WAMC - 1st time applicant, non-trad, semi-low GPA

[ilovelotls]

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27yo mom, first time applicant, took 5 years off between undergrad and applying to vet school. Only applying to Michigan State (I own a house and have my family here, I have to put all my eggs in one basket). Currently work in ECCM and interested in that and exotics.

Cumulative GPA: 3.54
science GPA: 3.23
last 45: 3.73

Bachelor of Science in Zoology
(concentrations in Animal Behavior/Neurobiology & Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology)

GRE results: none

Veterinary Experience:
- 500 hours remote veterinary assistant/CSR triaging over the phone
- 400 hours assisting in ICU of my kennel tech job
- 20 hours shadowing a large animal veterinarian
- currently working as a vet asst in my in state vet school’s ECCM dept; will have roughly 1000+ hours when I apply

Animal Experience:
- 3200 hours as a kennel technician
- 360 hours in wildlife rehab
- 200 hours as a kitten foster
- 20 hours shadowing a marine biologist at an AZA aquarium
- 100? Hours of pet sitting/dog walking through Wag!

Research Experience:
- assisted with collecting data on fish fry locomotion in PFAS infected water
- research collecting data on weevil larva infestations in oak trees on campus

Awards/scholarships:
$500 award from a local bank to help with my unpaid internship
$1000 award towards tuition for having decent grades for 2 semesters

Extracurriculars:

• Photographer
• STARS club in high school
• Fear free certified

-

Employment:
- ICU vet assistant current; 11/2024-now
- Remote vet assistant/CSR for 6 months; 2021-22
- Wildlife rehab intern for a summer; 2019
- Kennel tech for 2 years; 2016-18
- Tanning salon sales associate for 1.5 years; 2015-16; 2018
- Salon receptionist for 6 months; 2014

 

[_rae_]

I have no specific advice for Michigan, so I would check through previous forums to see what kinds of things they put emphasis on (I just didn't want you to sit without an answer). Your last 45 is fine, your cumulative is low end of competitive but still there, and obviously the science GPA is the kicker. Any chance you could retake any science class you got less than a B in? A quick google search shows Michigan does grade replacement, meaning they'll only consider your final grade in a course retake instead of averaging them out.

Otherwise, you have experience, you have research, your other GPAs are alright; focus heavily on your essay and your letters of recommendation, and consider retaking courses if you can. Good luck!

 

[pp9]

27yo mom, first time applicant, took 5 years off between undergrad and applying to vet school. Only applying to Michigan State (I own a house and have my family here, I have to put all my eggs in one basket). Currently work in ECCM and interested in that and exotics.

Cumulative GPA: 3.54
science GPA: 3.23
last 45: 3.73

Bachelor of Science in Zoology
(concentrations in Animal Behavior/Neurobiology & Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology)

GRE results: none

Veterinary Experience:
- 500 hours remote veterinary assistant/CSR triaging over the phone
- 400 hours assisting in ICU of my kennel tech job
- 20 hours shadowing a large animal veterinarian
- currently working as a vet asst in my in state vet school’s ECCM dept; will have roughly 1000+ hours when I apply

Animal Experience:
- 3200 hours as a kennel technician
- 360 hours in wildlife rehab
- 200 hours as a kitten foster
- 20 hours shadowing a marine biologist at an AZA aquarium
- 100? Hours of pet sitting/dog walking through Wag!

Research Experience:
- assisted with collecting data on fish fry locomotion in PFAS infected water
- research collecting data on weevil larva infestations in oak trees on campus

Awards/scholarships:
$500 award from a local bank to help with my unpaid internship
$1000 award towards tuition for having decent grades for 2 semesters

Extracurriculars:

• Photographer
• STARS club in high school
• Fear free certified

-

Employment:
- ICU vet assistant current; 11/2024-now
- Remote vet assistant/CSR for 6 months; 2021-22
- Wildlife rehab intern for a summer; 2019
- Kennel tech for 2 years; 2016-18
- Tanning salon sales associate for 1.5 years; 2015-16; 2018
- Salon receptionist for 6 months; 2014

I'm a bit confused - this is your third WAMC post with basically identical information. What are you hoping to hear that hasn't already been said? It's good that you've significantly upped your experience hours, which will help of course, but otherwise nothing else has changed.

 

[ilovelotls]

I'm a bit confused - this is your third WAMC post with basically identical information. What are you hoping to hear that hasn't already been said? It's good that you've significantly upped your experience hours, which will help of course, but otherwise nothing else has changed.

I genuinely didn’t know my other posts had responses / wanted more input