UPenn or wait?

[catsanddogs27]

So I have just been accepted to University of Pennsylvania Vet school! I am so excited and honored, but the thing is I am having a hard time with the price. I am in a bit of a hard place because I was rejected from everywhere else and got waitlisted at VA-MD. I am toying with two options: go to Penn and deal with the cost and living situation, or wait a year, get more experience, and apply again (HOPEFULLY? get in to a more rural/cheaper school). I also am moving with my boyfriend, who will have to change jobs for me, but he is very supportive and wants to do what's best for me. I will be applying for scholarships and don't know yet if i got a recruitment scholarship.

Pros of Penn:
-Very good school, my IS.
-It's the only place I got in, so it may be now or never (or maybe not for a while, who knows when/if ill get in to other schools next year)
-i get to do what i love and have always dreamed of, soon!
-Have a best friend who will be going
-If price and the cost of living wasn't a concern i would 100% be going without a thought.
Cons:
-it is so expensive, cost of living is expensive
-I am not a city person, this will be a hard transition
-commute times are questionable, bc i won't be living right near campus ideally
-my boyfriend has to find a job, and he is also supporting me financially so it is hard to put that burden on him (he will gladly do it though)
-is it safe? i have never been there, or lived in a city.


This is 4 years of my life. and my boyfriend's. so i don't want to hate it!

Pros of waiting a year and applying again:
-Take a year off, have time to breathe, and really be ready for vet school
-possibly better living situation and cost at a different school
-not be in a rush
Cons:
-There's no guarantee i get in, and i might deeply regret it
-I will have to go through the process of applying and waiting again :/
-I might end up going to Penn eventually anyway if that is the only school i get into next year, again
-I might move somewhere to try and get IS? hard transition with uncertainty.

I am having a hard time with this, and I want to do what is right to me, not just what i SHOULD do. But this ultimately is a huge decision. Any advice would be appreciated!! 🙂 be nice! lol

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[finnickthedog]

This may sound a little harsh, but the time to think about this was before you applied. I am saying this for the benefit of future applicants reading this post: do not apply to a school unless you would accept it if it was your only offer.

I do know one person who turned down their only offer. She moved to another state and reapplied there and she did get in. But this was a significant gamble on her part, and to my knowledge she did not reapply to the school she turned down.

Ultimately, I wouldn't advise turning down an offer unless you're comfortable with the prospect of potentially never getting an acceptance again. That can be the case. Sometimes you realize the price is just too high and you'd rather not be a vet at all than pay that much. This doesn't sound like your situation though as you talk about the possibility of attending Penn next year if it were the only school you got into again.

 

[catsanddogs27]

This may sound a little harsh, but the time to think about this was before you applied. I am saying this for the benefit of future applicants reading this post: do not apply to a school unless you would accept it if it was your only offer.

I do know one person who turned down their only offer. She moved to another state and reapplied there and she did get in. But this was a significant gamble on her part, and to my knowledge she did not reapply to the school she turned down.

Ultimately, I wouldn't advise turning down an offer unless you're comfortable with the prospect of potentially never getting an acceptance again. That can be the case. Sometimes you realize the price is just too high and you'd rather not be a vet at all than pay that much. This doesn't sound like your situation though as you talk about the possibility of attending Penn next year if it were the only school you got into again.

Thanks for replying and I do realize i should have thought this through a while ago, I honestly just never in a million years thought I'd get in anyway! so yes, take that advice everyone..

 

[futurevet_2025]

That’s a tough decision, however it’s great that you have the opportunity to decide, so make sure to celebrate a bit! Ultimately, you have some time to decide since you need to commit by April 15. I would tour the area if feasible (that’s what I’m planning on doing!), and then maybe try to make the drive from where you may want to live in the suburbs to campus just to see what it’s like. Some other things to consider: will you take out everything in loans or have some family support? Are you planning on entering a specialty field where there is more earning potential, or a field where salary isn’t as high? Do you want to do something that Penn is very established in, like equine medicine? (I would say they are established in many areas, but I mean comparatively to other schools). You don’t need to answer these questions, but maybe some more things to consider. It’s great that you have a support system and that your boyfriend will be moving with you! Ultimately, nothing is guaranteed for next cycle, so I wouldn’t bank on that, but know to make the decision that works best for you, not others. It’s a really tough decision and you’re smart to think about the financial strain - just remember to be proud of your accomplishment and that you have time before you need to fully commit. Good luck 🙂

 

[catsanddogs27]

That’s a tough decision, however it’s great that you have the opportunity to decide, so make sure to celebrate a bit! Ultimately, you have some time to decide since you need to commit by April 15. I would tour the area if feasible (that’s what I’m planning on doing!), and then maybe try to make the drive from where you may want to live in the suburbs to campus just to see what it’s like. Some other things to consider: will you take out everything in loans or have some family support? Are you planning on entering a specialty field where there is more earning potential, or a field where salary isn’t as high? Do you want to do something that Penn is very established in, like equine medicine? (I would say they are established in many areas, but I mean comparatively to other schools). You don’t need to answer these questions, but maybe some more things to consider. It’s great that you have a support system and that your boyfriend will be moving with you! Ultimately, nothing is guaranteed for next cycle, so I wouldn’t bank on that, but know to make the decision that works best for you, not others. It’s a really tough decision and you’re smart to think about the financial strain - just remember to be proud of your accomplishment and that you have time before you need to fully commit. Good luck 🙂

Thank you for your wonderful response! We are definitely going to visit and explore philly and see campus for a few days before really deciding, and the driving the commute is such a great idea! those are some great things to think about. And yes i am really excited and proud, thank you soo much!!🙂

 

[WildZoo]

I do not know if this is still an option but I know a couple of people who were able to defer a Penn acceptance for a year, move to PA, and establish residency so they could get in-state tuition. You might look into that to see if it's still a thing. It isn't a huge savings in tuition but it is something.

You may still get pulled off the VA-MD waitlist too, so fingers crossed for that. And congrats on your acceptance!

 

[SkiOtter]

I do not know if this is still an option but I know a couple of people who were able to defer a Penn acceptance for a year, move to PA, and establish residency so they could get in-state tuition. You might look into that to see if it's still a thing. It isn't a huge savings in tuition but it is something.

You may still get pulled off the VA-MD waitlist too, so fingers crossed for that. And congrats on your acceptance!

Penn is already OPs in state so they wouldn’t get cheaper tuition by deferring a year if penn even still allows that

 

[WildZoo]

Penn is already OPs in state so they wouldn’t get cheaper tuition by deferring a year if penn even still allows that

Lol whoops. I can read I swear.

 

[catsanddogs27]

Lol whoops. I can read I swear.

No worries lol! I have thought of maybe deferring for a year to save up some money at least but I am unsure of the policy on that and don't know if they'd allow... i don't really want to ask them either! lol

 

[SkiOtter]

No worries lol! I have thought of maybe deferring for a year to save up some money at least but I am unsure of the policy on that and don't know if they'd allow... i don't really want to ask them either! lol

I mean, there's no harm in asking if they’d allow you to defer to save up money. Chances are they’ll say no, but they won’t rescind your acceptance just because you ask. If you do turn down the spot, I wouldn’t expect to be accepted a second time to the same school unless you have some really ****in good explanation as to why you turned them down the first time. There is a high possibility they’ll see your application again, realize you were accepted there last year, and wonder why you declined it only to apply a second time to them.

 

[meelc]

Hey there! I went through a similar situation my first cycle and ending up turning down the one offer I had received. I decided to work really hard on improving my application through extra classes, more experiences, and just make my application more cohesive and well rounded. I ended up receiving 3 admission offers the following cycle to some of my top choice schools. I'm not going to lie, it is definitely a gamble. I think it will also depend on why you didn't get into the other schools and if those are areas of your application you can improve. If you apply to the same places without doing anything to improve the weaker areas of your application then there probably won't be a different outcome compared to if you apply more strategically and do improve weaker areas of your app. Theres no perfect answer, but feel free to shoot me a message if you want to talk more!

 

[catsanddogs27]

Thank you for your replies everyone. I am definitely leaning towards going to Penn. But I am def going to sit on it for a while!