Successful Applicants c/o 2028

[renacuaja]

Congrats to all who have been accepted already! Please post your stats to help other applicants as the acceptances roll in. The format from years before is posted below.

Age, Gender, State/Country of Residence, Traditional/Non-traditional applicant, # of times you've applied:

Applied:
Interview Invites:
Waiting to hear:
Accepted:
Attending:

Overall GPA:
Science Prerequisite GPA:
Last 45 GPA:

Degree(s):

Veterinary Experience:
Experience - (hrs)

Animal Experience:
Experience - (hrs)

Research:
Experience - (hrs)

Extracurriculars/Awards:
Experience - (hrs)

Non-Animal Employment:
Experience - (hrs)

LORs:
Title of recommender (Vet? Manager? Supervisor? Vet tech?)

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
Summary of what you wrote about

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[_rae_]

24, F, Massachusetts, Non-traditional applicant, second cycle (first for c/o 2025 the fall after my undergrad):

Applied: WSU, Glasgow, UPEI, Tufts, Minnesota
Interview Invites: Glasgow, UPEI, Tufts, Minnesota
Waiting to hear: None
Accepted: UPEI, Minnesota, Tufts
Attending: UMN! They gave me a scholarship that would be kind of silly to refuse! Plus, I genuinely love the program and actually really enjoyed the Twin Cities area.

Overall GPA: 3.65
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.65
Last 45 GPA: Honestly unsure

Degree(s):
Bachelor of Arts in Music with minors in Biology and Chemistry

Veterinary Experience:
Oncology Assistant, both rad and med onc: ~3500 hrs and counting
Oncology Attendant, both rad and med onc: ~2500 hrs
Shadow, small animal hospital: 80 hrs

Animal Experience:
Marine and aquatics: ~200 hrs
Exotics/reptiles/fish: ~530 hrs
Equine: ~100 hrs
Wildlife rehab: ~50 hrs
Wild birds: ~50 hrs and counting
Shelter volunteer: ~720 hrs
Pet sitting: ~100 hrs

Research:
None!

Extracurriculars/Awards:
So many honors bands. Like you'll get bored reading how many.
Significant theatre/music department extracurriculars, totaling well over 2000 hrs.
Lavender Award (LGBTQ+)
Student Affairs Division Award
Biology Departmental Award
Dean's or President's List each semester I was in college

Non-Animal Employment:
Grocery store customer service associate, 800 hrs
Resident Assistant, 1800 hrs
Work-study, office of accommodative services, 550 hrs
Ben & Jerry's (scooper promoted to shift lead), 1600 hrs

LORs:
DVM, board certified medical oncologist
DVM, double boarded rad/med oncologist and former Tufts professor
PhD, chemistry professor at my school
PhD, music professor at my school

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
Personal statement was a lot of comparing arts and STEM, the ways we're taught to think and approach problems in both, and how I feel my music background strengthened my approach to veterinary medicine.

Tufts: I talked about my passion for knitting and how fiber arts and feminism/subversive activism are all deeply intertwined.
Minnesota: I discussed my Fear Free certification and my position as an RA to meet their professional skills and abilities questions. My diversity essay, I talked primarily about my activism in college, which ranged from participation in my college's Hillel program to addressing police violence/abuse on campus as an RA.

 

[mia5502]

21, F, FL, Traditional, First time applicant

Applied: UF, LSU, Mississippi State, Arizona, Midwestern, Western, Iowa State, Mizzou, Virginia Maryland, LIU, LMU, Minnesota, St. Geroge's
Interview Invites: UF, Midwestern, Western, LMU, St. George's Mizzou (declined bc got in IS), LIU (Declined bc got in IS), Minnesota (declined bc got in IS)
Waiting to hear:Western
Accepted: UF, Midwestern, LMU (blue and silver cohorts), Iowa, and St. Georges.
Attending: UF!!!!

Overall GPA: 3.63
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.61
Last 45 GPA: 3.73 ish

Degree(s): B.S. in Biology on a Pre-veterinary and Zoology track (Dec 2023)

Veterinary Experience:
Surgical Veterinary assistant: 2208 hrs
GP Assistant: 180 hrs
Hollistic SA volunteer: 40 hrs
ER reception/shadow: 160 hrs
Equine shadow: 126 hrs
GP shadow (high school): 10 hrs


Animal Experience:
Stable volunteer: 30 hrs
Shelter dog walker: 45 hrs

Research:
Coastal Marine Education and Research Academy: 100 hrs
Wrote a observational research paper on spider monkeys: 128 hrs

Extracurriculars/Awards:
A few Deans lists and Presidents lists.
BLS and ALS certified
Florida Bright Futures Recipient
I included a couple silly awards I got from pre vet society like "total brainy yak" and "pawsitivity"
Pre veterinary society: Served on the exec board 2 years and a GBM for 1.5 years
Wags for Walks: exec board
Elementary School volunteer: 175hrs
(I also included some high school volunteering and captain positions I held that were meaningful to me)
Non-Animal Employment:
Pharmacy Technician: 700 hrs
Grocery store cashier: 3750 hrs (worked here for 3 years from high school to my second year of college)

LORs:
Medical director
Veterinarian
Professor

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
I wrote that what drives me in this field is not only helping animals but also helping their owners. Also included my passion for mentorship, especially for those in underrepresented communities.



**Just wanted to add never to give up! I got 6 Cs in the course of my undergraduate career and still was able to make it to my dream school! If I can do it I know you can!

 

[eleanor713]

23, F, MD, Traditionalish (graduated undergrad 2022), 2nd cycle:

Applied: Auburn, Cornell, Iowa, Michigan, NCSU, UC Davis, Florida, Minnesota, Mizzou, Wisconsin, VMCVM (IS), Illinois
Interview Invites: Auburn, Florida, Minnesota, Mizzou, VM, Illinois
Waiting to hear:
Accepted: Cornell, Florida, Auburn, Minnesota, Mizzou, Iowa, VM, Wisconsin, Illinois
Denied: UC Davis, Michigan
Waitlist: NCSU
Attending: Minnesota!!!

Overall GPA: 3.87
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.84
Last 45 GPA: 3.88

Degree(s): BS in exercise science

Veterinary Experience:
Small animal speciality shadow- 40hrs
Small animal urgent care shadow- 40hrs
Research vet tech working with lab animal and large animal- 1800hrs

Animal Experience:
Random pet sitting and humane society volunteering -300hrs
Horsemanship training- 20hrs

Research:
Research I’ve helped with as a research vet tech- 600hrs
Genetic engineering research shadowing for a day- 8hrs

Extracurriculars/Awards:
College field hockey 4 years and team captain for 1 year - 2310hrs
Scranton Emerging Leaders- 20hrs
Link crew leader- 140hrs
Club field hockey- 440 hrs
High school field hockey for 4 years and team captain for 1 year- 600hrs
Club gymnastics- 4000hrs
Morgan’s message group leader- 13hrs at time of application
Relay for life- 42hrs

Non-Animal Employment:
Assistant varsity field hockey coach - 145hrs
Head JV field hockey coach- 165hrs
SYC youth field hockey coach- 84hrs
5 guys crew member- 180hrs
Wegmans cashier- 672hrs
Gymnastics coach- 780hrs

Student athlete merit award
Phi Epsilon Kappa honor society
Landmark conference honor roll
Deans list
NFHCA Academic squad

LORs:
DVM who I worked full time with since 2022
PhD/PI of one of the research projects I’m very involved with- he works lab animal vets in the military
Advanced exercise physiology professor- writing/reading research heavy class
College field hockey coach

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
I wrote about how I had the path of becoming a physical therapist but through a project at school, learned about animal research and how animals contribute so much to science and medicine today, why I want to go into lab animal medicine and how my background can help me contribute to the field

I think the biggest help in my application is all of the things I’ve been a part of that aren’t focused on vet med. I’ve been able to bring up a lot of experiences in interviews and essays that I’ve learned from that will help me succeed as a veterinarian. My Florida interview focused a lot on my transition from physical therapy to vet med and it got me accepted!
Feel free to reach out if you’re applying for a second time because I feel that I’ve learned so much!!!

 

[redhotkittypepper]

I'll be class of 2027, technically.

Age, Gender, State/Country of Residence, Traditional/Non-traditional applicant, # of times you've applied:
29 / F / AZ USA, Non traditional 🙂 (I have 2 kids, a 7 year old and an almost 2 year old)
Application cycles: 2 (to other schools the first time, first time applying to U of A)

Applied: U of A
Interview Invites: U of A
Waiting to hear:
Accepted: U of A
Attending: U of A!
(Cost related, I could only apply to 1, I picked in state)

Overall GPA: 3.08
Courses at other university prior to transfer: ~3.5
Degree 1: 2.9
Degree 2: currently sitting at a 3.9, 1 class left.
Science Prerequisite GPA: 2.91
Last 45 GPA:

Degree(s):
Bachelor's of Science in Neurobiology, Physiology and Behavior ASU 2018
Bachelor's of Science in Applied Biological Sciences: Pre-Vet ASU 2024


Veterinary Experience: Ophthalmology Specialty Clinic
3.5 years, around ~6000 hrs. I started as a vet tech assistant, worked hard and learned a lot. Did everything from anesthesia prep, monitoring, client rooms, etc as a vet tech by training (unlicensed in state of AZ is allowed.)

6 months in general practice ~600 hours
I worked as a vet tech in GP (all responsibilities from cleaning to anesthesia).

Animal Experience: All Feline Shelter
2.5 years, part time while working at the ophtho clinic ~1500 hours
I medicated sick cats, performed regular monitoring, intake and adoptions, etc.

3 months, ~ 50 hours, Educational Outreach with Snakes, Amphibians, etc
We did minor outreach events with some snakes and stuff. It was very cool.

Research: None!
Experience - (hrs)

Extracurriculars/ Awards
A few deans list awards

Non-Animal Employment:
1500 hours+ - I listed previous employment at the steakhouse while I was in my first Bachelor's and a prior financial institution.

5000 hours - Pet Insurance Claim Processor
My current role, almost 2 years full time. Close to ~5000 hours
I process medical claims, review medical records and determine compensability according to policy guidelines.

LORs:
DVM in ophtho
Shelter assistant manager
Professor / outreach lab leader

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:

I essentially wrote about the steps I've taken to feel ready, the mentorship I received in clinic, at the shelter and in outreach, and how it helped me center my focus towards shelter medicine and reducing pet homelessness.

My hardship statement was in regards to raising kids while going to college and taking care of my older father.


My GPA wasn't the highest for my first degree. It was very difficult driving essentially 2 hours round trip to and from campus and being away from my son. However, I enrolled for a second Bachelor's, did awesome, had my daughter midway between and kept moving forward. I feel I have a breadth of knowledge about the veterinary field from my wonderful mentor in ophthalmology and years of working as a tech, diversifying myself to seek additional volunteer opportunities and experience new animals I was unfamiliar with and now the past several years reading medical records for pet insurance claims. 🙂

 

[renacuaja]

Age, Gender, State/Country of Residence, Traditional/Non-traditional applicant, # of times you've applied:

25, F, NY, non-trad, 1st application cycle, URM

Explanation Statement:
Had a W in Orgo II lecture and lab because I missed school because of illness and family stuff which I briefly described. Retook online through UCSD and got an A in the lecture (didn’t retake the lab).

Applied: Edinburgh (declined interview), Cornell (IS), Ross (withdrew app), St. George’s (declined acceptance), Minnesota (declined interview), Missouri (declined after interview)
Interview Invites: Edinburgh, St. George’s, Minnesota, Missouri, (Cornell doesn’t interview)
Waiting to hear: None
Accepted: St. George’s, Cornell
Attending: Cornell!

Overall GPA: 3.67
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.83 at application submission
Last 45 GPA: ~3.95 at application submission

Degree(s):
BA with double major in Computer Science and Data Science 2020
Non-degree seeking DIY post-bacc 2022-2024

Veterinary Experience:
ER Veterinary Assistant - 2,100 hours
Shadowing at Specialty Hospital - 100 hours
GP Veterinary Assistant - 80 hours
Shadowing Exotic Vet - 160 hours
Shadowing Equine Vet - 70 hours

Animal Experience:
On VMCAS experience section: 0 hours

Volunteered/Shadowed at a small ranch <100 hours. Forgot to put in experience section so literally 0 animal experience seen by vet schools aside from putting it on the Missouri supplemental

Research:
High School Research Projects with salamanders and planaria - 1,500 hours
Lake Ecology Research at post-bacc school- 130 hours

Extracurriculars/Awards:
Rock climbing - 1200 hours
High School Exchange Student - 6720 hours (one year)
Writing Hobby - 3600 hours (I described NaNoWrimo and self-published fiction)
Warming Station - volunteer - 100 hours

National Undergraduate Statistics Project Competition - 3rd Place
Mu Sigma Rho Honor Society

Non-Animal Experience:

Sales Assistant at a Computer Store - 900 hours

Software Engineering Intern at nonprofit - 320 hours

Open Source Project Contributor - 300 hours (should have placed under research, received academic credit from my primary undergrad and the earlier mentioned awards from it)

Data Analyst for a bank - 2960 hours (also worked as a software engineer for a time but since it was the same company I kept it under the same umbrella)

LORs:
ER Vet
ER Vet
Professor/Research Advisor

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:

Talked about how my prior career was the most straightforward pathway to financial security but it was not the right fit for me. Then how an emergency with an exotic pet compelled me to start shadowing. Then, I mentioned a story of how I was able to deescalate a situation with a client. Talked about how I enjoy working with difficult clients and finding ways to connect with them.

Cornell essays:

1. Wrote about a time I almost automated myself out of a job
2. Wrote about a mistake I made with a patient and how my mentors in this field have helped me learn resilience
3. Wrote about how a family road trip that had several disasters along the way ended up being one of my favorite experiences ever
4. Wrote about what I learned as an exchange student. In the follow-up essay I wrote about having zero regrets over my mistakes as an exchange student since it taught me lifelong lessons.

Minnesota essays:

Diversity essay: Honesty, it was pretty bad. In one part I talked about a time when my culture conflicted with American culture. Also described my volunteering experience and what it meant for me. It wasn't executed very well but I still landed an interview anyways!

1. Wrote about a mistake I made with a patient and how my mentors in this field have helped me learn resilience
2. Wrote about what I learned as an exchange student

Post-Application Reflection
There were several grammatical errors in my application essays and under the experience section explanations. If you look over your application and notice mistakes after submission please don't sweat it.

I'm a big believer that having a strong narrative in your essays is the most important part.

 

[hbbqtwists]

21, F, TX, traditional, first-time applicant:

Applied: Cornell, KSU, OkSU, TAMU
Interview Invites: KSU, TAMU (no interviews for Cornell & OkSU
Waiting to hear: None!
Accepted: Cornell, TAMU, OkSU, KSU
Attending: Cornell!

Overall GPA: 4.0
Science Prerequisite GPA: 4.0
Last 45 GPA: 4.0

Degree(s): B.S. Biomedical Sciences with Chemistry minor

Veterinary Experience:
Aquarium veterinary shadow ~8 hrs
Small animal clinics ~158 hrs
Animal shelter vet clinics ~400 hrs

Animal Experience:
Aquarium volunteer ~30 hrs
Raised show pig ~130 hrs

Research:
Pharmaceuticals in Dolphin Blubber (presenting research) ~160 hrs
Dolphin Sperm Biology ~36 hrs
Dolphin Population Study ~420 hrs

Extracurriculars/Awards:
Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation scholar ~160 hrs
Pre-Vet Society co-founding president ~300 hrs
University Ambassador ~400 hrs
FFA member & held multiple officer positions ~2220 hrs

Dean's List every semester in college
Honors Program
Several scholarships from HS & college

Non-Animal Employment:
Bartender/Server at restaurant ~280 hrs
Stage Technician ~ 240 hrs
Shift Manager at frozen yogurt shop ~500 hrs

LORs:
Small animal veterinarian
Research PI
Campus employer
Former FFA advisor

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
I wrote about experiences with abandoned animals, volunteering at animal shelters, learning about hoarding cases, and how it influenced my passion for animal welfare and veterinary medicine.

 

[Tayspot99]

21, F, Florida resident, traditional, 1st time applicant

Applied: UF, UGA, Illinois, Mizzou, St. George's
Interview Invites: UF, St. George's, Mizzou (I declined)
Waiting to hear: UGA, Illinois
Rejections: None
Accepted: UF, St. George's
Attending: UF!

Overall GPA: 3.91
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.86 (I think)
Last 45 GPA: 4.0

Degree(s): B.S. Animal Science w/ chemistry minor (graduating May 2024)

Veterinary Experience: 1,748 total
Small Animal VA - 1,174 hrs
Small Animal shadow (in high school) - 140 hrs
Surgical Assistant at Specialty Hospital - 220 hrs
Exotics + Wildlife - 184 hrs
Large animal - 30 hrs

Animal Experience: 3,014 total
Took an Equine Management course and was in charge of a broodmare 45 days prior to foaling up until she foaled - 84 hrs
Personal pet ownership for a reactive + aggressive dog 1000 hrs (included active hours training, behaviorist visits, etc.)
Beef Cattle Herdsman - 360 hrs
Petsitting - 280 hrs
Rescue Volunteer + Foster - 1,290 hrs

Research: 315 total
Personal Research Project - wrote grant to receive funding, set up research team, collected samples, analyzed data, presented findings at school symposium - 225 hrs
2 other unrelated research projects at 20hrs and 70hrs each

Extracurriculars/Awards:
College Dance Team
High School Dance + Theatre
High School Performing Arts Academy Member + Medical Sciences Academy Member
Pre-Vet Club
Fear Free Certification
Research Grant
Various Scholarships Based on Academic Achievement + Financial Need
Dean's List Every Semester

Non-Animal Employment: 1,479 total
Summer Camp Counselor (1085 hrs)
Groundskeeper at Museum and Gardens (70 hrs)
Admin Assistant at Family Business (324 hrs)

LORs:
2 Small Animal Veterinarians, Research Advisor, Academic Advisor

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
Wrote about my high school experience in theatre and how realizing that a supportive community/teamwork can help me achieve my dream of becoming a veterinarian. Further stated how collaboration relies on communication and wrote about a specific work experience as a small animal veterinary assistant. I also briefly discussed my own dog's behavioral problems and how that sparked my passion to help others prevent such issues and/or work through them

 

[Butters647]

23 F, New York Resident, Traditional applicant, 2nd time applicant (was accepted to Ohio State first round but turned it down):

Applied: Cornell University
Interview Invites: N/A
Waiting to hear: 0
Accepted: Cornell University
Attending: Cornell!!

Overall GPA: 3.42
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.4
Last 45 GPA: Not positive, but close to a 4.0!
* Note: I had a D, a few Cs, and a W on my transcript. It is possible without a perfect transcript!
Degree(s): Majored in Animal Science with a minor in Infectious Disease Biology (C/O 2023)

Veterinary Experience:
Small animal clinic: 350 hours between 3 different clinics, both as a shadow and vet assistant.
Large animal/ambulatory: 450 hours between three practices as a shadow.
Equine specialty: 120 hours between two ambulatory practices as a shadow.
Cardiology: 120 hours as a vet assistant
Exotics: 80 as a shadow (plus working at a small animal clinic that saw exotics as well)
Bovine AI & Trans-Ultrasonography Training - 42 hours

Animal Experience:
Genex Artificial Insemination certification for Dairy Herds (through a class) - 36 hours
Equine Biology and Management Course Teaching Assistant - 108 hours
Petsitter for parrots/cats - 21 hours
Western & Dressage Team rider - 200 hours
Cornell herd Icelandic Horse Trainer - 180 hours
Betta fish importer/breeder - 1224 hours
Pet store employee - 2600 hours
Animal Rehabber - 160 hours
Undergrad course(s) animal care - 98 hours
Private English Riding Instructor for disabled children - 1300 hours
Exotic reptile, amphibian, and arachnid keeper - 4000 hours (personal pets, noted on application)


Research:
Independent Research (under professor guidance) on novel parasite found on Betta Splendens of Thai origin and treatment of parasites using KMNO4 and Flubendazole concentrations - 225 hours

Extracurriculars/Awards:
AICE A* Award in English Writing (high school)
Dean's list
Volunteered at Cafe of Life (volunteer program for food pantry)
Mentoring Our Undergraduates Advisor for University
Animal Science Peer Mentor
Teaching assistant for Reproduction lab, Immunology course, and Equine course
Wado Ryu Karate student
Fear free certification, animal CPR certification, and human infant/child and adult CPR/AED certification
Rode on University Western and Dressage teams
Various clubs, including LGBTQ+ club, Pre-Vet Society, and multiple pre-med clubs

Non-Animal Employment:
Food Recipe Developer - some time during high school/undergrad
Electrical Safety Engineer - Job I accepted at the start of my gap year and am currently doing until vet school!

LORs:
- Undergraduate Animal Science Advisor (PhD)
- 2 Veterinarians: One large animal, one small animal
- Professor of Equine course and Immunology course I TAed for (who has a DVM degree)
- General Manager from Pet Store

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
Personal statement - I wrote about taking a job in electrical engineering and realizing it wasn't my passion, then connected circuit board systems to anatomical systems. I'd be happy to share this with anyone who is curious 🙂
Essay questions - All of the questions were about challenges I faced, so I talked about grief I experienced during undergrad, some personal family challenges, a karate tournament that went very poorly, and a program I started at an elementary school for troubled children. I focused a lot on how I grew from those experiences and didn't even necessarily attempt to connect them to veterinary medicine.

*I just wanted to note that I did mention my grief struggles in the COVID impact statement on the application, as it was directly related. I also mentioned how I am immunocompromised and contracted COVID and how it impacted my courseload and grades early on during my undergrad. I really think the positive trend I showed over time, being a reapplicant, and stating these impacts helped my case to get accepted despite my GPA being quite low compared to most acceptances at CU!

 

[pbjamo]

22, F, TX, Traditional applicant, 2nd time applicant (Only applied IS last cycle)

Applied: TAMU (IS), K-State, LSU, UGA, Wisconsin, Mizzou, Mississippi, Illinois, Tennessee, Purdue, Arizona, LIU
Interview Invites: A&M, K-State, Mizzou, LIU, Mississippi (declined- IS accepted), Illinois (declined- IS accepted)
Waiting to hear: N/A
Waitlisted: LSU, Mizzou, Wisconsin
Accepted: TAMU, K-State, LIU
Attending: TAMU!!!

Overall GPA: 3.84
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.76
Last 45 GPA: 3.77

Degree(s): B.S. Biology (graduated Dec. 2023)

Veterinary Experience:
- Veterinary Assistant in a small animal practice - 2000 hrs
- Shadowing large animal veterinarian - 170 hrs
- Veterinary Technician in an exotic animal practice - 400 hrs (temporary tech position)
- Parvo ICU Veterinary Technician - 330 hrs (also a temporary tech to help with summer overflow- located in a shelter)
- Shadowed an ICU vet - 4 hrs
- Mixed animal practice - 180hrs
- Veterinary Assistant in small animal practice/emergency - 250 hrs (current position)

Animal Experience:
- Kennel Technician in a small animal practice - 1500 hrs
- Rabbitry Owner - 1600 hrs (I had a rabbit breeding business for several years. I probably undercut my hours, but I wanted to make sure I wasn't including the business side and just the caretaking)
- Pet sitting - 100 hrs
- Small animal and exotic care at exotic animal practice - 40 hrs
- Service dog training - 20 hrs
- Equine Care at a Ranch - 10 hrs
- Alpaca caretaking at Ranch - 12 hrs

Research:
- Dairy Cattle research (semester-long project with a prof, has yet to be published) - 80hrs

Extracurriculars/Awards:
- Honor roll (4.0 semester x3) and Honors program
- 4 awards from art competitions I included for non-academic awards.

- Art Club (HS) - 3 years, 150hrs (president my final year, under leadership tab)
- Women's Club (HS) - 1 year, 72hrs
- Business side of the rabbitry (data keeping, social media, client communication, photos, etc.) - 3 years, 480hrs
- Student Government Org. - 1 year, Officer
- Served on my community college's governance council as a student member
- Pre-Vet Organization General member - 1 year, 64 hrs
- Pre-Vet Organization Officer - 1 year
- Service Dog Organization General member - 1 year
- Volunteered for SXSW - 55 hrs
- Mobile food truck - 4 hrs
- Note taking (through University Disability Center) - 37 hrs

Non-Animal Employment:
- Office Clerk (2 years)
- Shoe store (4 months)
- Seasonal sales associate (month)

LORs:
Small animal veterinarian (worked with for 2 years)
Large animal/equine veterinarian (shadowed during breaks for a year)
Old supervisor/LVT
Community college biology professor

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
Personal Statement: I picked out a few of my favorite experiences within and outside of vet med and focused on how each experience impacted the one prior. I also used my personal statement to discuss the lessons I've learned throughout my pre-vet journey.
Essay Questions: I wrote many essays for all these schools, but I tried to express the importance of perspective and how that impacts different aspects of veterinary medicine. I also wrote an essay discussing a family emergency that occurred earlier this year, and how that experience showed me the importance of a work-life balance (and how I plan to achieve that while still pursuing my dream career).

 

[Ashyarmuth]

21, F, TX, Traditional applicant, 2nd time IS applicant, 1st time OOS applicant

Applied: Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Auburn, Oklahoma State, Michigan State
Interview Invites: Texas A&M, Auburn
Waiting to hear: N/A
Rejections: Michigan State, Texas Tech
Accepted: Texas A&M, Oklahoma State, Auburn!!!
Attending: Texas A&M!!!

Overall GPA: 4.0
Science Prerequisite GPA: 4.0
Last 45 GPA: 4.0

Degree(s): B.S. Animal Science w/ a minor in Biomedical Sciences (Graduating May 2024) @ TAMU

Veterinary Experience:
Equine Orthopedic and Soft Tissue Surgery Student Technician @ TAMU Large Animal Hospital (418 hrs)
Veterinary Technician Assistant @ two small animal clinics (588 hrs)
Internship @ small animal clinic (365 hrs)

Animal Experience:
Equestrian Team Student Worker (406 hrs)
FFA Stockshow Rabbit (936 hrs)
Neighborhood Pet sitting (~50 hrs)
Animal Handling clinics through Pre Vet Club (~15 hrs)
Volunteered in Vet School Wetlabs (10 hrs)
Have owned dogs and cats my whole life, grew up around grandparents horses!

Research:
Equine Infectious Disease Research- over the course of a semester, not published (120 hrs)
Swine Microbiome Research- not published (20 hrs)

Extracurriculars/Awards:
Dean's List multiple semesters
Awarded a scholarship within my major
Pre Vet Society Distinguished Member
Vets Without Borders Member
Animal Welfare Club Member
FFA Officer + Show Team Member + Competition Team Members all throughout high school- Multiple FFA awards
High School Cheerleading
High School student council


Non-Animal Employment:
Cheerleading & Gymnastics Coach in high school (700 hrs)

LORs:
2 LOR from small animal veterinarians I worked under
1 LOR from a veterinarian I did research under

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
Highlighted a defining moment when I worked in a small animal clinic that solidified my passion for veterinary medicine. I also talked about my different experiences in research, equine, and small animal veterinary medicine and what I gained from each experience. Highlighted working with little kids as a cheerleading coach and tied in how I knew veterinary medicine would be right for me because I could help people and animals.

 

[ks1034]

26 F, MA, non traditional, first cycle

Applied: Cornell, CSU, WSU, Oregon, Wisconsin, UGA, Penn, UT, Minnesota, Michigan, Iowa, Illinois, UofA
Interview Invites: none
Waiting to hear: Wisconsin, UGA
Accepted: CSU, Iowa
Attending: undecided but CSU was my top choice

Overall GPA: 3.42
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.2 (I think)
Last 45 GPA: 3.8

Degree(s): Bachelors in Biomedical Science

Veterinary Experience:
Experience - (hrs)
6,500 hours as a veterinary assistant at two different small animal/ exotic clinics. Majority of time was at a very large hospital with 15 vets which did GP but also urgent care and some emergency. I basically was a vet tech- assisted with exams, blood draws, ran labs, client communication, x rays, surgical monitoring, etc. I trained several new vet techs and assistants and worked as a floor manager, managing which tech was assigned to which appointment, making sure appointments stayed on time, etc. I worked here both during college and after.


Animal Experience:
Experience - (hrs)

1,000 hours working at a dog daycare
Significant animal research experience (see below)

Research:
Experience - (hrs)
6,500 hours working at Boston Children’s hospital in research. This includes intensive research with swine and rats. I perform surgical procedures such as line placement, sternotomy, laparotomy, brain perfusion in both swine and rats. I also cared for swine that were brain dead in an intensive care setting, surviving them for 3 days while intubated. I perform necropsies and look at histology of organs. I also manage my lab, managing all new staff, admin work, teaching new staff, etc. We have been studying an intravenous oxygen drug in addition to a clinical trial that I am helping with studying a novel gas treatment as a therapy for ischemia in patients who undergo ECPR.

I have two first author papers, one of those is in a nature journal. I am a co author on a few other papers as well.

Extracurriculars/Awards:
Experience - (hrs)

I am co author on an abstract that won the best abstract award at the American Heart Association conference in 2022.

I am first author of two abstracts that were selected for posters- one at the AHA conference and one at a DOD conference

American Red Cross club volunteer while in college
D3 crew team during my freshman year of college
Volunteered at a local homeless shelter
Volunteer at a farm sanctuary with pigs, cows, goats, horses, donkeys, etc
President of Interact Club in high school
Deans list a few times
Attended several medical conferences with my PI, including one in Australia where I toured their research labs and learned about their hospitals research on ECMO.
High school basketball
Summer pre-med program at Dartmouth when I was in high school

Probably more extracurricular activities that I can’t remember right now

Non-Animal Employment:
Experience - (hrs)

I have had a job since I was 14 in various customer service positions.
Probably around 9,000 hours non animal employment working in retail stores and food service.

Also had a work study in college working in the Health Services department assisting with fundraisers, data input, etc. Another work study I had was tutoring a child in reading through America Reads program.

LORs:
Title of recommender (Vet? Manager? Supervisor? Vet tech?)

Veterinarian I worked with at small animal/exotic hospital
Veterinarian I worked with on swine studies in research
pHD who is one of my PI’s in my research lab
MD who is the other PI in my research lab

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
Summary of what you wrote about

I wrote about my time working in research, particularly my struggles with bonding with the pigs then having to perform intense research on them and ultimately euthanize them. I wrote about my efforts to focus on the purpose of the research and how it will affect the future of human and animal medicine. I expressed my desire to become a veterinarian who works in research and can make a contribution to the lives of both humans and animals.

 

[misstrawberri]

27F, CA, Non-traditional, 1st Time Applicant. First Generation.

BELOW AVERAGE GPA ALERT!!!

Holy Moly! I remember stalking these threads for the last two years in search of a tiny glimmering hope that there would be a chance for someone with my stats to get into veterinary school. AND HERE WE ARE (I say WE, because if you are reading this, YOU WILL TOO!!!) Overall, if there is ONE thing I would want you to take away from this post:

STOP COMPARING YOURSELF. “Comparison is the thief of joy.” We are all more than just numbers and stats. We each have something to contribute to this field. In my opinion, my personal statement was what tied everything together, and gave admissions a glimpse into ME.

Applied: (7 Schools) UC Davis, Colorado State (CSU), Ohio State, Washington State, Western, University of Arizona
Interview Invites: UC Davis, Western (Withdrew App)
Waiting to hear: None
Rejected: Oregon, Ohio State, and U of A
Accepted: UC Davis, CSU, Washington State
Attending: UC Davis!!!!! 💛💙 (MOST LIKELY!!)

Overall GPA: 3.10
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.56
Last 45 GPA: 3.94

Degree(s): A.S. in Kinesiology, B.S. in Kinesiology

Veterinary Experience:
~4000 hrs- Veterinary Assistant for SA/exotics GP
~100 hrs- UC Davis Summer Enrichment Program
~ 30 hrs- Dairy Vet Shadow
~100 hrs- Equine Vet Shadow

Animal Experience:
~ 10,000 hrs- Professional & Creative Pet Groomer
~ 30 hrs – Equine Center Volunteer
~ 100 hrs- dairy farm volunteer

Research:
300 hrs- Research with Computer Science Department & Poster Presentation at Research Symposium

Extracurriculars:

• Pre-Vet Club
• SheCODES (women’s programming club)
• Competitive Dance my WHOLE life
• Educational Opportunity Program
• Achieve Scholars Program
• MASA club
• There is more but I cannot remember off the top of my head!

Awards:
Outstanding Undergraduate of the Year
President’s List 5x
Dean’s List 4x

Non-Animal Employment:
~1000 Hrs – AMC Theatres- Box Office – Worked here since 16 yrs old to 18

LORs:
1 Veterinarian
1 O Chem Professor
1 Computer Science professor I did research with

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
I went the creative route with my personal statement and told my story from the POV of a movie star in a superhero film. I spoke about my struggles being first generation, and how, although I was a business major at first, I was more excited to go to my work as a groomer than school. Then I wrote about the pivotal moment of realizing my calling in vet med and how I overcame my doubts. I also discussed my passion for bringing vet med to under-served populations.

Some Motivation:
I had 7 F’s and 6 D’s on my record. I don’t remember the exact number, but I believe I dropped out my senior year as a business major with about a 2.3 GPA (It could've been lower tbh). This was my rock bottom. I always wanted to do well in school but just never did. I trudged on with my life and felt like an absolute failure. During my time away from school, I continued my true passion: working with animals. I got a job as a VA after a successful career in grooming, and worked my butt off to get nothing but A's for the next four years in school (and that one B+ darn you gen chem 2). You can truly set your mind to anything you want. I never could afford tutors. I utilized YouTube, researched the best study methods, and completely turned my life around. Feel free to PM me for any questions or just for words of encouragement!

 

[cortinarius violaceus]

LOW GPA ALERT!

26, F, Michigan, Non-traditional, 2nd time applicant:

Applied: CSU, ISU, OSU, MSU (MI), UofA, Western, UofMinn, UPEI-AVC, LMU
Interview Invites: LMU, UPEI-AVC, MSU
Accepted: Lincoln-Memorial University, University of Prince Edward Island- Atlantic Veterinary College, Iowa State University, and Michigan State University!
Attending: Undecided!

VMCAS Cumulative GPA: 3.03
VMCAS Science GPA: 2.91

UPEI-AVC GPA: 3.30
MSU Last 36 Credits GPA: 3.70
MSU Prerequisite GPA: 3.12
ISU Last 45 Credits GPA: 3.40
ISU Prerequisite GPA: 3.16

Degree(s):
Bachelors of Behavioral Neuroscience, Minor in French
Post-Bacc Certificate in Integrated Animal Health Sciences

Veterinary Experience: 6,100 hours
Equine Vet Shadow- 26 hours
Rural Area Veterinary Services Volunteer- 150 hours
ER Veterinary Assistant- 2,300 hours
ER Reception/Front Desk- 560 hours
Basic Wildlife Rehabilitation Certificate- 20 hours
GP Lab Technician- 240 hours
GP Veterinary/Surgery/Dental Assistant- 1,690 hours
GP Kennel Tech- 900 hours
Ophthalmology Shadow- 24 hours
Neurology Shadow- 95 hours

Animal Experience: 365 hours
Dog Training Shadow - 18 hours
Pet Sitter- 240 hours
Feline Shelter Volunteer- 24 hours
Wildlife Rehab Volunteer- 72 hours

Research: 190 hours
Animal Behavior Research, Project Coordinator and Analyst - 120 hours
Benchside Technician- 60 hours

Extracurriculars/Awards: 2,000 hours
Trauma-Informed Yoga Therapist Certificate - 200 hours
Environmental Club President & Secretary- 420 hours
Violinist & Guitarist- 1,000 hours
Trauma-Informed Yoga Teacher (Volunteer)- 172 hours
Recycling & Compost Team Shift Leader- 240 hours
Sustainability Champion Award

Non-Animal Employment: 3,180 hours
Cytology/Gross Assistant - 120 hours
Writing Consultant- 750 hours
Campus Organizer for The Humane League- 136 hours
University Telephone Fundraiser- 465 hours
Nanny- 750 hours
Food Service- 960 hours

LORs:
Virology Professor
Post-Bacc Veterinary Professor
GP Veterinarian
RAVS Veterinarian

Trigger Warning- SA
Explanation Statement: Some advice that was given to me in my file reviews the first time around was to be more detailed in my explanation statement. This was hard, but I believe was necessary to fully provide context for my college performance. My senior year of high school I was SA'd by my first boyfriend and was struggling with my parent's alcoholism and mental health. I went to college to mostly get away from this and had no direction. I also was not assigned a roommate my freshman year of college and was extremely isolated without any friends or support. I was SA'd again my junior year, then had a stalker for almost two years and had to file many police reports and protective court orders. After this, I had a wild cascade of unstable roommates and lost four family members, a close friend, and four pets to illnesses or accidents over a couple years. I focused on discussing how I had grown from these experiences and what steps I had taken to heal and create stability in my life.

I had seven Ws, one F, four Ds, and fourteen Cs on my transcripts. I retook everything below a C and took higher level sciences and excelled in them. I decided on vet med close to the end of my undergrad education and truly felt like I could never recover from my low GPA. I spent a lot of time on these forums searching for success stories of low GPA applicants and it feels surreal to write my own. I really hope this inspires some of you. It's a difficult road, but you really can do it! Take care of yourselves 🙂

 

[luvpup]

21, F, Texas resident, Traditional applicant, 1st time applicant (First Generation!)

Applied: Texas A&M, LSU (Rejected), U of A (Rejected with no interview)
Interview Invites: Texas A&M
Waiting to hear: None
Accepted: Texas A&M
Attending: Texas A&M !!

Overall GPA: 3.78
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.72
Last 45 GPA: 3.87

Degree(s): B.S on Animal Science (Graduating May 2024), A.S. in General Science (Did community college then transferred to Uni)

Veterinary Experience: 2285 hours
SA Vet Emergency Hospital Scribe (2285 hrs) (They had very occasional exotics/livestock come in)

Animal Experience: roughly 535 hours
Pet ownership- 200 hours (way underestimated, but the way TMDSAS does their application, you can only put 100 hours per species)
Kitten Foster- 40 hours
Chicken care- 50 hours
Pet sitting- 25 hours
Animal Shelter volunteer-40 hours
Petting zoo internship w/ livestock and few exotic/zoo animals- 180 hours

Research:
None!

Extracurriculars/Awards:
Pre-vet club member
Art club member
Phi Theta Kappa
Federal Pell Grant (2x)
Scholarships here and there (3-4x)
Provost’ list/Vice president’s honor roll/Chancellor’s honor roll a couple of times

Non-Animal Employment:
Janitor Lead (roughly 1,000 hours)
Cashier at my family's food truck business (roughly 1,000 hrs)
Cashier/food prep at an ice cream shop (roughly 300 hours)

LORs:
One of my LORs was from my professor, while the other two were from veterinarians.

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
I first of want to say I am so surprised I got in, especially for my first try. I feel so lucky and happy. I had low confidence in my application and would compare myself so much to other applicant stats and wonder if I would even get a chance to get in. I want to say to those who are contemplating whether to apply or not (like I did), to definitely apply! You never know until you try!

As for my essay/personal statement, I wrote about emergency medicine and how I loved it! I compared it to my upbringing (financial issues, little education from my family, poor pet care) and how I can use those experiences to better ER medicine and help my community (especially as a Spanish speaker). I wrote about why I had low hours and a C in my transcript (of course its chem lol), which was due to covid and supporting my family while in college, thus working full time while being in school full time (while taking many of my prerequisites online).

If anyone has any questions for me, I really do not mind trying to answer them to the best of my ability! I understand that feeling of thinking you might not get in or confused on what to do so I want to help others think they are capable because they are 🙂!

 

[kml1721]

24 (almost 25), F, Indiana Resident, traditionalish (graduated undergrad in 2021), 4th application cycle

Applied: Purdue
Interview Invites: Purdue
Waiting to hear:
Accepted: Purdue
Attending: Purdue

Overall GPA: 3.82
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.7
Last 45 GPA: unsure, probably around 3.8-3.9

Degree(s): B.S. in biology from Purdue (2021), MPH from Purdue (WIP, expected to complete summer 2025)

Veterinary Experience:
Mixed animal practice - 30 hours
Small animal practice (shadowing) - 270 hours
Small animal practice (working as vet assistant) - 750 hours
Oncology department - 10 hours (interrupted by COVID)

Animal Experience:
Animal shelter - 20
Adoption days for a rescue - 10
Gait lab/orthopedics department - 50

Had animals all my life, but obviously not included on my application

Research:
none

Extracurriculars/Awards:
Dean’s list - 7/8 semesters in undergrad
Pokémon club as social media chair, treasurer, and briefly as vice president
Pre-vet club as an active member
First responders club as a treasurer
Softball in high school
Band in high school (first chair oboe)
Cross-fit gym in high school (emphasized how the experience helped me gain a love of weightlifting that’s an asset in my job)

Non-Animal Employment:
Grocery store in meat/seafood department - 4500 hours

LORs:
Veterinarian (practice owner)
Associate veterinarian (at same practice)
Graduate school professor
Lecturer in classical studies department from undergrad
Deli department manager that used to work with me in meat/seafood

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:

I included an explanation statement detailing why my hours were low (COVID, insurance changes at the vet clinic, clinics were looking for experienced workers because they were so short-staffed). I also discussed why I decided to pursue an MPH and what I’ve learned from it (both content of the degree and skills such as time management). Then I talked about prioritizing a paid job outside of the field, paying off my student loans, and having savings for vet school expenses. I also mentioned transferrable skills from this job and how it made me all the more confident that vet med was the right choice for me.

In my personal statement, the overarching theme was determination. I discussed how I saved my dog’s life, how I jump in to help with emergency cases and stay by the animal’s side after initial stabilization. I also talked about how my experiences are mostly in rural areas, the unique challenges, and how I want to work in a rural area. I tied it back into my MPH and how rural access to healthcare is a passion of mine, then briefly mentioned how I also want to be a mentor for rural LGBTQ+ folks in vet med. It sounds kinda all over the place summarizing it like this, but I promise it’s rather cohesive and makes sense.



If you notice, it took me four tries to get in. I honestly don’t count the first two cycles, I only applied because I had an advisor tell me that less people would probably apply because of COVID-19 (it ended up being the opposite!) My biggest advice to anyone and everyone looking to apply next year that’s taking a look in this thread is twofold:
1. Write an explanation statement. Don’t be like me and convince yourself you don’t need one 3 years in a row. It’ll help tie your application together and the story of your choices will be easily seen.
2. Being a hard worker and dependable goes a long way when it comes to getting LORs. I’m quiet, shy, an introvert, don’t really say much to others, but I got 5 amazing LORs. I could’ve probably had 6 if I had reached out to another professor from undergrad. You’d be surprised how much you make a positive impression on others by just putting in the effort to put out good work, whether that be in a job or in the classroom.

(Also don’t be like me and apply to only one school)

 

[agf09003]

LOW GPA non-trad old person!
I am happy to finally be starting this part of my life. It has been my dream forever and at times I thought I would have to give it up. I was devastated when so many unfortunate events got in the way of me pursuing my dreams, but I cant help but feel that everything happens for a reason.
Age, Gender, State/Country of Residence, Traditional/Non-traditional applicant, # of times you've applied:
38, F, CT, Non-traditional, 2nd application cycle

Applied: UofA (rejected), Midwestern,(rejected), TUFTS (rejected), LMU, ISU
Interview Invites: LMU
Waiting to hear:
Accepted: LMU, ISU
Attending: Likely LMU unless by some miracle Tufts interviews me

Overall GPA: 3.25
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.26
Last 45 GPA: 3.6
Casper: 4th quartile
Degree(s): BS in Biological Sciences

Veterinary Experience: Total of 31,382 hrs
GP Veterinary Hospital Owner - 4800 hrs
GP Veterinary Practice Manager - 9252 hrs
GP Veterinary technician - 9842 hrs
ER Veterinary Technician - 7488 hrs

Animal Experience:
Small farm owner/ Pyrgora goat breeder - 1820 hrs
Alpaca Shearer - 216 hrs

Research: ZERO


Extracurriculars/Awards:
I listed various singing groups and productions I have been a part of

Non-Animal Employment:
Mortgage loan office/Sales Manager - 6360 hrs

LORs:
DVM - My business partner
DVM - My other business partner
Practice manager/ clinic owner
Professor from my recent courses (most of my education is old)

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
I wrote about seeing the veterinary industry from the perspective of a tech, manager and now clinic owner. My two business partners do not have the same insight and often have no clue about the financial side of things. I also wrote about being a manager through COVID and maintaining zero turnover rate with my staff over the past few years. I wrote about the mental health issues in the industry and my first hand experience with it.

In the explanation areas I wrote about why my schooling has been so delayed. I had a massive blood clot after my first daughter that changed everything. I had to support my parents when they lost their home and mortgage company during the 2008 crash. My grades suffered trying to juggle work, school, and then having a set of twins finally ended my schooling. When I finally returned to school after COVID, my husband had an aortic aneurysm that almost took him and required a long recovery with me being the sole financial provider. All of these things shaped me into the person I am today. My perspective has allowed me to be an effective and confident leader. I wouldn't change anything about my past and I don't fear the future.

 

[binkybonky]

23F, CA, Traditional, First time applicant

Applied: Cornell, Illinois, Ohio, Oregon, Colorado, UC Davis
Interview Invites: UC Davis
Waiting to hear: None
Accepted: UC Davis
Attending: UC Davis

Overall GPA: 3.66
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.54
Last 45 GPA: 3.78

Degree(s): BS Biology emphasis in Zoology, minor in Psychology Cognitive and Behavioral Neuroscience

Veterinary Experience:
204 hours SA Vet Assistant Intern
357 hours SA Vet Assistant Employed
10 hours Shadowing Equine Vet
4 hours Shadowing SA Surgery
40 hours Community Vet Assistant

Animal Experience:
15 hours Aquarium Tide Pool Interpreter
20 hours Pet Adoption Event Volunteer
600 hours Pet sitting relatives dog

Research:
18 hours Hummingbird Field Research
96 hours Sea Urchin Aquaculture Project
112 hours Rattlesnake and Kangaroo Rat Predator-prey Interactions

Extracurriculars/Awards:
Treasurer of Doctors Without Borders chapter
Secretary of Doctors Without Borders chapter
Medical Volunteer for Service Learning Trip to Guatemala
Volunteered and Coordinated Club Event to donate kits for the less fortunate
VP of Pre-Vet Organization
VP of Marketing for College of Sciences Student Council
Active member in Women in Science Society, Zoology Club, Pre-Physician Assistant Club
Volunteered at Local Food Distribution during COVID-19
Spring 2020-Spring 2023 Dean's List
Magna Cum Laude
Pell Grant Recipient
National Honor Society in high school
California Scholarship Federation in high school
Show Choir and 3 different dance teams in high school
First place awards, second place award, musicianship and showmanship award for show choir in high school

Non-Animal Employment:
144 hours Organismal Biology TA
1024 hours Ice Cream shop Team Member

LORs:
SA Vet at GP
College of Sciences Assistant Dean
Ornithology Professor/Hummingbird Research PI
Animal Behavior Professor/Snake Research PI

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
I wrote about educating and improving access to veterinary medicine in underserved areas. I emphasized how a lot of pet owners are unaware of resources available to them and how it reminded me of my service learning trip to Guatemala where locals lacked accessibility to health education. I highlighted my experiences as a vet assistant and a tide pool interpreter to promote the significance of educating others in order to strengthen the connection between humans and animals.

 

[happybirdnerd]

Age, Gender, State/Country of Residence, Traditional/Non-traditional applicant, # of times you've applied:
21, Female, Oregon, Traditional, 1st time

Applied: Mizzou, Oregon, Purdue, WSU, NC State
Interview Invites: Mizzou (application withdrawn)
Accepted: WSU, Oregon, NC State
Attending: Oregon!!

Overall GPA: 3.99
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.99
Last 45 GPA: 3.9

Degree(s): Wildlife Science

Veterinary Experience:
Kennel staff/shadow at SA clinic: 320 hours
Exotic vet shadow: 8 hours
Veterinary assistant at canine rehab clinic: 145 hours
Veterinary assistant at SA/exotic clinic: 850 hours

Animal Experience:
Wildlife rehab (across four different rehab centers): 1,260 hours
Feral cat TNR program: 90 hours
Pet store: 350 hours
Wildlife technician (working with deer): 300 hours
Petsitting: 100 hours

Research:
Ecology lab internship: 170 hours
Research through clubs/classes: 30 hours

Extracurriculars/Awards:
Presidential scholarship at my school
Award from wildlife rehab work
Award from wildlife society
Dean's list and honor roll every term
Various external scholarships
Various extracurriculars - club president, wildlife photography/backpacking, heritage association, instrument, book clubs, etc.

Non-Animal Employment:
Technician at a veterinary diagnostic lab

LORs:
3 SA DVMs from the practices I've worked at

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
I wrote about my passion for client education and the connections I make with pet owners. I connected this to my wildlife rehab background, where I was the go-to person to talk to good samaritans. I just love people.

 

[DogtorAsh]

*MULTIPLE APPLICATION ATTEMPTS + LOW GPA THAT I WORKED VERY HARD TO BRING UP!!!!!*

Age, Gender, State/Country of Residence, Traditional/Non-traditional applicant, # of times you've applied:
28 - F - GA - Non-Traditional - 4th Application Cycle!

1st Application Cycle (Was a senior/graduating undergrad)
(Honestly this cycle was soooo long ago that I have literally no records of it somehow, but I think I applied to probably like 5 or 8 schools and got denied from everywhere except I got Ross Vet Prep and SGU normal admission I think. I decided against going to either of them because of some comments that were made to me during my interviews/as well as I am honestly not an island person and didn't think I would thrive at Ross and my family had a friend whose daughter went to SGU and while she loved it I decided it also wasn't for me).
My GPA's for this cycle were trash, I was burnt out from undergrad I think I legit had like a 2.5 from VMCAS (once again there is somehow no record of this cycle)

2nd Application Cycle (2020):
Applied: 12 Programs (unfortunately cannot access where I applied but I think it was UGA, CSU, NCSU, UTK, Auburn, UF, +others)
Interview Invites: None
Result: Denied from all

Overall GPA: 3.06
Science Prerequisite GPA: 2.78-2.84 (But some schools calculated it as 2.64...)
Last 45 GPA: ~2.81 (YIKES)

3rd Application Cycle (2021):
Applied: CSU, WSU, Oregon, Michigan State, University of Saskatchewan, UTK, NCSU (IS for me this cycle), Auburn, Mizzou, PEI, UPenn, Iowa, Kansas St, Minnesota, UGA
Interview Invites: None
Waitlisted: Iowa (236/264) denied from all others!

Overall GPA: 3.13
Science Prerequisite GPA: ~2.96
Last 45 GPA: ~3.43

4th Application Cycle (2023) THIS CURRENT CYCLE AHHHH!!!!:
*Going to preface this with the fact that I had told myself this was the last time and I saved up a ton of money to apply to as many schools as possible as I felt this was my best chance.*
Applied: Mississippi State, Mizzou, Cornell, WSU, CSU (+CSU/UAF), KSU, UPenn, Iowa, UTK, Midwestern (interview waitlist then rejected), tOSU, Minnesota, Oregon, Wisconsin, UGA (IS again lol - update 2/26 rejected...ouch), Auburn, LSU, Michigan State, LMU, Tufts, NCSU, Purdue, UC Davis, Illinois
Interview Invites: Mississippi State, KSU, Minnesota, Michigan State, LMU
Waiting to hear: None
Waitlisted: UAF/CSU Program (Offered a seat off the waitlist)! LMU (withdrew app)
Accepted: Kansas State!!!! University of Minnesota!!! Iowa State University!!! Mississippi State University!!! Michigan State University!!! UAF/CSU Program (Originally Waitlisted) 😍
Attending: University of Minnesota!! 💕💕

Overall GPA: 3.31
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.17-3.41 Depending on the school
Last 45 GPA: 3.56-3.8 Depending on the school

Degree(s):
BS - Biology with a minor in Chemistry
MAS - Master of Animal Sciences (Non-Thesis)
MS - Master of Science in Comparative Biomedical Sciences (Non-Thesis)

Veterinary Experience:
*I've worked at vet hospitals since being a senior in high school so I have racked up quite the hours*
Veterinary Assistant at GP - 4210 Hrs
Veterinary Assistant at Vet Teaching Hospital - 4160 Hrs
Veterinary Assistant/Receptionist at a Holistic Vet Practice - 1200 Hrs
Veterinary Service Trip to Thailand working with Elephants and Shelter Medicine - 80 Hrs
Attended some Pre-Vet Symposiums where we did hands on wet labs under supervision of a vet - ~50-60 Hrs

Animal Experience:
Kennel Attendant/Receptionist at GP - 3600 Hrs
Volunteer Veterinary Appointment Coordinator for a nationwide rescue - 100 Hrs
Volunteer helping lead horses around and help children with disabilities to ride them - 24 Hrs
Volunteer with a dog rescue - 60 Hrs
Volunteer with a horse rescue - 210 Hrs

Research:
CITI Program Certification - 10 Hrs
IACUC ORIS Animal Care and Use Certification - 6 Hrs
Worked for a professor helping to prep and run some samples for her lab for a court case - 84 Hrs
Created my own research project dealing with bat identification - 120 Hrs

Extracurriculars/Awards:
Sorority Member and held positions - 1236 Hrs
President of my pre-vet club for 2 years - 628 Hrs
Member of the National Biological Honors Society - 150 Hrs

Non-Animal Employment:
Current position as a Lead Fleet Coordinator - 4635 Hrs
Graduate Teaching Assistant - 340 Hrs

LORs:
- DVM from the first vet med job I ever had (the vet hospital I started working at in high school and stayed at for a longggg time. This man and this practice are literally family and have supported me this whole time, he has supplied me a letter EVERY single year I have applied and has rooted for me this whole time)
- Supervisor from my job at NCSU's Vet Teaching Hospital
- Current Supervisor at my non vet-med job
- Academic Advisor from Undergrad
- RVT I worked with at NCSU who is currently works in ICU

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
For my personal statement I wrote about the second time I fell in love with vet med, and touched on how I currently do not work in vet med but this has solidified how much I love it and miss it and belong in that field. I talked about how working at a specialty hospital really fostered my love for specialty medicine and changed my mind from being a small animal GP.

In some of my other essays I definitely touched on explaining that I full own up to my grades and that I did not understand how to manage my time in undergrad, I came out of high school a near 4.0 student who barely had to study to do well and was hit with a reality check in undergrad. I also was too much of a yes-man and needed to realize that I didn't have to literally DO IT ALL. I got way to involved with clubs, took on too many positions and because of that my grades suffered. I spoke a lot about how I tried to prove to myself by doing those masters programs that I could manage my time, work full time and also pay these programs all by myself, which was a hugeeeee point of pride for me.

Specifically for my UAF/CSU essay I talked about how I have worked/volunteered in vastly different communities and that rural medicine is a huge thing for me and I want to be able to start a program to give back to communities that might not have access to affordable or even frequent vet care. I stated how much I love learning about new cultures and local customs (referenced my trip to Thailand and how much the Buddhist faith plays into vet care there, and then also talked about how in South GA where I went to undergrad a lot of people view their animals as work tools--hunting dogs, farm dogs etc--and not family like I did).

---

Ultimately, I just want to say. IT IS POSSIBLE. I severely doubted myself a lottttttt and couldn't even imagine a reality where this cycle has happened. To even get the amount of interviews I have gotten has literally blown my mind. Truly be yourself in your interviews, I have had so much opportunity to talk about the experiences I have had that have made me, ME!

I had also fully convinced myself that I was probably going to be waitlisted or denied everywhere once again and I truly had no clue what I was going to be doing in a few months...but here we are. 🙂 I kept saying to myself--it just takes ONE YES!! Anyways, I'll end my long post. I truly hope that someone who is walking a similar path to mine sees this and knows that their dreams are valid and possible. My inbox will always be open for anyone who needs a shoulder to lean on, whether you have questions, need to rant or just want to chat!! ♥️

(Also meant to add that I actually have an F on my transcript and a few W's, and I was able to bring up my F and talk about what that meant to me and how it changed everything about me as a student and how I learn. One of my interviewers even mentioned that as a professor we also need to be mindful if our teaching style is not accessable for the majority of students. It opened a really interesting discourse and this was one of the school's I got into, so I think they appreciated my take on that course and how I came back from my struggles.)

 

[Georgethecat]

@DogtorAsh Been following your progress this cycle and admire your positive attitude and hard work. You have done a great job of addressing the weaknesses of your early application cycles and recognizing what you needed to change in your approach to handling school/work/life etc Hope the rest of the cycle has more good news for you!!!

 

[DogtorAsh]

@DogtorAsh Been following your progress this cycle and admire your positive attitude and hard work. You have done a great job of addressing the weaknesses of your early application cycles and recognizing what you needed to change in your approach to handling school/work/life etc Hope the rest of the cycle has more good news for you!!!

Thank you so much for the kind words ♥️

 

[Cowsrcool]

*MULTIPLE APPLICATION ATTEMPTS + LOW GPA THAT I WORKED VERY HARD TO BRING UP!!!!!*

Age, Gender, State/Country of Residence, Traditional/Non-traditional applicant, # of times you've applied:
28 - F - GA - Non-Traditional - 4th Application Cycle!

1st Application Cycle (Was a senior/graduating undergrad)
(Honestly this cycle was soooo long ago that I have literally no records of it somehow, but I think I applied to probably like 5 or 8 schools and got denied from everywhere except I got Ross Vet Prep and SGU normal admission I think. I decided against going to either of them because of some comments that were made to me during my interviews/as well as I am honestly not an island person and didn't think I would thrive at Ross and my family had a friend whose daughter went to SGU and while she loved it I decided it also wasn't for me).
My GPA's for this cycle were trash, I was burnt out from undergrad I think I legit had like a 2.5 from VMCAS (once again there is somehow no record of this cycle)

2nd Application Cycle (2020):
Applied: 12 Programs (unfortunately cannot access where I applied but I think it was UGA, CSU, NCSU, UTK, Auburn, UF, +others)
Interview Invites: None
Result: Denied from all

Overall GPA: 3.06
Science Prerequisite GPA: 2.78-2.84 (But some schools calculated it as 2.64...)
Last 45 GPA: ~2.81 (YIKES)

3rd Application Cycle (2021):
Applied: CSU, WSU, Oregon, Michigan State, University of Saskatchewan, UTK, NCSU (IS for me this cycle), Auburn, Mizzou, PEI, UPenn, Iowa, Kansas St, Minnesota, UGA
Interview Invites: None
Waitlisted: Iowa (236/264) denied from all others!

Overall GPA: 3.13
Science Prerequisite GPA: ~2.96
Last 45 GPA: ~3.43

4th Application Cycle (2023) THIS CURRENT CYCLE AHHHH!!!!:
*Going to preface this with the fact that I had told myself this was the last time and I saved up a ton of money to apply to as many schools as possible as I felt this was my best chance.*
Applied: Mississippi State, Mizzou, Cornell, WSU, CSU (+CSU/UAF), KSU, UPenn, Iowa, UTK, Midwestern, tOSU, Minnesota, Oregon, Wisconsin, UGA (IS again lol), Auburn, LSU, Michigan State, LMU, Tufts, NCSU, Purdue, UC Davis, Illinois
Interview Invites: Mississippi State, KSU, Minnesota, Michigan State, LMU
Waiting to hear: LMU, University of Minnesota, Mississippi State University, Michigan State University, Midwestern, Iowa State, UGA, University of Wisconsin
Waitlisted: UAF/CSU Program!
Accepted: Kansas State!!!!!!!! 😍
Attending: Undetermined! (Still waiting on my IS and a bunch of other schools!)

Overall GPA: 3.31
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.17-3.41 Depending on the school
Last 45 GPA: 3.56-3.8 Depending on the school

Degree(s):
BS - Biology with a minor in Chemistry
MAS - Master of Animal Sciences (Non-Thesis)
MS - Master of Science in Comparative Biomedical Sciences (Non-Thesis)

Veterinary Experience:
*I've worked at vet hospitals since being a senior in high school so I have racked up quite the hours*
Veterinary Assistant at GP - 4210 Hrs
Veterinary Assistant at Vet Teaching Hospital - 4160 Hrs
Veterinary Assistant/Receptionist at a Holistic Vet Practice - 1200 Hrs
Veterinary Service Trip to Thailand working with Elephants and Shelter Medicine - 80 Hrs
Attended some Pre-Vet Symposiums where we did hands on wet labs under supervision of a vet - ~50-60 Hrs

Animal Experience:
Kennel Attendant/Receptionist at GP - 3600 Hrs
Volunteer Veterinary Appointment Coordinator for a nationwide rescue - 100 Hrs
Volunteer helping lead horses around and help children with disabilities to ride them - 24 Hrs
Volunteer with a dog rescue - 60 Hrs
Volunteer with a horse rescue - 210 Hrs

Research:
CITI Program Certification - 10 Hrs
IACUC ORIS Animal Care and Use Certification - 6 Hrs
Worked for a professor helping to prep and run some samples for her lab for a court case - 84 Hrs
Created my own research project dealing with bat identification - 120 Hrs

Extracurriculars/Awards:
Sorority Member and held positions - 1236 Hrs
President of my pre-vet club for 2 years - 628 Hrs
Member of the National Biological Honors Society - 150 Hrs

Non-Animal Employment:
Current position as a Lead Fleet Coordinator - 4635 Hrs
Graduate Teaching Assistant - 340 Hrs

LORs:
- DVM from the first vet med job I ever had (the vet hospital I started working at in high school and stayed at for a longggg time. This man and this practice are literally family and have supported me this whole time, he has supplied me a letter EVERY single year I have applied and has rooted for me this whole time)
- Supervisor from my job at NCSU's Vet Teaching Hospital
- Current Supervisor at my non vet-med job
- Academic Advisor from Undergrad
- RVT I worked with at NCSU who is currently works in ICU

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
For my personal statement I wrote about the second time I fell in love with vet med, and touched on how I currently do not work in vet med but this has solidified how much I love it and miss it and belong in that field. I talked about how working at a specialty hospital really fostered my love for specialty medicine and changed my mind from being a small animal GP.

In some of my other essays I definitely touched on explaining that I full own up to my grades and that I did not understand how to manage my time in undergrad, I came out of high school a near 4.0 student who barely had to study to do well and was hit with a reality check in undergrad. I also was too much of a yes-man and needed to realize that I didn't have to literally DO IT ALL. I got way to involved with clubs, took on too many positions and because of that my grades suffered. I spoke a lot about how I tried to prove to myself by doing those masters programs that I could manage my time, work full time and also pay these programs all by myself, which was a hugeeeee point of pride for me.

Specifically for my UAF/CSU essay I talked about how I have worked/volunteered in vastly different communities and that rural medicine is a huge thing for me and I want to be able to start a program to give back to communities that might not have access to affordable or even frequent vet care. I stated how much I love learning about new cultures and local customs (referenced my trip to Thailand and how much the Buddhist faith plays into vet care there, and then also talked about how in South GA where I went to undergrad a lot of people view their animals as work tools--hunting dogs, farm dogs etc--and not family like I did).

---

Ultimately, I just want to say. IT IS POSSIBLE. I severely doubted myself a lottttttt and couldn't even imagine a reality where this cycle has happened. To even get the amount of interviews I have gotten has literally blown my mind. Truly be yourself in your interviews, I have had so much opportunity to talk about the experiences I have had that have made me, ME!

I had also fully convinced myself that I was probably going to be waitlisted or denied everywhere once again and I truly had no clue what I was going to be doing in a few months...but here we are. 🙂 I kept saying to myself--it just takes ONE YES!! Anyways, I'll end my long post. I truly hope that someone who is walking a similar path to mine sees this and knows that their dreams are valid and possible. My inbox will always be open for anyone who needs a shoulder to lean on, whether you have questions, need to rant or just want to chat!! ♥️

Seen you in so many of my same threads so happy you got KSU!!!! Congrats you are gonna be an amazing vet your perseverance is incredible ‼️🫶🏻

 

[Tluna]

21, female, CO, Traditional, # of times you've applied: once

Applied: CSU, WSU
Interview Invites: n/a
Waiting to hear:none
Accepted:CSU
Attending:CSU

Overall GPA:3.85
Science Prerequisite GPA:3.9
Last 45 GPA:3.8

Degree(s): Biology, minor in Spanish

Veterinary Experience:
Experience -
Small animal kennel tech/vet assistant- 330 hr
Small animal intern (same clinic)- 210 hr
large animal shadowing- 12 hr

Animal Experience:
Experience - (hrs)
equine care intern- 192
wildlife rehab animal care attendent -176
Therapeutic riding center volunteer-11 hr

Research:
Experience - (hrs)
Study abroad- dolphin behaviorology- 35 hr
Unpaid research assistant- 15 hr

Extracurriculars/Awards:
Experience - (hrs)
Sorority (w leadership)- 528
Orientation leader- 48
Sorority recruitment coach-100
pre vet club- 60
deans list, NHS in high school
fear free certified

Non-Animal Employment:
Experience - (hrs)
1200 hrs

LORs:
Title of recommender (Vet? Manager? Supervisor? Vet tech?)
Vet I worked with at my small animal clinic and was my family vet
Ocher professor who knew me well from office hours
Boss at my internship for equine care who hired me for a paid position after

 

[tj143]

Congrats to all who have been accepted already! Please post your stats to help other applicants as the acceptances roll in. The format from years before is posted below.

Age, Gender, State/Country of Residence, Traditional/Non-traditional applicant, # of times you've applied:

Applied:
Interview Invites:
Waiting to hear:
Accepted:
Attending:

Overall GPA:
Science Prerequisite GPA:
Last 45 GPA:

Degree(s):

Veterinary Experience:
Experience - (hrs)

Animal Experience:
Experience - (hrs)

Research:
Experience - (hrs)

Extracurriculars/Awards:
Experience - (hrs)

Non-Animal Employment:
Experience - (hrs)

LORs:
Title of recommender (Vet? Manager? Supervisor? Vet tech?)

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
Summary of what you wrote about

23, F, California, Traditional applicant, 1st time applicant:

I applied to a lot of schools! I didn’t have a lot of faith in myself and I have been saving up for this expense for a while.

Applied: UC Davis, Western, U of A, Midwestern, CSU, Ohio State, Iowa State, Kansas State, LMU, University of Tennessee, University of Missouri
Interview Invites: LMU and Midwestern
Waiting to hear: LMU and Iowa State
Accepted: Midwestern!
Attending: Not sure yet

Overall GPA: 3.6
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.54 (Iowa State’s Calculation)
Last 45 GPA: 3.61

Degree(s):
Associates in Biology
Batchelor’s in Animal Science/Pre-Vet (Graduating Spring 2024)

Veterinary Experience:
~50 hour internship at a small animal clinic during high school
~ 3,800 hours working as a veterinary assistant at a small animal clinic

Animal Experience: Here is where I think I stood out!
~ 10,000 hours raising service dogs for Guide Dogs for the Blind. (This was a full-time commitment where I was training/raising a puppy 24 hours/day for 1.5 years. I did this with three puppies starting in high school).
~200 hours being apart of my college’s livestock show team. I was elected captain for one of the teams as well. Here, I had to take care of my goat and prepare it for show.
~ 250 hours working as a kennel attendant for a non-profit service dog company. I even helped train some of the dogs.

Research: None
Experience - 0

Extracurriculars/Awards:
Cal Poly Pomona Livestock Show Team (elected captain), Volunteer Puppy Raiser for Guide Dogs for the Blind
Dean’s list, HOSA Barbra James community service award, Waste Management Scholarship

Non-Animal Employment:
Respite Care Provider for my brother with autism
Chick-fil-a employee
Dining Hall Server at Colorado State University

LORs:
3 from veterinarians that I have worked with
1 from my Livestock show team advisor
1 from my Guide Dogs for the Blind CFR
1 from my organic chemistry professor
(I wanted to get letters from every aspect; educational, career wise and extracurricular activities)

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
For my personal statement I decided to talk about how my passion for veterinary medicine evolved over time. While I knew at a young age that I wanted to be a veterinarian, the experiences that I had morphed that desire. I talked about how getting heart surgery at 3 years old kick started my interest in medicine. Then how raising service dogs for the visually impaired made me realize how strong the human-animal bond is and that it was something I wanted to preserve. Lastly, I talked about how I was opposed to doing livestock medicine until I started getting more involved in that field. Overall, I wanted to frame the idea that the reason why I wanted to be a veterinarian was an evolving process for me.

 

[Bertie1903]

Honestly was not thinking I'd get to post this cycle!!! Mediocre GPA and low experience alert

20, F, NY, Traditional, 1st application:

Applied: Ohio state, Cornell, UPenn, Western, SGU, Ross, Minnesota, UPEI, University of Edinburgh
Interview Invites: Western, SGU, Ross
Waiting to hear: Western
Accepted: SGU, Ross (vet prep)
Attending: likely SGU!!!

Overall GPA: 3.53
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.59
Last 45 GPA: not sure

Degree(s): Bachelor's of Science in Life Sciences with a specialization in animal health and disease from McGill

Veterinary Experience:
Small animal shadowing- 270 hrs

Animal Experience:
Work on dairy barn -620 hrs
Cat shelter volunteering- 72 hrs

Research:
N/A

Extracurriculars/Awards:
Communications Executive at queer club- 32 hrs
Pre-vet society- 10 hrs
Model UN delegate (HS)- 30 hrs
Orientation leader- 60hrs

Non-Animal Employment:
Front end worker at school restaurant- 81hrs
Front end associate at Lowe's- 132 hrs
Team member at Burger King - 576 hrs

LORs:
Vet I shadowed under
Professor I took 2 classes with
Supervisor at dairy farm

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
I wrote about the development of my love for vet med and how much I loved the science and practical aspect of being a veterinarian. I also spoke about how I hope to specialize in surgery in the future and my hope to help those who struggle to afford vet care.

 

[omijacha]

23F, MA, Traditional, 1st time applicant

Applied: Cornell, Tufts, Tennessee, Mizzou, UF, WSU, Georgia, Michigan, NC State, Purdue
Interview Invites: Tufts, Mizzou, UF
Waiting to hear: Tufts, Georgia
Waitlist/Alternate: UF, WSU
Accepted: Cornell, Tennessee, Mizzou
Attending: Undecided - leaning Cornell & waiting for Tufts

Overall GPA: 3.96
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.95
Last 45 GPA: 3.93

Degree(s): B.S. Pre-Veterinary Science (Graduated 2023)

Veterinary Experience:
ER/ICU/Diagnostic Imaging Technician Assistant - 480 hours
Small Animal GP Shadowing (Two clinics) - 92 hours

Animal Experience:
Sea Turtle Rescue Intern - 144 hours
Zookeeper Intern (Two zoos) - 520 hours
Goat Management Courses - 90 hours
Poultry Management Courses - 90 hours
Dog Day Care/Pet Hotel Employee - 220 hours

Research:
Research Animal Management Courses - 150 hours
Honors Thesis - 270 hours
University Lab Personnel - 90 hours
Lab Embryology Course - 90 hours

Extracurriculars/Awards:
Leadership in Asian American Christian Club
DJ for College Radio Station
Percussionist in High School Wind Ensemble Bands
Dean’s List (2019-2023)
Honors College
Magna Cum Laude
Dean’s Award (2019-2023)
Grand Champion in Poultry Management Class Poultry Show

Non-Animal Employment:
None

LORs:

• DVM, the professor of the research animal management course I took.
• PhD, a professor I took three semesters of classes with & was my pre-veterinary/animal science academic advisor.
• DVM, a professor I took two classes with, and then I went on to be a teaching assistant for her for two semesters.

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
Personal Statement: Wrote about what I learned in my research animal management class and how talking to lab animal vets steered my veterinary interests towards lab animal medicine—how the specialty helps both animals & people through the advancement of medical knowledge, getting to work with a variety of species, partaking in improving animal welfare & regulations, dealing with animal rights groups.

Other essay topics I wrote about: my experience as a DJ in college radio, learning through experience in my embryology lab course, how I ended up doing my honors thesis /not/ in the animal science department and how I made it work for me, overcoming my biggest academic challenge (orgo, lol), and growing up in an Asian American immigrant family.

 

[ev1881]

22F, MO, Traditional, 1st time applicant

Applied: Mizzou (IS), UC Davis, Oregon, WSU, Illinois, UW-Madison, Cornell, Tufts, UPenn
Interview Invites: Mizzou, Illinois, Tufts
Waiting to hear:
Rejected: UC Davis, Oregon, UPenn (waitlisted first)
Accepted: Cornell, WSU, Mizzou, UW Madison, Tufts, Illinois
Attending: Mizzou!!

Overall GPA: 4.0
Science Prerequisite GPA: 4.0
Last 45 GPA: 4.0

Degree(s): B.S. Biology and B.A. Environmental Sustainability and Resilience
*Not sure where to put this, but I spent a semester of college studying at a Thai university in Bangkok (asked about this in all of my interviews)*

Veterinary Experience:
Vet assistant (small animal + exotics) - 432
Zoo internship - 144
Equine shadow- 32
Emergency hospital shadow- 35
GP shadow (small animals +exotics) - 33

Animal Experience:
High school zoo program- 300
Dog shelter in Bangkok, Thailand- 5

Research:
REU in tadpole thermal physiology (with pending 1st author pub) - 400
Field technician for bumblebee cognition research -30

Extracurriculars/Awards:
Research symposium of tadpole research
Political science conference at Illinois State where I presented my essay
Club soccer- 120
Outdoor Leadership Club VP - 120
Orientation Leader - 196
Environmental Science Professional Frat VP of Service- 96
Scholarship for J-Term study abroad in Ecuador and Galapagos
Biology Honors Society
High school tennis w/ 7 state finalist awards in doubles and as a team- 1120
High School soccer- 750
High school band (concert, marching, pep, jazz) + section leader - 720

Non-Animal Employment:
Student Ambassador in Office of Admissions- 280
TA (basically) for intro biology course (cell bio/genetics) -30
Ecology tutor- 30
College Ambassador for Iowa United Nations Association- 62
Rec center monitor + manager - 720
Frozen yogurt employee- 525
Trampoline park employee- 288
Tennis center employee- 160

LORs:
PhD of environmental science and my advisor
PhD of my summer research program
DVM of zoo internship
DVM/Practice Owner of hospital I work at
Associate Director of Admission for my college/ boss of Student Ambassador job

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
My personal statement mostly focused on my love of conservation and that One Health is so important, especially with the high % of zoonotic diseases and the degradation of animal health via climate change. I also discussed how veterinary medicine is complemented with my strong interests in food security, climate change, and social justice that I have developed through my sustainability degree. A few of my supplemental essays focused on my semester abroad in Thailand and how I hope to incorporate intercultural communication in veterinary medicine.

 

[mags2000]

22F, MO, Traditional, 1st time applicant

Applied: Mizzou, UC Davis, Oregon, WSU, Illinois, UW-Madison, Cornell, Tufts, UPenn
Interview Invites: Mizzou, Illinois, Tufts
Waiting to hear: UW Madison, Tufts, Illinois
Waitlisted: UPenn (for interview)
Rejected: UC Davis, Oregon
Accepted: Cornell, WSU, Mizzou
Attending: Undecided, likely Mizzou or WSU (will update)

Overall GPA: 4.0
Science Prerequisite GPA: 4.0
Last 45 GPA: 4.0

Degree(s): B.S. Biology and B.A. Environmental Sustainability and Resilience
*Not sure where to put this, but I spent a semester of college studying at Thai university in Bangkok (asked about this in all of my interviews)*

Veterinary Experience:
Vet assistant (small animal + exotics) - 432
Zoo internship - 144
Equine shadow- 32
Emergency hospital shadow- 35
GP shadow (small animals +exotics) - 33

Animal Experience:
High school zoo program- 300
Dog shelter in Bangkok, Thailand- 5

Research:
REU in tadpole thermal physiology (with pending 1st author pub) - 400
Field technician for bumblebee cognition research -30

Extracurriculars/Awards:
Research symposium of tadpole research
Political science conference at Illinois State where I presented my essay
Club soccer- 120
Outdoor Leadership Club VP - 120
Orientation Leader - 196
Environmental Science Professional Frat VP of Service- 96
Scholarship for J-Term study abroad in Ecuador and Galapagos
Biology Honors Society
High school tennis w/ 7 state finalist awards in doubles and as a team- 1120
High School soccer- 750
High school band (concert, marching, pep, jazz) + section leader - 720

Non-Animal Employment:
Student Ambassador in Office of Admissions- 280
TA (basically) for intro biology course (cell bio/genetics) -30
Ecology tutor- 30
College Ambassador for Iowa United Nations Association- 62
Rec center monitor + manager - 720
Frozen yogurt employee- 525
Trampoline park employee- 288
Tennis center employee- 160

LORs:
PhD of environmental science and my advisor
PhD of my summer research program
DVM of zoo internship
DVM/Practice Owner of hospital I work at
Associate Director of Admission for my college/ boss of Student Ambassador job

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
My personal statement mostly focused on my love of conservation and that One Health is so important, especially with the high % of zoonotic diseases and the degradation of animal health via climate change. I also discussed how veterinary medicine is complemented with my strong interests in food security, climate change, and social justice that I have developed through my sustainability degree. A few of my supplemental essays focused on my semester abroad in Thailand and how I hope to incorporate intercultural communication in veterinary medicine.

Hi! Congratulations!!! You have done SO MUCH and I admire you greatly. I am the first IS alternate at MIZ! Did you do undergrad at Mizzou?

 

[finnderella]

Gonna work on mine over time! (procrastinating on exam studying)

23, Female, Arkansas, Traditional, 1:

Applied: UPenn, Cornell, Purdue, KState, WSU, Oregon, Ohio, CSU, Midwestern, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois, Tufts
Interview Invites: UPenn, KState, Midwestern, Minnesota, Illinois, Tufts
Waiting to hear: UPenn, Illinois
Accepted: KState, Midwestern, (waitlisted #18 at Minnesota), Tufts (!!!)
Attending: Unknown! Visiting the campuses over the next week, but probably Tufts (my dream school)

Overall GPA: 3.83
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.76
Last 45 GPA: 3.9

Degree(s): Bachelors of Science in Agriculture (Animal Science) | Expected May 2024.

Veterinary Experience:
Experience - (hrs)

Animal Experience:
Experience - (hrs)


Extracurriculars/Awards:
Experience - (hrs)

Non-Animal Employment:
Experience - (hrs)

LORs:
Professor AND DVM from University of Arkansas
DVM I have worked very closely with
Professor of professional studies.

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
My personal statement was more-or-less my

 

[pjust]

Age, Gender, State/Country of Residence, Traditional/Non-traditional applicant, # of times you've applied:
22, M, OH, Traditional, 1st time applying

Applied: Kansas State, Mizzou, Wisconsin, Iowa State
Interview Invites: Mizzou (ISU and Wisconsin don't do interviews)
Waiting to hear:
Accepted: Mizzou, Wisconsin
Attending: Mizzou!

Overall GPA: 3.89
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.89
Last 45 GPA: 3.89

Degree(s): None, about to complete my BS Animal Sciences & industry

Veterinary Experience:
Small Animal/Exotic Clinic- 2000+ hours
Equine Internship- 1800 hours
Shadowing a small animal/exotic clinic back home- 105 hours
Pig heat checking, breeding, and ultrasounding- 3 hours

Animal Experience:
Kennel Staff @ multiple places- 500+ hours
Equine Farmhand- 300 hours
Owning small and exotic pets- 100+ hours


Research:
Studied the effects of processing goat meat with and without removing the skin beforehand and then presented my experiences at a research symposium on campus- ~50 hours

Extracurriculars/Awards:
Semester honors every semester on campus
A part of two different pre-vet clubs for 2 years a piece

Non-Animal Employment:
Jimmy John's for a couple of years in high school

LORs:
Equine Vet
Small animal/exotic Vet x2
Academic Advisor

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
Talked about not coming from an agricultural background, but knowing I wanted to practice large animal medicine so I embraced the challenge. I mentioned a situation during my internship that sort of solidified my choice of wanting to become a veterinarian in the first place. Also, I talked about the friends I made at college and how they told me about the difficulties of finding a rural large animal vet at times, and how that motivated me even more to pursue the field.

 

[Dogdoor12]

So excited to be posting!! My GPA is more on the average/low end and I was so worried about it, so for future applicants, don't worry too much! I truly believe it was my experiences and writing that carried my application.

Age, Gender, State/Country of Residence, Traditional/Non-traditional applicant, # of times you've applied:
21, M, NC, Traditional, 1st time applying

Applied: NC State, Michigan, Purdue, Illinois, Washington, Missouri
Interview Invites: NC State, Michigan (likely withdrawing), Purdue
Waiting to hear:
Accepted: NC State, Purdue
Attending: TBD

Overall GPA: 3.55
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.38 (shouldn't of done that double major in biochem lol)
Last 45 GPA: 3.68

Degree(s): BS in Animal Science, BS in Biochemistry, graduated in December 2023

Veterinary Experience:
Small Animal/Exotic Clinic GP - 3100 hours
Large animal shadowing - 8 hours (lol)
Small animal monthly TNR clinic - 160 hours
Exotics rescue - 120 hours
Small animal/exotics ER - 70 hours

Animal Experience:
Feline fostering, led a TNR project in my neighborhood - 1400 hours
Exotics fostering - 100 hours
Volunteer with dairy cattle - 70 hours
Pet sitting - 70 hours
Internship at a large animal rescue - 50 hours

Research:
Swine nutrition trial volunteer - 60 hours
Research assistant in a clinical study lab - 1500 hours, published a lot of abstracts, 2 poster presentations, manuscripts in progress. Worked with rodents and dogs, shadowed lab animal vets through this.
Conducted an original research project in another country through a class - 150 hours
Some research in high school - 100 hours

Extracurriculars/Awards:
Deans list
University honors program
Fear free certified
Some misc certifications (radiation, rodent euthanasia, etc) through my research job
Teaching assistant - 120 hours
Leadership internship, served as a mentor the following year - 400 hours total
Camp counselor - 60 hours
Some other misc things
Listed all of my abstract citations and posters

Non-Animal Employment:
Food service for a year

LORs:
Small animal vet (has known me for a decade)
Research PI (DVM/PhD)
Academic Advisor/professor

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
Talked about my changing interests in veterinary medicine and how I ended up moving from SA to lab animal, mentioned an interest in animal welfare and research.

 

[aubieluver24]

THRILLED to be able to post here. Especially as I consider myself to have quite a low amount of experience hours compared to others, any future applicants who have worries about applying can shoot me a DM!!

Age, Gender, State/Country of Residence, Traditional/Non-traditional applicant, # of times you've applied:
21F, AL, Traditional 1st time applicant

Applied: Auburn (IS), Colorado State, U of Illinois, Iowa State, U of Tennessee, Tufts, and U of Wisconsin
Interview Invites: Auburn, Tufts, and Illinois
Waiting to hear: Illinois
Waitlist: Iowa state and Wisconsin
Accepted: Auburn, Tufts
Attending: Auburn!!!!!!!!

Overall GPA: 3.96
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.95
Last 45 GPA: 3.98

Degree(s): B.S. Animal Science Pre-Vet/Professional Option (will graduate in May)

Veterinary Experience:
Feline Research Feline Unit Husbandry Worker- 240 hours
Feline Research Unit Treatment Worker- 635 hours (applied with 460)
(I did not actually do any research per say, just cared for the subjects. I am also still working there and it came up in all of my interviews my continued employment)

Animal Experience:
University’s Swine Farm Student Worker-200 hours (applied with 75)
(Learned castration, AI, vaccination, restraints, etc, opened my eyes to the other side of large animal production. Talked about it at length too in interviews, especially as this job was concurrent to the Feline Unit and Honors Ambassador Jobs)

Research:
N/A

Extracurriculars/Awards:
Dean’s List (2020-2023)
American Society of Animal Science Undergraduate Scholastic Achievement Award (2022)
Helped to refound and was President and Alumni Liaison for my school’s chapter of Omega Phi Alpha Service Sorority
Omicron Delta Kappa Honors Society
Honors College
Was treasurer for Honors Congress (Honors College SGA)
Member of Pre-Vet Club
Several Leadership Scholarships given by undergraduate university

Non-Animal Employment:
Urgent Care Nurse Assistant-360 hours (this was during late 2020-early 2021 😐also these hours count towards total medical experience hours for Tufts!)
University Library IT Student Worker-960 hours
Honors College Ambassador-360 hours (still work here as well)

LORs:
DVM: Theriogenologist who supervised and led my work at the Feline Unit. We often bonded over emergency queening late into the night when we both were on call.
PhD: Professor of my Intro to Animal Sciences Course and Careers in Animal Science. Also is the undergraduate academic coordinator for the Animal Science Department. I have known them my entire college career.
Academic Advisor: Since my major is somewhat small, my advisor and we had a great relationship throughout my time in school.

(Extra I submitted but not required)
Honors Academic Advisor: I work directly with her as well, so she was able to see my passions on display in a way the other LORs haven’t directly seen every single day.
Honors Recruitment Director: My boss for the Honors Ambassador Program. Since I did not have any veterinary clinic experiences, I figured her letter would highlight those people skills needed for a clinic setting that I learned in this role.


Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
Basically, I wrote how I always wanted to be a veterinarian, but did not gain any meaningful experiences until college. I did not shy away from the fact I did not have a high number of hours, but I highlighted the quality and depth of the work I did, such as semen collection, AI, CSF collections, etc. I also mentioned my relationship with my LOR DVM who was my mentor throughout my undergraduate years. I got inspiration for the formatting from a friend who got in a year previous and it helped so much in narrowing down what I wanted to talk about (if you would like to see it, please DM me!)

Other essay topics I wrote about included quitting that Urgent Care job due to a toxic workplace environment, my passions outside of vet med (COOKING!), having Autism Spectrum Disorder and how that affects Vet Med (only wrote about this in one small blurb essay), and why hard work is important (how boring haha).

 

[chelonia9113]

25M, WA, Non-traditional applicant, 1st cycle:

Applied: WSU, Missouri, Illinois, Louisiana, Purdue
Interview Invites: WSU, Missouri, Illinois, Purdue (waitlisted, declined spot)
Waiting to hear:
Accepted: WSU, Missouri, Illinois
Attending: WSU!

Overall GPA: 3.95
Science Prerequisite GPA: 4.0
Last 45 GPA: 3.95

Degree(s): Biology BS

Veterinary Experience:
Small animal vet assistant (1200)

Animal Experience:
Wildlife intern at the Audubon society (50)
Dog sitting (100)

Research:
Diagnostic assistant and then technician for a vet pathologist (3000)
- First author publication related to animal health
- Presented disease research at international conference
- Participated in hundreds of routine necropsies, performed tissue collection and molecular diagnostics
Sea turtle tagging (80)
Sea turtle necropsies not under vet supervision (40)

Extracurriculars/Awards:
Photography club member/President
Creative writing award
Senior thesis with distinction
Outstanding senior in biology
Pre-vet scholarship
Also listed several long term hobbies such as guitar, reading/writing, and video games
Track captain from high school
Science Olympiad medals from high school

Non-Animal Employment:
Calculus tutor (800)
Trophy store employee in high school (1000)

LORs:
DVM and pathologist, also my professor and thesis mentor - worked with her for 4 years and was incredibly confident it was an outstanding letter
DVM owner of small animal clinic - only knew her about 6 months but was able to communicate my passion/goals while building our relationship and I think she wrote a great letter
Diagnostic lab manager/lead technician - worked very closely together in a tight knit lab for 2 years, had an amazing working relationship, was super confident in this letter

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
I worked really hard on this and had many vets/vet students read it! I wrote about how I developed a love for medicine after being exposed to pathology and the diagnostic process. I talked about how much fulfillment I got from investigating diseases and uncovering small clues to piece together. I described witnessing two natural mass mortality events (unrelated species), and how I realized that as a veterinarian I would have the potential to impact whole populations of animals, potentially millions of individuals. I explained that as someone who loves the natural world, I want to protect it so that the humans who care about their animals or depend on them for their livelihood can continue benefitting from that bond for many generations, and I can’t think of a better way to do that than as a vet.

 

[abrew13]

Age, Gender, State/Country of Residence, Traditional/Non-traditional applicant, # of times you've applied:
24, F, TX, Traditional, 2nd Application

Applied: LSU, Texas A&M, Wisconsin, Texas Tech, Purdue, CSU
Interview Invites: Texas A&M
Waiting to hear: Wisconsin, LSU (OOS Waitlist)
Accepted: Texas A&M
Attending: Texas A&M

Overall GPA: 3.56
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.38
Last 45 GPA: 3.87, with a 4.0 in graduate school

Degree(s):
BS in Animal Sciences from LSU, May 2022
MSc in Animal Sciences- Reproductive Physiology (Thesis) from LSU, May 2024

Veterinary Experience: ~2,400 hrs.
Small Animal GP- 2,170 hrs.
Equine Breeding Workshop- 16 hrs.
Goat Research Project- 200 hrs.
Sheep Research Project- 20 hrs.

Animal Experience: ~400 hrs.
Kennel Technician- 400 hrs.

Research: ~840 hrs.
Goat Cannabis Research Project- 520 hrs.
Cattle Superovulation Research Project- 100 hrs.
Cryopreservation Research Project- 50 hrs.
Embryo Development Research Project- 70 hrs.
Embryo Transfer Research Project- 100 hrs.

Extracurriculars/Awards:
College of Agriculture Student Ambassador- President
PSP National Honor Fraternity- E-Council
Grad Student Association- Treasurer
ODK National Leadership Honor Society- Secretary/Treasurer
Deans List- 2 semesters
Academic Scholar Non-Resident Award
Commitment to Community Award
Graduate Assistantship

Non-Animal Employment:
Playa Bowls Shift Lead- ~500 hrs.
College of Agriculture Student Worker- ~300 hrs.
ResLife Front Desk Assistant- ~400 hrs.

LORs:
Last time I applied with 3 and one didn't get submitted on time, so I got several rejections off that and went way overboard this time (6) lol.

DVM- SA Vet
DVM- SA Vet
DVM- Equine Vet at LSU SVM
PhD- Research coordinator/ Masters PI
PhD- Research collaborator
PhD- Interim Dean for the College of Agriculture

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
Wrote about how my initial rejection overall made me a much better candidate. I wrote about how at the time I first got rejected I did not have a strong "why" I wanted to be a vet, just that I did. Getting rejected led me into grad school where I found a different field that I was extremely passionate about, and how this experience has steered me back to veterinary medicine because I want to take my passions for research and reproduction to contribute to the vast field that is veterinary medicine, specifically large animal medicine. Basically, I wrote that getting rejected ultimately was the defining moment, because I had to recommit myself and through doing that I ended up with a much better "why" than just "I liked animals when I was young".

 

[mycatkiwi]

**LOW GPA ALERT** Never in a billion years did I think I was going to be accepted for my first cycle but we did it!!!!!😍

Age, Gender, State/Country of Residence, Traditional/Non-traditional applicant, # of times you've applied:
25 (26 in two days!!), F, TX, Non-traditional applicant, 1st Application

Applied: RVC, AVC, VAMD, tOSU, Minnesota, CSU, ISU, Tufts
Interview Invites: tOSU
Waiting to hear: CSU (waitlisted for DVM/MPH and DVM programs) and ISU (waitlisted); rejected everywhere else
Accepted: tOSU
Attending: MOST LIKELY tOSU!!!!!!!!

Overall GPA: 3.08
Science Prerequisite GPA: VMCAS reported 3.01 (varies/school)
Last 45 GPA: 3.68

Degree(s):
A.A (received in HS)
B.S. in Psychology
B.S. in Health with a specialization in Public Health
Minor in Biology

Veterinary Experience:
*in chronological order*
Kennel Technician at small animal clinic- 2225 hrs
South Africa Pre-Veterinary Trip - 100 hrs
Spay/neuter volunteer- 30 hrs
ER shadow- 84 hrs
Veterinary Assistant at small animal clinic- 5474 hrs
VAW Global trip- 62 hrs

Animal Experience:
wildlife center assistant- 208 hrs
wildlife center leader- 230 hrs

Research:
Plant lab undergraduate research assistant- 102 hrs
URA at a USDA center- 160 hrs
Full-time research technician at same USDA center- 280 hrs

Extracurriculars/Awards:
*in chronological order-- implemented some HS roles into application since that's when I started taking college courses*
Saxophone Section Leader in HS
Jazz Vocalist in HS
Pre-Vet Club: Public relations officer; secretary
Alto saxophonist in community band (one summer)
introductory ballet student (only logged 10 hrs)
American Medical Women's Association: Women's Advocacy Committee; Book Club member
President and Founder of a VAW Global Chapter!!!! my biggest role
VAW Global Fellowship

Deans List x5
Magna Cum Laude recipient (my undergrad only calculates the last 54 hrs)
CVA- Lvl 1
Fear Free Certification
President's Volunteer Service Award
Mrs. Pre-Health (it was such a crazy, fun pageant at my undergrad!!!!)
National Honor Society in HS

Non-Animal Employment:
Chipotle- 1780 hrs (mostly in high school!!)

LORs:
Small animal DVM I worked with for almost 5 yrs
DVM/PhD at my USDA gig
Cell Bio professor (who was also the faculty member for my student organization!)
Pre-vet advisor

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
Personal Statement: wrote about how growing up in cities, I always felt so removed from the environment; as I've grown older, realized how people, animals, environment are all interconnected. Sparked my interest in public health and veterinary epidemiology!!

Also did an explanation statement to talk about how I BOMBED my first few semesters in undergrad, took two gap years, and became a significantly better student. Being first-gen is hard!!!

*will edit this once I have time with more details, but just wanted to give some hope to those applicants with lower GPAs!!!*

 

[gc0615]

21F, WI Resident, Traditional Applicant, 1st cycle

Applied: Wisconsin, Illinois, Purdue, Tufts, Colorado State, UC Davis, North Carolina, Cornell
Interview invites: Illinois (declined interview), Purdue, Tufts (no interviews for Cornell, NCSU, CSU, Wisconsin)
Waiting to hear: UGA
Accepted: Wisconsin, Purdue, Colorado State, Cornell, Tufts
Denied: UC Davis, Illinois (pulled application after getting into Wisconsin)
Waitlist: NCSU
Attending: Probably Colorado or Wisconsin 🙂


Cumulative GPA: 3.91
Science GPA: 3.87
Last 45: 3.84

Degree: Bs in Animal and Veterinary Biosciences and Conseration Biology from UW Madison (in progress)

Veterinary Experience:
- 100h Volunteer Equine Hospital
- 120h Observer in Small Animal Clinic (VCA)
~1300 working as a veterinary assistant the Special Species department of my university's veterinary school (includes on-call hours). Mostly exotic pets with occasional zoo animals and wildlife.
~40h working in the primary care department of my university's vet school as a veterinary assistant when they were short staffed
~270h working as a veterinary assistant in the Ophthalmology department of my university's vet school (in surgery and appointments). Mostly small animals but occasional equine/bovine.

Animal Experience:
-5000h+ Horse Care/Riding Experience (barn chores, exercising horses, medicating, etc). Included competition hours/results in my extracurriculars.
- 80h Tufts SVM Adventures in Veterinary Medicine Program when I was in high school -- mostly just included this since I am applying to Tufts. Attended some cool hands lectures/labs
-300h Local Zoo (conducted education presentations, animal husbandry, maintaining enclosures, etc). Had livestock, small exotic mammals, large exotic mammals, reptiles, birds, etc)
-150h local humane society-- (junior board president when I was in high school, lots of humane education)

Research Experience:
-100h doing research on Transgenerational Epigenetic Inheritance in mammals with a professor of mine (dept chair of AnSci at my university) -- *publication pending*
-60h working with a clinical professor at my university's veterinary school on his various research projects (analyzing CT Data, medical records, etc)
-420h working with a comparative genetics lab associated with my university's veterinary school. Focused on studying Ocular Melanosis in Cairn Terriers, Osteosarcoma in large dog breeds, and environmental factors of CCL rupture in Labradors. *one publication*
-75h working on an independent study on the effects of SERT Functioning on Litter Size and Mortality Rate in mice under the supervision of a graduate student
-250h working on an independent study in highschool involving transgenic zebrafish for my AP research program. Involved in breeding/care of fish colony independently.

Awards/scholarships:
- John A Spurrell Award (merit based to student in AnSci/Forest & Wildlife Ecology)
- WALSAA Outstanding Sophmore Award (Awarded to 10 sophomores)
-Ruth and Carl Miller Academic Merit Award
-Demeter Merit Award
-AP Capstone Diploma Recipient (passed AP Seminar and AP research)
-Blue Hycinth Award & Pink Aster Award (recognition of outstanding community service by National Charity League)

Extracurriculars:
- Alumni Association Student Representative - Attend board meetings, suggest ideas, etc
-College of Ag. and Life Sciences Ambassador- give campus tours, etc
- Undergraduate Zoological Society - Secretary (2022-2023) & President (2023-2024). Organize events for students of all majors to interact/learn about animals. Volunteer at local rescues (parrot rescue, humane society, zoo)
-Pre Veterinary Association - not super involved but a member
- O'Brien School for the Maasai - Organized shoe, food, and school supplies drives. Brought goods collected to school in 2019 and organized wish lists of what they need.
-National Charity League - Volunteered around my community with different organizations in high school and am still tied with some of the organizations I worked with during this time

LORs:
1) PI for the comparative genetics lab I work in, also an assistant professor of soft tissue surgery at veterinary school -- knows me well personally, read my essay
2) Clinical Professor of Zoological Medicine at vet school - has seen me work extensively in clinical settings. I've helped him teach handling labs and helped with his research (see above). Knows me fairly well as a person and I think he knows I really enjoy working and learning from him.
3) Clinical Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology at veterinary school - AMAZING man. Knows me well. Can speak to my communication skills well.
4). Professor I had for Veterinary Genetics - invited me to write a paper with him after having him for class with his PhD student, and 2 other undergrads. I don't know him super well but I think he can speak to my academics and attitude towards school.
5) Clinical Professor (ACZM, ECZM) Zoo Medicine - Had as a professor and worked with in the clinic. Knows my personality as well as my academics.

Essay ?s:
- Wrote about my grandfather who always talked about how if he could do it all over, he'd be a vet because it's the ultimate puzzle combined with a passion for animals. Related that to why I want to be a vet --wrote about my passion for research and interest in academia and how the field is always changing.

Congrats to everyone who was accepted this cycle. So excited to one day call everyone on this forum my colleague <3

 

[MintyMoose]

Even though I never thought this would happen with my low-end GPA, I finally received an acceptance!

***BELOW AVERAGE GPA***

23M, NJ Resident, Traditional Applicant, 2nd Cycle

Applied: Colorado (UAF), OSU, WSU, VMCVM, Cornell, SDSU+Minnesota, UPenn, PEI, ISU, tOSU
Interview Invites: SDSU, VMCVM, tOSU
Waiting to hear: None
Interview waitlist: UPenn
Waitlist: CSU (non-UAF), ISU, SDSU
Denied: PEI, OSU, WSU, VMCVM, Cornell, Minnesota
Accepted: tOSU!!
Attending: tOSU!!!!

Overall GPA: 3.37 (VMCAS Calculation)
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.58 (ISU Calculation)
Last 45 GPA: 3.5 (ISU Calculation)

Degree(s): Bs in Animal Science - Production Animal/Equine Science track (spring 2024)

Veterinary Experience:
Small animal (occasional wildlife) ER/Specialty hospital: 3-4,000 hours
Equine vet w/multiple different equine-centered specialties: 160 hours
Wildlife vet: 30 hours
Livestock vet: 10 hours

Animal Experience:
Farmhand working with livestock, poultry, & equine: 2-3,000 hours
Livestock classes: 100 hours (approx.)
4-H goat/dairy clubs: 100 hours (approx.)
Dairy AI certification: 70 hours
Animal fostering/rescue: 500 hours (approx.)
Poultry raising: 300 hours (approx.)

Research:
Not "technically" research per say but I did log my experience and hours under research.
Lab technician (mouse work, bench work, lab collaborations): 30 hours (at the time of VMCAS submission)

Extracurriculars:
Animal Science club: President, Vice President, Historian (2020-current)
Pre-vet society: 2020-2023
APVMA Delegate: Sept. 2023-current
Equestrian team: 2021-2023
Wildlife club: Fall 2023

Awards
Equine-related scholarship (Fall 2023)
Academic Merit Scholarship (Fall 2023)
Deans list (8x)

Certifications
Dairy Cow AI Certification (Spring 2023)
RECOVER Initiative Certification (Spring 2023)
Beef Quality Assurance Certification Calf/Cow (Spring 2023)
FAMACHA Certification (Spring 2023)

Non-Animal Employment:
Produce Associate (freshman year): 1,000 hours

LORs:
Two recommendation letters from regular ER veterinarians I worked with almost every shift. One was a Mississippi grad and the other was a Florida grad. This was the second letter the Mississippi grad wrote for me

One recommendation letter from a PhD professor who also doubled as the equine extension specialist for my state. I had taken multiple classes with her and had her as my advisor for my club.

One recommendation letter from another PhD professor who also doubled as an extension specialist for livestock and dairy animals. I had taken multiple classes with him and had a pretty solid relationship.

Personal Statement:
I had multiple different paragraphs in my personal statement. The first one pertained to what got me interested in vet med which happened to be a story about assisting in a dystocia ewe. The second paragraph was about what veterinary medicine means to me. My third paragraph pertaining to social advocacy and other ways I've grown and gained interest in livestock medicine. The last paragraph was about bringing diversity, progressivism, and new ideas into the field.

 

[futurevetstudenterika]

Congrats to all who have been accepted already! Please post your stats to help other applicants as the acceptances roll in. The format from years before is posted below.

23, F , NC, Traditional, first time applying!!!! I am honestly so in shock and beyond thankful for all this cycle has blessed me with!

Applied: NC State, Virginia-Maryland, Auburn, Mississippi, Ohio, Illinois, Texas A&M, Kansas, Oregon, Louisiana, U of A, Iowa, and Georgia
Interview Invites: NC State (all resident applicants do a virtual interview on kira talent), Auburn, Mississippi, Ohio (declined after getting accepted into my in state), Illinois (declined)
Waiting to hear: UGA
Accepted: LSU, Oregon, NC State, Auburn, Kansas, Iowa, Mississippi
Attending: TBD—NC State is my in-state and has always been my #1 but i fell in love with MSU

Overall GPA: 3.71
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.79
Last 45 GPA: 3.92

Degree(s): BS in Biology, Minor in Chemistry

Veterinary Experience:
Veterinary Assistant at small animal clinic/reptiles: over 3,000 Hours
Emergency veterinary shadowing: 10 hours
ER/ICU veterinary assistant: 50 hours (after shadowing)
Feral Cat Assistance Program Volunteer: 150 hours
Equine Veterinary Internship: 52 hours
Small Ruminant and Camelid Shadowing: 15 hours
Kennel Attendant at small animal clinic: 2,500 hours

Non-Animal Employment:
Concession stand worker at movie theater: 1680 hours
Concession worker at drive in theater: 2170 hours

LORs:
Small Animal Associate Veterinarian
Small Animal Practice Owner/Veterinarian/Manager
Pre-Veterinary Advisor/Physiology professor
Upper Level Bio Professor—My favorite professor
Rolling Ridge Riding (Therapy Based Horseback Riding) Creator/Manager whom I volunteered for

Personal Statement:
I wrote about my senior year of high school when my step-dad who was from Mexico was applying for residency in the US and was sent back to Mexico and how I persevered and allowed that experience to help me work harder for my dreams and aspirations of becoming a veterinarian. I also talked about my past showing and riding horses growing up and how that translated into the hardworking and dedicated person I am today and tied it all back to where my step-dad comes from in Mexico and how I want to help underserved communities like his and educate communities on the importance of spay/neuter and the health of these animals!

 

[topanga_231]

27F, CA, Non-traditional, 1st Time Applicant. First Generation.

BELOW AVERAGE GPA ALERT!!!

Holy Moly! I remember stalking these threads for the last two years in search of a tiny glimmering hope that there would be a chance for someone with my stats to get into veterinary school. AND HERE WE ARE (I say WE, because if you are reading this, YOU WILL TOO!!!) Overall, if there is ONE thing I would want you to take away from this post:

STOP COMPARING YOURSELF. “Comparison is the thief of joy.” We are all more than just numbers and stats. We each have something to contribute to this field. In my opinion, my personal statement was what tied everything together, and gave admissions a glimpse into ME.

Applied: (7 Schools) UC Davis, Colorado State (CSU), Ohio State, Washington State, Western, University of Arizona
Interview Invites: UC Davis, Western (Withdrew App)
Waiting to hear: None
Rejected: Oregon, Ohio State, and U of A
Accepted: UC Davis, CSU, Washington State
Attending: UC Davis!!!!! 💛💙 (MOST LIKELY!!)

Overall GPA: 3.10
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.56
Last 45 GPA: 3.94

Degree(s): A.S. in Kinesiology, B.S. in Kinesiology

Veterinary Experience:
~4000 hrs- Veterinary Assistant for SA/exotics GP
~100 hrs- UC Davis Summer Enrichment Program
~ 30 hrs- Dairy Vet Shadow
~100 hrs- Equine Vet Shadow

Animal Experience:
~ 10,000 hrs- Professional & Creative Pet Groomer
~ 30 hrs – Equine Center Volunteer
~ 100 hrs- dairy farm volunteer

Research:
300 hrs- Research with Computer Science Department & Poster Presentation at Research Symposium

Extracurriculars:

• Pre-Vet Club
• SheCODES (women’s programming club)
• Competitive Dance my WHOLE life
• Educational Opportunity Program
• Achieve Scholars Program
• MASA club
• There is more but I cannot remember off the top of my head!

Awards:
Outstanding Undergraduate of the Year
President’s List 5x
Dean’s List 4x

Non-Animal Employment:
~1000 Hrs – AMC Theatres- Box Office – Worked here since 16 yrs old to 18

LORs:
1 Veterinarian
1 O Chem Professor
1 Computer Science professor I did research with

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
I went the creative route with my personal statement and told my story from the POV of a movie star in a superhero film. I spoke about my struggles being first generation, and how, although I was a business major at first, I was more excited to go to my work as a groomer than school. Then I wrote about the pivotal moment of realizing my calling in vet med and how I overcame my doubts. I also discussed my passion for bringing vet med to under-served populations.

Some Motivation:
I had 7 F’s and 6 D’s on my record. I don’t remember the exact number, but I believe I dropped out my senior year as a business major with about a 2.3 GPA (It could've been lower tbh). This was my rock bottom. I always wanted to do well in school but just never did. I trudged on with my life and felt like an absolute failure. During my time away from school, I continued my true passion: working with animals. I got a job as a VA after a successful career in grooming, and worked my butt off to get nothing but A's for the next four years in school (and that one B+ darn you gen chem 2). You can truly set your mind to anything you want. I never could afford tutors. I utilized YouTube, researched the best study methods, and completely turned my life around. Feel free to PM me for any questions or just for words of encouragement!

ok, this is downright inspiring. UC Davis is my dream. I am so freaking happy for you!

 

[eleanor713]

Even though I never thought this would happen with my low-end GPA, I finally received an acceptance!

***BELOW AVERAGE GPA***

23M, NJ Resident, Traditional Applicant, 2nd Cycle

Applied: Colorado (UAF), OSU, WSU, VMCVM, Cornell, SDSU+Minnesota, UPenn, PEI, ISU, tOSU
Interview Invites: SDSU, VMCVM, tOSU
Waiting to hear: None
Interview waitlist: UPenn
Waitlist: CSU (non-UAF), ISU, SDSU
Denied: PEI, OSU, WSU, VMCVM, Cornell, Minnesota
Accepted: tOSU!!
Attending: tOSU!!!!

Overall GPA: 3.37 (VMCAS Calculation)
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.58 (ISU Calculation)
Last 45 GPA: 3.5 (ISU Calculation)

Degree(s): Bs in Animal Science - Production Animal/Equine Science track (spring 2024)

Veterinary Experience:
Small animal (occasional wildlife) ER/Specialty hospital: 3-4,000 hours
Equine vet w/multiple different equine-centered specialties: 160 hours
Wildlife vet: 30 hours
Livestock vet: 10 hours

Animal Experience:
Farmhand working with livestock, poultry, & equine: 2-3,000 hours
Livestock classes: 100 hours (approx.)
4-H goat/dairy clubs: 100 hours (approx.)
Dairy AI certification: 70 hours
Animal fostering/rescue: 500 hours (approx.)
Poultry raising: 300 hours (approx.)

Research:
Not "technically" research per say but I did log my experience and hours under research.
Lab technician (mouse work, bench work, lab collaborations): 30 hours (at the time of VMCAS submission)

Extracurriculars:
Animal Science club: President, Vice President, Historian (2020-current)
Pre-vet society: 2020-2023
APVMA Delegate: Sept. 2023-current
Equestrian team: 2021-2023
Wildlife club: Fall 2023

Awards
Equine-related scholarship (Fall 2023)
Academic Merit Scholarship (Fall 2023)
Deans list (8x)

Certifications
Dairy Cow AI Certification (Spring 2023)
RECOVER Initiative Certification (Spring 2023)
Beef Quality Assurance Certification Calf/Cow (Spring 2023)
FAMACHA Certification (Spring 2023)

Non-Animal Employment:
Produce Associate (freshman year): 1,000 hours

LORs:
Two recommendation letters from regular ER veterinarians I worked with almost every shift. One was a Mississippi grad and the other was a Florida grad. This was the second letter the Mississippi grad wrote for me

One recommendation letter from a PhD professor who also doubled as the equine extension specialist for my state. I had taken multiple classes with her and had her as my advisor for my club.

One recommendation letter from another PhD professor who also doubled as an extension specialist for livestock and dairy animals. I had taken multiple classes with him and had a pretty solid relationship.

Personal Statement:
I had multiple different paragraphs in my personal statement. The first one pertained to what got me interested in vet med which happened to be a story about assisting in a dystocia ewe. The second paragraph was about what veterinary medicine means to me. My third paragraph pertaining to social advocacy and other ways I've grown and gained interest in livestock medicine. The last paragraph was about bringing diversity, progressivism, and new ideas into the field.

So proud! I remember seeing you from last cycle! Congrats and you’re going to be an amazing vet!

 

[BioAg22]

Finally getting around to posting this now that I have all of my decisions back!
23, F, Texas, Traditional applicant, 2nd time applying:

Applied: Auburn, Colorado State, Cornell, Florida, LSU, Texas A&M (IS), Wisconsin
Interview Invites: Auburn, Texas A&M
Waiting to hear: None
Waitlisted: LSU and Wisconsin
Accepted: Auburn, Cornell, Texas A&M
Attending: Likely Texas A&M

Overall GPA: 3.98
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.97
Last 45 GPA: 4.0

Degree(s): B.S. Biology from Texas A&M

Veterinary Experience:
Wildlife Rehabilitation Center as a technician - ~ 1200 hours
Same Wildlife Rehabilitation Center but as a manager - 650 hours
Lab Vet Tech at a large specialty hospital - ~500 hours
Shadowing small animal - 150 hours

Animal Experience:
Large shelter kennel tech - 120
Hometown shelter volunteer - 50 hours
Family ranch help with cattle - 36 hours
Zoo volunteer with kids - 140 hours

Research:
none

Extracurriculars/Awards:
Vets Without Borders - 60 hours
Pre-Vet Society - 120 hours
College Food Pantry Org - 60 hours
Various items from high school put that were artistic/well-rounded

Non-Animal Employment:
Old Navy - 1080 hours
Walmart - 280 hours
Sno Cone Stand - 330 hours

LORs:
-Small Animal Vet
-My department manager who recently left
-My new manager that I worked closely with at the WC
-Former teacher that I worked closely with for 4 years and continue to do judging work with for my VMCAS app

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
VMCAS Personal Statement -
I wrote about my experience with my small animal vet when a client came in for a euthanasia. She was client at this clinic for a long time, and my vet pulled me aside to explain that the client was diagnosed with terminal cancer and was rehoming her pets/euthanizing her oldest cat. I described the emotion in the room from the second we walked in where both my vet and the client began to embrace and cry over the impending loss of their relationship. They reminisced over her past patients and the client treated me like she had known me for years after my vet introduced me. After everything we helped her to her car and she embraced me and told me she believed in me and said goodbye for the last time.
I described how much this experience meant to me in terms of it really embodying the humanity of veterinary medicine. The importance of building connections and treating people with kindness and compassion while using my knowledge was a big lesson I took from that experience. I then spoke briefly about focusing on working at the wildlife center since I last applied and how the pressure and unique knowledge I gained have better helped prepare me since I last applied.

TMDSAS Prep from Opportunities and Challenges -
I wrote about the growth of my professional and interpersonal skills and cultural experiences in 3 points:
1 - Opportunity and Challenge of my job losing 2 main members of management at my wildlife center when I had just gotten promoted. We had barely started learning the ins & outs of the new position and were left scrambling while our intake numbers were record high. We navigated that transition and I helped develop new protocols that helped us stay afloat. This exp helped develop my flexibility, analytical and observational skills, and has grown my professional communication and organizational skills since I handle disciplinary issues, perf reviews, and logistical things like scheduling.
2- Opportunity: Visited my dad who lives in Kuwait so I wrote about the enriching experiences I had learning the culture there. People were really hesitant about me visiting at all but the exp was nothing like everyone tried to scare me with. Wrote about how this helped me work with different people and experiencing different learning styles, which reminds me to keep an open mind and move away from biased thoughts that may influence my experiences.
3- Challenge: I used to struggle with anxiety that manifested itself in nausea/vomiting, so I wrote about my struggle with dealing with it and how I used to blame myself for being some sort of broken. I started therapy and began building a healthy relationship with my body/mind and developed healthy coping mechanisms. I wrote about this to tie in that I am comfortable seeking out help and that building this mindset would help me in vet school and in this profession.

 

[MintyMoose]

So proud! I remember seeing you from last cycle! Congrats and you’re going to be an amazing vet!

Thank you! I have also seen you around for a while and I’m glad to see all the success you’ve gotten this cycle. Best of luck to all of us on our veterinary adventures and hopefully we cross paths in the future! 😁

 

[AnonymousButNotReally]

***Low GPA, high school dropout***

I am a very private lurker, but I decided to make a burner account to share my story in case it helps anyone. Applying to vet school with a GED (not having graduated high school) and a low GPA felt kind of hopeless for a lot of the cycle. I received several rejections that really stung. I was so sad when I was denied by WSU and devastated not to get into my in-state or SGU because I thought that meant no other programs would even look at my application. Being waitlisted at SGU, but accepted to multiple stateside schools was a bit of a wildcard that I hadn't expected.

I think the reason I got in despite my GPA is that
1. I applied to southern and midwest schools where my background would probably be more interesting to them
2. I had really good upward grade trends. I had an F, D and two C's on my transcript from the earlier classes, but nearly straight A's (a B- in physics 2, such a hard class) in my recent upper division science courses. I got A's in Ochem 1&2 so that probably helped set me apart.

Things I’ve learned:
–SDN is a great resource, but not definitive. Common advice is to not apply to Mizzou with a low GPA, and I'm glad I didn't see that before I applied or I wouldn't be going to my dream school!!
–Being so nervous you stutter and freeze in an interview can still earn you an acceptance
–Being rejected from a certain “easier to get into” school isn't an indication that you won't be accepted by other programs. I was quite sure it meant exactly that for several months and I was making plans for next cycle as if this was a foregone conclusion.
–A lot of the people in my life wanted to support me and were happy to put effort into me. Asking for people to write letters, read essays, etc was so hard for me, but everyone was so nice! Feeling so supported definitely made me happy cry many times.
–Throughout this, I was so worried about my GPA, my lack of large animal hours, how few my research hours were, that I would come across as not very well rounded, etc. Only after being accepted and listing all this out do I see how silly that was. Truly, we are our own worst critics.


Age, Gender, State/Country of Residence, Traditional/Non-traditional applicant, # of times you've applied:
28, F, AK, Non-Traditional, first time applicant

Applied: UAF/Colorado, Missouri, Mississippi, Washington, Iowa, Ohio, St. George, Wisconsin
Interview Invites: SGU, Mizzou, Mississippi
Waiting to hear: None
Interview waitlist: None
Waitlist: CSU (non-UAF), SGU
Denied: WSU, UAF, tOSU, Wisconsin
Accepted: Missouri, Iowa, Mississippi
Attending: Mizzou!!


Overall GPA: 3.23
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.6 VMCAS, 3.47 Iowa
Last 45 GPA: 3.5 VMCAS, 3.78 Iowa (they used my fall grades in final calculations)

Degree(s):
(Expected May 2024) B.S. Biology

Veterinary Experience: 13,500hrs
*As an assistant then LVT at:
–Small animal/exotic GP - 8700
–Small animal/exotic ER - 4800
–Large animal - 6hrs (reindeer, pigs, goats)


Animal Experience: 33,620hrs
–Founder, owner, operator of a sled dog kennel giving educational tours and cold weather excursions with my 20 sled dogs - 23,400hrs
–Trainer/Handler of a search and rescue canine who I deploy with on missing persons and cold cases - 400hrs (actually 2000hrs but I put it in wrong on my application. Only 400hrs in 2 years looked rather silly, oops)
–Seasonal mushing work - 1000hrs
–Manager of a pet boarding facility - 8,600hrs
–Horseback riding and training - 160hrs
–Animal foster and medical support for local animal rescue (newly opened) - 60hrs



Research: 24hrs
--Biochemical research camp with sled dogs testing exercise physiology affects of fresh alaskan blueberries and salmon - 24hrs
–Lamprey and local fish histology research in progress at the time of my app - I put down the grant that I won and talked about the project goals under “Awards” since I could not list any hours yet

Extracurriculars:
–Various workshops I traveled to with my SAR K9 for advanced training and CE's for my LVT - 40hrs
–Wilderness First Responder course - 70 hrs
–Human only Search and Rescue (separate from the K9 division I am also part of) - 108hrs (again...actually more I just calculated wrong)
–Volunteer phlebotomist (human) for health fairs for the elderly - 12hrs
–Highschool Emergency Medical Technician class - 200hrs (I entered this to illustrate my commitment to emergency services from a young age)
–Highschool Firefighting course - 200hrs

Awards:
–Research grant for 2 semesters through NIH (see above)
–Licensed Veterinary Technician
–Deans list x3
--Chancellors list x1


Non-Animal Employment:
–Human phlebotomist - 2100 hrs
–Human pharmacy tech - 2000hrs



LORs:
–2 Small animal vets who both offered me letters
–2 fellow SAR K9 handlers - one a retired Wildlife biologist the other an evolutionary biologist and professor (though I hadn’t been her student)
–1 professor for my cell and molecular biology class. **I had only had her for 1 semester online, but I was engaged via email and zoom so she was happy to give me a reference! This was something I was very nervous to ask for - pro tip: make sure to send your CV if they say yes!**

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
I wrote about how my skillset with working dogs led me to public service and community engagement. I talked about how my experiences on rural excursions and SAR deployments really strengthened my passion for emergency medicine and surgery. I also touched on how my pursuit of my LVT was intentional preparation for vet school - I wanted to have an “emotional tool box” with skills to handle the challenges of the job, the people around me and my own personal life. It was also essential for me to build financial security being that I didn't have familial support (had to drop out of high school due to home life volatility).

It was super tough to get all that into 3000 characters! The essay itself didn't have a lot of detailed anecdotes, but it flowed well and I think communicated my motivations for becoming a doctor.

-Other essays asked about:
–Diversity - I spoke of how economic and cultural disconnects between providor and client can cause a lot of anguish and how including a variety of voices is the antidote to judgemental patient care. I also described my love of teaching and including people into learning opportunities.
–How will I face the challenges of vet school - I talked about the practical logistics and solutions I had for what I expected to encounter (financial plan, exercise/diet, community involvement to recharge)
–There were so many essays. I eventually got burnt out and didn't apply to a few schools I had wanted to because of the additional essays. Writing stresses me out.

 

[Alie1996]

Age, Gender, State/Country of Residence, Traditional/Non-traditional applicant, # of times you've applied:
27 (26 when I applied, December birthday), Female, Washington State Resident, Non-Trad, First cycle.

Applied:
WSU
Cornell
Purdue
Illinois
Oregon

Interview Invites:
WSU and Illinois

Accepted:
Oregon, WSU, and Illinois

Attending:
Most likely WSU! 🙂

Overall GPA: 3.79
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.92
Last 45 GPA: 4.0

Degree(s): BA in Sustainable Agriculture

Veterinary Experience:
2340 (at time of applying) - Two different small animal GP clinics.

Animal Experience:
4013 - I worked on a goat dairy as a herds-woman and cheese maker after college, I groomed dogs for a little while, focused on animal agriculture in undergrad and took a lot of animal related classed (animal law, animal husbandry, animal behavior, animal ethics, etc). I also put pet and farm sitting hours here I think. It was a side gig I did often after high school.

Research:
None - This is what I credit as to part of why I was rejected from Cornell.

Extracurriculars/Awards:
120 volunteer hours, mostly in harm reduction at large events.
1822 extracurricular. I put everything imaginable on here. Snowboarding, crocheting, hiking, rock climbing, jiujitsu.

Non-Animal Employment:
7376 - I worked as a brewer at a large brewery, some odd jobs in restaurants and as a seasonal county park ranger, but a ton of these hours were from working as an EMT during covid.

LORs:

1. Long term boss and mentor, DVM, 2+ year relationship.
2. Supervising DVM. <1 year relationship.
3. Hospital Manager. <1 year relationship.

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
I wrote about how my life path strayed from my childhood dream because I was constantly being told by people that vet med wasn't worth it, was too hard, too expensive, too long, sad, etc. I found myself consistently lacking something in all of my other jobs and adventures and decided to give it one last try by working as a VA and I completely and utterly fell in love and now I want to make it up to my childhood self who's dream I had given up on.

 

[mofree]

21, F, WV, Traditional, First-time applicant

Applied: Mississippi State, Illinois, VMCVM, Kansas, Ohio, Louisiana, LMU, NC State, Washington
Interview Invites: Mississippi, Illinois, VMCVM, Kansas, LMU
Waitlisted: VMCVM
Accepted: Mississippi, Illinois, LMU, Washington
Attending: Mississippi State (contract seat!)

Overall GPA: 3.95
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.90
Last 45 GPA: 4.0

Degree(s): B.S. Biology (graduated Dec. 2023)

Veterinary Experience:
Study Abroad Experience - learned how to suture (actually got to close up a spay and neuter), One Health discussions, perform physical exams, etc. - 50hrs
Exotics/Small Animal/Wildlife Clinic - 100hrs
Exotics/Small Animal Clinic - 9hrs
SDC Volunteer Clinic (free community event) - 3 hrs
Large Animal Clinic - 50hrs
Small Animal Clinic (employee, veterinary assistant) - 3020hrs

Animal Experience:
Study Abroad Experience - created an enrichment project for the Northern Tamandua - 6hrs
Equine Volunteer - 4 hrs
Animal Shelter Volunteer - 15hrs
**I guess I could have put equestrian here lol

Research:
Study Abroad Experience - observations of howler monkeys, setting up camera, etc. - 18 hrs

Extracurriculars/Awards:
Pre-Veterinary Club (President) - 70hrs
High School Marching Band (Marching/Jazz/Concert/etc) - 4992hrs
High School Science Olympiad - 30hrs
Equestrian (showing horses) - 300hrs
Awards include President's & Dean's Lists, Writing Award through my university, Honors College, Scholarships/Fellowships, High school awards

Non-Animal Employment:
Front Ensemble Instructor - 77hrs (more now)
Science Olympiad Coach - 3 hrs
Supplemental Leader (tutor) - 30hrs
High school jobs - 325hrs total

LORs:
1. Owner/veterinarian of small animal private practice who I have worked with since 2020
2. Small animal veterinarian
3. Exotics veterinarian
4. Professor of ochem
5. Pre-veterinary club advisor & professorTitle of recommender

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
For my personal statement, I wrote about how I want to educate not only clients but also future members of the veterinary field. Described the role of a veterinarian and a summary of my accomplishments. Also discussed my goal of working with companion exotics due to WV having small number of veterinarians who treat these species.

 

[kinda-athletic]

26, F, VA Resident, Non-traditional, 3rd application cycle

Applied: Minnesota, Arizona, VMCVM
Interview Invites: Minnesota and VMCVM
Waitlisted: VMCVM
Accepted: Minnesota
Attending: Most likely accepting Minnesota

Overall GPA: 3.72
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.59
Last 45 GPA: 3.85

Degree(s): B.S. in Biology

Veterinary Experience:
GP Veterinary Assistant - 2582hrs
Research Animal Caretaker - 240hrs

Animal Experience:
Field Interpreter (taught kids about nature and animals) - 50hrs

Research:
Research Associate/Surgical Technician (published twice and presented at conference) - 1120hrs

Extracurriculars/Awards:
Women's Rugby - 196hrs
Women's Soccer - 600hrs
Women's Volleyball - 80hrs
Women's Basketball - 240hrs
Volunteering around my base in Okinawa - 561hrs
A bunch of stuff with the military (Safety Swimmer, CBRNE Operator, HIIT Instructor, MCMAP MAI, CLS, Licensing NCO, Calibrations NCO, etc) - 5000+ hrs
Dean's List x8
Military awards (Navy-Marine Corps Achievement Medal x2, NCO Professional Development Ribbon, Good Conduct Medal, Sea Service Deployment Ribbon, Korean Defense Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal)
Military honors (Honor Graduate x3, Meritorious Promotion x3, Superior Fitness Award x6, Gung Ho Award, Certificate of Commendation x2, Meritorious Mast, Molly Marine Award)

Non-Animal Employment:
CrossFit Level 1 Coach - 464hrs
Military (active duty USMC and Army Reserves) with 1 deployment - 8+ years

LORs:
GP Veterinarian x2
Hospital Manager/LVT
Staff Scientist/Assistant Professor
Professor/Vice Chair of Research
Company First Sergeant (Army)

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
My personal statement was about how I wanted to be a vet as a kid but so did my little sister. I knew my parent's didn't have the money to send the both of us to college, let alone help with vet school. So, with my sister being the smarter of the two of us and me struggling academically, I decided to join the Marine Corps after graduating instead of going to college. Felt super happy in the Marine Corps, loved my job, and wanted to do this as a career. Then I went through something very traumatic while serving that caused my whole perspective on life to change and no longer wanted to stay in the Marine Corps. Started taking some college classes while in, realized I could do the whole college thing, and then talked about remarking on my dream of wanting to become a vet and what kind of vet I wanted to be based on some experiences when I was active duty.

Minnesota Diversity Essay:
Talked about growing up always feeling outcasted because of being Latina, primarily Spanish-speaking (as a kid), gay, and a women (in the military). Then went into detail about how it felt to be outcasted because of some of these things, what I learned from each of those experiences, and how I was able to then apply what I learned to be a better captain (for sports), leader (in the military), and overall person.

VMCVM Resiliency Essay:
Talked about what resiliency meant to be going off of experiences in sports and in the military. Then the example I used was when it took me two tries to become a certified Safety Swimmer for the Marine Corps and went into depth as to why I failed, how I learned from the failure, and how I was able to finally pass the course.

VMCVM Life Motto Essay:
Quoted Angela Duckworth from her book Grit. Talked about how I didn't pick up a book to read on my own until I was 19 years old and how she played a big part in bridging the disconnect between me and school/education and eventually helped me succeed in school.

Arizona Core Values Essay:
I tied each of these values to experiences in the military and how those experiences showcased how important it is to have these values and the consequences of not having them instilled in yourself, your peers, and your subordinates.

 

[gracegoesvet]

SOOO Excited to be posting here!!!
21, F, Pennsylvania, Traditional, First-Time Applicant

Applied: 14
Interview Invites: LMU, Western, Mississippi State (declined their invite), Michigan State (declined their invite), PennVet, Ohio State
Waitlisted: LMU
Accepted: Colorado State, North Carolina State, PennVet, Iowa State, Ohio State, WesternU
Rejected: Midwestern, Purdue, Illinois, Virgina-Maryland, Tennessee
Attending: North Carolina State University!!! Go Pack!

Overall GPA: 3.65
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.63
Last 45 GPA: 3.60

Degree(s): Graduating May 2024 with Animal Sciences B.S. from Purdue

Veterinary Experience: 933 total hours
Small Animal ER: ~250, veterinary assistant
Spay & Neuter Clinic: ~250 hours, veterinary assistant
Large Animal/Equine: mainly shadowing, ~450 hours

Animal Experience: 7,000+ hours
Grew up on a working family farm with livestock: farm hand (~4000)
10-year 4-H member (horses and goats), ~2000
4-H Summer Intern in the livestock program: ~100hrs
Pet Sitter (paid): ~1000 hours
+ some other odds and ends that added a few hundred hours

Research: ~400 hrs
GEMS: Girls excelling in math and science- undergrad researcher (~200)
World Food Prize: Animal Health as a Food Insecurity Factor in Bolivia (~200hrs)

Extracurriculars/Awards:
MeToo Purdue: co-founder & president
The Collective: non-profit board member (co-founding board member)
Phi Mu Sorority (only involved 2 years, but included them!) & served as Academic Excellence chair
Various musical involvements (choir, section leader, piano accompanist, choir festivals etc.)
Deans List & Semester Honors: every semester of undergrad
PA & National Borlaug Scholar: world food prize
Smile Award (4-H)
Excellence in Leadership Award (4-H)

Non-Animal Employment:
-Academic Success Center Student Office Ambassador
-Summer Camp Counselor
-Summer Conference Coordinator
-New York Times Campus Ambassador
-4-H Intern
-Retail (from high school)

LORs:
1. Vet: worked with at the spay neuter clinic
2. Boss: boss from my college academic success center job for 3 years
3. Research advisor from GEMS
4. Professor: english professor (not science!) but I knew she'd write me an incredible letter

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
I was an english major for a year, so I wrote about how it exposed me to my love for education but also redirected my to having that love for education IN vet med. Spoke a LOT on my love for serving people and how serving their animals is a beautiful way to do that. I also had a very busy summer during application season (12 credits (anatomy, physio, cell bio), working 8-4:30 at 4-H and then 5-12 at the ER, and how even in the exhaustion there was joy because I was loving what I was doing so deeply, even in the days everything went wrong. It was obviously more eloquently written than this little blurb, so if anyone would ever like to read it or has application questions, don't hesitate to reach out!

 

[Lunax25]

23, M, Ohio, Traditional (?) Applicant (I took a gap year), first cycle:

Applied: OSU, WSU, NCSU, Purdue, Illinois, Minnesota
Interview Invites: OSU, Purdue, Illinois, Minnesota
Waiting to hear: None
Denied: WSU, NCSU, OSU
Waitlisted: Purdue, Illinois
Accepted: Minnesota
Attending: Well... I think it's obvious

Overall GPA: 3.94
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.90
Last 45 GPA: 3.97

Degree(s):
Bachelor of Sciences in Biochemistry with minor in Microbiology

Veterinary Experience:
Vet Assistant: 600 hrs and counting
Shadow, Vet that sees exotics on occasion: 45 hrs
Shadow, OSU Clinical Microbio Lab: 2 hrs (tour)
Volunteer, Hoedspruit Animal Outreach (Community Outreach): 3 hrs

Animal Experience:
Small Animal (w/ Vet): ~600+ hrs mostly from vet assistant job
Exotics (w/ Vet): ~30+ hrs between shadow, study abroad-esque program in South Africa, and vet assistant job
Large animal (mostly w/o Vet): 80 hrs from being a milker on a dairy farm
Wildlife rehab (mostly w/o Vet): 60 hrs

Research:
Lab Assistant to a Fermenter Lab (essentially, we "dosed" different tanks full of rumen fluid with certain variable materials while controlling most of what we "fed" them across all 4-8 jars, then took various readings and samples throughout the day), compensated and no I was not a primary researcher: 200 hrs

Extracurriculars/Awards:
PVMA Diversity and Inclusion Committee Chair for 2 years and ordinary member of PVMA the other two
Running Club
NHS (high school)
Cross Country/Track (high school)
Key Club (high school)
Boy Scouts (high school/middle school)

Maximus Scholarship (highest baseline merit scholarship at OSU)
Graduation Summa Cum Laude with Honors in the Arts/Sciences
Dean's List each semester I was in college except my very first semester for no reason I can discern (trust me I had a plenty high enough GPA for it)
Several Departmental Awards (high school)
Letter (Cross Country)

Non-Animal Employment:
Student Lead (level above basic barista)/Student Cashier (basic barista), 400 hrs
Corn Packer, 100 hrs
Retail Employee, 50 hrs
Biochem TA, 150 hrs
Baristo, 18 hrs (I may or may not have picked up this job solely to achieve "full time employment" status before submitting my VMCAS, I have worked a lot more hours since applying though)

LORs:
DVM, owner of my clinic
DVM, a relief vet that worked at our clinic regularly
PhD, microbio professor at my school
PhD, was the lab manager for about 2/3 of my time in research

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
Personal statement was basically tracing my path in life from somewhat haphazardly choosing to follow a career in Vet Med to solidifying my certainty that this was the right path for me, and why.

Clearly my WSU and NCSU essays were not worth acceptance this year, but...
Minnesota: For the diversity essay, I started with how I felt like part of the out-group for most of my life as a mixed (White/Indian) gay guy, and finding community for the first time in college, then going on to participate in and later run the Diversity and Inclusion Committee of our PVMA branch, as well as the potential for participation in our local Community Refugee and Immigration Services (I... never actually got to do much with them as they mostly need groups of volunteers and aren't super coordinated as a whole). For professional skills and abilities, I described the first unplanned euthanasia I dealt with (as in, I was the assistant for the appointment) and how our team and I handled it, and then I talked about how I found an unexpected interest in running after years of other sports, and managed to achieve modest athletic feats that I could feel proud of.

 

[lizhanaway]

22, F, Alabama, Traditional Applicant, First Cycle

Applied: Florida, Auburn, Wisconsin, MS State, NC State, Georgia, Colorado State, Tennessee, Mizzou, LSU
Interview Invites: Auburn, Florida, Mizzou, MS State, Tennessee (pulled application from Tennessee)
Waiting to hear:
Denied: NC State, Georgia
Waitlisted: Florida
Accepted: Auburn, Wisconsin, MS State, Colorado State, Mizzou, LSU
Attending: MS STATE!

Overall GPA: 3.86
Science Prerequisite GPA: 3.85
Last 45 GPA: honestly idk, close to 4.0 I would think

Degree(s): Graduating in May with B.S. in Biology w Chemistry minor

Veterinary Experience:
Vet assistant in small animal GP - 3900 hours
Low cost high volume spay/neuter clinic: 175 hours
Equine externship: 180 hours
Lab animal thesis project: 150 hours


Animal Experience:
Intern at therapeutic riding barn - 240 hours
Foster for a shelter dog post-op after several wound revisions: 84 hours
Pet sitting (dogs, cats, horses, chickens, donkeys): 350 hours
Kennel tech: 200 hours


Research:
None unless you can count my lab animal stuff?


Extracurriculars/Awards:
Student dance organization: 225 hours (hold a leadership position)
Tri delta sorority: 324 hours
Dance instructor for adults and children w intellectual disabilities: 54 hours
Honors college: 1620 hours


Non-Animal Employment:
Ballet instructor: 160 hours
Lifeguard: 85 hours


LORs:
1 small animal specialist
1 small animal GP
1 small animal GP/lab animal vet
1 equine vet
1 immunology professor

I had some extra high school experience stuff but idk how relevant it is.

Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
Basically I talked about how vet med was the first thing I found after having a bit of an identity crisis during COVID that actually made me feel like I have a purpose and then talked about wanting to go into small animal internal medicine.