WAMC?

[naivevetstudent]

Hi! I’m a third year, Hispanic male student studying Integrative Animal Biology at USF. I currently have a 3.57 GPA and am a resident assistant on campus, but have no applicable vet experience, due to the pandemic really limiting my opportunities in the area. I had grade forgiveness used as I originally failed Organic Chemistry (online due to pandemic) but I retook it and got an A+. I also haven't taken any placement exams yet, such as the GRE, but I plan to in the coming months.

Realistically I know experience is going to be a big deciding factor for me. However, should I consider a gap year to bolster that? My only real option for “affordable” schooling is UF as it’s my only in state option. I understand that internships are vital, and therefore, I want to make sure I have more than "just" a year, as I am assuming that that may not fit the bill for many schools.

Are there any other tips I should be looking into? I plan to attend my universities career fairs moving forward, but I have still had little luck finding animal related internships. Are there any routes I can consider for that experience? Is private practice alright? Thanks!

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[EngrSC]

I think your biggest hinderance is going to be the lack of veterinary hours. It doesn’t sound like UF has a set requirement as far as hours go, though I’m not sure how you’d get a vet LOR without vet experience. I’m also not sure how you’d write essays without veterinary experience.

Your cumulative GPA seems fine but last 45 and science/prereq GPAs are also important. And what are your extracurriculars like? What is your animal experience? Etc, etc. Last I heard UF had moved to a more holistic evaluation process so your chances there will be somewhat dependent on the other things you’ve done in your life

And here’s some info per UF’s admissions page:

Veterinary Experience​

The University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicinedoes not have a minimum requirement for veterinary experience. Veterinary experience should reflect a wide range of responsibilities and quality of experiences rather than quantity of hours. We recommend that applicants be exposed to both large and small animal clinical practices before applying to our program under the supervision of veterinarians. This will give them an opportunity to shadow or work with a veterinarian and ultimately obtain letters of reference which are an important part of the application process. Research is also a valuable form of experience and working in a research environment as an undergraduate or graduate student may also help to develop skills important to veterinary medicine.

Professional References​

The University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine requires three strong professional references with at least one from a veterinarian. Committee references are accepted but not from family members.

 

[EngrSC]

Also, applying to vet school is expensive as heck. Whether or not you choose to take a gap year is a very personal decision … but I personally wouldn’t apply until I felt confident I was submitting my best application possible.

 

[naivevetstudent]

I think your biggest hinderance is going to be the lack of veterinary hours. It doesn’t sound like UF has a set requirement as far as hours go, though I’m not sure how you’d get a vet LOR without vet experience. I’m also not sure how you’d write essays without veterinary experience.

Your cumulative GPA seems fine but last 45 and science/prereq GPAs are also important. And what are your extracurriculars like? What is your animal experience? Etc, etc. Last I heard UF had moved to a more holistic evaluation process so your chances there will be somewhat dependent on the other things you’ve done in your life

And here’s some info per UF’s admissions page:

Veterinary Experience​

The University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicinedoes not have a minimum requirement for veterinary experience. Veterinary experience should reflect a wide range of responsibilities and quality of experiences rather than quantity of hours. We recommend that applicants be exposed to both large and small animal clinical practices before applying to our program under the supervision of veterinarians. This will give them an opportunity to shadow or work with a veterinarian and ultimately obtain letters of reference which are an important part of the application process. Research is also a valuable form of experience and working in a research environment as an undergraduate or graduate student may also help to develop skills important to veterinary medicine.

Professional References​

The University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine requires three strong professional references with at least one from a veterinarian. Committee references are accepted but not from family members.

Thanks so much for your response. I'm new here, so I did, regretfully, forget to mention that I am a student starting my third-year of undergrad, so I do have roughly 3 full semesters before I graduate, and then the rest of this current one. My extracurriculars are weak, again being online for a while and whatnot. I have volunteered at my local humane society for quite some time, but I understand that does little due to not real /medical/ experience. Thanks so much once again!

 

[battie]

1. Wait until you feel you have the best application you can have.
2. Keep you GPA up. While schools are becoming relatively more holistic, grades that are higher are helpful. So don't do ECs that will risk your grades.
3. All ECs help. So put down your RA hours (I was an RA for 2 years and an RD for 1 year; I talked about my residence life experience more than anything else in vet school interviews); those humane society hours do matter as well (ask to shadow/work with the veterinary staff). Part of any other clubs? They count.
4. If you decide to take the gap year, try to get shadow/volunteer/paid positions in a couple of different areas of vet med. They don't have to be internships/externships. All my pre-vet vet med hours were paid technician assistant positions or shadowing hours.

 

[jmiam2]

Hi! I’m a third year, Hispanic male student studying Integrative Animal Biology at USF. I currently have a 3.57 GPA and am a resident assistant on campus, but have no applicable vet experience, due to the pandemic really limiting my opportunities in the area. I had grade forgiveness used as I originally failed Organic Chemistry (online due to pandemic) but I retook it and got an A+. I also haven't taken any placement exams yet, such as the GRE, but I plan to in the coming months.

Realistically I know experience is going to be a big deciding factor for me. However, should I consider a gap year to bolster that? My only real option for “affordable” schooling is UF as it’s my only in state option. I understand that internships are vital, and therefore, I want to make sure I have more than "just" a year, as I am assuming that that may not fit the bill for many schools.

Are there any other tips I should be looking into? I plan to attend my universities career fairs moving forward, but I have still had little luck finding animal related internships. Are there any routes I can consider for that experience? Is private practice alright? Thanks!

Call all your local vets to see if they offer any shadowing. I volunteer at CMA which is great animal experience. It’s out there, you just have to call.