VMCAS Questions C/O 2017 (Post your questions here.)

[Foxhunter]

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any suggestions as to where to include published papers?? 🙂

So I just looked at my VMCAS from last year to see where I put mine. I didn't put mine on there (definitely put them on my supplementals/CV). I would probably put it under honors/awards or else in the extra information section. Sorry I'm not more helpful.

Also on an awkward note, just saw that I sent my VMCAS to UC Davis last year, but never did their supplemental, etc. Go me...

 

[NStarz]

I agree with putting it under honors/awards. Or if you have a section under vet experience for research, you can include it there. But I would definitely make sure to highlight it.

 

[nyanko]

Also on an awkward note, just saw that I sent my VMCAS to UC Davis last year, but never did their supplemental, etc. Go me...

the good news is they had no supplemental. but if you didn't send your transcripts/GRE there and stuff then welp

 

[hai1983]

Hi!

So I submitted my VMCAS a few weeks ago now and it still says "Your Application Is Meeting VMCAS Requirements" and under College Designations it still says that all of mine are "Not Mailed." Is there something I should do, or does it really take them 3+ weeks to complete this...? Not sure if I'm missing something here 😕

From the FAQ:

Q: After I submit my application materials, when will they be sent to the designated colleges?

A: Application shipments begin a few weeks before the deadline, but are available electronically to your designated school as soon as you submit your application. Once shipments begin, the veterinary colleges will receive weekly shipments from VMCAS until all applications have been delivered. Once your application has been submitted to VMCAS, it is expected to go out in the next scheduled shipment. In order for your application to be considered having met the VMCAS requirements, it must include a minimum of three evaluations, the completed VMCAS application, and your application fee paid.

I'm guessing they haven't mailed any applications yet, and that yours will be in the first batch that gets sent out.

 

[tvo21]

Does anyone know the pros and cons (if any) of submitting the app without all of the eLORs submitted? I just can't wait anymore and I saw that you could submit it before eLORS were submitted. But for some reason it just gives me this bad and incomplete feeling 😏 but thats just me being weird....

also I think one of my professors is kind of technologically challenged so I'm afraid I might have to resend and I can't do that once I've submitted. okay. end of my super freaking out explanation.

 

[hai1983]

also I think one of my professors is kind of technologically challenged so I'm afraid I might have to resend and I can't do that once I've submitted. okay. end of my super freaking out explanation.

There's your reason to wait. Look, I get super Type A about these kinds of things and I want mine to be sent in, too, but I don't have all of my ducks in a row yet, so I can't submit. I'm trying to distract myself by taking care of the things I can (like studying for that exam I'm taking at 2... by looking at SDN... whoops). Check in with that professor and see if (s)he's been able to access VMCAS. Look at your PS one more time. Call the schools to make sure they have your transcripts and GRE scores. Find something to enjoy outside while it's still summer. We have 53 days to get this thing in.

 

[Museum Nerd]

From the FAQ:

Q: After I submit my application materials, when will they be sent to the designated colleges?

A: Application shipments begin a few weeks before the deadline, but are available electronically to your designated school as soon as you submit your application. Once shipments begin, the veterinary colleges will receive weekly shipments from VMCAS until all applications have been delivered. Once your application has been submitted to VMCAS, it is expected to go out in the next scheduled shipment. In order for your application to be considered having met the VMCAS requirements, it must include a minimum of three evaluations, the completed VMCAS application, and your application fee paid.

I'm guessing they haven't mailed any applications yet, and that yours will be in the first batch that gets sent out.

Lat year the first batch did not go out until Sept 15 ish usually two weeks before the deadline

 

[Canes0430]

Possibly a dumb question, but I am a bit paranoid. Let's say you list a school on your VMCAS application, submit payment for it, etc, but end up deciding not to apply there after all and don't follow through with that particular supplemental. Is there any penalty for this other than having already paid for VMCAS to be sent there?

In other words, if you decide not to apply to one of the schools listed in your VMCAS designations, does it impact your other applications?

Thanks in advance.

 

[orca2011]

Possibly a dumb question, but I am a bit paranoid. Let's say you list a school on your VMCAS application, submit payment for it, etc, but end up deciding not to apply there after all and don't follow through with that particular supplemental. Is there any penalty for this other than having already paid for VMCAS to be sent there?

In other words, if you decide not to apply to one of the schools listed in your VMCAS designations, does it impact your other applications?

Thanks in advance.

As far as I know, nope. I think several people have done this and then just didn't have time to do the supplemental apps or decided they didn't really want to go that school anymore. All the ones I can think of got accepted to other schools.

 

[LetItSnow]

In other words, if you decide not to apply to one of the schools listed in your VMCAS designations, does it impact your other applications?

No, it won't.

Just to be professional you may want to consider calling the school(s) that you decide not to follow through on and tell them to pull your application. But not finishing out any non-VMCAS portions of an application at one school will have no bearing on your application at another school.

 

[485501]

I agree with putting it under honors/awards. Or if you have a section under vet experience for research, you can include it there. But I would definitely make sure to highlight it.

I went and looked at the instructions for Honors and Awards, and it says to list publications there. And it does highlight it, which is always nice!

 

[MonkeyResrcher]

For anyone who has applied to UK schools - I know that for RVC all that is needed is the VMCAS application and nothing else.

The VMCAS have designations for Glasgow and Edinburgh but the schools websites say they only utilize UCAS. Do I spend the money to send designations through VMCAS or start an application by UCAS??

AKA - if you have applied overesas - How did you do it?

Same if anyone has any advice on Murdoch

 

[orca2011]

For anyone who has applied to UK schools - I know that for RVC all that is needed is the VMCAS application and nothing else.

The VMCAS have designations for Glasgow and Edinburgh but the schools websites say they only utilize UCAS. Do I spend the money to send designations through VMCAS or start an application by UCAS??

AKA - if you have applied overesas - How did you do it?

Same if anyone has any advice on Murdoch

Hmmm. Pretty sure you can still use VMCAS. I think it says that because the website is directed at all international students and not just American students. I think all the other international students would use UCAS, while the American students would use VMCAS since those schools are accredited and all that.

Email Joyce at Glasgow and I'm sure she can answer the question for you quickly.


I only ever used VMCAS the past two cycles and they never had problems with my application or made me submit extra forms.

 

[MonkeyResrcher]

Hmmm. Pretty sure you can still use VMCAS. I think it says that because the website is directed at all international students and not just American students. I think all the other international students would use UCAS, while the American students would use VMCAS since those schools are accredited and all that.

Email Joyce at Glasgow and I'm sure she can answer the question for you quickly.


I only ever used VMCAS the past two cycles and they never had problems with my application or made me submit extra forms.

What is her email address??

 

[orca2011]

It's [email protected]

If she doesn't respond, usually someone else in the office will. They might still be in and out of the office a good bit since school doesn't start until late September.

 

[homegrownhen]

Hey guys! Five of my questions have been answered by simply scrolling down this forum. Look forward to talking with you all! This is great!

 

[homegrownhen]

Hi everybody! I have completed my community activities, and it looks as though VMCAS put them in order based on date (which is awesome). When I click on veterinary or animal experience it says to put more recent first. Any idea of these categories will be automatically put in order by date?? 😕

 

[wildcatj]

Hi everybody! I have completed my community activities, and it looks as though VMCAS put them in order based on date (which is awesome). When I click on veterinary or animal experience it says to put more recent first. Any idea of these categories will be automatically put in order by date?? 😕

They still put them in order. I don't know why they tell you that specifically there. Otherwise it would be a PITA to add new experiences.

 

[graffitiskies]

Question for those who are taking animal nutrition classes through a different school: How are you listing that on your VMCAS app? I am currently taking the Animal Nutrition correspondence course through Oklahoma State. While, I'm not currently enrolled there, I'm having trouble figuring out how to list it in my schools attended and coursework sections. Any ideas?

Also.. I know it says to include all honors and awards you have received beginning with high school. I received a lot of awards in high school, to the point where it seems excessive. I was just wondering if I should include everything or exclude some stuff.

 

[hai1983]

Question for those who are taking animal nutrition classes through a different school: How are you listing that on your VMCAS app? I am currently taking the Animal Nutrition correspondence course through Oklahoma State. While, I'm not currently enrolled there, I'm having trouble figuring out how to list it in my schools attended and coursework sections. Any ideas?

I added the university as a separate school and entered that class. I'm not sure how you'd do it without adding the school.

 

[LetItSnow]

Question for those who are taking animal nutrition classes through a different school: How are you listing that on your VMCAS app? I am currently taking the Animal Nutrition correspondence course through Oklahoma State. While, I'm not currently enrolled there, I'm having trouble figuring out how to list it in my schools attended and coursework sections. Any ideas?

Also.. I know it says to include all honors and awards you have received beginning with high school. I received a lot of awards in high school, to the point where it seems excessive. I was just wondering if I should include everything or exclude some stuff.

When you go to send in transcripts, what school will the transcript for that class come from? That's the school you should list as attended for that class.

As far as honors/awards ... I'd list pretty much all of it.

 

[asg02009]

In the experiences section of the VMCAS application, what does the little 'This experience does not apply' box refer to? Does it mean that it doesn't apply to vet school in general?

Thanks

 

[Kpowell14]

In the experiences section of the VMCAS application, what does the little 'This experience does not apply' box refer to? Does it mean that it doesn't apply to vet school in general?

Thanks

I was wondering about that as well!

 

[equineconstant]

In the experiences section of the VMCAS application, what does the little 'This experience does not apply' box refer to? Does it mean that it doesn't apply to vet school in general?

Thanks

I believe it's what you put to fill in a section where you don't have experience. Like if you never had a job you'd click the Does not apply box for work experience. Not sure though because all the types of experience applied to me.

 

[485501]

I believe it's what you put to fill in a section where you don't have experience. Like if you never had a job you'd click the Does not apply box for work experience. Not sure though because all the types of experience applied to me.

I agree, I'm pretty sure you only tick that box if you don't have any experience of that type.

 

[bannanababy146]

Hi! I was wondering if I should include something in the "explanation statement" portion of VMCAS. I very recently decided to pursue vet med, in October of last year. I feel that I have acquired a fair amount of veterinary and animal experience in the past few months (it will be almost 500 hours), but compared to other students this is nothing. Should I write a few paragraphs in that section explaining my lack of hours? In my personal statement I definitely talk about how I just made the decision to switch career paths to vet recently....but since the personal statement has very limited space I did not get a chance to explain it in depth at all. If you could give me your opinion on what you think I'd appreciate it!!

 

[Fly Racing]

Hi! I was wondering if I should include something in the "explanation statement" portion of VMCAS. I very recently decided to pursue vet med, in October of last year. I feel that I have acquired a fair amount of veterinary and animal experience in the past few months (it will be almost 500 hours), but compared to other students this is nothing. Should I write a few paragraphs in that section explaining my lack of hours? In my personal statement I definitely talk about how I just made the decision to switch career paths to vet recently....but since the personal statement has very limited space I did not get a chance to explain it in depth at all. If you could give me your opinion on what you think I'd appreciate it!!

I would not. It will draw negative attention to your hours and many people apply with much less. The explaination statement is not for excuses: "but I just switched to pre vet a year ago" and more for facts that aren't appropriately reflected elsewhere: "I missed 3 semesters due to cancer treatment". Having low hours because you just changed your mind is more of a negative than just letting your hours stand as is!

Plenty of people get in with 500 hours!

 

[Trilt]

Hi! I was wondering if I should include something in the "explanation statement" portion of VMCAS. I very recently decided to pursue vet med, in October of last year. I feel that I have acquired a fair amount of veterinary and animal experience in the past few months (it will be almost 500 hours), but compared to other students this is nothing. Should I write a few paragraphs in that section explaining my lack of hours? In my personal statement I definitely talk about how I just made the decision to switch career paths to vet recently....but since the personal statement has very limited space I did not get a chance to explain it in depth at all. If you could give me your opinion on what you think I'd appreciate it!!

If you can do it in a very positive light - ie "I've jumped head first into the veterinary career and accumulated 500 hours in 9 months, and I bring X skills from my former interests" - as opposed to "I know I don't have many hours BUT..." you could, but I really see that as something that can be explained and discussed in your personal statement. I came to the vet field pretty late and definitely talked about my journey to it (and beyond) in my PS.

 

[kakurubird]

I would not. It will draw negative attention to your hours and many people apply with much less. The explaination statement is not for excuses: "but I just switched to pre vet a year ago" and more for facts that aren't appropriately reflected elsewhere: "I missed 3 semesters due to cancer treatment". Having low hours because you just changed your mind is more of a negative than just letting your hours stand as is!

Plenty of people get in with 500 hours!

Especially if you show elsewhere in your application (and have a letter to reflect it, perhaps) that you didn't have just 500 hours, you had 500 QUALITY hours that taught you something and that have left you with a better understanding of the profession.
The experience hours aren't just who can get the most number of hours--it's more what do you get out of those hours and what did you learn from them and do you have an understanding of what you are getting yourself into.

 

[zanydogz]

Especially if you show elsewhere in your application (and have a letter to reflect it, perhaps) that you didn't have just 500 hours, you had 500 QUALITY hours that taught you something and that have left you with a better understanding of the profession.
The experience hours aren't just who can get the most number of hours--it's more what do you get out of those hours and what did you learn from them and do you have an understanding of what you are getting yourself into.

👍 Absolutely agree with this

Bananababy: If it helps, when I applied, I had about 500 hrs as well and I still got in. But, those 500 hours were spent with my vet mentoring me the whole way, getting tons of client communication experience, and really learning about the good and bad of the profession. It wasn't just "show up for work and count the hours". I really did work for those hours and really got something out of it. And I'm still working at the clinic on my breaks and off time to get more experience and really hone my communication skills.

 

[LetItSnow]

Seems like the best thread for this comment:

Don't forget to print out your application from VMCAS when you're done!!! (And/or keep an electronic copy.)

Since they still haven't figured out how to save data from year to year, you may want your info next year if you have to reapply!

Don't be a sucker and pay their $50 "administrative" fee to have them print and send you the info. (C'mon, VMCAS, that's outright gouging. What's it cost you to print, package, and mail someone's stuff? $5? Max? Maybe $10?)

 

[LetItSnow]

If you can do it in a very positive light - ie "I've jumped head first into the veterinary career and accumulated 500 hours in 9 months, and I bring X skills from my former interests" - as opposed to "I know I don't have many hours BUT..." you could, but I really see that as something that can be explained and discussed in your personal statement. I came to the vet field pretty late and definitely talked about my journey to it (and beyond) in my PS.

I like Trilt's focus: Make your recent change positive not by focusing on what you lack, but by what you bring to the table. You were doing something else with that time - find a way to make that speak well of you. Well said, Trilt.

As to whether to use the explanation statement - I wouldn't. I agree with Fly Racing.

 

[Trilt]

Seems like the best thread for this comment:

Don't forget to print out your application from VMCAS when you're done!!! (And/or keep an electronic copy.)

Since they still haven't figured out how to save data from year to year, you may want your info next year if you have to reapply!

Don't be a sucker and pay their $50 "administrative" fee to have them print and send you the info. (C'mon, VMCAS, that's outright gouging. What's it cost you to print, package, and mail someone's stuff? $5? Max? Maybe $10?)

It's not even printed/packaged/etc as far as I know - they say you just receive a PDF of it. Totally silly.

 

[LetItSnow]

It's not even printed/packaged/etc as far as I know - they say you just receive a PDF of it. Totally silly.

Wow. So they charge you $50 for someone to snag your data out of the database, PDF-ify it, and email it to you?

That practically defines gouging. Geez. It never even occurred to me that it'd be that bad - I assumed the cost was so high because they were sending you something physically in the mail.

 

[bannanababy146]

Thanks for all your advice! I'm definitely by going to put anything in that part of the application. In my personal statement I talk about my journey to my decision to vet school, so I do mention that I very recently decided to pursue it. I also talk about some of my past career paths and how I didn't feel the passion for them that I feel for vet med blah blah. I hope what I discuss about my experiences in my PS is enough to show schools that they are quality experiences, and I worked really hard l acquire the number of hours I have.

 

[zanydogz]

Thanks for all your advice! I'm definitely by going to put anything in that part of the application. In my personal statement I talk about my journey to my decision to vet school, so I do mention that I very recently decided to pursue it. I also talk about some of my past career paths and how I didn't feel the passion for them that I feel for vet med blah blah. I hope what I discuss about my experiences in my PS is enough to show schools that they are quality experiences, and I worked really hard l acquire the number of hours I have.

As long as you show it on your PS, I think you'll be fine. Good luck!

 

[zanydogz]

Wow. So they charge you $50 for someone to snag your data out of the database, PDF-ify it, and email it to you?

That practically defines gouging. Geez. It never even occurred to me that it'd be that bad - I assumed the cost was so high because they were sending you something physically in the mail.

😱 $50 for an email? That's outrageous!

 

[deli]

Would a year long, online course that's 3 semester credits be qualified as "Interim" and "Unit"? "Interim" and "Semester"?

Just seems strange putting semester when it actually ran from April to November (for me, at least).

 

[LetItSnow]

Would a year long, online course that's 3 semester credits be qualified as "Interim" and "Unit"? "Interim" and "Semester"?

Just seems strange putting semester when it actually ran from April to November (for me, at least).

Are there any hints on the transcript itself? If not, you could call VMCAS. Beyond that ... no clue. 🙂

 

[adams30]

Hey! So I'm working on refining the descriptions for my experience section of VMCAS and just want to make sure that I'm doing it correctly since the directions are a little vague.

I decided to do paragraph format rather than bullet points. This is an example of one of my paragraphs (for a vet in a small animal hospital that I have over 500 hours at)

"I helped with restraining certain animals, weighing, cleaning cages, cleaning ears, trimming nails, anal glands, and cleansing wounds. I learned how to palpate, determine body condition, why diagnostic tests are useful, and how to assess the overall health of the animal. I observed surgeries, ultrasound, vaccinations, venipuncture, dentals, euthanasia, writing medical records, emergencies, as well as interactions with owners and staff." (this is about 440 characters)

Would something like this be acceptable? Or does it sound cheesy/unprofessional at all?

My second question is, if you worked with two vets in the same practice and basically did the same duties with both those vets, would it look weird if the two paragraphs describing your duties was the same (or at least sounds very similar)?

Thanks! 🙂

 

[DVMDream]

Hey! So I'm working on refining the descriptions for my experience section of VMCAS and just want to make sure that I'm doing it correctly since the directions are a little vague.

I decided to do paragraph format rather than bullet points. This is an example of one of my paragraphs (for a vet in a small animal hospital that I have over 500 hours at)

"I helped with restraining certain animals, weighing, cleaning cages, cleaning ears, trimming nails, anal glands, and cleansing wounds. I learned how to palpate, determine body condition, why diagnostic tests are useful, and how to assess the overall health of the animal. I observed surgeries, ultrasound, vaccinations, venipuncture, dentals, euthanasia, writing medical records, emergencies, as well as interactions with owners and staff." (this is about 440 characters)

Would something like this be acceptable? Or does it sound cheesy/unprofessional at all?

My second question is, if you worked with two vets in the same practice and basically did the same duties with both those vets, would it look weird if the two paragraphs describing your duties was the same (or at least sounds very similar)?

Thanks! 🙂

That sounds rather similar to what I put on my application, so I don't really see a problem with it. I also worked at many different vet clinics so I just kind of copied and pasted the general description into the section for each vet clinic. I then thought about if there was something I did at one clinic that I did not do at another just to make them slightly different.

 

[kakurubird]

My second question is, if you worked with two vets in the same practice and basically did the same duties with both those vets, would it look weird if the two paragraphs describing your duties was the same (or at least sounds very similar)?

Thanks! 🙂

Are they separate enough experiences that there's a real reason to list them as separate experiences? If they aren't, it seems superfluous to me to list them separately and distinct experiences.
I have a description of everything I've done at the practice where I work with the practice owner/head vet in the veterinarian field and then I've listed the other vets I work with at the end of my description.

 

[adams30]

That sounds rather similar to what I put on my application, so I don't really see a problem with it. I also worked at many different vet clinics so I just kind of copied and pasted the general description into the section for each vet clinic. I then thought about if there was something I did at one clinic that I did not do at another just to make them slightly different.

okay thank you! I do have a journal where I recorded specific things I did (like I helped remove the sutures from a hematoma in a cat's ear today. or I helped remove an abscess on a cow's foot today) but since we only have 480 characters it seems like we have to be very general.

 

[DVMDream]

okay thank you! I do have a journal where I recorded specific things I did (like I helped remove the sutures from a hematoma in a cat's ear today. or I helped remove an abscess on a cow's foot today) but since we only have 480 characters it seems like we have to be very general.

Exactly, they are looking for general tasks that you did day to day instead of specific experiences. I also agree with kakuru, if you worked at this same clinic but with two different doctors there should not be any need to put them in as separate experiences. I worked at a 4 doctor practice and only put down one of the doctor's names. I did not even mention the other doctors that worked there. Two of the doctors from that clinic wrote me a LOR and 2 of the doctors from another clinic I worked at (again only put the owner's name on the experience section) wrote me a LOR. Kind of pointless to put in the experience twice just to have a different doctor's name on it. Also, takes up too many characters to put it into the description of duties.

 

[adams30]

Are they separate enough experiences that there's a real reason to list them as separate experiences? If they aren't, it seems superfluous to me to list them separately and distinct experiences.
I have a description of everything I've done at the practice where I work with the practice owner/head vet in the veterinarian field and then I've listed the other vets I work with at the end of my description.

They were pretty much the same experiences. 2 large animal vets at the same practice and we did similar things.

That is a good idea about listing the other vet's name. Right now I have the experience listed under the practice owner's name but I could say something like

"worked with 2 veterinarians at this practice ......"

 

[adams30]

I have participated in several wet labs that were run by veterinarians but I'm not sure whether to put them under veterinary experience or community activities because for all of them they only lasted a couple hours long, one of them was an avian radiology wet lab where an avian vet showed us how to interpret radiographs. One was where vet students taught us how to examine large animals (we worked with actual large animals and a veterinary professor was walking around to help us out). Another was a visit with a zoo vet who showed us around his clinic, etc. but we didn't do any clinical skills or hands on stuff, he just talked about what zoo vets do. I didn't really have any "duties" per say at these wet labs to fill out in the "description of duties" section of VMCAS; so this is why I'm not sure where to place them.

I figured this would be useful information to add to my experiences but I'm just not sure where to put them under. Sorry if this seems like a silly question.

 

[LetItSnow]

I figured this would be useful information to add to my experiences but I'm just not sure where to put them under. Sorry if this seems like a silly question.

I would definitely include them under veterinary experiences. For the description of 'duties', just talk about what you saw/experienced/did.

 

[adams30]

I would definitely include them under veterinary experiences. For the description of 'duties', just talk about what you saw/experienced/did.

Thanks - just wanted to make sure 🙂

 

[Kpowell14]

Ok, so I worked for a big chain pet store for 4 years and held 4 different titles/ roles while I was there. My question is, do I list this as one experience or separate experiences..
My roles:
1. Customer Service- helping owners pick foods, toys, fitting harnesses/collars etc.
2. Pet care associate- dealing with everything involved with Pocket Pets, Birds, reptiles, fish
3. Pet care lead- leadership role in Pet Care, while also doing all things pet care related
4. Accredited Dog Trainer - taught Puppy, Beginner, Advanced, trick, and potty training classes, go to person for obedience & training related questions

Also, what section do National Honor societies go? I've already asked the student hotline and they said either the Honors/ award section or community/extracurricular section.. Which didn't help me much bc I already knew it would be one of the two lol. I can see reasons why it should be in either of the two sections, so not sure exactly where to put them.

Any input on this would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!!

 

[LetItSnow]

Ok, so I worked for a big chain pet store for 4 years and held 4 different titles/ roles while I was there. My question is, do I list this as one experience or separate experience..
My roles:
1. Customer Service- helping owners pick foods, toys, fitting harnesses/collars etc.
2. Pet care associate- dealing with everything involved with Pocket Pets, Birds, reptiles, fish
3. Pet care lead- leadership role in Pet Care, while also doing all things pet care related
4. Accredited Dog Trainer - taught Puppy, Beginner, Advanced, trick, and potty training classes, go to person for obedience & training related questions

Any input on this would be greatly appreciated!

As you moved through the roles, was it considered stepping 'up' the ladder (as in being promoted), or was it just moving around and trying different things?

If it was the former, I'd list the last position held, and then I'd make sure to note in the description that you were repeatedly promoted through several positions that involved X, Y, and Z responsibilities.

If it was the latter, I'm not sure what I'd do. 🙂