Successful Applicants 2012 Thread?

[diggsta]

First time applicant, 23, decided a little late so I've been doing a post-bac the past 2 years to get the science classes.
Undergrad: 3.5, major psych, minor stats
Post-bac: 3.9
GRE: 680 V 750 Q 5.0A

Applied: Tufts, Cornell, UPenn, Michigan, Ohio, UC Davis, Colorado
Accepted: Tufts, UPenn, Michigan, Ohio
Rejected: UC Davis, Colorado
Alternate: Cornell (withdrew)

Experience:
Vet: LA~250 hours, SA~500 hours
Research: nothing vet related, I thought I wanted to go into social psych, ~400 hours Harvard psych lab, one (painfully long) summer dong research on tobacco advertising in women's magazine with grant from undergrad school (ended up winning a national contest for the paper, somehow...), worked as data research analyst for undergrad school
Animal: Captain of college equestrian team, showed morgans in high school, bred my horse and have a filly , started a petsitting business, started a nonprofit for toy delivery to animal shelters, lots of therapeutic riding volunteering, 4-H

Other random things: ice hockey and tennis player since high school, exchange student to Barcelona twice in high school, couple other unrelated clubs and extracurriculars

Going into this I had no idea if I had a very competitive application. I definitely was below average for vet experience because I decided junior summer of college. Luckily I was able to show that even if I lacked vet experience, the animal component had always been present.

Congrats to everyone on this thread. I'm in awe of how many seriously impressive people there are out there going to vet school!!! This experience has been very surreal, can't wait for the fall!!!!

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[MickeyBlueEyes]

Yay for being a successful applicant! I thought this thread was very helpful (or at least interesting) last year, so here are my stats, in excruciating detail... =)

2nd time applicant, traditional, 23 years old
B.S. Biology with Chemistry, Religion minors from Duke
Cum. GPA: 3.63 at application/3.67 after fall semester (did a handful of classes at NCSU)
Last 45 hrs GPA: 3.8
GRE: 710 Quantitative, 700 Verbal, 4.5 Writing

Vet Experience:
750 hrs small animal general practice
91 hrs feral cat spay/neuter
22 hrs small animal rehab
66 hrs animal shelter (surgery asst.)
570 hrs wildlife
120 hrs Independent Study research
350 hrs large animal/a little research

Animal Experience:
1100 hrs dog training/showing
198 hrs equestrian team
375 hrs kennel work

Extracurriculars/Honors include: pre-vet club president, chem club vp, sorority, greek judicial board, a couple of dog clubs, AKC jr. show. scholarship, national merit finalist, deans list, etc.

Applied to: KSU, Ohio State, Mississippi State, UPenn, Purdue, NCSU (IS), Auburn, Illinois
Accepted: KSU, Mississippi State, NCSU, Auburn, Illinois
Interview declined: Purdue
Interviewed and Waitlisted: OSU
Rejected without interview: Penn

 

[reefervet]

First time applicant
Post-bac (over 100 credits, all science and math): 3.93
Undergrad (art major): 3.4
GRE 580V 740Q 4.0A

Applied: Ohio, Kansas, Western, Tufts, Penn, Oregon, Colorado, Washington
Accepted: Ohio, Kansas, Oregon
Declined Interview: Western
Alternate: Colorado
Rejected w/o Interview: Washington, Tufts, Penn (probably)

Experience:
Vet: SA~few thousand hrs, LA less than 40 hrs, wildlife 40 hrs, lab animal~few hundred hours
Research: 0 hrs
Animal: aquatics (marine ornamental fish, invertebrates, coral propagation), K9 protection sports, dog breeding, dog showing

Random: automobile racing, rare cars, high performance cars, weight lifting, former business owner

Advice for others:

1) Do what you enjoy throughout your pre-vet career, ESPECIALLY if it is non-vet related - be adventurous!
2) With #1 in mind, remember that grades and GRE scores are what will get you through the door. Sure there are exceptions, but that is the proven formula. Why take chances?

 

[Tsuky2008]

I didn't get any credit for the research experience I have. I think Illinois and Purdue liked my research background, however.

You didn't get any credit for research at A&M? Did they tell you why? That worries me because A&M is my IS and the bulk, and I mean BULK (1500 hours or so) of my vet experience is research! Am I totally screwed here??

 

[Steelmagghia]

You didn't get any credit for research at A&M? Did they tell you why? That worries me because A&M is my IS and the bulk, and I mean BULK (1500 hours or so) of my vet experience is research! Am I totally screwed here??

Did you list it as vet experience?
You should be alright. I just made it into A&M (also IS), and they are really good to their in staters (they accept about half of the interview pool...much better IS stats than most of the other vet schools). Also, since they work on that point system, it is much easier to tell where you stand going in. I calculated all of my academic stats before I interviewed (it made me feel a lot better).
Also, the vet experience is less weighted than many of the other requirements.

 

[Tsuky2008]

Thanks Steelmagghia! That makes me feel better about my application. I'm applying this year and I'm definitely going to log my research hours as vet experience since they were done under a Ph.D. mentor. Can I possibly PM you later in the application process about this point system stuff? I haven't heard about that yet! Then again, I'm touring the vet school this Wednesday, so maybe I'll just ask them then!

 

[Steelmagghia]

Thanks Steelmagghia! That makes me feel better about my application. I'm applying this year and I'm definitely going to log my research hours as vet experience since they were done under a Ph.D. mentor. Can I possibly PM you later in the application process about this point system stuff? I haven't heard about that yet! Then again, I'm touring the vet school this Wednesday, so maybe I'll just ask them then!

Certainly! You can PM me about any questions you have.
Applying to vet school is hard. You spend so much time without a clue. I'd be happy to help you out.

 

[banditalfi]

I just sent in the official acceptance letter today so I might as well post my stats:

Vitals:
21 year old
Female
NYS resident
1st time applicant

Numbers:
GPA: 3.93
Science/Last 45/Prereq GPAs: >3.9
GRE: 610 V, 800 Q, 5.5 A
Major: Chemistry
School: Smaller liberal arts
Studied abroad for one semester

Experience:
7 years 4-H (market animals)
400 hours SA day practice
500 hours emergency clinic
60 hours on horse farm
3.5+ years undergrad research (physical chemistry)

LORs: 2 vets, 1 prof + what Cornell wanted

Extracurriculars:
D1 athlete for 2 years
TA for 5 courses, 4 semesters, 2 departments
Math/Science tutor
Outing Club
Study Abroad Club
Orientation Assistant
Student Ambassador for graduation and reunion
Alpha Phi Omega
Alpha Lambda Delta
Phi Beta Kappa
American Red Cross volunteer
Participated in Habitat for Humanity Collegiate challenge for two years

Schools:
Cornell: Accepted and going
CSU: Waitlisted (will hopefully find out rank soon)
OSU: Accepted
UIUC: Interview offered, withdrew application
Penn: Accepted

 

[mbv]

banditafli is a hard act to follow, but since i really enjoyed last year's version of this thread...

Profile of a (not very) successful applicant:

1st time applicant, traditional (but took a year off between undergrad and vet school), 22 yrs old. Washington resident.

Academic:
GPA: 3.49 from a top-tier, highly-selective liberal arts school + studied abroad at Massey in New Zealand
science GPA: 3.49
last 45 hour GPA: 3.49
Double major French and Biology (cum laude for both)

GRE: 650Q 700V 5.0A, 77th percentile overall (that's what WSU looks at)

Experience:
Vet:
250 hours vet assistant at a small animal clinic
1000 hours research tech in 2 immunology labs working with mouse models. Half working under a PhD, half under a DVM/PhD. This is my full time job so way more hours after application submitted.
75 hours Tufts large animal hospital NICU volunteer
Tufts Adventures in Vet Med program in high school

Animal:
~10000 hours riding/showing horses (mainly Hunter/Jumper, but also a C2 Pony Clubber, evented, showed Arabs, IHSA. Worked as a braider, groom, horse management instructor at a residential riding camp)
horse handler/side walker for theraputic riding center
volunteer at dog adoption agency
volunteer at MSPCA large animal shelter
pet sitting (small animal, horse, goat, alpaca)
dog walking volunteer (shelter fundraiser through my university)

Extra-curricular:
captain of university equestrian team, volunteer DJ at my college radio station and at Massey, member of pre-vet society

Career goal: Large animal research

Applied:
CSU: rejected
Missouri: rejected pre-interview
Iowa State: rejected post-interview
UPenn: umm I did the wrong LORs so I should have been rejected right away but just got my rejection today.
WSU (in-state): accepted!

 

[Steelmagghia]

I should have done this a little while ago, but I've been a bit busy.

1st time applicant, traditional
22 years old (late birthday, I'm always a year older than everyone)
Texas Resident
Female (just like all the other vet students )

Academic:
GPA: 3.75 from a small, local, private Christian university with almost no reputation in science at all (neither good nor bad) (they gave me scholarships...lots of them)
science GPA: 3.68
last 45 hour GPA: 3.89
Will be getting my B.S. in Biology in May...started as an ani sci major

GRE: 660Q 770V 4.5A

Experience:
Vet:
~300 hours as a volunteer at a SA clinic in high school
600 hours (at time of application) as a kennel technician at a SA hospital (this is my current job, part time, so I'm still getting hours here)-- the key I mentioned here is that when I finish my actual duties, I help the vet techs and veterinarians

Animal:
over 10000 hours caring for my own pets (dogs, cats, snake, hamsters, rabbit, fish, turtles, and frogs)
about 200 hours rehabbing kittens I'd saved (including CPR on one and treatment of abscesses on both) and finding them homes
about 200 hours caring for the school pets in elementary and another 200 hours caring for the high school animals (this includes parrots, parakeets, turtles, rabbits, a goat, a pot bellied pig, degus, mice, snakes, tarantulas, various lizards, large aquarium fish, and a big mean iguana)
About 200 hours of raising bum lambs when I was very young
Things I didn't list but should have: caring for my aunt's goats, helping with my grandfather's race horses

Extra-curricular:
High school: dance team, academic decathlon, honor society, and chemistry tutor
College: a few service projects, Alpha Chi honor society, tutor for all things science and math (bio, o. chem, physics, calculus, gen chem, genetics, micro, etc.)

Honors: Dean's list every semester except the two I've gotten Preseident's List; various aca deca medals and awards; national merit scholar

"Diversity Points":
I have done construction work my whole life with my parents
I have tutored and taught the reptile section of my zoology class
I really really like reptiles

Career goal: Exotics and Small Animal Practice

Applied:
CSU: rejected
Missouri: Waitlisted (#26)
Cornell: rejected
Michigan: rejected
TAMU: ACCEPTED!!!

Sort of applied:
LSU (I never sent in the supplemental app because after I spent HOURS working on the thing, I pressed the reset button...it just wasn't worth it after that)

 

[rtc86]

It's pretty imtimidating posting in this thread but what the heck...i got into vet school so i must be a successful applicant if somewhat on the lower end...

21 yr old college senior, female, 1st time applicant, CA resident but lived in Europe (sweden) till i came to college

Education:
B.S. Animal Science at UC Davis
Cumulative gpa: 3.49 (bad freshman yr)
Last 45 sem/67 qtr units gpa: 3.67
science gpa: 3.48
GRE: 540 V, 740 Q, 4.0

Experiences:
LA vet: 116 hrs
SA vet: 106 hrs
mixed: 40 hrs
breeding barn internship: 120 hrs
LA animal experiences: 112 hrs + 4 yrs of horse back riding when i was younger till it got too expensive
SA animal experiences: 15 hrs + having pets which don't really count
current vet internship this qtr: 40 hrs

Extracurriculars/honors:
member of pre-vet club
member of intervarsity christian fellowship +1 yr of leadership
peer tutor in physics
dean's lists
global young leader nomination
horse back riding last yr
tennis, piano, swimming

LORs: 1 vet/professor, 1 vet tech supervisor, 1 employer

Schools:
CSU: rejected
UC Davis: rejected
Oregon: waitlisted (OOS)
Western: interviewed, accepted

 

[Steelmagghia]

Whoops, forgot to put my LOR's in:
1 from one of the vets I work with (alumn of TAMU)
and 2 from my professors (1 from the professor who let me teach the zoo class and another from my biochem professor who is really big in research)

Rtc86: Don't feel intimidated! You made it! You're every bit as awesome as anyone else on this thread. Don't forget that.

 

[pressmom]

Congrats everyone on this thread! It's a really interesting read to see what experiences everyone has had. All your applications stand out in different ways! WTG!!

 

[epitastic]

i've been waiting until i heard from more places...but i realized i'm all set now...so may as well.

1st time applicant, non-traditional, 26 years old
undergrad GPA: 3.7 (top tier liberal arts college)--but almost no science courses...
post grad/science GPA: 3.9
graduate degree: MPH Epidemiology
GRE: 739 Q, 550 V (oops), 5.5 A

Vet Experience:
800 hrs small animal general practice
100 hours large animal ambulatory
shadowing at 2 different emergency clinics

Research experience:
extensive epi research during my graduate work
undergrad thesis study
2 summers in a genetics research lab

Animal Experience:
humane society volunteer

Extracurriculars/Honors: student organization in grad school, captitan of ultimate frisbee/ cycling/ triathlon clubs, bunch of volunteer work and leadership stuff (mostly in college so a long time ago), orchestra, high school valedictorian, etc.

Applied to: WSU, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Tufts, Cornell, CSU, Florida, NCSU (IS) (i had no idea what my chances were like)
Accepted: WSU, Tufts, Minnesota, Wisconsin, NCSU
Interview declined: Florida
Waitlisted: CSU, Cornell

Where I'll end up: who the heck knows!

I think my graduate work was key. Also demonstrating that I had sustained an extremely heavy courseload--graduate + prevet courses + research + working at the vet...Also (and I know this isn't what younger applicants want to hear) but a lot of schools like to know that you have taken some time after college and are really sure about pursuing vet med.

 

[OSJ]

oops i posted twice. Can someone tell me how to delete this?

 

[OSJ]

First time applicant, 23 years old. Want to be a large animal/equine vet, possibly do some research and/or MPH dual degree.
BS in Animal and Veterinary Sciences (pre-vet concentration), Equine minor
Science GPA: 3.5
Animal Sci GPA: 3.9
Last 45 credits: 3.9
Last 60 credits 3.9
GRE: 500V, 560Q, 4.5 Writing

Vet Experience:
1000 hours (500 at time of application) working full time as a small animal vet tech - helping w/ appointments, taking histories, drawing blood, etc.
300 hours shadowing small animal veterinarians (surgery, dentistry, emergency, necropsies, a little bit of everything) 15 credits Vet CE lectures
450 hours equine vets (lots of lameness, sports medicine, breeding, stallion collection, semen analysis) Also acupuncture, chiropractics, vaccines, colics, etc.
650 hours large animal vets (mostly cows- dehorning, castrations, treating mastitis, hoof problems, ultrasound, rectal palpation, AI etc.) Also helped flush/collect embryos.
650 hours Intercollegiate Dairy Challenges - 2 regional, 1 national. Worked w/ PhD in dairy science. Competitions/practice hours. Met with team 1-2 days per week to tour farms and analyze production, nutrition and farm management data from real working dairies. While competing, teams are given herd data and tour a working farm to make recommendations for nutrition, reproduction, milking procedures, animal health, housing and financial management.
20 hours large equine referall hospital: observed colic surgery/ scopes for gastric ulcers
Two day AI training course (cows)

Research: Mostly large animal reproduction with 2 DVM/PhDs
1150 hours
-Collected blood samples while ultrasounding pregnant mares to collect data for a snap test to determine when a mare is ovulating.
-Collected blood samples from several herds of dairy cows while noting body condition scores to determine correlation of thryoid levels with BCS, milk production, fertility, etc.
-Equine reproductive research on the endoscopic detection of mucociliary clearance in the mare. Researched and designed experiments where we inserted an endoscope and released charcoal into the cervix of mares to determine the effect of cilia on uterine clearance.

Animal Experience:
thousands of hours as a horse owner, trainer, rider, horse shows, etc.
thousands of hours working at horse barns, grooming for horse shows, farm sitting, etc.
900 hours working at cooperative horse barns
500 hours milking cows, assisting with calvings, feeding cows/calves, ear tagging, etc. A little sheep/lamb stuff too.
1100 hours large show barn stable manager.
1000 hours thoroughbred breeding/training farm, race track
500 hours beef farm (administering vaccines, ear tags, tatooing, calving, calf care, etc.)
500 hours shadowing AI technician (visited lots of farms all over the Northeast!)

Recommendations: Child Pyschopharmacologist (MD) I had worked for (in her office.) I took care of her horses as well. My advisor (DVM/PhD) that I had worked alot with, had several classes with with and helped w/ research, professor (DVM/PhD) that I had several classes with and helped with research.

Mississippi: Accepted
Michigan: Accepted off waitlist
Edinburgh: Accepted
Western: Accepted
LSU: Accepted off waitlist
Rejected: A bunch- Missouri, Tufts, Penn, Auburn, Kansas, CSU
Withdrew Application: Guelph, Tennessee, PEI

What hurt: My GREs! I should have retaken them again, although I studied for them and wasn't sure if I would be able to get them up much more. I spent time getting more experience when I really should have just been memorizing GRE vocab, unfortunately ! I think I was just cut right off for some schools because of them.
What helped: Lots of experience, research experience and interest. I talked about wanting to do an MPH with my DVM at my interviews and knew alot about public health/herd health which I think helped in my interviews. My first few semesters of college were just average but my last two years were really strong and I took alot of credits at once while taking higher level classes.

 

[NittanyKitty]

Your stats are AMAZING, OSJ! I had to pick my jaw up off the floor as I read your experience lists -- those schools don't know what they're missing!

 

[OSJ]

Aww thanks Nittany, I don't think anyone has ever called my stats amazing before! My GRE was . I got a C in physics too and I'm sure there are alot of other things that have been picked apart by adcoms - LOL

 

[NittanyKitty]

Aww thanks Nittany, I don't think anyone has ever called my stats amazing before! My GRE was . I got a C in physics too and I'm sure there are alot of other things that have been picked apart by adcoms - LOL

You should definitely be HUGELY proud of all of the work you've put in over the years. And who the heck needs physics anyway?

 

[OSJ]

Thanks! It feels good that all of those 4AM milkings and 5AM exercise rides at the track finally paid off!

 

[RockStarKDub]

Aww thanks Nittany, I don't think anyone has ever called my stats amazing before! My GRE was . I got a C in physics too and I'm sure there are alot of other things that have been picked apart by adcoms - LOL

I'd definitely call them amazing too, OSJ! You should be incredibly proud Good luck at Mississippi!!!

 

[Hobiecat1642]

OSJ, your stats are great, a lot of interesting experience. My GRE was also , and I think I agree that they just cut you off. I was really nervous during the math section (math and I are not great friends). I got a C in Gen chem II as well. Now that I've been accepted, I could care less about that. Congrats! I had a friend who attended Miss. and he loved it. Good luck!

 

[clawsbeatskin]

..

 

[JerseyLynn]

Claws, I can't thank you enough for posting your stats. I wouldn't even join this forum until I got waitlisted at one school, I just felt so down and out. Last week I thought I had no choice but to beg a caribbean school to consider me for admission. I thought nothing would make up for a 3.1 science GPA, although I have above avg. GRE's and good experience. My one interview waitlisted me, and I thought it was all over until I started getting some good advise from everyone.
I just have to figure out how long a masters would take and if I should apply again in the fall. But thanks for being brave and posting those stats.

 

[Danaish72]

Claws- Wow! You look like you have led a very interesting life, I wish you were joining my class next year. I definitely agree with you in that there is more to candidates than a perfect GPA (not to write off GPAs). Thank you for posting, I'm sure this will be encouragement for other non-trads who will bring the kind of diversity to the field that you will. Nice work!

 

[twelvetigers]

Thanks. I really appreciate you posting that. Those are some pretty awesome life experiences... and I bet you're going to be an even more awesome vet because of them. Good job, you deserve it!

 

[nyanko]

clawsbeatskin

I don't think there will be any "backlash" here. If you're referring to something like I posted about hoodle, that was just a misunderstanding! I'm so happy when people post stats like yours because it gives a lot of us who did decide later on and maybe don't have very good GPAs hope.

Congratulations!

 

[clawsbeatskin]

Oh, no, nyanko...I wasn't referring to anyone in particular...it was just an overall vibe I've picked up in several threads, not just this one, and throughout the year or so I've been a member. I'm not here to pick a fight!

 

[mdnghtdnc]

24 yr old college senior, female, 1st time applicant, PA resident

Education:
B.S. Biology/Chemistry
Cumulative gpa: (when I submitted application) 3.097
Last 45 sem/67 qtr units gpa: Not sure ( institution doesn't break it down)
science gpa: aproximately a 3.0 (again no way to access this info)
GRE: 390 V, 400 Q, 3.5
GRE: 360 V, 420 Q, 4.0
GRE Totals: 390 V, 420 Q, 4.0

A.S. Veterinary Technology
Total Graduating GPA: 3.83

School for Field Studies: Kenya, Community Wildlife
study abroad worth 4 credits, GPA 3.7 (A-), 4 week program, academically based with a series of research projects.

Experiences:
SA vet: >2,000 hours as a licensed veterinary tech, 160 as an assistant
ER Experinece (small animal and exotic):approximately 550 hours
LA animal experiences: Horse shows approx. 24 hours, farm experience approx. 1,000 hours ( I grew up on a farm, started helping around 7 and moved around 18)
SA animal experiences: Community Service at SPCA approximately 10 hours

Extracurriculars/honors:
member of Modern Dance Company (current university)
member of the Honors program (current university)
Pet nutritional counselor in Spring 2003 (tech school)
OSHA certification (tech school)
Alpha Beta Kappa (tech school)
academic scholarship (tech school)
Scholarship (School For Field Studies)
Various high school awards including high honors and honors
Veterinary Technician Club
Tutor at veterinary technician school
High School Band and indoor majorettes (captian)
Relay for Life club
Catalyst ( school newspaper)
Scrabble Club
Majorette Coach
Community Service (local fire company)

LORs: 1 vet/employer, 1 honors director (current university), 1 current academic advisor
* all of my LORs new me really well and put a significant effort into each letter.

Schools:
CSU: rejected
Minnesota: rejected
Penn: rejected
Western: interviewed, accepted
Tuskegee: accepted

 

[pressmom]

Congrats claws and mdnghtdnc! It's good to see people on here with non-traditional stats. I'm sure you'll both make great vets!

 

[twelvetigers]

Woo! Western seems to really look at experience. That's awesome!

Except I don't think i could live that close to LA? LOL. As if that should matter.

You guys with the lower stats rock! Good job at keeping with it. I just might have to follow in yall's footsteps!

Mdnghtdnc, did you go to vet tech school because you wanted to be a veterinarian, before you knew you wanted to be a veterinarian, or... how did that go?

 

[mdnghtdnc]

Except I don't think i could live that close to LA? LOL. As if that should matter.

You guys with the lower stats rock! Good job at keeping with it. I just might have to follow in yall's footsteps!

Mdnghtdnc, did you go to vet tech school because you wanted to be a veterinarian, before you knew you wanted to be a veterinarian, or... how did that go?

The area around the school isn't that great but hey look at where Penn is located.. ( I use it as an example because it is my instate school)... I looked at schools from the stand point of the good schools ( no chance of getting in) the schools that there was a minor chance, and schools that were my best options. I applied to at least one school in each category. So definetly don't go by the area of the school, go by what school fits you the best.

I went to vet tech school prior to getting any of my undergraduate pre-req. I always knew what I wanted to do which of course was to become a veterinarian. I choose to go with the tech degree first #1 to be able to work in the field and gain a ton of experience while working on my pre-reqs. #2 as a fall back in case I would get denied from vet school I would still have options to help make my application stand out.

So in short I have been working as a licensed technician for three and a half years, it will be four years in May. I love every minute of it and can't wait to start at Western so I can fulfill my childhood dreams.... Hang in there and think smart when it comes to which schools to apply to, and hey you are an hour away from LA so don't roll it out.

 

[twelvetigers]

Hey, born and raised in Oklahoma, can you imagine what LA would do to me? Haha. I would LOVE to live in Cali. It's just a high cost of living (top notch apartment rent in the college town of Stillwater, $600, 3 bedroom house with two car garage, $115,000... who knows what in California!) and a really big change. And I'd hate to think that I'd have a "southern" accent (I'd tell you to visit Mississippi! Haha)...

Anywho, I would probably love Western if the curriculum style worked for me. I'll definitely give it some hard consideration in between now and... 2009... heh.

Thanks!

 

[NittanyKitty]

I looked at schools from the stand point of the good schools ( no chance of getting in) the schools that there was a minor chance, and schools that were my best options. I applied to at least one school in each category. So definetly don't go by the area of the school, go by what school fits you the best.

I really like this approach. I know that a lot of people applied to colleges during high school this way, so I might have to try this next application cycle.

 

[mdnghtdnc]

Hey, born and raised in Oklahoma, can you imagine what LA would do to me? Haha. I would LOVE to live in Cali. It's just a high cost of living (top notch apartment rent in the college town of Stillwater, $600, 3 bedroom house with two car garage, $115,000... who knows what in California!) and a really big change. And I'd hate to think that I'd have a "southern" accent (I'd tell you to visit Mississippi! Haha)...

LOL....I am from central PA with nothing around me but Amish farms, where a fully furnished one bedroom apartment can be rented for $300.00.... I will also have a great adjustment when it comes to moving in August. I look forward to the adventure, and budgeting any and all income .

 

[mdnghtdnc]

I really like this approach. I know that a lot of people applied to colleges during high school this way, so I might have to try this next application cycle.

I think it is a method to consider because I am a first time aplicant. I got into a middle of the pack school, and a lower end school. So I am now choosing the middle of the pack as my school of choice. Good luck with your applications.

 

[CalpardNY]

I think it is a method to consider because I am a first time aplicant. I got into a middle of the pack school, and a lower end school. So I am now choosing the middle of the pack as my school of choice. Good luck with your applications.

I think this is a great method and one i considered, but I had no idea how to figure this out. I could not for the life of me determine how to "rank" the schools without using the US news report and we all know thats not always reliable. I couldnt figure out what school i would have a good chance of getting into (ha like that ever exists for vet school), what was a middle of the road school, and what was a "reach school". I mean you never know what any school is looking for and so they all seemed reach schools to me!

That being said i think if you can categorize them for yourself - go for it!

 

[pupsforseeing]

I think it's also important to take into account that just because a school has a low acceptance rate, it may be easier for YOU to get in than other schools would be. A big factor is exactly what the schools give weight to. For instance, it's been said that Davis weighs GPA/GRE scores really heavily and Penn weighs how competitive your UG institution is. Both of these things worked in my favor, whereas some of the "less competitive" (if a thing exists!) schools that maybe weigh diverse veterinary experiences or other factors would have probably been more difficult for me to get into. Basically, just don't convince yourself that because a school has a higher or lower acceptance rate it will necessarily be easier or harder to get into for you, but pay attention to what they look for in their applicants.

 

[mdnghtdnc]

This is what I took into consideration...

average GPA scores accepted, GRE scores, #OOS seats, schools that look into different avenues such as special circumstances ie. work load throughout undergrad, family deaths, etc. This is how I compiled my list... but it is an individual thing that each person has to look at.

 

[cupcakebandit]

I just found out I'm going to Davis!!!!!! Yayyy!!!

1st time applicant, 22 yrs old
3.86 cum GPA, large research university in CA
GRE: 750V, 680Q, 5.0A

Vet experience
~2000hrs between 2 small animal clinics (as a tech)
20 or so hours in small animal vet tech seminar/lab things
just started shadowing an equine vet

Animal:
~500 hrs volunteering at a small animal shelter
just started volunteering at wildlife center

Extracurricular:
-masters swim club team
-church youth group
-president of a scholarship club
-treasurer of pre-vet club

Applied: UC Davis, Western, Florida, Washington, CSU, Kansas
Rejected: Florida, CSU
Alternate: Washinton
Accepted: Kansas, Western, and Davis!!!!!

 

[lailanni]

*bump* I know that there are people just getting accepted...UTK, Davis, soon to be Florida. C'mon, don't be shy if you haven't posted yet!

 

[monkeypants]

1st time applicant, 29 yrs old
B.B.A. in Marketing
3.53 cum GPA, ~3.85 Science GPA/last 45 hrs
GRE: 630V, 690Q, 5.0A

Vet experience
~4000 hrs working at an animal shelter
~1200 hrs at a small animal/exotic clinic
~100 hours volunteering for a feral spay clinic

LORS
2 vets and my manager at the animal shelter

Applied: UC Davis
Accepted: UC Davis

 

[shemari]

gahh I'm almost afraid to post on here....my app is hardly stellar.

1st time applicant, 21 yrs old
3.64 cum GPA, Ivy League, BS Animal Sciences
3.81 last 45 hours
3.4 Science gpa (I think...didn't include last semester)
GRE: 730V, 570Q, 6A

Vet experience
~300hrs between 2 small animal clinics
50 small animal emergency hospital
(not much, I'm quite embarrassed about it)

Animal:
~100 hours local SPCA
~50 or so hours with teaching farm animals at school
~2000 hours farm hand
~50 hours at local racetrack helping my dad and his other trainers
13 years Equestrian and everything that goes with it (including farm hand stuff as well)

Extracurricular:
-pre vet club
-Up Til Dawn Chairperson (we're a fundraising organization for St. Judes)
-TA for our Horses Management/Husbandry course
-Undergraduate Research - a new project using Ancom technology to measure gas production in ruminants with tropical forages (just started this academic year, about 100 hours so far)

Alot of HS extracurriculars

Applied: Wisconsin, Penn, Tufts, Cornell, Missouri, Illinois, UTK, Purdue
Rejected: Cornell, Penn, Tufts (was waitlisted for an interview), Illinois, Missouri
Alternate: Wisconsin, Purdue
Accepted: UTK


It was a sucky sucky application cycle until the very end....it only takes one school!!!



I ask you all to please be kind and don't trash my stats/experience...I've done that to myself for years..I've worked hard for this (as we ALL have!!!) I'm so glad for the class of 2012! We are AWESOME!

 

[CalpardNY]

Shemari don't be so hard on yourself (yeah like thats easy for any of us to say ) I think your stats are great - and so does Utk - and thats what matters!

 

[meadow36]

NO one here is into bashing. Congrats for getting into UTK - I've heard awesome things about that school.

 

[winglessflight]

shemari- i don't see what part of your stats we are supposed to bash??

Congrats, it definitely looks like you earned a spot.

 

[biobean]

ummm...here are my stats but i've also been super shy about posting them (i typed them in and have been sitting here for 15min wondering if i should click "submit reply"). everyone else has pretty sweet stats...

1st time applicant, 21 yrs old
3.57 cum GPA, Ivy League, BS Biological Sciences
3.63 last 45 hours
3.4 science gpa
GRE: 600V, 690Q, 4A

Vet experience
~1000hrs small animal hospitals
~100hrs emergency hospital
~30hrs wildlife clinic
~25hrs equine
~20hrs ambulatory

Research:
~500hrs research on Toxocara canis
~160hrs with Helicobacter pylori for a summer

Animal:
aside from caring for my own animals...
~200hrs riding and caring for horses
~100hrs guide at marine visitor center
~50hrs pet visitation program
~50hrs care for teaching farm animals

Extracurricular:
-pre vet society
-Social Chair for Cooperative house i live in
-Project Coordinator for above-mentioned pet visitation program
-Director of Community Outreach for international undergrad-run journal; started a program w/high schoolers to write for the journal
-intramural basketball
-also HS extracurriculars (orchestras, volleyball, etc.)

Honors:
-dean's list at Ivy League school almost every semester
-Robert C. Byrd Scholarship
-leadership scholarship at first university attended (ended up transferring from there)
-National Dean's list
-ISEF finalist
-other HS awards

Applied: UC Davis (DVM/PhD), Mississippi, UPenn, Iowa, Wisconsin, Cornell (DVM/PhD), Western, Michigan, Colorado (DVM/PhD)
Interviewed: Western, Davis, Mississippi
Rejected: Cornell, Colorado, Iowa, Davis, Michigan, UPenn
Aleternate: Wisconsin
Accepted: Mississippi (DVM/PhD) and Western

 

[shemari]

I take back my word "bashing"....hehe, it was too strong of a word! I definitely didn't think anyone would, but I was just making sure (I think it's been done a tiny bit in this thread before)....we're all so supportive here!!

congrats, all!!

 

[VAgirl]

Probably more detail than you really want to know, but I think the details are what got me into vet school. If you distill me down to numbers, I think I'm a rather poor candidate.

26 yr old, non-traditional, 1st time applicant
VA resident

Education:
BA Biology
MS Biohazardous Threat Agents & Emerging Infectious Diseases

The Numbers Piece:
Undergrad GPA: 3.13
Grad GPA: 3.97
Cum GPA: 3.36
GRE: 670 V, 730 Q, 5.5

The Experience Piece:
Vet Experience:
*Job w/ government monitoring avian influenza globally (started FT in January…sent update to schools reflecting this)
*Infectious diseases biosurveillance internship (200 hours)
*Pathology lab technician (880 hours)
*Small animal clinic uncertified vet tech (500 hours)
*Small animal clinic kennel tech (240 hours)
*Benchwork research on a few related flaviviruses for my masters (220 hours; I forgot to list this on my VMCAS, but listed it on VMRCVM supplemental)
Total hours: 1,820 listed on VMCAS (2,040 with research)

Animal Experience:
*Stable hand (50 hours)
*Animal research in high school (250 hours; this probably should have been listed under vet experience in retrospect)
Total hours: 300 hours (for VMRCVM I also estimated hours for pet ownership, as they indicated we should)

Employment Experience:
*Government contracting working on chem/bio weapons (CBW) issues...as in looking at what research other countries are doing, not making CBW! (4,160)
*Random other jobs (2,840)
Total hours: 7,000 (It's important to note that I graduated college in 2003
and have been working ever since)

Extracurriculars/honors:
*Various ones from HS, college, and post college
*Most interesting:
-Horseback riding (1.5 yrs post-college)
-Stable/barn crew (6 mo. post-college)
-Agroterrorism Conference (post-college; true, it was something I attended, not an ongoing activity, but it was so cool I really wanted to list it!)
-EMT training (college)

LORs:
*DVM/PhD with whom I did the biosurveillance internship; he's a prof. at UC Davis (eLOR)
*PhD under whom I conducted research in grad school (eLOR)
*Former boss (eLOR)
*Horseback riding instructor (paper; I was worried that none of my other recommenders had actually seen me work with animals)

Vet Schools:
Colorado State: rejected
Kansas State: accepted
Iowa State: accepted
UW-Madison: accepted
VMRCVM: accepted (IS)
UC Davis: Accepted!! (will be attending in the fall!)


Eek, now I see what others mean about posting. It's such a personal thing! Oh well, that's me in a nutshell.

 

[hoodle]

VAgirl, you sound awesome. I mean, I knew that already, but I'm so excited to actually meet you!! your experiences are jaw-droppingly interesting.