WAMC: Florida to Midwest OOS applicant?

[arialexis]

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22-year-old female, Florida resident, traditional applicant, 2nd time applying

Applying to: Purdue, Michigan State, Illinois, Lincoln Memorial, Iowa State, Virginia Tech, Mizzou
Cumulative GPA: 3.48
Last 45 GPA: 3.24
Science GPA: 3.29

GRE: taking this summer

Degree: graduating with a B.S. in Integrative Animal Biology in Fall 2020

Vet experience:
- 4000+ hours as a small animal & exotic vet tech
- 90 hours as a vet tech on a mobile small animal hospital
- 60 hours as a foal sitter, shadow, & tech assistant at a 24-hour equine hospital in Ocala
- 16 hours as a bovine/wildlife vet shadow
- 8 hours as a vet tech in a small animal ER hospital

Animal experience:
- 900+ hours as a full-time curator assistant at a wildlife facility in Indiana helping care for their bison herd (including coordinating vet visits with Purdue vets)
- 900+ hours as a full-time intern for summer 2019 at a wildlife facility in Indiana working with wolves, foxes, & bison and helping hand-raise two baby grey fox kits
- 960 hours as a dog bather at petsmart grooming salon in early years of college
- 650 hours riding horses/barrel racing throughout childhood-high school
- 300+ hours as a humane society canine volunteer throughout high school
- 300+ hours petsitting/dog walking
- 60 hours as farmhand on a miniature horse farm
- 30 hours as a wildlife volunteer at a local crocodile/reptile center

Extracurriculars:
- Pre-Veterinary Society/PVMA member (between 2 different schools)
- Equestrian team at my school
- Gaelic Athletic Association

Non-animal employment:
- Fine dining restaurant (high school)
- Burger restaurant (high school)

Awards/Scholarships/Certificates:
- Dean’s List
- Presidential scholarship
- Women’s Leadership scholarship
- Certified in Gauged CO2 Remote Drug Delivery & gun safety for cattle & wild hoofstock

LORs:
- 4 small animal vets I have worked with for 2-3 years
- 1 public health professor who I have a good relationship with & got an A in the class
- 1 internship director from my internships at the wildlife facility

Ultimately, I know GPA will be a huge obstacle for me. I am likely to boost my last 45 GPA due to my summer classes, and am putting my all into my essays and GRE this summer. I have tried to be wise with which schools I am applying to, but ultimately I still have a lower GPA and I understand that most schools do not simply overlook that. I also realize that applying as an OOS applicant is an uphill battle. Purdue is my dream school as I was born & raised in Indiana and love Purdue’s atmosphere. If anyone has any advice or perspective on applying to the schools I have chosen, please feel free to respond!



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[paytoncorey]

I think you have a lot of very valuable experience, and your gpa is still competitive!

 

[WildZoo]

Hard to say without knowing how much your last 45 will be boosted...will the classes you're taking also count towards your science GPA? Are there any you could retake? Did you do file reviews after your previous application cycle?

Your experiences are really great so I think looking at schools that evaluate applicants more holistically is a good idea! Missouri may be a reach but I understand having it on your list from a financial perspective. Is there a reason you're not applying to your IS?

 

[arialexis]

Hard to say without knowing how much your last 45 will be boosted...will the classes you're taking also count towards your science GPA? Are there any you could retake? Did you do file reviews after your previous application cycle?

Your experiences are really great so I think looking at schools that evaluate applicants more holistically is a good idea! Missouri may be a reach but I understand having it on your list from a financial perspective. Is there a reason you're not applying to your IS?

Thanks for your response!! To answer your questions, I believe one of my fall classes can count toward my science GPA. I only applied to two schools last cycle - I honestly probably applied way too early last cycle, and that plus a lower GPA did not get me anywhere. I plan on doing a file review this summer with the two schools I applied to last year to see what improvements they’d recommend!

I agree with you, Mizzou is probably a reach! But I like that it’s closer to my friends & family than other schools on my list, and the potential to gain residency is hard to resist. Figured it was at least worth a shot! Overall, my goal was to get out of Florida after undergrad, but after finally coming around and accepting that MAYBE applying in-state wasn’t such a bad idea... I looked at UF’s requirements & saw that they don’t allow C-‘s in prerequisite classes. I unfortunately have one ugly C- in a prerequisite class (Organic Chem II) and could potentially retake it in the spring as a post-bacc student. However unfortunately since I can’t retake it before the end of the summer, it won’t help me much with this application cycle.


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[WildZoo]

Thanks for your response!! To answer your questions, I believe one of my fall classes can count toward my science GPA. I only applied to two schools last cycle - I honestly probably applied way too early last cycle, and that plus a lower GPA did not get me anywhere. I plan on doing a file review this summer with the two schools I applied to last year to see what improvements they’d recommend!

I agree with you, Mizzou is probably a reach! But I like that it’s closer to my friends & family than other schools on my list, and the potential to gain residency is hard to resist. Figured it was at least worth a shot! Overall, my goal was to get out of Florida after undergrad, but after finally coming around and accepting that MAYBE applying in-state wasn’t such a bad idea... I looked at UF’s requirements & saw that they don’t allow C-‘s in prerequisite classes. I unfortunately have one ugly C- in a prerequisite class (Organic Chem II) and could potentially retake it in the spring as a post-bacc student. However unfortunately since I can’t retake it before the end of the summer, it won’t help me much with this application cycle.


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I gotcha, that makes sense. It seems to me like you're on the right track to give yourself the best shot possible. Really nail your essays and make sure you have excellent letters to support your application. Good that you are doing file reviews too especially if you are reapplying to those schools. Good luck!

 

[Amanasoul]

I think you have a pretty decent shot at Purdue! Purdue has really been focusing on applicants with very diverse experience and you certainly seem to have that. GPA-wise, you do still fall within the GPA range from the successful applicant pool for the last few years. 🙂

 

[battie]

For Illinois, your biggest hurdle will be phase 1 where they go over your objective numbers. This cycle they are waiving the GRE requirement as a btws, but if you get to take it and you do well on it, definitely submit it cause it can only help at that point. You should shine in Phase 2 as long as your essays are well written and you have solid letters of recommendation.

 

[arialexis]

I think you have a pretty decent shot at Purdue! Purdue has really been focusing on applicants with very diverse experience and you certainly seem to have that. GPA-wise, you do still fall within the GPA range from the successful applicant pool for the last few years. 🙂

Thank you for responding!! This at least gives me some hope! 🙂 Boiler up!


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[arialexis]

For Illinois, your biggest hurdle will be phase 1 where they go over your objective numbers. This cycle they are waiving the GRE requirement as a btws, but if you get to take it and you do well on it, definitely submit it cause it can only help at that point. You should shine in Phase 2 as long as your essays are well written and you have solid letters of recommendation.

Thank you so much for your insight!! I definitely agree that phase 1 will be my biggest obstacle. I take the GRE on Sunday and feel okay about it, so I definitely will submit my scores if they are up to standard for Illinois!


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