Veterinary School Extracurriculars

[Tco87]

Advertisement - Members don't see this ad

Hey all,
I'm wondering, I know most of the vet schools offer a diversity of clubs and extracurricular activities for students, but how much time do you realistically have to be involved in them? I'm honestly not 100% committed to a specific field of veterinary medicine. I've liked everything I've done so far and I thought that maybe I could flesh out my interests through being involved in different clubs and such, but the more I read the threads on here the more I feel like students barely have time to eat and sleep, let alone be in multiple groups....
But yeah, any insight would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Nissan]

At least with WesternU, the veterinary clubs are run by students like ourselves. Officers often have more work cut out for them, but regular members usually go to club-sponsored activities once or twice a month-- no biggie. It starts getting complicated when you have 4-5+ clubs and you end up having meetings every week, but on the whole, they understand the limited time students have.

Several clubs, instead of doing activities after hours (like after 5pm), hold lunch programs which only last 30 min. to 1 hour. For example, our veterinary pathology club sponsored a members-only pathologic histology review with our pathology professor during lunch. It works out. We had a dinner and wet lab around 7pm where students learned about (and were able to participate in) gastropexy sx (on cadavers) during the week when we were given a colic/GI case. They seem to plan out these activities to coincide with what we're learning, so taking some time off from studying doesn't really seem so bad.

I can't speak for other schools, but it's definitely doable. From what it seems, the time commitments that require longer hours usually happen during breaks or during long weekends.

 

[New Foundland]

Um...
it varies, naturally. 🙂


here though..

but the more I read the threads on here the more I feel like students barely have time to eat and sleep

perhaps you're experiencing the "representative bias" problem...

Perhaps students on this forum are more competitive than average, and more driven to maximize their vet school grades than students who have never heard of SDN.
Also, perhaps the ones who DO spend ALL their time engaged in studies are more likely to be the ones talking about their lack of free time online 😉

I don't mean to suggest that vet school doesn't take full devotion and most of your time.. but taking breaks is healthy and can improve your morale drastically..

People can't answer this question for you..
They can answer it only as it applies to their own life and study habits during vet school

 

[zxz130]

Just speaking for myself and my first semester, there's generally some time to do stuff you want except for weeks I have an anatomy exam. I find doing club stuff is a good way to spend my free time and feel productive.
At least here at Mizzou a lot of club stuff offer dinners, so my thought is that I'd probably spend that time making dinner anyways so why not. It is also a good way to get to know some professors on a non-class related basis or even getting to know some clinicians before you get into clinics, both of which will be really helpful.
Just some of my thoughts.

 

[quantized]

Your experience is what you make of it. I joined a few clubs and they're fun and put the classroom stuff more in context. I also try to take some time and ride the ponies and catch up on Dexter and Fringe! There are people who do nothing but study, but I sorta think they're missing out on some pretty cool opportunities.

 

[elefante7]

Here, if you join SCAVMA (which virtually everyone does) you can automatically participate in any club so you can go to what sounds interesting and not to what doesn't without any consequence. Most meetings are at lunch and many provide lunch. If you are just in clubs in a learning and participating role, it really doesn't take much time at all. If you take on a leadership position, it can take more time, but those vary in time commitment quite a bit as well.

 

[SilverSpyderGT]

There is plenty of time for extracurriculars. What you need to remember is that even though you will be studying a lot, so will everyone who organizes the clubs. It's totally manageable.

Also, while it seems like you might have to study a little less for the cell bio exam, if you go to a SVECCS wetlab and learn how to do CPR and a cutdown, you are going to look like a rockstar in clinics, and you'll be more confident when you're on your own after graduation. When push comes to shove, there is only one test that is do-or-die - the NAVLE. (Well, I guess there are a few more if you specialize, but that's another kettle of fish.) Every other little bump along the way is only a small part of the big picture.

 

[that redhead]

I have a friend down at Ross who told me that one of the weekend days (Saturday or Sunday?) he and a bunch of friends go to the beach or have a cook out or something - a no-study day basically. They do it every week so I'm assuming that, barring a test that Monday or whatnot, it's definitely possible to schedule extra-curricular activities of one sort or another.

 

[BlacKAT33]

If you make time to go to things, it is always possible to do the extra curriculars that you want. The problem that i'm having is that ALL the extracurriculars sound awesome, i signed up for about 80% of the clubs. I realize I won't have time to go to all of them so I'll have to pick the events i want to go to wisely. I am also still trying to balance my course work so hopefully in a couple weeks I can be more active in clubs and volunteering.

 

[Tobysgirl81]

I'm not sure how it is with other clubs, but a lot of ours hold meetings at lunch time. Its nice because you frequently get free food (yeah!) and see some really neat presentations, but don't really cut into your free time.

In my very limited experience, yes. You are busy all the time. I'm AMAZED at how much time I spend studying. But I always give myself at least one night a week as a "Free" night. Meaning, I don't have to study and I don't get to beat myself up over it. It works out pretty well that way.

And like someone else said, most of the people who run the clubs are just as busy as you are - if not more so - so they won't try and take up all your free time.

 

[parietal]

I agree with others. I'm very busy, but I really like club meetings over lunch anyway. Some will have professors talking about cool cases (primate C-sections!), interesting issues (when to spay/neuter client-owned dogs) or useful skills (how to write a vet resume). While I'm still learning at ton, it's somehow a huge mental break from classes and studying. Plus there is often free lunch. 🙂

I'd say definitely get involved with any club that focuses on your interests or even just an area you want to know more about. If your clubs charge dues, talk to some upperclassmen and find out which ones are the most active or have the most useful meetings and consider that as well.

Good luck!

 

[sumstorm]

I find the wetlabs and lunch meetings and other activities are what tie the stuff we are learning together. I am pretty sure everyone in my class goes to the occasional lunch presentation, some folks go to nearly every one, and others pick and choose. I went to more last year than this year (some are kind of repeats, I'm more selective, and surgery class cuts into our lunch hour, pluse I have more officer commitments now.)

It is one thing to listen to a few murmurs in class, and another to attend a wetlab and hear 8-9 murmurs, and have the time to really get a feel for what you are trying to hear. Last year I signed up for an ICU volunteer shift. We had just gone over cardio anatomy the day before my shift, and on that shift we had a small, viscious dog come in with cardiomyopathy; I helped with the patients, threaded a catheter, and because it was a slow day, the resident showed me how to do the ultrasound, how to work the equipment and record images, gave me tips on handling the dog with minimal stress, explained pathogenesis, and identified structures. I learned more in that one shift than I had in hours of studying anatomy. If it had been busy, I may not have learned as much, but I still would have had a taste of practice. A year later, during our cardio lab, I could still pick out the structures because I had seen it before.

Here it seems like most students join a breadth of clubs first year with less intense participation, and so far second year seems to be fewer clubs and activities, but more officer positions and responsibilities, contributing more to the clubs we are in...and I am told in third year the clubs will thin out more, but tend to involve a deeper level of commitment to tasks and such. And there are still clubs that I join just because I like the wetlabs they offer, or I really like the speakers they bring in, or the oppurtunities they sponsor (such as conference attendance, externships, etc.) And for the most part, the lectures/lunch meetings are open to everyone (may not get food if you aren't a member.) Most wetlabs are 'open' to everyone, but if attendance is limited, members and points may be used to determine who gets to attend. I study a lot, and I am not a great student (I pass, but I have a mix of A, B, and C grades) but I feel far more confident about clinical skills, know far more of our clinicians, and have learned of more oppurtunities from participating in clubs.

 

[Tco87]

Wow, thanks everyone! Some of the extracurricular groups at my undergrad required that members fulfill x requirements to actually be considered a part of the group, and I was worried that it would be the same in vet school. Judging from all your posts, that's not true, which is great!

BlackKat and Cowgirla - yeah I have a feeling I'm going to do the same thing you guys are doing now. I generally think everything about vet med is interesting and I see myself joining almost all the groups and then wondering what I was thinking later...

 

[HopefulAg]

Here you can go to pretty much any meeting/wet lab you want, though each club gives preference to its members (those who paid dues) if wet lab space is limited.

Also, you don't get to eat for 'free' at club meetings if you didn't pay your dues, though that's kind of an honor system thing cause they don't exactly check to make sure you're a member first. It's not free, but it works out pretty cheap (about $2 a meal for decent food).


As far as time, it really depends. Some weeks it seems I have a lot of free time, others I'm so pushed for time that I wouldn't even consider going to a wet lab. Haven't missed a single home game yet though...hmm...guess everyone has their priorities. 😀