Referees/References - Is it better to have 2 vets?

[Relz.]

Hi guys!

I am starting to collect my app for this next cycle and I was curious, especially for my fellow Canadians, do you think its better to have 2 vets?

I have 3 potential referees:
1 - Vet I have known since I was 15 and have shadowed (very briefly! Like a day or two) in the past, he's my horse's vet
2- Vet I will start shadowing in a few weeks (so by the time of app it will be 3 months, 1x/week)
3 - Riding coach i've known for four years, owns her own stable, breeds horses, and competes

Which two would I be best to pick?

Edit: for the WCVM I am requested to have two references: 1 vet and 1 with an animal/agriculture background

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[ziggyandjazzy]

Do you not have any more experiences with vets? I'm not trying to be rude but I am trying to understand. The application is due in 3 months? I would think that you would need a vet that you have had at least a somewhat long term and professional relationship with (unless it is much different than the US), but I am not sure the first 2 vets really fit either bill very well. It seems like you know the first one on a personal level, but not having shadowed with them is sort of odd. And it doesn't sound like you know the second at all, but you may be able to have a good relationship in the next couple months. However, it may be difficult to do so while only shadowing a handful of times.

 

[PrincessButterCup]

Hi guys!

I am starting to collect my app for this next cycle and I was curious, especially for my fellow Canadians, do you think its better to have 2 vets?

I have 3 potential referees:
1 - Vet I have known since I was 15 and have shadowed (very briefly! Like a day or two) in the past, he's my horse's vet
2- Vet I will start shadowing in a few weeks (so by the time of app it will be 3 months, 1x/week)
3 - Riding coach i've known for four years, owns her own stable, breeds horses, and competes

Which two would I be best to pick?

Edit: for the WCVM I am requested to have two references: 1 vet and 1 with an animal/agriculture background

#1 - sounds like a personal rather than professional reference. I wouldn't use him for that reason.

#2 - at what point would you ask them? After the first month (4 times shadowing)? I'm not sure they will say yes, and if they do I wouldn't imagine it would be a very strong letter since they won't know you well. That's a really short time frame to build a relationship.

#3 - do you know her in a personal or professional capacity? Have you worked with her or are you friends?

 

[Relz.]

Do you not have any more experiences with vets? I'm not trying to be rude but I am trying to understand. The application is due in 3 months? I would think that you would need a vet that you have had at least a somewhat long term and professional relationship with (unless it is much different than the US), but I am not sure the first 2 vets really fit either bill very well. It seems like you know the first one on a personal level, but not having shadowed with them is sort of odd. And it doesn't sound like you know the second at all, but you may be able to have a good relationship in the next couple months. However, it may be difficult to do so while only shadowing a handful of times.

Thanks! I don't take offense, no worries! I know that I don't have a lot of experience (I switched to this career goal this past year) so I am trying to improve that. I am volunteering at a shelter currently, so perhaps by the time of application next year, they might be a valid candidate as well. I wasn't quite sure if the personal level was acceptable, so thank you for answering that question!

I've decided to do another full year of school before applying so the second vet would hopefully be a full year of professional experience/relationship.

 

[Relz.]

#1 - sounds like a personal rather than professional reference. I wouldn't use him for that reason.

#2 - at what point would you ask them? After the first month (4 times shadowing)? I'm not sure they will say yes, and if they do I wouldn't imagine it would be a very strong letter since they won't know you well. That's a really short time frame to build a relationship.

#3 - do you know her in a personal or professional capacity? Have you worked with her or are you friends?

Thank you for your input! I really do appreciate it, I wasn't sure if personal references were taboo or not in applications. I suppose 1 and 3 are more personal, as I haven't really spent that much time professionally with them. I just thought they could speak to my character/dedication with animals and a number of other good personality traits on an application!

What types of referees/references would you recommend having? I found out the other day that I may be better off to take a full year before applying so now I have about a year and a half to prepare.

 

[TheGirlWithTheFernTattoo]

WCVM has a sample reference form on their website; if you take a look at that it might give you a better idea of what your reference should be able to talk about.

 

[ziggyandjazzy]

Thank you for your input! I really do appreciate it, I wasn't sure if personal references were taboo or not in applications. I suppose 1 and 3 are more personal, as I haven't really spent that much time professionally with them. I just thought they could speak to my character/dedication with animals and a number of other good personality traits on an application!

What types of referees/references would you recommend having? I found out the other day that I may be better off to take a full year before applying so now I have about a year and a half to prepare.

I would recommend a wide variety. I had a vet that I worked with for 4 years, a professor I had 3 classes with and knew quite well, a professor I did summer research with, and a coworker/boss at an animal rehab job. I think different people can speak to different things. I feel people put themselves at a real disservice if they just go for all vets or something. Plus at least in the states, most schools require a vet and an academic reference.

 

[TheGirlWithTheFernTattoo]

I would recommend a wide variety. I had a vet that I worked with for 4 years, a professor I had 3 classes with and knew quite well, a professor I did summer research with, and a coworker/boss at an animal rehab job. I think different people can speak to different things. I feel people put themselves at a real disservice if they just go for all vets or something. Plus at least in the states, most schools require a vet and an academic reference.

For the school she is applying to, you only get 2 references. One must be a vet, and the other can be a vet or someone with an animal/agricultural background. No profs or anything like that.

 

[that redhead]

I've decided to do another full year of school before applying so the second vet would hopefully be a full year of professional experience/relationship.

I think this plan would greatly improve the quality of your vet letter.

 

[awesomenessity]

Going to be a bit of a different voice regarding references... this was for UCVM but my references were:

1) a prof where I hadn’t even finished taking the only course he taught me... and didn’t have much of a relationship with to be totally honest. I’m sure it wasn’t a great letter

2) a vet whose practice I volunteered at once a week for about 6 months at time of application, and was my only “veterinary” experience

3) a personal reference from the show medic who worked all the horse shows from when I was 9 until my application at 21

And I still got in first try! UCVM only weights reference letters 5% though, so that may be part of it. I think they just use them as a final check to make sure that nothing sketchy comes up in the letters before they admit you. WCVM might be different. I just wanted to point out that Canadian schools seem very different from the US in that you don’t need tons and tons of volunteer hours, experience, etc to apply. Because I definitely didn’t

 

[Relz.]

I think this plan would greatly improve the quality of your vet letter.

Thank you! I certainly hope so

 

[Relz.]

Going to be a bit of a different voice regarding references...

And I still got in first try! UCVM only weights reference letters 5% though, so that may be part of it. I think they just use them as a final check to make sure that nothing sketchy comes up in the letters before they admit you. WCVM might be different. I just wanted to point out that Canadian schools seem very different from the US in that you don’t need tons and tons of volunteer hours, experience, etc to apply. Because I definitely didn’t

Thanks so much for chiming in! It's so hard to find fellow Canadian pre-vets/in vet school students to connect with sometimes. I originally wasn't planning on applying to WCVM but I actually turned out to have a better chance than I thought so this whole upcoming year will be spent preparing to crush my application a la CO 2024!