire right along with me

pp9 said:
Yes but now I’ll have to increase my price to maintain my profit margin….
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Spoken like a true private equity veterinarian
 
On the topic at hand....

Part of what people are paying for is an "accountability partner" of sorts. With Mad's description, having someone hold you accountable to get things done does help. Very similar to a gym coach or even a pastor (atheist's perspective on religious leaders from the outside looking in).

However, with that in mind....

The application is structured the way it is in order to be a barrier in of itself. Can you as an applicant be organized and disciplined enough to find and synthesize the information appropriately to make your best application? I feel like I could make a decent argument that if you cannot handle the application, you should not go to vet school because you are not ready to gather and synthesize a lot more dense material taught by people who half the time don't know how to teach. Whether or not that's true for an individual student isn't the question; it's about the population of applicants (good and bad) that im talking about.

Then the next consideration is absolutely cost and the ROI on vet med at this moment in time. I would argue at least 1/4-1/3 of pre-vets need to take a hard look in the mirror and come to the realization that they would be just as happy in a different field. Adding on an extra 4800 to just get in is stupid. That's a stupid level of money to pay for someone to coach you through free resources and be an accountability partner or buddy. I lived off of ~17k-ish while in vet school per year, for reference of how much an impact that 4800 can have the year following that pay out.

Finally, we have zero clue how she has her success numbers. Does she limit her clients to people she feels has a reasonable shot at success with tweaking? Does she provide any follow up long term for those who are unsuccessful? Does she do any sort of debt counseling when she's recommending certain schools? Does she keep track long term on if her mentees go through any sort of dismissal? What are her criteria for taking on a client? If homegirl is going to be picky about the technical definition of an HBCU, she better be as picky when telling people where to apply and if they should be applying at all.

I'm honestly quite a capitalist type of gal. I'm all for people making legal businesses within the realm of what the market will bare. And by dog, the pre-vet market will absolutely bare her 4800 cost for now. Good for her for getting paid for her time; hopefully she's using it to pay off her loans or stashing it into an IRA to retire early. BUT!!!!! The clientele of such businesses better be ready for the, "Wait! Stop! Don't do it!" at the beginning of the adventure and the, "I told you so!!" at the end. And if she ****s someone over, she better be ready with receipts to show she did her due diligence. "Rise so high, in mud you lie", sort of situation for both sides of the equation. To be fair, her business will cease in about 5ish years when the veterinary education market crashes. Or it will thrive cause only rich people can apply at that time.
 
battie said:
Finally, we have zero clue how she has her success numbers. Does she limit her clients to people she feels has a reasonable shot at success with tweaking? Does she provide any follow up long term for those who are unsuccessful? Does she do any sort of debt counseling when she's recommending certain schools? Does she keep track long term on if her mentees go through any sort of dismissal? What are her criteria for taking on a client?
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she tells people to apply to st. matthews all the time. and when she talks about it on her tiktok, she never mentions its NOT accredited. so she is purposely leaving out critical information.

she also called UF a “holistic” school and the list of schools she recommends for low GPA applicants, are not actually and wholeheartedly low GPA friendly. i think her “success rates” may come from encouraging students to apply to the island schools and brand new programs. i’m not saying the island schools are easier to get into- hell i was rejected myself. i’m saying they have a much wider variety in the GPA’s they accept. if you’ve never applied there and this individual you’re paying to give you advice is telling you to apply, you end up and applying and getting in. boom- there’s a “success story” right there.

not to mention the whole “tuskegee isn’t a HBCU vet school because it isn’t legally under tax codes registered as one”…
 
want to add that advice can only get you so far... you could have calculated the absolute PERFECT application strategy and there is no denying the element of luck that goes into this! i think as a pre-vet, that is the scariest part and what leads to such desperation in wanting to buy these things because you are looking for control over something in this process that is SOOOO out of your control. the advice i got from you guys on SDN was a complete game-changer-- comparing my first cycle's application to my second, wow, i got a lot of advice that shifted things. but there are no magic words someone can tell you that can guarantee you admission.
 
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vampyrica said:
i’m not saying the island schools are easier to get into- hell i was rejected myself. i’m saying they have a much wider variety in the GPA’s they accept.
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I do think the island schools are more forgiving of academics compared to state side schools. And so I wonder if they yield protect like human medical schools where they don't accept many people above what will be their class average because they know the average above average person will just go elsewhere.
 
vampyrica said:
she tells people to apply to st. matthews all the time. and when she talks about it on her tiktok, she never mentions its NOT accredited. so she is purposely leaving out critical information.
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vampyrica said:
i think her “success rates” may come from encouraging students to apply to the island schools and brand new programs. i’m not saying the island schools are easier to get into- hell i was rejected myself. i’m saying they have a much wider variety in the GPA’s they accept.
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It;s true though...a lot of her testimonials are people saying 'OMG I got into *insert island school here!' and like, yes that's an acceptance. Yes all but SMU are accredited. But we also know for a fact that their admissions standards are lower than that of the stateside schools. That data is published on their websites. I fully get that comes across as elitist and it's not that I think the education you'd get is subpar, but the decreased admissions standards is fact. And likely plays a big role in the high attrition rates at those schools.

I think it was Ross that last I checked, had average accepted GPAs of a 3.2 or 3.3? No those aren't 'bad' GPAs but when the stateside schools are pushing 3.6-3.8...that's a significant drop.

So basically people are paying her 5k to be told 'oh yeah you just need to go to a private island school that has lower admissions standards' like cool. Again, we would have told you that for free, but not left out the heaping side discussions of the debt and attrition rate
 
vampyrica said:
from when i spoke to her, she has a team of essay editors. i dont believe she does the essays herself?
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wait backing up, so is this team made up of vets? Or is she finding people that are just good at proofreading? Because the latter will of course help with flow and grammar, but you kinda need a vet person for the content portion of a personal statement. Or other supplemental essays.

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madrigal01 said:
So I understand this is going to be a super unpopular opinion, but here we go 🫣

I did pay for Dr. Katie's service. Do I think it's more than a little predatory? Yes. Did she also help me get into vet school? Also yes.

I paid $2000 for her to help me. The way that I looked at it, if I had to apply for a third round it would be another $2000 in application fees, so it might as well have been worth it. She helped me convince myself to not go for UC Davis or Cornell, which saved me $300 in application fees which was nice. At least when I did it, she had 2 other people helping me with my stuff, one who is a book editor in real life and one who does interview prep for businesses (neither of them know much about vetmed tbh, which was good and bad.) I was 2 years out from college, so I didn't have a university advisor able to help me do this stuff, nor did I know that some of y'all on SDN would help.

She also has a nice long list of scholarships that are applicable to only select people, and she encouraged me to apply for one I had never even heard of, and I got $1500 from it. She kept me on track with the 35 essays I had to write, to the point that I clicked submit on VMCAS a month before it was due (the cycle before, I submitted 2 days before.) When I got interviews, she sat down with me every week for 6 weeks to help me prepare, including the day before my interview during her lunch break. Honestly, she seemed to fight tooth and nail to help me get where I wanted to be, and it was nice change from most of my other "supporters" while applying.

She also promises lifelong mentorship, which I have taken advantage of already. She helped me figure out a way to study for Anatomy, and helped me write an essay for a couple summer programs I'm applying for. She's even offered to have me come in to extern at her clinic for a couple weeks. I think that part of it is more of a you get what you put in, but hey I paid my own money for it and I'm gonna use it.

In my mind, it was worth it. Between saving money on schools I didn't have a chance to get into and that scholarship, I only "paid" $200. She's probably put at least 40 hours of work into helping me, so $5/hour is pretty cheap lol. The fact I didn't have to apply again, and got in under the wire for the stupid-ass BBB/Grad Plus Loans stuff is priceless to me.

Would I pay the $4800 I guess she's charging now? **** no. Is she capitalizing off of pre-vets who are scared of not getting in? Oh yeah definitely. Do I believe she really is trying to help those who sign up for her program? Yes.

Anyway, just another perspective. You're welcome to disagree, and I'm not here to act like she's a god or anything, but I don't regret it 🤷‍♀️

I'm also not gonna mention the 'not considering Tuskegee an HBCU' on her substack thing cause yeah that was wild
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Just now seeing this post which partly answers that question.

I agree that I don't think she's some blood-sucking monster or anything of the sort, she's just charging out the ass for something that you can get for free through multiple avenues. For example, a lot of students don't know that most colleges/universities (maybe all?) ahve free resources for students when it comes to essay writing/proofreading, interview prep, etc. They may not be veterinary-specific resources, but they are free resources that could be helpful nonetheless. For the writing stuff, it sounds like this is basically what she is offering (aka a non-vet type of person). And I personally don't think you need to prep for veterinary specific interviews aside from keeping up on current veterinary events/concerns. just prep for interviewing well in general. More than one school cares more about how you present yourself than whether or not you 'answered correctly.'
 
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pp9 said:
For example, a lot of students don't know that most colleges/universities (maybe all?) ahve free resources for students when it comes to essay writing/proofreading, interview prep, etc. They may not be veterinary-specific resources, but they are free resources that could be helpful nonetheless.
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If you are a trad student or if you've been taking classes at a school, USE YOUR CAREER AND WRITING CENTER.
I got an internship at a zoo that way (curse you covid and your cancellations). They not only helped me find zoos in the general area who were taking undergrad summer interns, they helped me redo my resume, write cover letters/essays for the application process, and prep for any interviews. This is absolutely applicable to vet school applications, or any veterinary opportunities you might pursue in a gap year. If you're paying tuition, especially if they have an additional "student services fee", that covers this.
 
_rae_ said:
If you are a trad student or if you've been taking classes at a school, USE YOUR CAREER AND WRITING CENTER.
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yup! and just because you graduated, it doesn't mean you are too late to use it. I used my undergrad's career center to do a mock vet school interview a year after i graduated!

eta: maybe some schools won't allow this but i literally just called my library and asked them if we could set something up because at that point my school email and accounts had been deactivated and they still set it up for me!
 
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on the same topic, i found a vet that does the same services (reads essays, gives you advice, mock interviews, etc) and she charges like $150 per hour which is crazy considering ppl already pay 1000s for their apps. I did try out a brainstorming session to help me figure out what part of my app to shine in interviews but only that. I just used that session for every single interview I had. but anyway, i would also like to help ppl out w reading essays :!! She is making bank too and I guess it works for her!
 
reminds me that i used to use wyzant for tutoring bc i wasn't having any luck with the free tutors offered at my school, it did really help and those people made BAAAAANK. Full time job for a lot of them.
 
I was so proud of myself for digging my truck out of the ice/snow and going to the dentist and gym today, only to get it totally stuck trying to turn around in my driveway when I got home. Also, I can’t get the shed door open (where we keep all the heavy-duty shovels) because of all the ice. I know being stuck at home is such a non-issue in the grand scheme of things but I absolutely hate feeling like I’m trapped somewhere and I feel so stupid for not being able to get it out ugh
 
vampyrica said:
on my personal page, i get engagement content (i think i’m getting proposed to this year ?!?) but on my vet page its all decisions and politics 😔
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pp9 said:
this is so true though

I am really glad I'm not on pre-vet tok (I'm assuming you saw something on tiktok) lol. I've veered into pre-vet instagram a few times and too many times I see a pre-vet adjacent hashtag but the reel is a thirst trap, a sponsored ad (or an attempt to get a company to notice and pay you), or someone saying something really misleading or flat out wrong about vets/vet med
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I get ads for engagement rings constantly. But so does my partner, so hey, we're both looking.

I actually spent all weekend stewing over one of the pre-vet instagram accounts— she has advertised herself as giving advice to pre-vets, and hey it's great to encourage other low GPA applicants, but all her advice, in my book, is objectively the wrong things to do if you actually want to get into vet school. And she has 30,000 followers. Like, I'm sorry, but working full time and doing school full time is not a good path to advise people take if you can't keep your grades up while doing it. I know people need to work full time, so extend your time in school and take part time classes so you can actually get good grades! So many vet schools look at grades first. It's sad for non-trads, but if you're a trad pre-vet who has always known they want to be a vet, you should not be listening to people who say to sacrifice your grades for hours!
 
fauna said:
reminds me that i used to use wyzant for tutoring bc i wasn't having any luck with the free tutors offered at my school, it did really help and those people made BAAAAANK. Full time job for a lot of them.
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I am a private tutor for rich private school kids and I make $90 an hour. And I'm charging well below market rate for my area.

It is literally more than I will make as an equine vet per hour. Ack.
 
HorseObsessed said:
I get ads for engagement rings constantly. But so does my partner, so hey, we're both looking.

I actually spent all weekend stewing over one of the pre-vet instagram accounts— she has advertised herself as giving advice to pre-vets, and hey it's great to encourage other low GPA applicants, but all her advice, in my book, is objectively the wrong things to do if you actually want to get into vet school. And she has 30,000 followers. Like, I'm sorry, but working full time and doing school full time is not a good path to advise people take if you can't keep your grades up while doing it. I know people need to work full time, so extend your time in school and take part time classes so you can actually get good grades! So many vet schools look at grades first. It's sad for non-trads, but if you're a trad pre-vet who has always known they want to be a vet, you should not be listening to people who say to sacrifice your grades for hours!
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i am acutely aware of who you are talking about D:
 
vampyrica said:
i have been craving pizza for the past 5 days. it’s all i want but there’s no good pizza here 🥲
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Feel that. No good pizza in CU so if I can't drive to Pizza Lobo in Logan Square, Chicago then I make it at home lol. I can send you my pizza dough recipe if you want!!
 
For the record, I still could never make it better than Pizza Lobo at home. Seriously, if you are in the Chicagoland area ever please eat there. It's my favorite pizza place on earth. I'm going in February and I CAN'T WAIT
 
HorseObsessed said:
I am a private tutor for rich private school kids and I make $90 an hour. And I'm charging well below market rate for my area.

It is literally more than I will make as an equine vet per hour. Ack.
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That's amazing. I've heard that private tutors make a lot and I considered doing it in undergrad since another tutor coworker did. I couldn't fit it all but it's really a good idea to do it if you can.
 
HorseObsessed said:
I get ads for engagement rings constantly. But so does my partner, so hey, we're both looking.

I actually spent all weekend stewing over one of the pre-vet instagram accounts— she has advertised herself as giving advice to pre-vets, and hey it's great to encourage other low GPA applicants, but all her advice, in my book, is objectively the wrong things to do if you actually want to get into vet school. And she has 30,000 followers. Like, I'm sorry, but working full time and doing school full time is not a good path to advise people take if you can't keep your grades up while doing it. I know people need to work full time, so extend your time in school and take part time classes so you can actually get good grades! So many vet schools look at grades first. It's sad for non-trads, but if you're a trad pre-vet who has always known they want to be a vet, you should not be listening to people who say to sacrifice your grades for hours!
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Also I feel like if you aren't even in vet school yet you shouldn't be giving advice to pre-vets.
 
I was on call yesterday and get paged in the morning for a non-urgent amputation (OSA not trauma). I woke up at 6 am to get to a hotel before 8, but my car is iced in (like ice under the chassis) bc the snow plough pushed compacted snow under my car a few hours earlier. I try salting again and digging it out for 2 hours to no avail.

Buses and trains were all canceled for the past 2 days. Uber/Lyft also canceled bc it was an hour drive. Now my boss is upset because I didn’t check into the hotel on Sunday, which was the middle of the snowstorm when all the roads were closed. Like I’m sorry I chose not to put myself in danger.

My other option was to pay out of pocket for a hotel on Saturday (much more than I would’ve made) and find a cat sitter with no pets on short notice since my cat had a last-minute herpes flare up and hates other animals but also needed meds.
 
SkiOtter said:
What is “good pizza”? Idk where you’re from
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lived right outside of philly for the last 13 years (moved from greece in 2012) now i live in fort collins. i have a dominos 500 feet away from me but it doesn’t beat a ny style pizza from a guy in a sus shop who moved from nyc to philly 25 years ago.

and his cheesesteaks slap 🤤
 
vampyrica said:
lived right outside of philly for the last 13 years (moved from greece in 2012) now i live in fort collins. i have a dominos 500 feet away from me but it doesn’t beat a ny style pizza from a guy in a sus shop who moved from nyc to philly 25 years ago.

and his cheesesteaks slap 🤤
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Chain anything will never beat mom and pop

My favorite Chicago style fast food joint is this tiny place on 63rd and Keeler ran by Nick and his mom lol. Good times and he's also Greek lol
 
vampyrica said:
lived right outside of philly for the last 13 years (moved from greece in 2012) now i live in fort collins. i have a dominos 500 feet away from me but it doesn’t beat a ny style pizza from a guy in a sus shop who moved from nyc to philly 25 years ago.

and his cheesesteaks slap 🤤
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Is Totally 80s Pizza still in Fort Collins?
 
HorseObsessed said:
I am a private tutor for rich private school kids and I make $90 an hour. And I'm charging well below market rate for my area.

It is literally more than I will make as an equine vet per hour. Ack.
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That's more than I make per hour as an ER doc right now
 
HorseObsessed said:
I am a private tutor for rich private school kids and I make $90 an hour. And I'm charging well below market rate for my area.

It is literally more than I will make as an equine vet per hour. Ack.
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I used to make more per hour riding horses for people than I will as a vet, at least early career 😅
Granted that included travel and I know hourly contract rates aren't really 1:1 with ft + benefits hourly pay, but still crazy to think about.
 
SkiOtter said:
What is “good pizza”? Idk where you’re from
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My take having living in multiple states now: Mellow Mushroom (specifically the holy shiitake pie) if you're lucky enough to be near one. And if you're ever in Toledo OH, J-cups pizza is the best pizza I've ever had.
HorseObsessed said:
I know of companies that charge up to $270 an hour. The tutors don't get paid that much, but people actually pay it. I have one family that pays my rate 10 hours a week. It's insane.
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Sometimes going private with the tutoring pays off too. Lots of wealthy families out there looking for someone to come over and sit with their kids while they do their homework for example.
 
Okay, another opinion on the $4800 pre-vet advice. Is it wrong? I don't think so. I do think it is a little predatory, but no more so than many businesses in the world. I feel like we are a society of convenience, and if people want to pay for that information rather than doing it themselves, then I think they can. I think someone saw a niche, wide open market and capitalized on it.

Would I pay that? No

Do I think it is overpriced? Yes

Do I think it's silly to pay for it? Yes. At the same time - if I had disposable income maybe it would have been nice to have all of the information/resources compiled for me-maybe it would've taken some of the stress off of me when I was applying. Also, I think people paying for their laundry folded, a private chef, etc. is silly. Maybe I wouldn't if I could afford it.

Do I think it is another way to give folks who are a bit more well off an advantage when applying? Yes, and that is the most unethical thing I can find about this entire situation. However, I don't think that makes the business owner unethical, I think that is just the unfortunate truth about economic inequity in our society.

I am open to criticism on this opinion, lol. The whole situation has just really had my philosophy brain spinning.
 
flotus said:
Okay, another opinion on the $4800 pre-vet advice. Is it wrong? I don't think so. I do think it is a little predatory, but no more so than many businesses in the world. I feel like we are a society of convenience, and if people want to pay for that information rather than doing it themselves, then I think they can. I think someone saw a niche, wide open market and capitalized on it.

Would I pay that? No

Do I think it is overpriced? Yes

Do I think it's silly to pay for it? Yes. At the same time - if I had disposable income maybe it would have been nice to have all of the information/resources compiled for me-maybe it would've taken some of the stress off of me when I was applying. Also, I think people paying for their laundry folded, a private chef, etc. is silly. Maybe I wouldn't if I could afford it.

Do I think it is another way to give folks who are a bit more well off an advantage when applying? Yes, and that is the most unethical thing I can find about this entire situation. However, I don't think that makes the business owner unethical, I think that is just the unfortunate truth about economic inequity in our society.

I am open to criticism on this opinion, lol. The whole situation has just really had my philosophy brain spinning.
Click to expand...

I think the transparency is the ultimate issue. Which then can be applied to all businesses
 
flotus said:
Okay, another opinion on the $4800 pre-vet advice. Is it wrong? I don't think so. I do think it is a little predatory, but no more so than many businesses in the world. I feel like we are a society of convenience, and if people want to pay for that information rather than doing it themselves, then I think they can. I think someone saw a niche, wide open market and capitalized on it.

Would I pay that? No

Do I think it is overpriced? Yes

Do I think it's silly to pay for it? Yes. At the same time - if I had disposable income maybe it would have been nice to have all of the information/resources compiled for me-maybe it would've taken some of the stress off of me when I was applying. Also, I think people paying for their laundry folded, a private chef, etc. is silly. Maybe I wouldn't if I could afford it.

Do I think it is another way to give folks who are a bit more well off an advantage when applying? Yes, and that is the most unethical thing I can find about this entire situation. However, I don't think that makes the business owner unethical, I think that is just the unfortunate truth about economic inequity in our society.

I am open to criticism on this opinion, lol. The whole situation has just really had my philosophy brain spinning.
Click to expand...
I don't think getting guidance is wrong by any means, but the price tag is astronomical considering how many free resources are out there and how unnecessary the service is (although she obviously gets clients regardless). Also considering that this $5k price tag guarantees absolutely nothing, is the cost of 2-3 application cycles alone, and as you said is absolutely a barrier for those who don't have $5k to spend. There are already resources out there that have everything compiled for you, although I will always recommend double checking VMSAR as it is historically lags in updates.

There are no free resources for a laundry service or private chef (if anyone knows of any, please let me know though lol). I don't think paying for a convenience service is entirely comparable to someone charging a desperate prevet $5k to walk them through the application/admissions process, proofread their essay, and promise to be a 'buddy for life' (apparently).

also I did not realize her fee jumped two thousand dollars in this past year alone...that's crazy.

I have seen a few people in the APVMA group, and this reddit thread, suggest that the cost could be worth it just to have someone keep you accountable throughout the admissions process though. Which is almost...worse? If you need to pay $5k to have someone keep you on track, g'luck in vet school. You aren't ready (or at the very least, are extremely disorganized and did not approach the admissions cycle with a plan) if you are missing deadlines left and right.
 
pp9 said:
Which is almost...worse? If you need to pay $5k to have someone keep you on track, g'luck in vet school.
Click to expand...

This. I couldn't figure out how to frame it. But this.

It's like parents asking for pre-vet advice for their children applying to doctoral programs.

Doctors are supposed to be part of the pinnacle of what humanity has to offer in regards to altruism and making the world a better place. Naive, I know. But that's the ultimate ideal to me. And while there's time between pre-doctor and actual doctor to hone your skills, there needs to be underlying drive to *get* there. Ultimately, the buck stops with the student to get there.

Having an accountability buddy is fine. I'm going to use one (@cdo96 👀) for working out starting on Sunday and as I get ready to buckle down to go for ABVP. But ultimately your accountability buddy is there to hold your hand, not there to do your work.
 
battie said:
This. I couldn't figure out how to frame it. But this.

It's like parents asking for pre-vet advice for their children applying to doctoral programs.

Doctors are supposed to be part of the pinnacle of what humanity has to offer in regards to altruism and making the world a better place. Naive, I know. But that's the ultimate ideal to me. And while there's time between pre-doctor and actual doctor to hone your skills, there needs to be underlying drive to *get* there. Ultimately, the buck stops with the student to get there.

Having an accountability buddy is fine. I'm going to use one (@cdo96 👀) for working out starting on Sunday and as I get ready to buckle down to go for ABVP. But ultimately your accountability buddy is there to hold your hand, not there to do your work.
Click to expand...
But accountability for hitting the gym vs. vet school applications....If you cannot be accountable for a few months during a hugely massively important step in your life....what's that going to look like down the road? Do people really need help being accountable for not throwing hundreds/thousands down the drain on a yearly basis because you forgot to submit a supplemental in time, didn't check the prereqs or minimum GPAs for a certain school and applied anyways, etc? (The answer is apparently yes).

I agree, you have to want to get there, because it's not going to be handed to you. If you can't get it together for vet school admissions, honestly that means either you don't want it badly enough, you aren't ready, or a combo of both. I would have been mortified if I got rejected from a school because I missed a prereq/GPA minimum/deadline, but in the last 2-3 cycles I've seen applicants (across multiple places, not just SDN) talk about how they've tried to petition the school to give them a pass for whatever requirement they couldn't meet, called the office nonstop to complain, showed up at the school, whatever. Applicants practically stalking other applicants, then contacting schools based on the info they've dug up? Honestly I think entitlement and a lack of accountability go hand in hand at that point though and as per usual, I'm bordering on derailing.

TLDR: You don't need to pay $5k for this service :laugh:
 
pp9 said:
I would have been mortified if I got rejected from a school because I missed a prereq/GPA minimum/deadline, but in the last 2-3 cycles I've seen applicants (across multiple places, not just SDN) talk about how they've tried to petition the school to give them a pass for whatever requirement they couldn't meet, called the office nonstop to complain, showed up at the school, whatever. Applicants practically stalking other applicants, then contacting schools based on the info they've dug up? Honestly I think entitlement and a lack of accountability go hand in hand at that point though and as per usual, I'm bordering on derailing.
Click to expand...
This is why I holler every year about my own **** up. Because it was embarrassing, frustrating, and a waste of money. Not that I would have gotten in that year anyway. I complained a bit (I think battie might have been the one to reasonably and gently get on my case about it), but I accepted it, moved on, took a few years, and now I here I am. I definitely did not repeatedly email or call schools because ew, that's more embarrassing. I can tell you I didn't make that mistake the year I was accepted 😂.
 
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