So What's Vet School Like...Is there homework?

[ShortShot]

Okay i have a million questions, especially as it pertains to the first year of vet school.... Does everyone go to class or do a lot of people skip? do the professors take attendance? is there actually homework? how many hours do you spend in class a day? is the schedule 9-5? if you really want to take a few days off to go to your mom's birthday (okay, join your friends in margaritas on a beach) is that really frowned upon? do you have to be there really every day to do well, or can you just get the notes and study extra hard to make up for missing the occasional class?

is it pretty autonomous where so long as you pass the exams you're going to be fine because you aren't also graded on a bunch of little projects, assignments or homeworks? is extra help available if you need it? these people that an earlier thread 'dropping like flies' mentions are failing out -- are they failing because the academics are so rigorous they can't handle it or they're puking at the sight of skinned animal heads or what?

brutally honest anonymous opinions much appreciated

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[alliecat44]

Hmmm.

Most everyone goes to class. Of the few who don't, some barely pass and some are super-geniuses who memorize everything the night before.

Class is generally from 8-4 or 5pm as a first-year.

Homework? No. Studying your butt off every night because the volume of information presented is just way too much to try to cram in the night before? Yes.

Some papers, some presentations. Most grades are exams, however. Third year there are a ton of projects/presentations.

Even if you're maid of honor in somone's wedding, that is NOT an excused absence. Very frowned upon to miss class. And professors do notice.

Extra help is very available, but you have to avail yourself of it. Noody comes to you asking, "do you need help outside of class?"

Of those who fail, I'd be willing to bet that 99.99% of them work their a** off and are heartbroken. Of those who choose/have to leave for personal reasons, I'd be willing to bet that 99.99% of them work their a** off and are heartbroken.

Hope that helps.

🙂

(Note: hours/homework/assignment info is for my school, KSU--obviously don't know about others.)

 

[pressmom]

Okay i have a million questions, especially as it pertains to the first year of vet school.... Does everyone go to class or do a lot of people skip?

Depends on the class. Most people go to every class in the beginning, but begin to skip the ones where the prof reads the powerpoints near the end. Your big sib will be a good guide on this.

do the professors take attendance?

Not at UTK (except CCE and occasionally labs), but I can't speak for other vet schools. The professors do notice absences sometimes.

is there actually homework?

Depends on the class. I know in some there are projects, but in most there are just quizzes/exams. You will be studying almost everyday, so in that sense, there is work everyday.

how many hours do you spend in class a day?

Around 6-7, between class and lab.

is the schedule 9-5?

8-3 or 4 generally here at UTK. Some days we start at 9.

if you really want to take a few days off to go to your mom's birthday (okay, join your friends in margaritas on a beach) is that really frowned upon? do you have to be there really every day to do well, or can you just get the notes and study extra hard to make up for missing the occasional class?

Well, lab attendance is mandatory here, so if you're missing a lab (and they will sometimes take attendance, see above) or an exam, they will notice and you will need a GOOD excuse. (Death in the family, personal illness, illness of a child, etc.) Tests here are most Mondays and Fridays and labs meet at least 2-3 afternoons a week, so taking days other than weekends off is really hard.

is it pretty autonomous where so long as you pass the exams you're going to be fine because you aren't also graded on a bunch of little projects, assignments or homeworks?

Generally it's about passing exams, but sometimes those littler projects are what save you after you bomb an exam.

is extra help available if you need it?

At UTK, SCAVMA sponsors a tutoring program and I've found that if you put in the effort, professors are more available in vet school than they were in undergrad.

these people that an earlier thread 'dropping like flies' mentions are failing out -- are they failing because the academics are so rigorous they can't handle it or they're puking at the sight of skinned animal heads or what?
brutally honest anonymous opinions much appreciated

People do fail out. People leave for personal reasons, illness, etc. People sometimes come back after a year. It all depends. It's hard to know how you'll react in vet school. The admissions process is rigorous because of this, but it can't account for everything.

 

[ShortShot]

thanks a million.....mmmm, so much for VH1 reality ever doing "The Sweet Life of Me the Vet Student"....I guess there are always summers to decompress...wait, there are summers to decompress, right? or do most vet students do extra school-related things or work in clinics/researchers? I know some must, but do most people?

I know the workload will be difficult everywhere, but i'm starting to get the idea that it also can really vary between schools? anybody else want to weigh in and kindly proffer their take on their own school for inherent interest of comparison and the collective knowledge of all nervous-as-hell incoming first years like me?

and is it a very competitive atmosphere? does anyone really care who is top in the class? or is everyone just doing their thing to learn the most they can to do what they want to do?

 

[david594]

brutally honest anonymous opinions much appreciated

I hear ya now. 😉

 

[ShortShot]

actually david, the tone was a bit tongue in cheek, i'm just curious as to what others experiences are. that seems to have been offensive to you, and can see how it must be frustrating to think there are people who are going to fritter away an experience that you've worked hard to get a chance at. in the face of how much work i think most of us are going to be facing at school, I think there's room for keeping things light in this forum..... mmmm thanks for being brutally honest, i suppose i asked for it, but that wasn't quite the type of response I was hoping for....

 

[david594]

actually david, the tone was a bit tongue in cheek, i'm just curious as to what others experiences are. that seems to have been offensive to you, and can see how it must be frustrating to think there are people who are going to fritter away an experience that you've worked hard to get a chance at. in the face of how much work i think most of us are going to be facing at school, I think there's room for keeping things light in this forum..... mmmm thanks for being brutally honest, i suppose i asked for it, but that wasn't quite the type of response I was hoping for....

I totally missed the torque in cheek aspects of it. In light of that, ignore everything I just said.

Out of curiosity, are you going to a US vet school? If not, what country?

 

[Angelo84]

Okay i have a million questions, especially as it pertains to the first year of vet school.... Does everyone go to class or do a lot of people skip? do the professors take attendance? is there actually homework? how many hours do you spend in class a day? is the schedule 9-5? if you really want to take a few days off to go to your mom's birthday (okay, join your friends in margaritas on a beach) is that really frowned upon? do you have to be there really every day to do well, or can you just get the notes and study extra hard to make up for missing the occasional class?

Most people go to most classes. Certain classes everyone goes to and others many people skip. Actual attendance is taken in a few classes although if a lot of people are skipping class it is noted. There isn't specific homework that has to be handed in just studing and reading. I've always found it is best to just go to class notes from a friend are not as good as going to class.

is it pretty autonomous where so long as you pass the exams you're going to be fine because you aren't also graded on a bunch of little projects, assignments or homeworks? is extra help available if you need it? these people that an earlier thread 'dropping like flies' mentions are failing out -- are they failing because the academics are so rigorous they can't handle it or they're puking at the sight of skinned animal heads or what?

There aren't many little projects but there are a few. Extra help is available from big sibs, professors, your classmates but you have to seek it out yourself. Professors are very willing to help you learn the material but you have to approach them. Vet school is fast paced so it is relatively easy to get behind in your course work. We must get a C or better in all of our courses or you have to retake the course/year depending on the course.

brutally honest anonymous opinions much appreciated

Good luck.

 

[pressmom]

thanks a million.....mmmm, so much for VH1 reality ever doing "The Sweet Life of Me the Vet Student"

A show about vet students would be VERY BORING!! (no explosions and very few scantily clad women!)

....I guess there are always summers to decompress...wait, there are summers to decompress, right? or do most vet students do extra school-related things or work in clinics/researchers? I know some must, but do most people?

Of my closest friends, 3 aren't working (two were just lazy about getting jobs and waited too long and the other got married), 1 is working part time at a clinic, 1 is working at the VTH, and another is working at a private research facility. I'm doing research at the VTH along with several others from my class. Many also returned to jobs at clinics they had worked at in the summers between years in college. If you can afford to, you don't have to work, but don't come whining to me when you run out of loan money!! 😉

I know the workload will be difficult everywhere, but i'm starting to get the idea that it also can really vary between schools? anybody else want to weigh in and kindly proffer their take on their own school for inherent interest of comparison and the collective knowledge of all nervous-as-hell incoming first years like me?

The exam schedule may vary and the ratio of projects to exams to quizzes may vary, but I bet the workload is pretty similar. People who need to or who are going to study a lot will no matter where they are. People who aren't, simply aren't. The people that have fulfilled pre-reqs for many schools might end up with some overlap of classes they've already had first year and need to study less for those. But, and I really can't stress this enough, you need to cultivate good study habits from day one. Like don't blow off those first few weeks with no tests and do nothing. Some people do cram, but most choose to spread out their studying at least a little. I would plan to spread it out in case something out of your control happens (illness, etc.) and then see if you can cram later on. But don't go in expecting to be able to cram. You'll generally be setting yourself up for trouble.

and is it a very competitive atmosphere? does anyone really care who is top in the class? or is everyone just doing their thing to learn the most they can to do what they want to do?

I would say it's less competitive than undergrad. People generally want each other to succeed. If we all get 4.0s, all the better! Not everyone wants to do the same thing, so there's plenty of room for everyone to succeed.

 

[twelvetigers]

Ignore the dirty hippy, he just lives in a van down by the river.

So far I like pressmom and alliecat's answers quite a bit. I'd toss one in, but I'm not in vet school! As far as I can tell, though, all vet students from all schools (that know what's good for them) study a lot. Not much of a difference between schools there.

Are you planning to apply this round, or later on?

 

[ShortShot]

yes US vet school. eastern side of america, but thats as much as i'm giving up my anonymity because i'm still kind of paranoid about online forums...and i think we have more in common than you think, didn't do so well my first time round in undergrad, worked more than full time while taking a seemingly endless stream of classes to get the gpa up before getting accepted to DVM program (the tuition for which, incidentally, I am paying for entirely out of my own wages and hopefully very minimal loans --in state) ....anyway i've been sort of half lurking here for a bit, and i've enjoyed a lot of your earlier posts. i'm a little horrified that i offended on my first time out, actually. just a little new to forum culture i think, and committing faux pas....what seems light to me might seem cavalier and disrespectful to others.

forgive me?

 

[ShortShot]

Ignore the dirty hippy, he just lives in a van down by the river.

So far I like pressmom and alliecat's answers quite a bit. I'd toss one in, but I'm not in vet school! As far as I can tell, though, all vet students from all schools (that know what's good for them) study a lot. Not much of a difference between schools there.

Are you planning to apply this round, or later on?

i'm in...eastern side of america....and a little more jittery about the big changes coming than i'd like to admit... now that it's only a couple of months before classes start....

thanks for being nice.

 

[david594]

I really meant no offense. I read your first post and my first thought was that you might have been a kid right out of high school starting a 5 year vet school program common to many foreign countries.

 

[Emio]

i'm in...eastern side of america....and a little more jittery about the big changes coming than i'd like to admit... now that it's only a couple of months before classes start....

thanks for being nice.

duuuude you're gonna jitter your brains right out of your skull.

you're in. there's nothing you can do about that now. take it as it comes 😉

i can only speak for Penn, and say that attendance isn't a big issue, as in attendance isn't taken, but often it's "noticed" if you skip a lab... as in professors might tease you about it hte next day. go to the classes you want/need to, don't go to the ones you don't. with that in mind, many people "need" to go to all of their classes (me being at least close to that nature), and some professors will ask exam questions based on lecture, not notes. hence, you'd be screwed if you didn't go. there are a few in my class that simply gave up going to class, and learn based on notes. there are a few professors' lectures that i won't go to, and learn from the notes. it's possible; depends on your learning style. some people feel dumber after certain lectures, and some can't learn without it.

first semester/year, classes are generally 9-5 with a lunch from 12-1.

grades are nearly solely based on exams. a couple 2 point biochem projects here and there, some intro to vet med quizzes, but those are the exceptions. though, at penn, there is no tutoring program as far as i'm aware. if you skip a class, you better make it up on your own time ASAP, or things WILL snowball. there's enough stuff just to keep up with, let alone make up cause you were at the beach.

"dropping like flies": in our class, we lost one to personal reasons, one to grades, and two to change of interest. one put on a gas mask to make it through the smells of anatomy 👍

as far as competiveness; depends who you hang out with. yeah, there are some hella competitive people in my class, but i wouldn't touch them with a ten foot pole. if you want to compete, compete. if you don't, don't.

so, to sum: yeah, it's work. yeah, you should go to class. yeah, you should take a day off every once in a while. it's going to be a lot of fun shortshot, and i bet you'll make some really good friends, not be so jittery, and maybe even learn something while you're there. good luck!

 

[spikey]

duuuude you're gonna jitter your brains right out of your skull.

you're in. there's nothing you can do about that now. take it as it comes 😉

i can only speak for Penn, and say that attendance isn't a big issue, as in attendance isn't taken, but often it's "noticed" if you skip a lab... as in professors might tease you about it hte next day. go to the classes you want/need to, don't go to the ones you don't. with that in mind, many people "need" to go to all of their classes (me being at least close to that nature), and some professors will ask exam questions based on lecture, not notes. hence, you'd be screwed if you didn't go. there are a few in my class that simply gave up going to class, and learn based on notes. there are a few professors' lectures that i won't go to, and learn from the notes. it's possible; depends on your learning style. some people feel dumber after certain lectures, and some can't learn without it.

first semester/year, classes are generally 9-5 with a lunch from 12-1.

grades are nearly solely based on exams. a couple 2 point biochem projects here and there, some intro to vet med quizzes, but those are the exceptions. though, at penn, there is no tutoring program as far as i'm aware. if you skip a class, you better make it up on your own time ASAP, or things WILL snowball. there's enough stuff just to keep up with, let alone make up cause you were at the beach.

"dropping like flies": in our class, we lost one to personal reasons, one to grades, and two to change of interest. one put on a gas mask to make it through the smells of anatomy 👍

as far as competiveness; depends who you hang out with. yeah, there are some hella competitive people in my class, but i wouldn't touch them with a ten foot pole. if you want to compete, compete. if you don't, don't.

so, to sum: yeah, it's work. yeah, you should go to class. yeah, you should take a day off every once in a while. it's going to be a lot of fun shortshot, and i bet you'll make some really good friends, not be so jittery, and maybe even learn something while you're there. good luck!

i couldn't have put it better myself, em. 🙂

 

[twelvetigers]

thanks for being nice.

Hon, I'm always nice. At least on the internet. 😉

Chill out & enjoy your summer. You can deal with vet school when you get there.

 

[Electrophile]

Okay i have a million questions, especially as it pertains to the first year of vet school.... Does everyone go to class or do a lot of people skip? do the professors take attendance?

I calculated it out and for me in state, it's about $40 per credit hour you have your butt in the chair. I am not getting any help from mommy or daddy. I am also a classroom learner and therefore I think it's silly to pay that much money to skip class. The time for skipping class was undergrad. I may step on toes, but perpetual skipping=unprofessional. JMHO. I also get seriously annoyed with excessive talking and other distracting behavior and I tend to sit in the first few rows for that reason.

is there actually homework?

Yes, and I kind of wish there was more. I love problem based homework sets and doing research on stuff on my own. Bring it on! And the extra grade padding! 😀

how many hours do you spend in class a day? is the schedule 9-5? if you really want to take a few days off to go to your mom's birthday (okay, join your friends in margaritas on a beach) is that really frowned upon? do you have to be there really every day to do well, or can you just get the notes and study extra hard to make up for missing the occasional class?

Basically first year it was 8-5 or 8-3 with at least an hour break for lunch just about every day but Friday, where we got off at 1 PM or 12 PM.

Once again, JMHO here, but if you're paying that much for class and there's other people who would kill to have your seat cause they didn't get in but were perhaps equally qualified, I think it's unprofessional to skive off class. The professors can tell too. In a few classes, we had a class composite photo sitting by the podium. The assistant dean gave some lectures on respiratory physiology and liked picking random names. That would look really bad if you weren't there for a good reason.

is it pretty autonomous where so long as you pass the exams you're going to be fine because you aren't also graded on a bunch of little projects, assignments or homeworks? is extra help available if you need it? these people that an earlier thread 'dropping like flies' mentions are failing out -- are they failing because the academics are so rigorous they can't handle it or they're puking at the sight of skinned animal heads or what?

brutally honest anonymous opinions much appreciated

I don't think we have a tutoring program, but the professors try to usually make themselves available. We also recently hired a PhD psychologist that we could schedule times if we were having personal issues, stress, that sort of thing. I replied on the other thread, but we have lost people due to personal/family health type problems, grades, cheating, and so on.

 

[projekt]

Points remembered from the info-session here at UGA:

• Attendance is taken and if you skip classes you will fail.
• Very few people work after class.
• Class is from 8 or 9 to 5PM, 1 hr lunch.
• The material isn't too hard but the volume is large.
• Sometimes you have 3-4 tests per week.
• You'd better have been studying and not cramming, because you won't cram it all in.

YMMV.

 

[ShortShot]

One more question....

There have been a couple of threads that mentioned cheating so far. One poster went so far as to say that she felt it was everywhere at her school, that it was destroying the curve and that her professors did little about it. Does anyone else feel that way? The thing I hated the most about my undergrad was the 'weed-out' mentality of the premed/prevet classes -- there were students who carried a cut throat, almost desperate sense of competition that couldn't help but color the mood of many of the classes. And my biggest fear about vet school is that it will be like that all over again....

i'm very noncompetitive by nature, i hate it when intense 'schooling' gets in the way of actually learning the material, and it worries me that vet school might self select for the uber acheiving, will cheat if necessary types....

anyone have any insights???

Thanks again

 

[Emio]

i haven't seen any. the uber competitives in our class are the opposite and wouldn't dare risk their competition by cheating.

 

[Monkey85]

Emio summed up life at Penn pretty well. Some professors make more of an effort with the students than others. Our main Neuro prof held weekly review sessions at lunch after our first exam for those who felt they needed extra help. I believe they send you a letter to advise you if you are in danger of failing a course but its pretty much up to you to fix it.

Labs are "mandatory" but you can do the work as quick or slow as you want. I get sick using a microscope so there were many short histo and dev. bio. labs for me. And I never stayed the whole time in a Neuro lab but I had a friend who would stay til the last possible second if not stay later; but thats what she needed to do.

For some, class became very optional and the students certainly noticed so I am sure some of the regular professors took notice too. We have a service at Penn called Note Service. Every lecture gets audio recorded and the a student transcribes the lecture. You have to pay to use the service. I think some people relied on this totally in place of the actual lecture (which can be a gamble with some of the accents our profs have).

I skipped classes occasionally if I knew the prof was a bad lecturer. I took a Friday off and went to the shore with some friends. But I did run into that exam-question-from-class situation Emio mentioned. It turns out most people who went to the lecture don't remember the prof ever telling the story so it probably didn't make a difference. And seriously how is knowing what breed of cow was flown by a helicopter useful for a veterinarian? I think it was Brown Swiss, but I am glad I went to the beach instead of getting that question right.

So my advice is RELAX! At first you'll be overwhelmed but you'll get into a routine and learn what corners can be cut and when. You'll make friends with people who will help you out. In my circle of friends we would always grab an extra note packet if someone didn't show up. And everyone is a friend in the library during exams so asking a question to clear something up or make a copy of an old exam you don't have isn't a big deal. Good luck!