St. Matthew’s University

[snowboarding.mouse]

I was recently accepted to St Matthew’s University for fall of 2025. I am having a hard time finding much information and opinions from people currently attending. Does anyone have any insight on the program/school?

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[battie]

The school is not accredited by the AVMA. I do not generally recommend attending non-AVMA schools if you plan to practice in the US, Canada, or even Europe. If you graduate, you have to go through additional hoops in order to practice in the US which can cost thousands of dollars.

 

[supershorty]

you have to go through additional hoops in order to practice in the US which can cost thousands of dollars.

My understanding of the ECFVG certification process is also that it is exceptionally hard, in addition to being expensive, so the odds of spending thousands of dollars multiple times is high.

It's not worth the risk, OP. Go to an accredited program.

 

[Cowsrcool]

ECFVG is ridiculously expensive and difficult.
I had originally considered applying to st matthews a few years ago but read about 2 paragraphs into this page:

Steps of the ECFVG Certification Program

ECFVG Policies and Procedures - Outline of ECFVG Steps

www.avma.org

And knew I’d literally never want to do all of that. Highly advise against a non accredited program

 

[snowboarding.mouse]

ECFVG is ridiculously expensive and difficult.
I had originally considered applying to st matthews a few years ago but read about 2 paragraphs into this page:

Steps of the ECFVG Certification Program

ECFVG Policies and Procedures - Outline of ECFVG Steps

www.avma.org

And knew I’d literally never want to do all of that. Highly advise against a non accredited program

My understanding is I would have to take the PAVE route to practice in my home state. Do you know how this compares by any chance?

 

[Cowsrcool]

My understanding is I would have to take the PAVE route to practice in my home state. Do you know how this compares by any chance?

I believe PAVE is just as costly. Any method of trying to get licensed in the US after attending a unaccredited school is costly and LONG. I believe pave requires you to even train at a US vet school and pay them tuition of some kind? (Idk if this is accurate I read it in another thread) but truly I cannot shout from the rooftops enough that you should attend an accredited program

 

[JaynaAli]

My understanding is I would have to take the PAVE route to practice in my home state. Do you know how this compares by any chance?

I’m pretty sure PAVE also requires an exam and while the exam may not be quite as notoriously difficult, PAVE also requires you to have a year of clinical training in the US. I just looked and the school I went to apparently charges $52,500 for a PAVE year’s tuition and that doesn’t count any of your living expenses which they estimate to be an additional $22,000. So hope you have a spare $74,500 laying around from what the website suggests. Maybe St Matt’s has special arrangements for clinical years built in like other Caribbean schools or something, but it’s still going to cost money.

Also, PAVE isn’t accepted in every state, so if you went that route and ever needed to move to a state where that wasn’t accepted, you may run into problems. Maybe you wouldn’t ever move to those states where it isn’t accepted but something to consider.

Considering a unaccredited school should be your absolute last option. I wouldn’t recommend it if you have any other option. Do people make it work? Sure, some do. But it’s not easy.

 

[snowboarding.mouse]

I’m pretty sure PAVE also requires an exam and while the exam may not be quite as notoriously difficult, PAVE also requires you to have a year of clinical training in the US. I just looked and the school I went to apparently charges $52,500 for a PAVE year’s tuition and that doesn’t count any of your living expenses which they estimate to be an additional $22,000. So hope you have a spare $74,500 laying around from what the website suggests. Maybe St Matt’s has special arrangements for clinical years built in like other Caribbean schools or something, but it’s still going to cost money.

Also, PAVE isn’t accepted in every state, so if you went that route and ever needed to move to a state where that wasn’t accepted, you may run into problems. Maybe you wouldn’t ever move to those states where it isn’t accepted but something to consider.

Considering a unaccredited school should be your absolute last option. I wouldn’t recommend it if you have any other option. Do people make it work? Sure, some do. But it’s not easy.

I still am waiting to hear from about 20 more accredited schools before I make any decisions. It will probably be my last resort if I don’t get in anywhere else because I really do not want to take a gap year

 

[vampyrica]

I still am waiting to hear from about 20 more accredited schools before I make any decisions. It will probably be my last resort if I don’t get in anywhere else because I really do not want to take a gap year

jumping on to say that taking a gap year has been the best decision of my life! i am so grateful i have this time to work a full time job, hang out with my friends and enjoy my hobbies. others will tell you too, a gap year is not the end of the world and a lot of people are so thankful they had the opportunity to re-group and really buff up their application! idk what your situation is so i wont assume anything— just sharing that a gap year can bring you the most amazing and unexpected opportunities!

 

[supershorty]

I really do not want to take a gap year

I would highly recommend a gap year over being hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt that you may struggle to get loans for, with it being an international program, and knowing that you'll pay thousands more to HOPE that you are ever able to practice.

To be honest, I think the majority of people would benefit from 1 or more gap years to get some life experience before going into a professional program. It truly isn't the end of the world.

I personally had 3 years between when I graduated from undergrad and when I started in vet school, and those 3 years changed the course of my career entirely. The first one was because I didn't get in the first time I applied, and then I stayed out for another few years to keep working on what I was working on.

 

[vampyrica]

agreed with @supershorty! i’ll share my experience to give you some perspective. last year i applied to 12 schools, almost all my classmates got in somewhere and i got nowhere including the island schools.

by december of last year i felt so defeated and depressed, i did not excel for my finals. randomly in january, i received news i was one of ten students nationally accepted to a USDA sponsored fellowship program. one of ten!! i thought “really me??? after ive just been rejected everywhere??” so i took the opportunity and flew out to the midwest to spend my summer at the program. i made some amazing connections, met incredible people who will soon be my peers in vet med, and gained so much experience in a field i had never worked in before. my advisor for the program was happy to write me a letter of recommendation for this cycle and write about how well i did in an unfamiliar field.

fast forward to now, BECAUSE i gained that hands on experience working in high level labs, i got my first “big girl job” as a research technologist at a university! 30+ people applied for this position and again, they chose me! how crazy is that? after that disappointing and devastating cycle, i feel so much relief taking this time off from school and vet med to work, save some money, invest time in my hobbies and friends. life can be so unexpected, but you end up exactly where you are meant to be!

 

[Cowsrcool]

I still am waiting to hear from about 20 more accredited schools before I make any decisions. It will probably be my last resort if I don’t get in anywhere else because I really do not want to take a gap year

I took a gap year after I only got into Ross my first cycle and it was the best decision. In your case, you’ll be a year behind anyway as the PAVE requires that year of tuition and training at a US school, meaning you’re better off taking a gap year and doing 4 years at a US accredited program vs 5-6-7 who knows how many years it could take to POSSIBLY practice in your home state

 

[Cowsrcool]

There’s an account on Instagram @ dogtor_lizzy who is an American who attended an unaccredited program in the UK and now lives/works in Ireland bc of how difficult it is to get through the licensing for unaccredited programs. I suggest you look at her content she has a bunch about PAVE and ECFVG