- Joined
- Apr 16, 2019
- Messages
- 87
- Reaction score
- 127
Hey everyone! Looking to get some feedback on what my application will look like as this coming cycle will be my first attempt. I'm an Oregon resident - at this point I was thinking I'd just apply to OSU my first time around, since I've tailored my classes to them (taken a lot of pre-reqs through their Ecampus program).
Cumulative GPA: 3.9 (calculated with the VMCAS tool)
I haven't calculated my science GPA but I think it's about the same, maybe slightly lower (3.85ish?)
GRE (Q/V): 157/162. This was what I scored on my first practice test before starting to study - I take the real thing in January and after studying I'm guessing it will either stay roughly the same or go up. Practice test didn't include the analytical writing score.
Veterinary Experience
~1300 hours as a vet assistant at a small animal/exotics hospital (caseload was probably 70% SA/30% exotics).
~100 hours vet assistant at another small animal GP
~60 hours vet assistant in ER
~100 hours volunteer vet assistant at a shelter spay/neuter clinic
-One day (8hr) shadowing mobile mixed animal practitioner
-In January I will be starting to volunteer once a week as a vet assistant at a free GP clinic for houseless folks. They are 6 hour days, so roughly 24 hours/month which means I'll have about 200 hours there by the end of August 2021.
Animal Experience
~300 hours as an adoption counselor for an animal shelter (client education!)
Extracurriculars
Since 2018 I've been part of an advocacy group facilitating professional development trainings for K-12 teachers and administration focusing on how to support queer/trans students in schools. Tons of public speaking and getting through to people who really don't want to hear what you have to say - I feel like this experience has made me a lot more confident when speaking to those irate clients. Planning on highlighting that aspect of this experience if I get an essay question about diversity.
Employment
Besides the vet assisting jobs, I worked in retail selling sporting goods for a year.
My Concerns
My time through college has been a bit out of the ordinary - I was super burnt out and struggling with some mental health issues after graduating high school, and ended up withdrawing from my first term at college. I went back full time in the spring at a school closer to home, but ended up leaving that school too after finishing the semester. I took a year off and worked full time which is when I accumulated most of the vet hours, but I was knocking out some of my prerequisites online through Oregon State's Ecampus program (which they highlight as an option on the vet school's admissions page). This past fall was my first quarter back in school full time. I'm worried that this will make it seem as though I can't handle a heavy academic load. I'm loading up my quarters from here on out in the hopes of offsetting that (this fall I took 19 credits) but it still worries me. Are my mental health issues my first two years after high school something I should address in any sort of explanatory statement?
I'm also a bit worried about letters of recommendation. I know I will have a strong letter from the veterinarian/practice owner with whom I accumulated 1300 hours of experience. The other two letters I'm struggling with. The academic reference I had planned on getting taken care of this year, as my previous classes have mostly been online, but obviously COVID is putting a damper on that. I have someone who I think I could ask from my freshman year in college, but the class he taught was Ethics in Healthcare - not totally unrelated, but also not a hard science class. Would it be better to ask a professor who taught a science class online, or a non-science in person professor?
Overall I'm hoping for some feedback about whether I'll be a competitive in-state applicant for Oregon State, as well as if there are any other schools I should put on my list (any that for sure accept online prerequisites). Thanks in advance everyone!
Cumulative GPA: 3.9 (calculated with the VMCAS tool)
I haven't calculated my science GPA but I think it's about the same, maybe slightly lower (3.85ish?)
GRE (Q/V): 157/162. This was what I scored on my first practice test before starting to study - I take the real thing in January and after studying I'm guessing it will either stay roughly the same or go up. Practice test didn't include the analytical writing score.
Veterinary Experience
~1300 hours as a vet assistant at a small animal/exotics hospital (caseload was probably 70% SA/30% exotics).
~100 hours vet assistant at another small animal GP
~60 hours vet assistant in ER
~100 hours volunteer vet assistant at a shelter spay/neuter clinic
-One day (8hr) shadowing mobile mixed animal practitioner
-In January I will be starting to volunteer once a week as a vet assistant at a free GP clinic for houseless folks. They are 6 hour days, so roughly 24 hours/month which means I'll have about 200 hours there by the end of August 2021.
Animal Experience
~300 hours as an adoption counselor for an animal shelter (client education!)
Extracurriculars
Since 2018 I've been part of an advocacy group facilitating professional development trainings for K-12 teachers and administration focusing on how to support queer/trans students in schools. Tons of public speaking and getting through to people who really don't want to hear what you have to say - I feel like this experience has made me a lot more confident when speaking to those irate clients. Planning on highlighting that aspect of this experience if I get an essay question about diversity.
Employment
Besides the vet assisting jobs, I worked in retail selling sporting goods for a year.
My Concerns
My time through college has been a bit out of the ordinary - I was super burnt out and struggling with some mental health issues after graduating high school, and ended up withdrawing from my first term at college. I went back full time in the spring at a school closer to home, but ended up leaving that school too after finishing the semester. I took a year off and worked full time which is when I accumulated most of the vet hours, but I was knocking out some of my prerequisites online through Oregon State's Ecampus program (which they highlight as an option on the vet school's admissions page). This past fall was my first quarter back in school full time. I'm worried that this will make it seem as though I can't handle a heavy academic load. I'm loading up my quarters from here on out in the hopes of offsetting that (this fall I took 19 credits) but it still worries me. Are my mental health issues my first two years after high school something I should address in any sort of explanatory statement?
I'm also a bit worried about letters of recommendation. I know I will have a strong letter from the veterinarian/practice owner with whom I accumulated 1300 hours of experience. The other two letters I'm struggling with. The academic reference I had planned on getting taken care of this year, as my previous classes have mostly been online, but obviously COVID is putting a damper on that. I have someone who I think I could ask from my freshman year in college, but the class he taught was Ethics in Healthcare - not totally unrelated, but also not a hard science class. Would it be better to ask a professor who taught a science class online, or a non-science in person professor?
Overall I'm hoping for some feedback about whether I'll be a competitive in-state applicant for Oregon State, as well as if there are any other schools I should put on my list (any that for sure accept online prerequisites). Thanks in advance everyone!
