Undergrad school

[Abvy86]

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Hello! I am currently a senior in high and I am debating on what college to go to. I am hoping to major in animal science, equine science or possibly even both. I was wondering if anyone knew of small colleges with one of these majors that has a good percentage of their pre vet students getting into vet school as I am hoping to be a large animal vet. Currently on my list I have University of Minnesota Crookston, Midway University, Dordt University, and Truman State University. Also what things can I do to get more hands on experience with animals during high school? I currently work at a horse ranch and a doggy daycare.

This is kind of separate to that but was wondering if anyone knew of different career fields that you can go into with an animal science or equine science degree.

Thanks!

 

[canyonman]

Where you go to school really doesn't matter (except maybe a little bit for a select few schools). Find a school and program that you like and that you can see yourself at for 4 years! Admission committees care much more about your experiences and references than they do about which school you went to.

I think you are already getting great animal experience working at the ranch and kennel. Having that large animal experience is definitely a plus. I don't think you necessarily need more animal experience at this point, but if you really wanted more I would recommend getting experience with wildlife/ exotics (such as volunteering at a wildlife rehab center or nature center) as this can make you really stand out. Then once you start undergrad is a good time to start gaining veterinary experience over school breaks.

There are lots of things you can do with an animal science degree depending on what specific aspects of animal science you are interested in. You can work in beef, dairy, or swine production as a herd manager or similar role, you can get all sorts of jobs at feed/ nutrition companies, you can work for the government at the USDA or FDA, etc. A fair number of animal science graduates go on to get a non-thesis masters degree and work as extension agents (which I personally think is a fantastic job). You can also further your education with a research-based masters +/- a PhD in an animal science related subject and then work in research and/ or academia.

 

[Polocrosse2017]

When I was in high school I contacted a local equine veterinarian and asked to shadow him. He ended up hiring me as a vet assistant and then a vet tech. I also worked as a horseback counselor at a summer camp. That got me tons of animal hours, some vet hours (when the vets came to visit), and experience with people. The schools asked a lot about that experience. You can always try those areas. My hs had a program where you could get your vet assistant certificate through the school I did that and got over 300 hours with a vet that way. You can always check if your hs has a program like that. I can't help much with small schools since I chose a larger one. The above poster gave excellent suggestions.

 

[dirtypaws]

Community college!!!!!
Hands down the smartest thing I did. I got 2 years paid for by grants and Scholarships and knocked out almost all my pre reqs. Transferred to Colorado state university to finish a couple pre reqs and was accepted to vet school as a junior. Save yourself as much money as possible.

As far as experience I recommend your local humane society. I reached out mine to volunteer at the veterinary clinic And was offered a paid position there. Tons of really cool experience and you make a difference!

 

[JaynaAli]

Go wherever you can get the most scholarships and/or pay the least. Maybe that's a community college, maybe it's a 4 year school. I promise you that coming out with less undergrad debt will put you in a far better position once you get into vet school and beyond. Where you go seems to matter less than how you do in your classes for most schools.

Jobs with an animal science degree are quite varied. I majored in animal science and some of my undergrad classmates are barn/farm managers or staff. A couple do marketing for ag businesses, a couple work in reproduction (like at a bull test station/AI facility) or as farm animal nutritionists. Many people I know went 'back home' to the family farm/ranch or started their own herds. Some work in finance, like loan officers or other banker roles. I know a few horse trainers, a few stock jocks, and a bunch of ag teachers. I know of geneticists and insurance agents. And a bunch of animal science majors went to vet school.

 

[IZZY222]

I am a large animal vet.

In highschool, I worked for a vet as a kennel. I cleaned cages and got a grasp on how a hospital functioned. I got to see procedures and work the blood work machine. My first summer in college, they offered me an assistant job where I did a lot more hands on work and integrated a visual software into their electronic medical record.

In highschool, I also volunteered with a raptor rehab and worked with game and fish on wildlife management. I would go out to ranchland and replace old barbed-wire fence for smooth wire so that the antelope would not get entangled and could move freely between ranches. In addition to animal work, I worked with habitat for humanity building houses 1 weekend a month.

I majored in animal science at a state school and was involved with the school dairy and shadowed a local large animal vet. I then went to vet school in a different state.