Successful Applicant Stats C/O 2014

Veterinary Science Graduate Programs from U. of I.
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Eventualeventer--I'm just curious about how you liked the UM Equestrian Club... It seems kinda crazy with so many people and only like 8 horses. I went to Ag Day a couple times because it was the same day as 4-H public speaking. It's interesting to see the facilities right in the middle of campus...

Anyway, congrats!!!
 
BlacKAT33 said:
all prevets at UMD should work with the stalk eyed flies, i think they are good luck!!!
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Well, that goes without saying. Stalkies are awesome!

PigsRock said:
Eventualeventer--I'm just curious about how you liked the UM Equestrian Club... It seems kinda crazy with so many people and only like 8 horses. I went to Ag Day a couple times because it was the same day as 4-H public speaking. It's interesting to see the facilities right in the middle of campus...

Anyway, congrats!!!
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Thanks (and congrats on getting in yourself!). Yeah, it takes a lot of careful scheduling to make things work with so few horses, but there is a lot of oversight and the horses get good care. I think that the Eq. Club is a great thing to have on campus. In terms of my own riding, I mainly benefited from time riding different horses (and lessons from a grad student/professional trainer for the first year or so), but I really enjoyed teaching lessons and helping other people learn about horses, even the little things like how to wrap legs or muck a stall. There were a lot of undergrads who had never touched a horse and probably would not have had the chance to try out riding if there weren't such a cheap, accessible, friendly place to go. I enjoyed my time with the club and met a lot of other horse people, but after a while it became less of a priority because I was getting time in the saddle elsewhere and had less free time from working, etc. IOW, I think it's a real asset to the campus community, but whether an experienced horse person would find it worth their time depends on what they want to get out of it.
 
I hope this encourages others....

Missouri Resident, 21 year old female. 1st time applicant.
Applied: University of Missouri
Rejected: N/A
Interviewed: University of Missouri
Waitlisted: N/a
Accepted: Mizzou!!!!😱
Attending: Mizzou!!!!! 😍


Cum GPA: 3.22
Cum GPA after the +/- were deleted: 3.14 :scared:
Last 45: 3.4
GRE: 1250

I only did 3.5 years of undergraduate work and graduated early. I'm working full time currently as a research scientist using my degree in Biomedical Sciences for a company specializing in regenerative medicine.

My interview felt HORRIBLE (I was so nervous!) but apparently I said something they liked!

Vet Experience:
Equine: 4K+ hrs
Small animal: 2K+ hrs
Laboratory: 1K hrs
Farm Animal: 250 hrs

Vet/Animal Experience:
I've owned and shown H/J horses since I was 5 years old, including riding/training with the US Show Jumping Chef d'Equipe and numerous other Olympians.

I've had my own house/pet sitting business since I was 16 and have been bonded/insured since I was 18 when I turned it into an LLC.

6 years of volunteer experience at a disabled riding academy.

5 years of volunteer experience in my local shelter and large animal rescue.

I worked in an Equine Orthopedic Research Lab through college as well as the Veterinary Teaching Hospital's Pharmacy and Oncology departments.

I've worked in several small animal clinics with different specialites in addition to my equine vet clinic since I was 16.

Extracurricular Activities:
I spent two summers in college traveling abroad by myself with no schedule or plan at all except a return ticket 2 months later. I wrote about it in one of my essays and we spent half of my 15 min interview talking about that alone! I think it may have been what set me apart in their minds.


LORs:
Equine Vet I've shadowed for 10 years
Pharmacist I worked for in college (at a veterinary teaching hospital)
Immunology Professor
^They were all so great and really went to bat for me b/c they knew my stats were lower then average. They all stressed that I really had the tools to be successful and was already able to perform many procedures solo but I'm still eager to learn and very teachable. I can't stress how important it is to cultivate really good relationships with potential letter writers enough!

I had a really bad semester (and one not-so-good semester) which is where the very low cum GPA came from. I addressed it in my personal statement and we also talked about it at length in my interview. They really questioned me on what I would do if a similar situation came up in Vet School so I was glad I had thought out a nice answer beforehand. Most of the classes I took those semesters were my pre-reqs for vet school so it was a very big deal.

I never, ever thought I would get in on my first try and I'm still completely shocked and flattered. This year was my 'practice' year because I knew my stats were very bad despite having good experience. Just goes to show that schools DO look at the whole applicant and not just what's on paper!
 
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South Florida resident, female, 23 y.o. 2nd time applicant
Applied: LSU, UF, Tuskegee University
Rejected: N/A
Interviewed: LSU, UF, Tuskegee University
Waitlisted: LSU
Waiting to hear: UF
Accepted: Tuskegee
Attending: ??? Don't know yet

University of Florida
B.S. in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, August 2008

Cum GPA: 3.71
Required Course GPA: 3.69 (according to LSU)
Last 45 GPA: 3.83 (according to LSU)
GRE: V: 600; 85%, Q: 720; 76%, W: 5.0; 77%

At time of application:
Vet Experience:
-50 hours volunteer SA hospital
-1300 hours receptionist/vet tech SA hospital

Animal Experience:
-500 hours volunteer wildlife care and rehabilation

Other Employment:
-500 hours quick service restaurant, Walt Disney World college program
-1000 hours cashier Publix
-400 hours tutoring assistant

Community Activities:
-theater volunteer, 8 years
-Alpha Zeta
-Sigma Alpha, professional development chair
-Pet Project volunteer
-High school swim team, lettered 3 years
-Venture
-Girl Scouts

Honors/Awards:
-Graduated cum laude
-Alpha Lambda Delta
-Dean’s List
-Girl Scout Silver Award
-NSCS
-Golden Key
-Sociedad Honoraia Hispanica
-President’s Honor Roll
Many other volunteer activities, too many to list....

eLORs:
-DVM from SA hospital currently working
-head tech from SA hospital currently working
-family friend, girl scout leader known for 13 years
-family friend, volunteer coordinator known for 4 years
 
just some hope for those of you looking at these other awesome applicants with thousands of hours and getting nervous...I was you last year

20 year old F California resident, technically first time applicant (late app to Edinburgh last year)
Applied: UC Davis, WSU, Illinois, CSU, UPenn, KSU, Wisconsin, Minnesota
Rejected: WSU, CSU, Illinois, CSU, Upenn
Interviewed: UC Davis, KSU, Minnesota
Waitlisted: Minnesota (OOS #15)
Accepted: UC Davis, KSU
Attending: Davis!!

Cal Poly Pomona
B.S. Biology expected spring 2010

at time of application:
Cum GPA: 3.66
Required Course GPA: 3.65
Last 45 GPA: 3.83; because quarters my last 68 Q units were 3.73
GRE: 1st time: V:600 Q:760 A:4
2nd time: V:640 Q:720 A:4

At time of application:
Vet Experience:
-50 hour externship at SA/exotics clinic through school
-~50 hour externship at city of hope beckman research institute's lab animal center
-300 hours volunteering/shadowing equine vet (lots of lameness)


Animal Experience:
-10000 equestrian*
-50 animal shleter volunteering
-30 horse sitting

Other Employment:
-1000 at a running specialty store fitting customers for shoes


Community Activities:
-pre-vet club member; symposium committee member
-varsity cross country and track in high school
-volunteered for team in training
-girl scouts (k-12)

Honors/Awards:
-AP scholar with distinction
-Alpha Lambda Delta
-Dean’s List
-CSF member
-National Honor society
-President's honor list
-Scholar athlete x2
-Girl Scout Silver Award


eLORs:
-Equine vet shadowed
-Organic chem lecture professor
-Organic chem lab professor
-Manager from the running center

*My equine animal hours are so high because I rode from 7-17 and from about 12 was a working student, meaning I rode other people's horses or those there on consignment, helped with feeding and grooming and socializing babies. For about 4 years I rode 5 days a week and every other weekend was spent at the county shows.
 
26 y.o. female, 1st Time Applicant, kentucky resident

Applied: Auburn (IS), Minnesota, LSU, KSU, Missouri, UTK
Rejected: KSU, Missouri
Waitlisted: LSU
Withdrew: UTK
Interviews: Auburn, Minnesota
Accepted: Auburn 😍, Minnesota 😍
Attending: Auburn!!!

Cumulative GPA: 3.71
Last 45 credit hrs: 3.77
GRE: 630 Q, 420 V, 4.5 AW …apparently I can't take standardized tests

Honors and Awards:
Malcolm Kochert Scholarship Recipient
Dean's list 9 semesters (I've been in school a while&#8230😉
Golden Key Honor Society
Lambda Pi Eta Honor Society
Rho Lambda Honor Society

Veterinary Experience:
2 years Zoo Med
630 hrs SA (Emergency/Critical Care, Specialty, Exotics)
340 hrs LA (Food animal, Equine, Small ruminant)
200 hrs Research

Animal Experience:
100 hrs Therapeutic Riding Center
20 hrs Dog Walking for Rescue Organization

Extracurricular/Community Activities:
Therapeutic Riding Center Class Volunteer
Annual Breast Cancer Fundraiser Participant (6 years)
Zoo Volunteer (2 years)
Make A Wish Foundation wish granter
Research poster presentation at student research conference

Letters of Recommendation:
LA veterinarian I ride with
Research PI and biology professor
Chemistry professor (4 semesters – intro chem. & organic chem.)
Hospital Supervisor from the Zoo


Didn't think I'd get accepted this year, and definitely didn't think I'd have a decision to make. :scared:
 
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1st time applicant, 21 years old, Female, Kentucky resident
Applied: Auburn, NCSU, UPenn
Interviewed: UPenn
Accepted: Auburn!!!!
Rejected: None
Waitinglisted: NCSU, UPenn (will be removing myself from both shortly)
Attending: Auburn


Degree: BA in Biology, Minor in Spanish, class of 2010 from well-respected liberal arts college
Cum GPA @ time of application: 3.834
Last 45 credit hrs: 3.9ish
Science: 3.8 ish
GRE: 750 Verbal, 750 Quantitative, 5.0 Writing

Honors and Awards:
-Dean’s List all semesters
-Full academic scholarship
-National Merit Scholar 2006

Veterinary Experience: (at time of application)
-3000 hours companion animal private practice
-200 hours equine surgery
-205 hours equine ambulatory/therio
-50 hours mixed/farm animal practice
-20 hours underprivileged vaccination clinics

Animal Experience:
-1000 hours equine rehabilitation/sports medicine (considered listing as vet experience as was very veterinary intensive and worked with many vets, but the facility did not have a staff veterinarian)
-1000 hours dairy goat care and management (family farm)
-300 hours chicken care and management (family farm – felt a little silly listing it, but Auburn told me to).

Extracurricular/Community Activities:
- Biological research (did not fit into vet or work experience categories)
- Pre-vet club founding member and president
- NAHERC animal health tech
- Biology club
- Campus Crusade for Christ
- Etc, etc, etc.

Letters of Recommendation:
-DVM small animal clinic practice owner (who also discussed my equine experiences)
-DVM small animal clinic associate vet
-University pre-health committee

Note: Penn was not happy that I had no letter of recommendation from an equine vet, despite the fact that I’d known my SA vets for 3+ years and the equine vets for only a summer. Just something to keep in mind when diversifying your experience.
 
Tennessee Resident, 22 year old female. 2nd time applicant.
Applied: University of Tennessee, Virginia Tech
Rejected: Virginia Tech
Interviewed: University of Tennessee
Waitlisted: N/a
Accepted: Tennessee!!!!
Attending: Tennessee!!!!! 😍


Cum GPA: 3.97
Cum GPA after the +/- were deleted: 3.97
Last 45: 3.9ish maybe?
GRE: 1140

Vet Experience:
Equine: none
Small animal: 400ish
Laboratory: none
Farm Animal: none

Didn't have too much vet experience, but had a lot of other work experience as a manager, and a really good GPA...I think both helped compensate for the missing vet experience.

Extracurricular Activities:

I know this doesn't really count as extracurricular, but I think my interviewers really liked the fact I've tutored during my last 2 years of college in just about every subject. They asked if I would ever consider using my DVM to teach.


eLORs:
Small Animal Vet I've shadowed for around 3.5 years.
Chemistry Professor
Mathematics Professor
Biology Professor
 
Cum GPA: 3.97
Cum GPA after the +/- were deleted: 3.97
Last 45: 3.9ish maybe?
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Jesus, that's pretty impressive. What is that? Like, 1 single B or something? lol
 
aspiringDVM said:
Degree: BA in Biology, Minor in Spanish, class of 2010 from well-respected liberal arts college
Cum GPA @ time of application: 3.834
Last 45 credit hrs: 3.9ish
Science: 3.8 ish
GRE: 750 Verbal, 750 Quantitative, 5.0 Writing
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Are there vampires or transsexuals at this well-respected liberal arts college by any chance? 😉

Btw, your grades and GREs are friggin' fantastic.

Congrads on your acceptance and decision!!!! :highfive:
 
royaltRF said:
Are there vampires or transsexuals at this well-respected liberal arts college by any chance? 😉

Btw, your grades and GREs are friggin' fantastic.

Congrads on your acceptance and decision!!!! :highfive:
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Haha, very funny 🙄. J/K 😀.
Thanks alot -- I'm absolutely delighted. Do you know where you're going yet? You had quite a few decisions to make as I recall 👍.

Also many thanks to TwelveTigers 🙂
 
1st time applicant, 39 years old, Female, Tennessee resident
Applied: Tennessee
Interviewed: Tennessee
Accepted: Tennessee
Attending: Tennessee


Degree: None(though I only lack 4 classes to get 4 different associates! LOL)
Cum GPA @ time of application: 3.74
Last 45 credit hrs: 3.4
Science: 3.4
Course load avg. 17 credit hours per semester
GRE: 610 Verbal, 600 Quantitative, 3.0 Writing 🙂oI know!)

Honors and Awards:
-Dean’s List 3 semesters
-Presidents list 2 semesters
- Multiple military service awards (I was in the Navy for 9 years)
-Distinguished Chapter Officer - Phi Theta Kappa
-Service Hallmark Award – Phi Theta Kappa

Veterinary Experience: (at time of application)
-5000 hours companion animal private practice
- 40 Spay / Neuter program

Animal Experience:
-18000 Kennel manager and groomer
-700 Military working dogs (on my off time)
-600 Dog trainer
-Owner of horses, cows, goats, dogs and cats. Have done a couple of cattle shows, equine endurance races, and dog agility.
- Raised 3 nursemare foals

Extracurricular/Community Activities:
- Remote Area Medical volunteer
- Vice president of service Phi Thetta Kappa
- American Chemical Society
- Science club
- Ag.club

Letters of Recommendation:
-DVM I used to work with at small animal clinic practice
-Organic Chem instructor
-Boss number one
-Boss number two (worked for #1 and #1 for 10 years running their kennel)
-Wonderful friend (these are just a few of the things she has done: Founder, Peaceful Kingdom (a humane organization)
Editor, Critter Magazine (adoptable pets from rescue groups and local shelters)
Past Vice-Chair, Young Williams Animal Center Board of Directors
Current Vice-Chair, Friends of the Young-Williams Animal Center
Board Member, UTCVM Companion Animal Initiative in Tennessee
Past Chair, Legislative Committee, UTCVM Companion Animal Initiative in Tennessee

 
When I applied this year I had NO idea that this was how things would turn out. I thought I would be lucky just to get into my IS school. I was worried about my lack of large animal experience and I just knew how amazing the applicant pool generally was, so when the acceptances started coming in one by one I was beyond ecstatic.

I know my gpa and gre were probably large factors in how well I did, but I also think the fact that I took a year after graduation to work and gain more experience helped alot, as did my interest in ethics.


North Carolina Resident, 1st time applicant, 23 year old female

Applied: NC State, LSU, VMRCVM, Auburn, UT, Kansas State
Rejected: none (flabbergasted by this)
Interviewed: Everywhere but NC State (they don't interview)
Waitlisted: Auburn
Accepted: NC State, LSU, UT, Kansas State, VMRCVM
Attending: 99% sure NC State

University of Virginia
B.A Biology 2009
Minor in Bioethics

Cum GPA: 3.72
Required Course GPA: 3.74(according to LSU)
Last 45 GPA: 3.74 (according to LSU)
GRE: V: 720; Q: 690; W: 5.5

At time of application:
Vet Experience:
-950 hours as an unliscenced veterinary technician in a SA hospital in NC
-220 hours as a veterinary assistance in a SA hospital in VA
-24 (yes...only 24) hours at a large equine hospital in VA
-440 hours as a student lab technician in a Physiology and Pharmacology lab doing studies about the effects of long term drug use on the brain (both rats and primates were utilized, though I had very little contact with either)

Animal Experience:
-144 hours as a kennel tech in a SA hospital (my very first job when I was 15)
-148 hours walking dogs at the ASPCA

Other Employment:-
-TA'ed for Organic Chemistry for 2 semesters
-864 hours at a retail store in the mall

Community Activities:
-Lots of work with my Universities Judicial Committee (I served as a investigator for 2 years and was elected as a judge my 4th year)
-Habitat for Humanity
-Zeta Tau Alpha

Honors/Awards:
-Graduated with honors
-Deans list every semester except for 1
-At&t foundation scholarship
-National Merit Scholar

eLORs:
-Vet who owns the SA practice in NC
-Vet who owns the SA practice in VA
- Organic Chemistry Professor who I TA'ed for
- Pre-health advisor at UVA ( I wrote a manual about applying to vet school for a writing class, so I had worked with her quite a bit during that process)
 
So thrilled and excited! Thanks guys for helping along the way. This place is just amazing!

Oklahoma Resident, 1st time applicant, 21 year old female

Applied: NC State, UF, VMRCVM, OkSU, UTK
Rejected: NC State and UF
Interviewed: VMRCVM, UTK, OkSU
Waitlisted: VMRCVM
Accepted: VMRCVM, OkSU, UTK
Attending: leaning towards OkSU

Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech)
B.S in Animal and Poultry Sciences 2010
Minor in Chemistry

Cum GPA: 3.53
Science: 3.8
Last 45 GPA: 3.8ish
GRE: V: 570; Q: 640; W: 4.5 Biology: ~630 (cant remember exactly)


Vet Experience:
-100 hours as an undergraduate research assistant involved in public health related issues
-100 hours in a cancer research lab running biological assays for drug development
-450 hours under VMRCVM Field Services equine vets
-1700+ hours working in a SA clinic in Cleveland, OH

Animal Experience:
-250 hours exposed to all sorts of livestock thanks to Tech's awesome labs for undergraduates
-1200+ hours working on equine breeding farms (the one at tech and a private stud in Ohio)
-Dog, cat, and horse owner - I did put those on there
-120 hours pet sitting

Other Employment:-
nothing outside of animals as of yet...

Extracurricular/Community Activities:
- Horses, horses, horses...
- Operation Petfix in Northeast Ohio
- Project Reclaim to help those families effected by Hurricane Katrina

Honors/Awards:
-deans list 6/8 semesters
-Charles W. Thomas Memorial scholarship
-Ashe Lockhart Scholarship
-winner of Amateur Handler class at the a local event show with Rubicon VT

eLORs:
-Board certified internist that ran the SA practice I worked at
-Veterinarian that also worked at that SA practice
-Professor/advisor who also ran the on campus horse breeding farm that I was involved with my entire college career
(NC state asked for just three, so I only did three)
 
Florida resident, male, 22 y.o. 1st time applicant
B.B.A in Finance with concentration in accounting, May 2009
Applied: LSU, SGU, Upenn, Edinburgh, Dublin, Glasgow, Minnesota, Illinois, Kansas state, NC state, Iowa, Mississippi, Western, UF
Rejected: LSU, Upenn
Interviewed: SGU, Glasgow(declined), Iowa, Kansas, Mississippi, Western, Minnesota, Illinois, UF
Waitlisted: Iowa, Mississippi, NC state
Accepted: SGU, Edinburgh, Dublin, Kansas, Minnesota, Illinois, Western, UF
Attending: UF

I really didn't think I had a good shot of being accepted because I was just average across the board, hence why I applied to so many schools. For anyone still applying do not underestimate yourself, you are probably a better applicant than you realize.

Cum GPA: 3.59
Required Course GPA: 3.58
Last 45 GPA: 3.66 (took a lot of my sciences in these last hours)
GRE: V: 430, Q: 740, W: 4.0, 1170

At time of application:
Vet Experience:
-700 hours corporate SA hospital (said I would continue working on application) now:1100
-160 hours shadowing 2 different equine veterinarians (also noted on application was invited back for winter break) now: around 200 hrs

Animal Experience:
- 2400 hours on Uncles farm summers from (95-01), though I was really young I put it on there and it came up in a couple interviews
-225 hours at Shelters throughout the years high school-college
- 200 hours at Exotic pet store in high school, just showed up helped take care of snakes, lizards, sugar gliders, hedgehogs, etc..
-150 at Bird Retail store

Other Employment:
-Private swim instructor and life guard in high school (I gained valuable experience in marketing myself and also in managing a small business.)
-560 hours summer camp life guard and swim instructor
-500 hours Lehman Brothers Private Equity internship during college (I conducted quantitative analysis and qualitative due diligence on national and international private equity investment managers.)
- 360 hours Wealth Management Internship (I aided senior executives with the firm's private wealth management. I organized and conducted due diligence for the firm's off-shore mutual funds. )

Community Activities:
-Intramurals in college(Ultimate Frisbee, swimming, football, basketball)
-Water Polo club for a few years
-Retail club
-After school program in Dallas inner-city (taught math)
-Participated in Relay for life, Habitat for Humanity, Various other community service events
-Involved in Fraternity was Recruitment Chairman, Homecoming Chairman, Co-Tailgate chairman


Honors/Awards:
-University Scholars
-Student Body Vice President in high school
-High school swimming awards( state finalist, MVP, Captain)
-Water polo awards( Captain, 2 time MVP, All South Florida)

eLORs:
-DVM from SA hospital currently working
-Physics 1 professor
-Academic advisor
-Bio teacher I had as a freshman where I got a B- and again as a senior and got an A in different courses
 
NC Resident, 21 M, 1st time applicant

B.S. in Zoology, 2010, with minor in Genetics

Rejected: NCSU, UPenn, UMinn
Interviewed: Kansas, UTK
Waitlisted: None
Accepted: Kansas, UTK
Attending: UTK

Cumulative GPA: 3.79
Last 45 credit hrs: about 3.8
Science: about 3.6-3.7
GRE: Q- 800, V- 640, W-5.0


Volunteer Activities:
1)50 hours at local museum that had about every NC indigenous animal

Community Activities:
-HS- founder of dodgeball club
-JV/Varsity Lacrosse (HS)
-Nothing else, as mentioned by others, I worked all the time (almost full time last semest) and could never make it to/was too drained to make it to any fun clubs.

Honors and Awards:
-Dean's List every semester, a couple of merit based scholarships, Top 10% of my HS, Honor society in HS

Research Experience:
None

Veterinary Experience:
1) 1500 hours tech in small animal clinic
2) 10 hours equine tech (dr at animal clinic had an equine practice, let me come along a few times)


Work Experience:
-Above vet job
-2 summers as a maintenance assistant at apartment complex
-6 months in movie theater
-1 year at drug store
-1 semester TA
-9 months university convenience store

Letters of Recommendation:
1) Small animal/Equine vet mentioned above (medical director)
2) Other small animal vet from clinic
3) Adviser/Professor/Boss - Was my major adviser, taught upper level developmental anatomy course (5 credit hours!), and taught the class I TA'd for (freshman bio)

Other things of note:
Mentioned my hobbies of canoeing (as seen in avatar) and woodworking, apparently made an impact, as both interviews wanted to know what I do to relax, and asked specifically about those activities.

Goes to show that it takes more than just grades to get in, and I really regret not diversifying experience. But who's to complain, at least I got in!
 
For all of you nontrads out there, this one's for you!!!!!
Florida resident, 39 (yes that number is correct…one month from being 40!!!😱) y.o., female, first time applicant . . .

Applied: UF, UC Davis, UTK, VMRCVM
Rejected: UC Davis, UTK
Interviewed: UF and VMRCVM
Waitlisted: VMRCVM
Rejected After Interview: Pending
Accepted: UF!!!
Attending: UF

Education:
University of Florida, Gainesville
M.S. Forensic Science 2008
University of Georgia, Athens
B.S. Zoology 1994
(I have actually taken about one-hundred courses…switched from art to science!)

Rigor mortis: High- took classes full-time and worked full-time
Cum GPA: 3.4
Sci GPA: 3.2
Last 45 GPA: 3.9
GRE: 580 V, 700 Q, 5.0 W

Vet Experience:
- 2000 hrs assisting avian veterinarian at an exclusively avian clinic
- 1300 hrs assisting equine veterinarian
-240 hrs assisting genome curator at National Zoo’s Conservation and Research Center where I received a summer fellowship (was very interesting…got to see sperm collection from a clouded leopard and witnessed Przewalki’s horses, Maned wolves, Red pandas, Clouded leopards)
-100 hrs small animal clinic

Animal Experience:
- 30 years of equine experience (started riding when I was nine years old)
-10,000 hrs actually working with horses as a riding instructor, trainer, stable manager
-320 hrs pet store
- Member of UGA Equestrian club-2000 hrs

Other Experience:
- Zoology and Forensic Science high school teacher-10 yrs full-time
-Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth- forensic science instructor summer 2008
-Princeton Molecular Biology workshop participant

Extracurricular Activities:
Horseback riding
Running
Painting
Started an art business, HORSE OF A DIFFERENT COLOR

Honors/Awards:
Deans List
National Board Certified Teacher
National Zoo CRC Fellowship
Liberace Scholarship (yes, it was for art)

Personal Statement:
Talked about collecting and analyzing maggots in a forensic entomology lab for my class and discussed my interest in veterinary forensics.

eLORs:
- DVM from private avian practice
-PhD – Research Associate Professor
-High School Administrator (my boss)
 
I am so thankful to make it through this rough process in one piece and have a REALLY tough decision to make on choosing between schools. Hopefully I will make the right choice!

Texas Resident, 1st time applicant, 21 year old female

Applied: Texas A&M, UF, OkSU, CSU, UPenn
Rejected: CSU & UPenn
Interviewed: Texas A&M & UF (OkSU doesn't interview OOS)
Waitlisted: none
Accepted: Texas A&M, OkSU, UF
Attending: Texas A&M

UndergraduateUniversity:
Oklahoma State University
Double Major in Animal Science (B.S.) and Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (B.S.) graduating in May 2010

Cum GPA: 4.0
Science: 4.0
Last 45 GPA: 4.0
GRE: V: 510; Q: 650; W: 4.5 Biology: 680

Vet Experience:
- 200 hours working at a mixed animal practice in TX
- 50 hours working as a research assistant on a study of an EVA vaccine for use in pregnant mares at the OkSU CVHS Ranch
- 20 hours working with a humane society vet once a week over the summer
- 30 hours volunteering on neonatal foal team at OkSU
- 50 hours volunteering at a small animal clinic in OK
- 40 hours completing a pre-vet internship at the OkSU CVHS
- 20 hours observing an animal dermatologist over one week during winter break
- 20 hours observing at an equine sports medicine clinic in TX over winter break
- 20 hours observing at a small animal clinic in TX over winter break

Animal Experience:
-150 hours (and counting&#8230😉 working on a research project studying the affects of vasopressin and oxytocin on pair bonding in monogamous prairie voles. (I get to look at brains all day!)
-250 hours volunteering at an animal shelter in OK
-700 hours running my own pet sitting business in high school
-2000 hours+ riding & training horses
-500 hours teaching at an equine summer camp in TX
-40 hours volunteering at the Equest Therapeutic Horsemanship Program in TX

Other Employment:-
- 250 hours working at Journey's Shoe Store in TX
- 150 hours working as a campus tutor at OSU

Extracurricular/Community Activities:
- Golden Key Intl. Honour Society President (2 yrs)
- OSU Marching Band member & Section Leader
- Pre-Vet Club member & Secretary
- OSU Horseman's Association member
- OSU Symphonic Band member
- Honors College member

Honors/Awards:
- President's honor roll 8/8 semesters
- Wentz Research Scholar
- OSU Non-Resident Academic Achievement Scholarship (gave me IS tuition!)
- OSU Senior of Significance
- OSU Honors College General Honors Award
- Phi Kappa Phi Member
- OSU Marching Band Scholarship
- Lots of smaller scholarships

eLORs:
- Veterinarian from SA practice at which I volunteered
- Organic Chemistry professor
- Genetics professor/advisor
- PI from lab I did my research in at OkSU

Notes:
For those out there applying next year, take the GRE early! I had a major GRE meltdown. The first time I took the test I did terrible! I won't even post my scores here it was that bad. They weren't even that outstanding the second time around.

Also, I didn't have a vet that I knew for a long period of time, so I worked hard for a vet as a volunteer and had her write me a letter of recommendation. It ended up working out, so don't get too stressed if you don't have a vet to write you a letter yet.

Most importantly, be yourself throughout the process!
 
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Holy crap Faith! How did schools even reject you? Your GPA is insane and although some of your experience is minimal it is very diverse. Good job and you deserve to go wherever you decide 🙂
 
Wow, thanks guys! It means a lot. I honestly didn't know I wanted to be a vet until my freshman year in college. With the economy I had a hard time getting a consistent job without much experience in high school, so I made the best of it and volunteered at a lot of different clinics. I definitely played up the diversity I had in my application. The mixed animal vet I worked for also worked on exotics and I got to work with monkeys and tigers a few times. I also played up my research experience which I think helped me stand out.

From sophomore year I had a goal of applying to UF, A&M and OkSU, but during the application cycle I decided to apply to UPenn and CSU last minute. I really wasted my money applying to UPenn, because it definitely wasn't the right school for me and after applying I realized I didn't really want to go there. CSU would have been nice, but the OOS applicant pool is so competitive that I'm assuming I didn't have enough expereince and didn't stand out to get noticed. It's alright, because UF was my dream school (at least before the tuition change) and I got in! 😍 I just wish I could make the money thing work out....
 
Rigor mortis: High- took classes full-time and worked full-time
Click to expand...
I laughed.

Anyhow, congrats! Good luck with your decision. I vote A&M but I may be biased.




Wait, is UF really still accepting people just 11 days before the deadline?!
 
HopefulAg said:
I laughed.

Anyhow, congrats! Good luck with your decision. I vote A&M but I may be biased.




Wait, is UF really still accepting people just 11 days before the deadline?!
Click to expand...


i think you've confused lyndaely with faith...you quoted lyndaely but then mentioned the decision between UF and A&M which is Faith. 😉
 
Hmm...sure did. Well apologies to the respective parties. Guess I should only read one posting at a time lol, I seem to overload the 'Sorting' department after that.
 
Wanted to bump this thread up. . . Congrats to all that have seats for c/o 2014!! . . .where are the stats for those of us applying next year🙂 Thanks in advance!
 
When I got my first acceptance, I was so excited that I posted on this thread right away. Now that I've heard back from all the schools, I was wondering how I should edit to reflect that (I wouldn't bother, but when I was looking at last years stats when I was applying, seeing where people with different strengths were accepted was very useful). Should I repost the whole thing, or is it ok if I just go back and edit my first post? I'm trying to avoid confusing anyone...
 
Willowhand said:
When I got my first acceptance, I was so excited that I posted on this thread right away. Now that I've heard back from all the schools, I was wondering how I should edit to reflect that (I wouldn't bother, but when I was looking at last years stats when I was applying, seeing where people with different strengths were accepted was very useful). Should I repost the whole thing, or is it ok if I just go back and edit my first post? I'm trying to avoid confusing anyone...
Click to expand...

just post again and at the top/where the title is...say something about hearing from all of your schools or something?
 
.1st time applicant, 43 year old Male, CA Resident. .
.BS in Economics, Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania 1988.
.Certificate in Science, UCLA Extension 2010.

.Applied:. .CSU, UPenn, Tufts, UCDavis.
.Interviews: UPenn, Tufts, UCDavis.
.Waitlisted: CSU .
.Accepted: UPenn, Tufts, UCDavis.
Attending: Upenn

.Grades and such:.
.Cumulative GPA: 3.5.
.Undergrad GPA: 3.33 (C's in accounting and finance🙁).
.Last 45 credit hrs: 3.8-3.9.
.Science/Required: 3.8-3.9.
.GRE: 760 V, 770 Q, 6.0 AW.


.Honors and Awards:.
Nothing worth mentioning

.Veterinary Experience:.
.600hr small animal clinic volunteering (shadowing).
ZERO hours anything else

Animal Experience
>1000 at a individual dog breed rescue
>1000 training/competing dog agility
no other animal experience worth mentioning.

.Extracurricular/Community Activities: .
.nothing academic or community related worth mentioning.
but listed my rating as a Certified Flight Instructor for airplanes

.Other employment:.
.20+ years in various positions in finance.
.1 yr Instructor for Decision Sciences at UPenn (while undergrad).
other irrelevant jobs during college (including Wharton Grad admissions office)

.Letters of Recommendation ( took advantage all 5 offered on VMCAS):.
.2 x small animal vets I volunteered for last 3 years (one surgeon, one internal medicine).
.1 x Biology instructor who also knew me from agility training.
1 x CEO of Hedge Fund I've worked at last 10 years (who didn't want me to leave)
1 x Regional representative for breed rescue group I volunteered at

Other notable facts:
*Lived in Japan for 2 years (formerly fluent in Japanese)
*Flight instructor for single/multi engine instrument airplanes, commercial pilot's license, and private helicopter license.


*Biggest issue for me was to explain why the sudden interest in veterinary medicine...
*Mediocre grades as an undergrad during prehistoric times really didn't matter relative to the mostly good grades in science classes I took last 2+ years.
*Lack of other experience non-small animal an issue for CSU and UCDavis.
*Lack of upper division science classes an issue at CSU
 
First time applicant, 22 years old, female, New Jersey resident
Applied: VMRCVM, Penn, Ohio State, Illinois, Purdue, Kansas, Florida
Rejected: Illinois
Interviewed: VMRCVM, Penn, Ohio State, Purdue, Kansas, Florida (declined)
Waitlisted: Purdue, Kansas
Rejected After Interview: Penn
Accepted: VMRCVM, Ohio State
Attending: Ohio State

Penn State University
B.S. in Animal Bioscience (May 2010)

Cum GPA: 3.54 at time of application, 3.56 after fall 2009
Sci GPA: 3.43
GRE: 620 V, 740 Q, 5.0 W

Vet Experience:
- 1100 hr as a veterinary assistant at a small animal private practice (this number is probably way low, their records only went back as far as 2005, and I started there in 2002)

Animal Experience:
- 450 hours research in poultry science working with circadian clocks
- 200 hours working with a golden retriever breeder
- 100 hours working with a dog trainer/as a farm hand on his farm
- 140 hours volunteer work in Changuinola, Panama working with sea turtles
- 135 hours animal care (working for a breeder taking care of her dogs/puppies/boarders) + grooming
- 180 hours animal care associate at PetSmart
*** All these hours were estimates

Extracurricular Activities:
- Penn State Blue Band Silks (2 years)
- Penn State pre-vet club
- Phi Eta Sigma National Honors Society (active member and officer [webmaster])

Honors/Awards:
- Phi Eta Sigma National Honors Society (freshman honors society, 3.5 GPA either semester freshman year)
- International Thespian Society (high school)
- Espirit de Corp (color guard, high school)

Personal Statement:
Discussed my experiences and what I view as the most important role of a veterinarian. Willing to share if anyone is interested

eLORs:
- DVM from the hospital I worked at
- The advisor for my honors society
- My academic advisor, who is also a DVM
 
1st time applicant, 19 years old, Female
B.A. in Biology w/ minor in Theater anticipated Spring 2010

Applied: Atlantic Veterinary College (PEI), Tufts, Western, Kansas
Interviews: Atlantic Veterinary College, Western (declined), Kansas
Accepted: Kansas, Atlantic Veterinary College (PEI)
Attending: Kansas!!

Cumulative GPA: 3.43
Last 45 credit hrs: ~3.6
Science: ~3.4
GRE: 640 V, 710 Q, 4.5 AW

Honors and Awards:
-6 merit-based scholarships
-Dean’s List
-Random awards for volunteer/animal work

Veterinary Experience:
-8 months as a part-time veterinary assistant (4-vet small animal hospital)
-20 hours shadowing large animal vet
-3 days volunteering at a foreign vet clinic (mixed animal)
-Tufts AVM program

Animal Experience:
-11 years volunteering with Heifer International (mostly L.A. experience)
-1 year volunteering at small AZA-accredited zoo
-12 years working with horses (exhibition horse show team, groom jobs, farm camp staff, USPC, etc.)
-Biology senior thesis involving wildlife behavioral observation
-Independent project on African gray behavior
-2 days assisting with invasive species research under a PhD
-1 night sea turtle patrol

Extracurricular/Community Activities/Employment:
-Theater Performance
-Martial Arts (fencing, light weapons combat, a little bit of kung fu)
-Visual Arts (sculpting, painting, sketching, etc.)
-Hiking, Backpacking, Rock Climbing
-Actively Catholic (church, community service, etc.)
-Sea Kayak Guide
-Biology and Writing Tutor
-Sailing (home-schooled and lived on a sailboat a few times... sometimes in the Caribbean, 9 months in Puerto Rico)

Letters of Recommendation:
-Head DVM at Animal Hospital where I worked
-Academic Advisor (who also directed a few of the plays I was in)
-Farm Steward for Heifer International’s Overlook Farm
-Biology Professor
 
1st time applicant, 21 years old, Female, Tennessee Resident
B.S. in Zoology from Auburn University Spring 2010

Applied: Kansas, Ohio, Mississippi, Auburn, Tennessee
Interviews: Ohio, Mississippi, Auburn, Tennessee
Rejected: Kansas and Ohio
Waitlisted: Mississippi, Auburn, Tennessee
Accepted: Mississippi and Auburn

Cumulative GPA: 3.55
Last 45 credit hours: don't know but lower
Science: don't know hah
GRE: 660 Q, 560 V, 4 W

Honors and Awards:
-Dean's List
-Phi Kappa Phi Outstanding freshman award
-College of Science and Mathematics academic award
-National Wild Turkey Federation Scholarship
-College of Science and Mathematics Scholarship

Veterinary Experiences:
-525 hours shadowing at various vet clinics (small and large animal)
-200 hours interning at a zoo
-64 hours assisting in surgeries at a college of veterinary medicine
-3 weeks in South Africa doing various veterinary things
-2 weeks at a veterinary camp

Animal Experience
-Fostered animals for a local humane society
-Research on milk-borne relaxin in swine
-Helped capture and relocate turkeys with the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency
-Worked on a farm banding, vaccinating, and tagging cattle
-Created and hosted a local television show that helped get animals adopted from the local humane society and also taught pet care tips
(sorry I didn't print off my VMCAS application, and it's gone now and don't feel like figuring out the hours)

Extracurricular Activities:
-Phi Sigma Pi National Honor Fraternity Vice President (2 years) and helped start up the chapter
-Pre Vet Club
-Lots of honor societies
-University Program Council
-Helped launch a local library
-In high school I did all kinds of things like soccer, cheerleading, class president, student council, peer leader, head master's council, math tutor, and a bunch of clubs

Letters of Recommendation:
-2 DVMs from mixed animal practices
-1 biology professor
-1 DVM from a college of veterinary medicine
 
Last edited:
WV resident, male, 23 years old, first-time applicant.
Applied: Mississippi, UGA, and Auburn
Rejected: N/A
Interviewed: Mississippi
Waitlisted: Mississippi, UGA
Accepted: Mississippi
Attending: Mississippi

Cum GPA: 3.58
Last 45: 3.8ish
GRE: 1300

Vet Experience:
Equine: none
Small animal: 1500 hrs
Laboratory: 200 hrs
Farm Animal: none

Vet/Animal Experience:
I've worked at 2 hospitals so far, doing solely small animal. I tried to find some large animal experience, but this area just isn't well-represented when it comes to LA vets.

I've got something like 50 hours of volunteer experience at a local no-kill shelter, however I eventually stopped that because I really don't agree with the way they run it.

Extracurricular Activities:

Nothing special. I was a member of Phi Alpha Theta History Honorary for 2 years, of which one of those I served as Treasurer. We set up and ran 4 days of presentations on the issue of Darfur.

LORs:
- SA vet who got me my first job
- My organic chemistry professor, who's just about the coolest guy you could ever meet.
- The owner of the animal hospital I work at now
 
- My organic chemistry professor, who's just about the coolest guy you could ever meet.
Click to expand...

Must be something about the Ochem prof crowd. Mine was pretty awesome too.
 
HopefulAg said:
Must be something about the Ochem prof crowd. Mine was pretty awesome too.
Click to expand...

I think chemistry professors, organic ones in particular, run in extremes. Either they are absolutely great, or absolutely horrible.
 
Yay PrimalMU!!! I'm so excited to be going to school with you!! I am in Starkville right now actually. As soon as I found out, my parents and I came down here to look at houses. I'm oh so excited. It's gonna be so nice yay!
 
luplodw said:
Yay PrimalMU!!! I'm so excited to be going to school with you!! I am in Starkville right now actually. As soon as I found out, my parents and I came down here to look at houses. I'm oh so excited. It's gonna be so nice yay!
Click to expand...

Nice! You live quite a bit closer than I do, haha. I'm gonna be heading down there in 2 weeks or so to try to find an apartment. If you come across any good deals let me know!
 
Yeah it took me just over 4 hours to get here. I can't help you with apartments though 🙁 I've only been looking at houses! I'm sure there are some good ones
 
any new off-the-waitlisters want to share their stats? 🙂
 
Michigan resident, Male, 24 years old, first-time applicant.
B.S in Biology from Oakland University Summer 2009

Applied: Ross University, Western University, University of Illinois, Michigan State University, Iowa State University, University of Edinburgh
Rejected: University of Illinois
Interviewed: Ross University, Western University, Iowa State University, and Received Supplemental app from Michigan State
Waitlisted: Michigan State (unranked, but WILL attend if called), Iowa State University (#7)
Accepted: Ross University, University of Edinburgh, Iowa State University (called off wait list), Western University
Attending: Iowa State University

Cum GPA: 3.26
Science: 3.3 (depending)
Last 45: 3.9ish
GRE: 1100

Vet Experience:
-Equine: 20 hours
-Small animal: 320 hrs
-Research/ Lab Animal: 1800 hrs
-Farm Animal: none

Vet/Animal Experience:
I've volunteered at 2 clinics, and observed at 2 others. I had a TON of research hours (corneal research which ties into the fact that I want to specialize in ophthalmology) which COUNTED as veterinary experience since it was done under the observation of a PhD…and involved the use of laboratory animals of course.

Extracurricular Activities:

- Supplemental Instructor for BIO I course
-Cell biology tutor
-Worked all through college at Abercrombie and Fitch
-Musician for years (overlapped into college by about a year)
Honors/Awards:
-Dean's List once
-Departmental Honors in Biology
-National Honors Society

LORs:
- SA vet from the first clinic that I volunteered at
- My research mentor whom I worked for for about 3 years
- Another SA vet that I worked for for about 6 months
-Endocrinology/ Medical Biochemisty professor
-Lecturer that I SI'd for for BIO I

The only reason that I'm posting this is because I want to give some people hope!!!! I'm pretty self conscious about things like my lack of clinical experience and GRE/GPAs. Hopefully this lets someone know that you should never throw in the towel. I always took the difficult courses (many graduate courses as an undergrad) and took the hard route. I don't know if that helped me, but it didn't hurt! I also think that the fact that I am male played a small roll in how I was so successful in the application cycle. I also have a pretty colorful back story that my interviewers all loved hearing about. At Iowa, they kept me for about 5 minutes over to hear about my adventures as a musician. My college career was also very linear. My first year GPA was a 2.4 as an undecided major taking just Gen Ed's. There it is! I'm personally shocked that I got in, and I know that some regulars will be too, but I've learned that things are rarely as bleak as you may think.
 
24 yrs old, F, Illinois resident, third time applicant

Goal in vet med: zoo animal med

BS in Health Sciences from Purdue, 2008

Applied: Purdue(on a whim, used to be my IS), Illinois, Western
Rejected: Purdue
Interviews: Illinois, Western
Waitlisted: Illinois
Accepted: Western, Illinois
Attending: Illinois!

Cumulative GPA: 3.30
Science GPA: 3.0
GRE: 520 V, 720 Q, 5.0 AW

Honors and Awards:
Semester Honors
National Honor Society 2 yrs(in HS)

Veterinary Experience:
120 hours as a vet assistant at a couple zoos
1,500 hours as a veterinary assistant (full time) at a 10 vet clinic
500 hours as a vet assistant at a one Dr. clinic (for a summer)
500+ hours as a vet assistant(with some tech. responsibilities) in a two Dr. clinic (currently working here)

Animal Experience:
1,500 hours as a zookeeper/intern (One at a drive thru/zoo park, one at a regular zoo. Both AZA accredited)
250 hours as a horse caretaker + my parents own over 20 horses that I helped take care of in high school

Other employment:
Worked in a restaurant for about 2 years during college

Extracurricular/Community Activities:
YoungLife volunteer leader for 2 years in undergrad
Boo at the Zoo volunteer

Letters of Recommendation:
VMCAS:
One from the vet/owner at the 10 vet clinic I worked at
One from the Assistant Dean of Students at Purdue
One from my manager from my zoo internship

My stats are not that impressive, but I like to think I have a variety of experiences that make me unique. I changed my state of residency for the third application, which I think helped! If anyone wants my PS or anything let me know!🙂
 
Glad to see you made a decision! Hard, isn't it?
 
natalieises said:
Veterinary Experience:
120 hours as a vet assistant at a couple zoos
1,500 hours as a veterinary assistant (full time) at a 10 vet clinic
500 hours as a vet assistant at a one Dr. clinic (for a summer)
500+ hours as a vet assistant(with some tech. responsibilities) in a two Dr. clinic (currently working here)

Animal Experience:
1,500 hours as a zookeeper/intern (One at a drive thru/zoo park, one at a regular zoo. Both AZA accredited)
250 hours as a horse caretaker + my parents own over 20 horses that I helped take care of in high school
Click to expand...

Yeah, that is some great experience. Congrats on both your acceptances and I am sure you will be happy 👍 at Illinois.
 
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