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What are my chances?

  • Great!

    Votes: 12 8.8%
  • Good, but some areas could be improved

    Votes: 28 20.6%
  • You're a pretty average candidate, so it could go either way

    Votes: 21 15.4%
  • Not great, but there's room for improvement

    Votes: 7 5.1%
  • Have you considered under water basket weaving?

    Votes: 68 50.0%

  • Total voters
    136
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Also I wold need to find somewhere to shadow
Go to local clinics (dressed nicely and prob with a resume too) and ask in person versus cold calling. You're more likely to get a (positive) response if you go in person versus just calling around and asking and having them "get back to you"

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I was rejected by both schools that I applied to this year and would like some advice on how to improve. I think my low GRE and little clinical experience is what killed me. I would also like to know if I should re-apply next cycle or if it would be more beneficial to take an additional year off to gain more experience.

Female, 21
Undergraduate institution: Kansas State
Major: Animal Science
cGPA: 3.475
sGPA: 3.19
Last 45: Hopefully 3.6 or 3.7 after this semester

GRE: Too terrible to post online, will be retaking

Veterinary Experience:
~ 30 hours shadowing small animal vets (3 clinics)
~ 40 hours shadowing large animal vet
**I have the hardest time finding vets to shadow. They're either too busy, or tell me they will get back to me and never do. I would love to take a position as a veterinary assistant for my off-year. I'm curious how everyone got an assistant position. Did you apply for it, or did you shadow long enough they just made you an assistant?

Animal Experience:
~ 200 hours working as dog grooming assistant
- Owned fish breeding business (2 years)- bred show quality fish, had customers from almost every state in U.S.
~ 200 hours volunteering at animal shelter (cats, dogs, exotics)
~ 50 hours training horse for showmanship competition
~ 60 hours training goat for showmanship
~ 30 hours training dairy cow for showmanship
~ 100 hours of horseback riding (plus some horse care)
- Own and trained various exotic animals
- Currently taking lambing class, so I'll have hours to add for this
- Animal CPR and First-Aid certified by Red Cross

Extracurriculars:
- Owned cheerleading bow business - 2 years
- Coached tumbling classes (unpaid) ~ 10 hours
~ 850 hours working as cashier

Honors/Awards:
- Denison Scholarship
- Ag Scholarship
- NHS
- Dean's list - multiple semesters

Research:
~ 1000+ hours of swine vaccine research - 3 different viruses with 3 different research teams

Schools:
Preferably ones in the Midwest - University of Illinois (IS) and Kansas State are my top 2, but I plan to apply to more

My main focus for my year off will be to gain more clinical experience. I hope to gain a full time position in a clinic so I can boost my hours. I also plan to do more volunteering at shelters, as well as non-animal volunteer work. I would like to take Ochem 1 & 2 so I will be eligible to apply to more schools. What else can I do to improve my chances? Thank you in advance!

I wanted to update my stats to get a better idea of my chances.

Female, 22
Undergraduate institution: Kansas State
Major: Animal Science
cGPA: 3.55
sGPA: 3.19 (nothing lower than a B)
Last 45: 3.75

GRE: Retaking, hoping for at least 65 percentile

Veterinary Experience (at time of application process):
~ 600 hours working as vet tech in small animal clinic - will work here up until vet school
~ 30 hours shadowing small animal vets (3 clinics)
~ 40 hours shadowing large animal vet
** I'm looking for an exotic vet to shadow 1-2x per week, so hopefully I'll have about 150 hours of exotic animal experience before applications are due

Animal Experience:
~ 150 hours working at wildlife rescue - will work here up until vet school
~ 200 hours working as dog grooming assistant
- Owned fish breeding business (2 years)- bred show quality fish, had customers from almost every state in U.S.
~ 300 hours volunteering at animal shelter (cats, dogs, exotics)
~ 50 hours training horse for showmanship competition
~ 60 hours training goat for showmanship
~ 30 hours training dairy cow for showmanship
~ 100 hours of horseback riding (plus some horse care)
~ 15 hours of cattle artificial insemination
~ 10 hours lambing
- Own and trained various exotic animals
- Animal CPR and First-Aid certified by Red Cross

Extracurriculars:
- Owned cheerleading bow business - 2 years
- Coached tumbling classes (unpaid) ~ 10 hours
~ 850 hours working as cashier

Honors/Awards:
- Denison Scholarship
- Ag Scholarship
- NHS
- Dean's list - multiple semesters

Research:
~ 1200+ hours of swine vaccine research - 3 different viruses with 3 different research teams

Schools:
University of Illinois (IS), Kansas State, The Ohio State, Oklahoma State, Texas A&M, Iowa State, Purdue, University of Wisconsin

I still think that my experience hours are lower than most. If I find an exotic animal vet to shadow, I won't have any extra time to get other experiences. I'm currently working as a vet tech and will start working at the wildlife rescue once a week.
 
I wanted to update my stats to get a better idea of my chances.

Female, 22
Undergraduate institution: Kansas State
Major: Animal Science
cGPA: 3.55
sGPA: 3.19 (nothing lower than a B)
Last 45: 3.75

GRE: Retaking, hoping for at least 65 percentile

Veterinary Experience (at time of application process):
~ 600 hours working as vet tech in small animal clinic - will work here up until vet school
~ 30 hours shadowing small animal vets (3 clinics)
~ 40 hours shadowing large animal vet
** I'm looking for an exotic vet to shadow 1-2x per week, so hopefully I'll have about 150 hours of exotic animal experience before applications are due

Animal Experience:
~ 150 hours working at wildlife rescue - will work here up until vet school
~ 200 hours working as dog grooming assistant
- Owned fish breeding business (2 years)- bred show quality fish, had customers from almost every state in U.S.
~ 300 hours volunteering at animal shelter (cats, dogs, exotics)
~ 50 hours training horse for showmanship competition
~ 60 hours training goat for showmanship
~ 30 hours training dairy cow for showmanship
~ 100 hours of horseback riding (plus some horse care)
~ 15 hours of cattle artificial insemination
~ 10 hours lambing
- Own and trained various exotic animals
- Animal CPR and First-Aid certified by Red Cross

Extracurriculars:
- Owned cheerleading bow business - 2 years
- Coached tumbling classes (unpaid) ~ 10 hours
~ 850 hours working as cashier

Honors/Awards:
- Denison Scholarship
- Ag Scholarship
- NHS
- Dean's list - multiple semesters

Research:
~ 1200+ hours of swine vaccine research - 3 different viruses with 3 different research teams

Schools:
University of Illinois (IS), Kansas State, The Ohio State, Oklahoma State, Texas A&M, Iowa State, Purdue, University of Wisconsin

I still think that my experience hours are lower than most. If I find an exotic animal vet to shadow, I won't have any extra time to get other experiences. I'm currently working as a vet tech and will start working at the wildlife rescue once a week.
If I were you I would prioritize the veterinary experience over the animal experience. So say you have the chance to work with an exotics vet, but it conflicts with the wildlife rehab work - better to get those vet hours. Might want to see if you could get some more large animal exposure too, but that is something that can be very school dependent - whether they appreciate variety of experience or depth of experience more.

You did a good job with showing an upward trend - the last 45 GPA is a big improvement. I would look into the evaluation process for each of the schools you're applying to and make sure they fit well with your numbers. I think if you work hard to improve your GRE scores you've got a decent shot.

Unfortunately I didn't apply to any of the schools you're applying to so I don't have much insight there, but you could look around in the school specific threads for more info there.

Did you do file reviews at the schools that rejected you?
 
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I wanted to update my stats to get a better idea of my chances.

Female, 22
Undergraduate institution: Kansas State
Major: Animal Science
cGPA: 3.55
sGPA: 3.19 (nothing lower than a B)
Last 45: 3.75

GRE: Retaking, hoping for at least 65 percentile

Veterinary Experience (at time of application process):
~ 600 hours working as vet tech in small animal clinic - will work here up until vet school
~ 30 hours shadowing small animal vets (3 clinics)
~ 40 hours shadowing large animal vet
** I'm looking for an exotic vet to shadow 1-2x per week, so hopefully I'll have about 150 hours of exotic animal experience before applications are due

Animal Experience:
~ 150 hours working at wildlife rescue - will work here up until vet school
~ 200 hours working as dog grooming assistant
- Owned fish breeding business (2 years)- bred show quality fish, had customers from almost every state in U.S.
~ 300 hours volunteering at animal shelter (cats, dogs, exotics)
~ 50 hours training horse for showmanship competition
~ 60 hours training goat for showmanship
~ 30 hours training dairy cow for showmanship
~ 100 hours of horseback riding (plus some horse care)
~ 15 hours of cattle artificial insemination
~ 10 hours lambing
- Own and trained various exotic animals
- Animal CPR and First-Aid certified by Red Cross

Extracurriculars:
- Owned cheerleading bow business - 2 years
- Coached tumbling classes (unpaid) ~ 10 hours
~ 850 hours working as cashier

Honors/Awards:
- Denison Scholarship
- Ag Scholarship
- NHS
- Dean's list - multiple semesters

Research:
~ 1200+ hours of swine vaccine research - 3 different viruses with 3 different research teams

Schools:
University of Illinois (IS), Kansas State, The Ohio State, Oklahoma State, Texas A&M, Iowa State, Purdue, University of Wisconsin

I still think that my experience hours are lower than most. If I find an exotic animal vet to shadow, I won't have any extra time to get other experiences. I'm currently working as a vet tech and will start working at the wildlife rescue once a week.

I agree with WZ on focusing on your vet experience. If you have any classes left, keep that last 45 up!

I applied and was wait listed to K-State several times and was accepted to Illinois with stats mostly worse than yours. With that being said, the applicant pools are getting larger and more competitive while schools are getting choosier. I do think you stand a decent chance with both Kansas and Illinois, especially if you bump those vet experience hours up.
 
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I was also a non-traditional student, which is why I started this website: Start a career in Veterinary Medicine. Read the interviews.
It's goal is to provide hope and enlightenment to prospective students. It is an interview blog and will feature 1 new interview per week with Vet students and Veterinarians on "how they got in" Some questions that I ask are "what types of experience?", "GRE scores?", GPA, and lots of others.
I am also ALWAYS looking for new questions to add to Interview. Please submit any potential questions through my contact form. I would love to hear from anyone!
 
20 years old, female, Texas resident, first time applicant
Applying to TAMU, Kansas, & Oklahoma… what other schools should I apply to?

Degree: B.S. in Animal Science at Texas A&M
Cumulative GPA: 3.67
Last 45 GPA: 3.79
Science GPA: ~3.67

GRE: Registered for July 8th

Veterinary Experience (155 hours)
- 106 hours at small animal ER
- 22 hours at small animal clinic GP
- 27 hours at equine hospital

Animal Experience (296 hours)
- 100 hours of pet ownership (max. allowed for A&M but I’ve had three dogs for 8 years. One with heart worms and FHO surgery, another with a sprained tail after chasing cat in backyard)
- 12 hours with horses
- 2 hours with goats
- 4 hours with chickens (feeding mainly, but sometimes I helped my grandma pick up the eggs)
- 20 hours working with sheep (11 hours of watching pregnant ewes during the night, giving vaccinations, tail docking, identifying BCS, identifying age based on teeth, bottle feeding lambs, necropsies)
- ***took care of my brother’s dog approx. 150 hours (only counted 1 hr. per day)– brushing her, feeding, walking her, and making sure she didn’t escape while she was in heat. Can I include this or should this be left out?
- ***8 hours caring for a stray dog while in Panama when I was younger
- Planned: 60 hours minimum at wildlife center, 60 hours minimum at animal shelter

Leadership/extracurricular:
- 1 year of a Christian organization (42 hours)
- 3 years of Pre-Vet Society (general member, but wasn’t really involved – 40 hours)
- 3 years of band (240 hours of class + 12 hours’ worth of concerts + 12 hours’ worth of required out of class practice = 264 hours)

Work Experience
- 2 years as a Resident Advisor (21 hrs. per week, 40 weeks per year) ~ 1680 hours with another 840 hours by the end of December

Honors/Awards:
- 11 scholarships
- Distinguished Member in Pre-Vet Society: Spring 2015
- 2 Reslife awards
- Dean’s Honor Roll

Community Service (32 hours)
- 14 hours at football and softball concession stands
- 8 hours at Big Event
- 4 hours at Voices for Children
- 6 hours at Vet School Open house

Letters of Recommendation:
- SA veterinarian from ER
- Supervisor from work
- Supervisor from work

My concerns: I have low experience for everything basically because I didn’t get a car until this past August. Previously, I’ve had to rely on my sister and my parents for transportation which sucked badly. Plus, I live in a big metropolitan city and everything is so far away so I couldn’t walk anywhere. Since I have a car and free time, I’m doing everything I can to gather as much experience as I can. I have sent my resume to a couple clinics but haven't heard back. I also applied to work at a couple of clinic. Any advice?

GPA is pretty good and should be competitive to average for all of these schools. You already know this but your hours are way low if you're planning on applying this cycle. You should be focusing all your efforts on getting more vet hours by the time you apply (and doing well on the GRE obv). Keep in mind that vet and research hours are weighted considerably more on your app than animal hours. One thing to note, and others may disagree with this, but I personally wouldn't put anything in my animal exp hours that I didn't have at least 30 hours in. Ultimately, I think putting something like "2 hours with goats" just looks like trying to fill up space on the app.
 
Honest chances of getting in--
cgpa 3.38
last 60 credits 3.5
science gpa 3.48
Gre scores : 156 verbal 157quant
I also worked 2 part time jobs on campus while going to school full time.
I worked at a mixed small animal and exotics hospital full time for over 3years, becoming a technician after 1 and becoming a technician supervisor for the last 2 years I was there. I left to try to expand my resume and have been working at IDEXX for almost 8 months now as a hematology technician doing manual cbc differentials and found that I love it and want to pursue clinical pathology. I realize my gpa is on the low end and that my gre scores need to be improved (retaking them in two months). There is nothing else I want to do, but I am nervous about the prospects of getting in. I want to apply smart and give myself the best chances of getting in. Is there any advice on how to approach this or find out which schools I would best be suited for/have the best chances of getting in?
 
Honest chances of getting in--
cgpa 3.38
last 60 credits 3.5
science gpa 3.48
Gre scores : 156 verbal 157quant
I also worked 2 part time jobs on campus while going to school full time.
I worked at a mixed small animal and exotics hospital full time for over 3years, becoming a technician after 1 and becoming a technician supervisor for the last 2 years I was there. I left to try to expand my resume and have been working at IDEXX for almost 8 months now as a hematology technician doing manual cbc differentials and found that I love it and want to pursue clinical pathology. I realize my gpa is on the low end and that my gre scores need to be improved (retaking them in two months). There is nothing else I want to do, but I am nervous about the prospects of getting in. I want to apply smart and give myself the best chances of getting in. Is there any advice on how to approach this or find out which schools I would best be suited for/have the best chances of getting in?
Where are you a resident and what schools do you have in mind? You have your last 60 credits but what about your last 45? What that means is take all the grades from the past 3-4 semesters that add up to a minimum of 45 credits (it can be more). Your cGPA looks a little low so I would recommend looking at schools that favor last 45 and science GPA because those look better. From this I would recommend Iowa and Kansas off the top of my head.
 
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Where are you a resident and what schools do you have in mind? You have your last 60 credits but what about your last 45? What that means is take all the grades from the past 3-4 semesters that add up to a minimum of 45 credits (it can be more). Your cGPA looks a little low so I would recommend looking at schools that favor last 45 and science GPA because those look better. From this I would recommend Iowa and Kansas off the top of my head.

thanks! I live in NJ and the last 60 is the last 45 gpa. The schools I had in mind included minnesota, florida, midwestern, and oklahoma based on their average gpa of accepted students. My dream would be Cornell because I love their veterinary program (after reading and talking to several students that went there) but I don't think it's realistic for me to reach that high.
 
thanks! I live in NJ and the last 60 is the last 45 gpa. The schools I had in mind included minnesota, florida, midwestern, and oklahoma based on their average gpa of accepted students. My dream would be Cornell because I love their veterinary program (after reading and talking to several students that went there) but I don't think it's realistic for me to reach that high.

I second adding Iowa and Kansas to your list for last 45 strength. What do your hours add up to? What other experiences are on your application? Who do you have writing letters for you? I think it's do-able even with a relatively lower cGPA but you're going to need the other parts of your application to shine.
 
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I second adding Iowa and Kansas to your list for last 45 strength. What do your hours add up to? What other experiences are on your application? Who do you have writing letters for you? I think it's do-able even with a relatively lower cGPA but you're going to need the other parts of your application to shine.


Unfortunately the communications class I took do not qualify for the required "speech" classes for Iowa and Kansas, so they are out of my list. My references come from 2 veterinarians from my one practice (one is internationally known for his breakthrough procedure for TCCs), from a science professor in college whom I was close with, and my supervisor at my current job. I've been working full time since college so experience hours are over 10,000 (8,000 veterinary, 2,000+ animal). my other experiences/volunteer are few and far between, with no "real" large animal experience. I've know for a while that large animal is not for me. Other highlights are employee of the year as a tech supervisor, a member of Tri Beta (national biology honors society, was a bio major with a minor in history), a mentor for our SAACS club on campus, volunteering for beach clean ups and other small volunteer projects.
 
GPA is pretty good and should be competitive to average for all of these schools. You already know this but your hours are way low if you're planning on applying this cycle. You should be focusing all your efforts on getting more vet hours by the time you apply (and doing well on the GRE obv). Keep in mind that vet and research hours are weighted considerably more on your app than animal hours. One thing to note, and others may disagree with this, but I personally wouldn't put anything in my animal exp hours that I didn't have at least 30 hours in. Ultimately, I think putting something like "2 hours with goats" just looks like trying to fill up space on the app.

@shee-p I had two 2-hour experiences on my application and it didn't seem to hurt me. I might have had one or two other experiences of <50 hours. Of course longer experiences are better, but I don't think there's anything wrong with listing short ones. Especially since you're pretty light on hours and getting rid of short experiences would mean you're only left with SA animal experience, I recommend listing everything you've got. As long as you don't have so many tiny things that they're clogging up your app, if adcoms want to ignore them, they can do so- I can't imagine it hurting you.

I would maybe cut out the stray dog in Panama experience depending on what you were actually doing and how long ago it was.

Keep in mind that some schools don't count pet ownership as animal experience. I'm not saying don't list it. Just be aware that some schools will actually view your animal experience hours as 196.

I didn't apply to any of the schools you mentioned so I can't give much specific advice, but definitely check the LOR requirements. Most schools want a reference from a professor or academic advisor.

As for experience, just keep trying! There are a bunch of threads on here about how to find a place to shadow or volunteer. You can mention your car issue in the explanation statement, but be prepared for the possibility of interview questions about why you couldn't take the bus/walk/bike or why you didn't get more hours once you got a car.
 
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Unfortunately the communications class I took do not qualify for the required "speech" classes for Iowa and Kansas, so they are out of my list. My references come from 2 veterinarians from my one practice (one is internationally known for his breakthrough procedure for TCCs), from a science professor in college whom I was close with, and my supervisor at my current job. I've been working full time since college so experience hours are over 10,000 (8,000 veterinary, 2,000+ animal). my other experiences/volunteer are few and far between, with no "real" large animal experience. I've know for a while that large animal is not for me. Other highlights are employee of the year as a tech supervisor, a member of Tri Beta (national biology honors society, was a bio major with a minor in history), a mentor for our SAACS club on campus, volunteering for beach clean ups and other small volunteer projects.

Is there any way you can get in a course that would qualify for that requirement? I ask because with a lower cGPA you'll want to apply as broadly as you can.

And just as an aside, large animal experience isn't just for those interested in large animal :) It's to demonstrate that you have an understanding of the other parts of vet med (the very public-visible parts and the parts that people outside the profession tend to ask you about, even if you only do SA.)
 
I am a senior and applying to vet school for the first time. While I have a high GPA (3.9) and am not worried about that, I have tried to scour the internet for students that have been successfully accepted into vet school with a lower number of hours and found nothing. I have about 1500 vet/research hours, and less than 200 animal hours. I read about people freaking out over having thousands of hours and a 3.3 GPA, but I feel like admissions committees would value the experience and knowledge over the GPA.

What are my chances in your opinions?
 
I am a senior and applying to vet school for the first time. While I have a high GPA (3.9) and am not worried about that, I have tried to scour the internet for students that have been successfully accepted into vet school with a lower number of hours and found nothing. I have about 1500 vet/research hours, and less than 200 animal hours. I read about people freaking out over having thousands of hours and a 3.3 GPA, but I feel like admissions committees would value the experience and knowledge over the GPA.

What are my chances in your opinions?

There's an appropriate thread labeled "What are my chances?" but honestly, 1500 veterinary hours is nothing close to "low" in hours. You're fine.
 
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1500 is not a low amount of vet/research hours, it's about average. All you should worry about animal hours is hitting the bare minimum, assuming the schools you're applying to have one.
 
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I'm not sure if this is the right place since I'm not applying until next year, but I want opinions on where I'm at and how to improve.

I'm in my junior year, 3.91 GPA, NY resident

Vet Experience:
~1,000 hours SA clinic vet shadowing that turned in to a paid position
~ 10 hrs so far LA ride along, will be getting more hours with this over the summer (very hard to find LA vets in my area)

Animal experience:
~1,000+ raising sheep/pigs/chickens/turkeys/ducks on family farm (do I count this?)
~30 volunteer with wildlife rehab
~30 horse barn volunteer, used to have a horse when I was little but I don't know if I should count that
~10 observing/ working with wild birds in various capacities

Research
~60 working on histology of mussels
~15 helping with amphibian field data collection

Extracurriculars
VP of school's pre-vet club
Wind Ensemble
Flute Choire
City Band

Awards
A bunch of small awards, president's list all semesters, a few scholarships, HS salutatorian

I have 2 vets that I know will write good letters, and two professors right now, this may change in a year though

I really feel like I am behind on experience hours compared to accepted students threads, and am also questioning which schools I should apply to... Right now I am thinking Cornell, Tufts, Virginia-Maryland, and Colorado

Any input is very appreciated, becoming a vet is something I want really badly and any advice on how to improve myself would be great
 
If I were you I would prioritize the veterinary experience over the animal experience. So say you have the chance to work with an exotics vet, but it conflicts with the wildlife rehab work - better to get those vet hours. Might want to see if you could get some more large animal exposure too, but that is something that can be very school dependent - whether they appreciate variety of experience or depth of experience more.

You did a good job with showing an upward trend - the last 45 GPA is a big improvement. I would look into the evaluation process for each of the schools you're applying to and make sure they fit well with your numbers. I think if you work hard to improve your GRE scores you've got a decent shot.

Unfortunately I didn't apply to any of the schools you're applying to so I don't have much insight there, but you could look around in the school specific threads for more info there.

Did you do file reviews at the schools that rejected you?
Thank for the feedback! I have already committed to volunteering at the wildlife clinic once a week. It is a veterinary clinic for wildlife, so I'm not sure if I could also put this as vet experience. I'm still on the hunt for an exotics vet to shadow to up my hours and animal diversity.

I know a lot of applicants have 1000+ hours of vet experience, but do schools look at quality of the experience or quantity more? I've learned so much more as a vet tech than I ever did shadowing.

Unfortunately, I did not file reports with the schools. Is it possible to still do this over e-mail/phone? I know my Illinois rejection was because of my GRE score. I didn't even make it past phase one (grades/GRE evaluation). I did interview with Kansas State, and I assumed my GRE and low hours are what hurt me most.
 
I agree with WZ on focusing on your vet experience. If you have any classes left, keep that last 45 up!

I applied and was wait listed to K-State several times and was accepted to Illinois with stats mostly worse than yours. With that being said, the applicant pools are getting larger and more competitive while schools are getting choosier. I do think you stand a decent chance with both Kansas and Illinois, especially if you bump those vet experience hours up.
I've already graduated, so my GPAs are what I'll be applying with. I may take a class or two at a different college, but I'm not sure how they'll factor into my GPA.

Illinois is my in-state, so I'm hoping to get in there. K-State would be my number 1 if their OOS tution wasn't so dang high.
 
Unfortunately, I did not file reports with the schools. Is it possible to still do this over e-mail/phone? I know my Illinois rejection was because of my GRE score. I didn't even make it past phase one (grades/GRE evaluation). I did interview with Kansas State, and I assumed my GRE and low hours are what hurt me most.

You should still be able to do file reviews with schools. It certainly doesn't hurt to ask. I would ask all of them what the problems were, even if you're pretty sure what went wrong.
 
I'm not sure if this is the right place since I'm not applying until next year, but I want opinions on where I'm at and how to improve.

I'm in my junior year, 3.91 GPA, NY resident

Vet Experience:
~1,000 hours SA clinic vet shadowing that turned in to a paid position
~ 10 hrs so far LA ride along, will be getting more hours with this over the summer (very hard to find LA vets in my area)

Animal experience:
~1,000+ raising sheep/pigs/chickens/turkeys/ducks on family farm (do I count this?)
~30 volunteer with wildlife rehab
~30 horse barn volunteer, used to have a horse when I was little but I don't know if I should count that
~10 observing/ working with wild birds in various capacities

Research
~60 working on histology of mussels
~15 helping with amphibian field data collection

Extracurriculars
VP of school's pre-vet club
Wind Ensemble
Flute Choire
City Band

Awards
A bunch of small awards, president's list all semesters, a few scholarships, HS salutatorian

I have 2 vets that I know will write good letters, and two professors right now, this may change in a year though

I really feel like I am behind on experience hours compared to accepted students threads, and am also questioning which schools I should apply to... Right now I am thinking Cornell, Tufts, Virginia-Maryland, and Colorado

Any input is very appreciated, becoming a vet is something I want really badly and any advice on how to improve myself would be great

In my opinion, you already have really good stats. If you have all the necessary prerequisites, why not apply this year? I was accepted to VA-MD with very similar GPA (assuming your last 45 GPA and science GPA are also high) and experience hours. You even have research experience that I did not have.

Speaking specifically to applying to VA-MD, they basically rank everyone who has more than 300 experience hours equally (per the head of admissions) so you're more than good in that department. They are also no longer requiring the GRE to apply, nor are they requiring letters of recommendation. That's at least one school you'd have a good shot at I'd think!

Oh, and you can definitely count the hours from your family farm. The director of admissions at VA-MD said to only count animal experience hours where you were able to be primarily responsible for them, so I wouldn't count the horse when you were little.
 
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Go to local clinics (dressed nicely and prob with a resume too) and ask in person versus cold calling. You're more likely to get a (positive) response if you go in person versus just calling around and asking and having them "get back to you"

You're right, I just need to take a day and do that- but again, time is really my constraint here aha...
 
I'm not sure if this is the right place since I'm not applying until next year, but I want opinions on where I'm at and how to improve.

I'm in my junior year, 3.91 GPA, NY resident

Vet Experience:
~1,000 hours SA clinic vet shadowing that turned in to a paid position
~ 10 hrs so far LA ride along, will be getting more hours with this over the summer (very hard to find LA vets in my area)

Animal experience:
~1,000+ raising sheep/pigs/chickens/turkeys/ducks on family farm (do I count this?)
~30 volunteer with wildlife rehab
~30 horse barn volunteer, used to have a horse when I was little but I don't know if I should count that
~10 observing/ working with wild birds in various capacities

Research
~60 working on histology of mussels
~15 helping with amphibian field data collection

Extracurriculars
VP of school's pre-vet club
Wind Ensemble
Flute Choire
City Band

Awards
A bunch of small awards, president's list all semesters, a few scholarships, HS salutatorian

I have 2 vets that I know will write good letters, and two professors right now, this may change in a year though

I really feel like I am behind on experience hours compared to accepted students threads, and am also questioning which schools I should apply to... Right now I am thinking Cornell, Tufts, Virginia-Maryland, and Colorado

Any input is very appreciated, becoming a vet is something I want really badly and any advice on how to improve myself would be great
I agree with @love2hunt! With your hours & GPA you will have a good chance to get in if you have all of your pre-reqs done or will have them done in the next 2 semesters.

For any of the schools you want to apply to that require the GRE you could use the summer to study and take the test by the beginning of August. You should definitely consider it if you are able to :)
 
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Hello all! I'm new to this forum and had a couple of questions regarding a Vet career.

I'm 32 years old and live in Brooklyn, NY. I attended Penn State as an English major and was shy of 23 credits to graduate as I moved back home to help my family. I've wanted to become a Vet since I was a young child as I have a passion for all animals. So I decided to stop delaying and get the process started, but after reading through many threads, I don't know where to start.

I'm willing to move and establish residency anywhere, but want to know how I can prepare myself for this new career change.

I want a small classroom setting and tons of hands on training, which schools would best suit my needs? I also don't want to end up with enormous debt, I know I'll have debt when I graduate, but would like to try and keep costs at a minimum without jeopardizing my education.

Any advice would be sincerely appreciated.

Thank you!!!
 
I want a small classroom setting and tons of hands on training, which schools would best suit my needs? I also don't want to end up with enormous debt, I know I'll have debt when I graduate, but would like to try and keep costs at a minimum without jeopardizing my education.

How small of a setting are you thinking? As far as I know, all schools have the students of each class take their core classes together. So at the smallest, there'd be ~85 people/core class (If Oregon is still the smallest class size; I might be remembering wrong). Ohio would have ~160.
 
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24 years old, female, North Dakota resident, first time applicant.
I am non-traditional- hated my life working for a year and went back to school, I am also a military spouse with some serious limitations to where I was able to take my pre-reqs.

Degree: B.S. in Business Administration, Post-Bacc Pre-vet reqs
Cumulative GPA: 3.134
Last 45 GPA: 3.63
Science GPA: 3.16 ( really brought down by my only 2 science grades i got as a freshman in college, my science gpa since going back to school would be 3.57)

GRE:
Verbal: 153
Quant: 158

Veterinary Experience (393 hours)
~ 175 hours- small animal- surgery/lab observation
~ 120 hours- small/exotic animal clinic
~ 98 hours- exotic - zoo vet

Animal Experience (1428 hours)
- 420 hours-Seasonal Zoo Keeper working with Carnivores/Primates primarily. Some hours with Hoofstock/north american mammals/reptiles
- 60 hours - working at the horse barn while a camp counselor
- 12 hours- animal humane society
- 936 hours- free pet-sitting for single military members (seems silly to have pet-sitting, but job requires them to be absent for almost 36 hours at a time making pet ownership difficult)

Leadership/extracurricular:
- Sorority- 4 years member, 1 yr assistant officer, 1 yr executive officer (>5000 hrs)
- Student Alumni Association member (40 hours)
- Alumni Association member (20 hours)
- Minot Young Professionals (70 hours)
- Pre-Vet Club (70 hours)
- Officer Spouse Club member (20 hours)

Work Experience
- Registrar Intern at local zoo- (212 hours)
- Organic Chemistry Research Student Assistant- (162 hours)
- State HR Coordinator (~1680 hours)
- Recruiting/Operations Intern at IT recruiting company (480 hours)

Honors/Awards:
- Deans list multiple semesters
- Selected as sorority representative at Southeast Panhellenic Conference (2013)
- Selected as Research Presenter at American Chemical Society Regional Meeting

Community Service (260 hours)
- 50 hours with Autism Speaks Event Volunteer/Sponsor Recruiter
- 180 hours Volunteer Event Coordinator for military squadron
- 30 hours State Fair Security Volunteer (2015/2016)

Letters of Recommendation:
- SA/Exotic vet
- Research Professor
- zoo curator

Would really love some feedback and i have some additional questions
-Will they be able to tell that my last 45 gpa makes up the majority of my science gpa and my science gpa is only low due to the 2 poor science grades received as a freshman 6 years ago?
- Should I try to take the GRE again to improve my verbal? I might be able to pull it up a little bit, but its really not my strong suit. Don't really have a lot of time to put aside for studying.
- At the first vet office it was 8 doctors on rotation, and I don't really have a reference because the only doc that somewhat got to know me probably couldn't remember my name due to the fact he asked the same questions everytime I went in and then went oh yeah I think I've asked that before. I guess they had a lot of students come in and out and didn't really care to get to know any them (very unsocial environment). But what do I do as a reference? I dont want them calling, and they be like I dont know, I cant really remember her especially since it is the largest amount of hours.
-as a zoo keeper i work directly with the animals practically the entire shift, and I have it listed as animal experience, should i also include it as work experience?
 
24 years old, female, North Dakota resident, first time applicant.
I am non-traditional- hated my life working for a year and went back to school, I am also a military spouse with some serious limitations to where I was able to take my pre-reqs.

Degree: B.S. in Business Administration, Post-Bacc Pre-vet reqs
Cumulative GPA: 3.134
Last 45 GPA: 3.63
Science GPA: 3.16 ( really brought down by my only 2 science grades i got as a freshman in college, my science gpa since going back to school would be 3.57)

GRE:
Verbal: 153
Quant: 158

Veterinary Experience (393 hours)
~ 175 hours- small animal- surgery/lab observation
~ 120 hours- small/exotic animal clinic
~ 98 hours- exotic - zoo vet

Animal Experience (1428 hours)
- 420 hours-Seasonal Zoo Keeper working with Carnivores/Primates primarily. Some hours with Hoofstock/north american mammals/reptiles
- 60 hours - working at the horse barn while a camp counselor
- 12 hours- animal humane society
- 936 hours- free pet-sitting for single military members (seems silly to have pet-sitting, but job requires them to be absent for almost 36 hours at a time making pet ownership difficult)

Leadership/extracurricular:
- Sorority- 4 years member, 1 yr assistant officer, 1 yr executive officer (>5000 hrs)
- Student Alumni Association member (40 hours)
- Alumni Association member (20 hours)
- Minot Young Professionals (70 hours)
- Pre-Vet Club (70 hours)
- Officer Spouse Club member (20 hours)

Work Experience
- Registrar Intern at local zoo- (212 hours)
- Organic Chemistry Research Student Assistant- (162 hours)
- State HR Coordinator (~1680 hours)
- Recruiting/Operations Intern at IT recruiting company (480 hours)

Honors/Awards:
- Deans list multiple semesters
- Selected as sorority representative at Southeast Panhellenic Conference (2013)
- Selected as Research Presenter at American Chemical Society Regional Meeting

Community Service (260 hours)
- 50 hours with Autism Speaks Event Volunteer/Sponsor Recruiter
- 180 hours Volunteer Event Coordinator for military squadron
- 30 hours State Fair Security Volunteer (2015/2016)

Letters of Recommendation:
- SA/Exotic vet
- Research Professor
- zoo curator

Would really love some feedback and i have some additional questions
-Will they be able to tell that my last 45 gpa makes up the majority of my science gpa and my science gpa is only low due to the 2 poor science grades received as a freshman 6 years ago?
- Should I try to take the GRE again to improve my verbal? I might be able to pull it up a little bit, but its really not my strong suit. Don't really have a lot of time to put aside for studying.
- At the first vet office it was 8 doctors on rotation, and I don't really have a reference because the only doc that somewhat got to know me probably couldn't remember my name due to the fact he asked the same questions everytime I went in and then went oh yeah I think I've asked that before. I guess they had a lot of students come in and out and didn't really care to get to know any them (very unsocial environment). But what do I do as a reference? I dont want them calling, and they be like I dont know, I cant really remember her especially since it is the largest amount of hours.
-as a zoo keeper i work directly with the animals practically the entire shift, and I have it listed as animal experience, should i also include it as work experience?

Where are you planning on applying? It looks like North Dakota is part of WICHE and also has contract seats with Iowa State, so you should definitely look into those schools.

I don't have any experience with WICHE or Iowa State so I can't give much specific advice (sorry!) but I'll try to answer your questions:

Will they be able to tell that my last 45 gpa makes up the majority of my science gpa and my science gpa is only low due to the 2 poor science grades received as a freshman 6 years ago?

Yep! They will see every class you ever took and when you took it. There is also an explanation section on VMCAS where you can explain reasons for poor grades

- Should I try to take the GRE again to improve my verbal? I might be able to pull it up a little bit, but its really not my strong suit. Don't really have a lot of time to put aside for studying.

Maybe? This depends, in part, on where you'll be applying. Your GPAs are low and your vet hours are low, so it would be nice to have a strong GRE score for balance. However, if you don't have time to study it may not be worth it. Don't assume that without studying your score will go up- it could even go down!

- At the first vet office it was 8 doctors on rotation, and I don't really have a reference because the only doc that somewhat got to know me probably couldn't remember my name due to the fact he asked the same questions everytime I went in and then went oh yeah I think I've asked that before. I guess they had a lot of students come in and out and didn't really care to get to know any them (very unsocial environment). But what do I do as a reference? I dont want them calling, and they be like I dont know, I cant really remember her especially since it is the largest amount of hours.

Not sure if you're talking about letters of reference (LORs) or just listing a reference for an experience. Every school requires at least one recommendation (LOR) from a veterinarian. Do you have someone you could ask who would write you a strong one? If not, you need to find a way to get a good LOR from a vet. As for reference contact info, that's not a big deal. When you list experience in VMCAS you should put down the names and phone numbers of people you worked with or shadowed, but the majority of schools don't call (or only call to make sure your hours are accurate).

-as a zoo keeper i work directly with the animals practically the entire shift, and I have it listed as animal experience, should i also include it as work experience?


Nope, the work experience section is only for non-animal-related work experience. You have it right where it belongs.

 
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How small of a setting are you thinking? As far as I know, all schools have the students of each class take their core classes together. So at the smallest, there'd be ~85 people/core class (If Oregon is still the smallest class size; I might be remembering wrong). Ohio would have ~160.

I've been reading on the threads about people having small classes and the school wasn't mentioned so I thought someone from the thread might know. I'll do some research and call the schools I'm interested in to see if they can help me in the process. Thank you for your reply.
 
In my opinion, you already have really good stats. If you have all the necessary prerequisites, why not apply this year? I was accepted to VA-MD with very similar GPA (assuming your last 45 GPA and science GPA are also high) and experience hours. You even have research experience that I did not have.

Speaking specifically to applying to VA-MD, they basically rank everyone who has more than 300 experience hours equally (per the head of admissions) so you're more than good in that department. They are also no longer requiring the GRE to apply, nor are they requiring letters of recommendation. That's at least one school you'd have a good shot at I'd think!

Oh, and you can definitely count the hours from your family farm. The director of admissions at VA-MD said to only count animal experience hours where you were able to be primarily responsible for them, so I wouldn't count the horse when you were little.

Thank you for the positive feedback! I think I will wait for now because I wanted to get my bachelors (scholarships have made it so undergrad is basically free)... although the thought of getting in to vet school as soon as possible is very tempting. I will continue to build more experience this way too which will only help my chances
 
Hello all! I'm new to this forum and had a couple of questions regarding a Vet career.

I'm 32 years old and live in Brooklyn, NY. I attended Penn State as an English major and was shy of 23 credits to graduate as I moved back home to help my family. I've wanted to become a Vet since I was a young child as I have a passion for all animals. So I decided to stop delaying and get the process started, but after reading through many threads, I don't know where to start.

I'm willing to move and establish residency anywhere, but want to know how I can prepare myself for this new career change.

I want a small classroom setting and tons of hands on training, which schools would best suit my needs? I also don't want to end up with enormous debt, I know I'll have debt when I graduate, but would like to try and keep costs at a minimum without jeopardizing my education.

Any advice would be sincerely appreciated.

Thank you!!!

Small class size isn't really a thing in vet school because classes generally don't work the same way as you're used to in undergrad. Most schools have incorporated some smaller problem solving type classes as well but the vast majority of time in non-clinical years are going to be spent with 100 other people in a classroom.
Debt is unavoidable. The general formula for minimizing is simple: go to a public university that you have residency at. Unless you are willing to commit to years of your life post graduation for something like the USDA scholarships then you be in six figures of debt.
 
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Hello all! I'm new to this forum and had a couple of questions regarding a Vet career.

I'm 32 years old and live in Brooklyn, NY. I attended Penn State as an English major and was shy of 23 credits to graduate as I moved back home to help my family. I've wanted to become a Vet since I was a young child as I have a passion for all animals. So I decided to stop delaying and get the process started, but after reading through many threads, I don't know where to start.

I'm willing to move and establish residency anywhere, but want to know how I can prepare myself for this new career change.

I want a small classroom setting and tons of hands on training, which schools would best suit my needs? I also don't want to end up with enormous debt, I know I'll have debt when I graduate, but would like to try and keep costs at a minimum without jeopardizing my education.

Any advice would be sincerely appreciated.

Thank you!!!
Hello there!

First things first, if you are beginning this long trek to vet school, you need to start shadowing a vet if you haven't already! Getting as much diverse vet experience (food animal, small animal, equine, exotics, research, etc) is really important so you can get a feel for the opportunities in vet med and make sure this career is for you.

You might need to take a lot of the pre-reqs (biology, physics, general chemistry, organic chemistry, biochemistry) over again as a lot of schools might not accept classes after a certain amount of years passed.

Honestly, wherever you go to vet school will provide you with a great education. I was all for going to a small class size and early hands-on until I realized: 1) I go to a school with a decent (120) class size and I feel like we still give individual attention, still get a good case load in clinics, and still have that close-knit "family" as someone with a smaller (<100) class. 2) Most schools incorporate early hands-on now and the first few years are classroom based anyway, so in my opinion this sort of ("we get to touch animals the first semester OMG!!!!1!") thing is a little overplayed.

Going to the cheapest school (either going to an instate school or to a school that you can change residency after first year such as Mizzou, Ohio State, a few others) is a great idea as you will graduate a competent DVM either way.
 
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Alright, so I am a recent graduate from Stony Brook University (c/o 2017!)
22 y/o female Hispanic
Marine Science, minor Environmental Studies
3.36 GPA (Not incredible, I know.)
About 3.2 Science
*Started off with a 2.28, because my mom was diagnosed with terminal cancer, and underwent brain surgery. Pulled that up substantially over the next year. Was orphaned, but continued on the upward trajectory, which I am told is something to look out for.
Final 45 is about a 3.9, maybe slightly lower
200+ hours lab experience, should be about 400 after this summer
~100+ kennel/ dog breeding/ showing experience

Very possibly getting a job as a vet assistant while I take my remaining pre-reqs.

So what do you guys think my chances are?
(Any help is genuinely appreciated)
 
Alright, so I am a recent graduate from Stony Brook University (c/o 2017!)
22 y/o female Hispanic
Marine Science, minor Environmental Studies
3.36 GPA (Not incredible, I know.)
About 3.2 Science
*Started off with a 2.28, because my mom was diagnosed with terminal cancer, and underwent brain surgery. Pulled that up substantially over the next year. Was orphaned, but continued on the upward trajectory, which I am told is something to look out for.
Final 45 is about a 3.9, maybe slightly lower
200+ hours lab experience, should be about 400 after this summer
~100+ kennel/ dog breeding/ showing experience

Very possibly getting a job as a vet assistant while I take my remaining pre-reqs.

So what do you guys think my chances are?
(Any help is genuinely appreciated)

Do you have any veterinary experience? How about any club activities?

You do have a compelling story and that upward trend will certainly be a solid help. Depending on your overall application, schools like Kansas would be a good choice for you.
 
Do you have any veterinary experience? How about any club activities?

You do have a compelling story and that upward trend will certainly be a solid help. Depending on your overall application, schools like Kansas would be a good choice for you.


I was in Marching Band for four years
Pep band for four years
Four years Marine Science Club
Tecnically CSTEP for four years (not an active member)
 
Alright, so I am a recent graduate from Stony Brook University (c/o 2017!)
22 y/o female Hispanic
Marine Science, minor Environmental Studies
3.36 GPA (Not incredible, I know.)
About 3.2 Science
*Started off with a 2.28, because my mom was diagnosed with terminal cancer, and underwent brain surgery. Pulled that up substantially over the next year. Was orphaned, but continued on the upward trajectory, which I am told is something to look out for.
Final 45 is about a 3.9, maybe slightly lower
200+ hours lab experience, should be about 400 after this summer
~100+ kennel/ dog breeding/ showing experience

4 years Marching Band
1 year Marching Band leadership
4 Years Pep Band
1 year Community Outreach Committee Chair head
4 Years Marine Science club
Black Belt in Kung Fu



Very possibly getting a job as a vet assistant while I take my remaining pre-reqs.

So what do you guys think my chances are?
(Any help is genuinely appreciated)
 
Very possibly getting a job as a vet assistant while I take my remaining pre-reqs.

So what do you guys think my chances are?
(Any help is genuinely appreciated)
Definitely do need some vet hours, whether it's shadowing or working as a vet assistant etc, because you'll need a vet LOR for pretty much every school (though I hear VAMD isn't requiring them anymore?) and they want to see you know what you're getting yourself into.

What state are you a resident of? If they have a vet school, cheapest would probably be your state school, but if not they might have a contract with another school. Either way, having a state school or a contract school, you'd be competing against fewer applicants than the OOS pool.

How many prereqs do you have left? Definitely try to get the best grades you can in them to keep with the upward trend for your last 45 gpa
 
Definitely do need some vet hours, whether it's shadowing or working as a vet assistant etc, because you'll need a vet LOR for pretty much every school (though I hear VAMD isn't requiring them anymore?) and they want to see you know what you're getting yourself into.

What state are you a resident of? If they have a vet school, cheapest would probably be your state school, but if not they might have a contract with another school. Either way, having a state school or a contract school, you'd be competing against fewer applicants than the OOS pool.

How many prereqs do you have left? Definitely try to get the best grades you can in them to keep with the upward trend for your last 45 gpa

I'm from New York, and I believe I only have 3, maybe 4 pre-reqs left.
Would 1500hrs be sufficient?
 
I'm from New York, and I believe I only have 3, maybe 4 pre-reqs left.
Would 1500hrs be sufficient?
1500 hours is definitely a good goal! Are you planning on getting varied experience? I know equine and LA can be a bit difficult on Long Island, but there are definitely opportunities. All of my large animal experience I took care of while there. Also, definitely some opportunities for exotics on Long Island.
 
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I posted before about my chances but I am hoping for recommendations on what schools I can/should apply to. I can definitely post this somewhere else but I have seen people give advice on where to apply so I was thinking possibly someone could help. My cum GPA is about 3.86 and last 45 3.97. I haven't taken the GRE yet but am studying a lot with Magoosh. I expect a better Quant score then verbal as my vocab is pretty crappy. I have around 6-700 vet hours (need to go back and look at my records) with all but about 25 in small medicine. However I also have many with wildlife rehab and will be doing research with mice this summer.

I'm in state for Oregon so I will be applying there. I am also thinking NC, Missouri, and WSU. I am having difficulty finding any other schools that I can/should apply to. Many are out due to the price for OOS. I don't want to just add schools willy-nilly but it seems people think 4 is too small of a number. The VIN tool has OrSU at around 170k and I can't really justify applying to schools that would be nearly double the cost...

I would like to apply to UCD but can't because I have one semester of A&P which doesn't meet their requirement (and can't take the adjacent class in fall because I have to take 3-4 other science classes). Same applies for Ohio. I guess I should list the upper level bio classes I have taken to see if anyone knows off the top of their head a cheaper OOS school where I could apply. I've taken cell physiology and 1 semester of anatomy and physiology. I intend to take micro and genetics this fall. I have also taken calc and a number of humanities/social science classes. I haven't taken a speech class (possibly could?), animal nutrition (will take in Spring if NC state is looking good/possible), or designated English (but I received AP credits and have taken writing intensives at my LA school which I think would count. Thanks for any advice!
 
I posted before about my chances but I am hoping for recommendations on what schools I can/should apply to. I can definitely post this somewhere else but I have seen people give advice on where to apply so I was thinking possibly someone could help. My cum GPA is about 3.86 and last 45 3.97. I haven't taken the GRE yet but am studying a lot with Magoosh. I expect a better Quant score then verbal as my vocab is pretty crappy. I have around 6-700 vet hours (need to go back and look at my records) with all but about 25 in small medicine. However I also have many with wildlife rehab and will be doing research with mice this summer.

I'm in state for Oregon so I will be applying there. I am also thinking NC, Missouri, and WSU. I am having difficulty finding any other schools that I can/should apply to. Many are out due to the price for OOS. I don't want to just add schools willy-nilly but it seems people think 4 is too small of a number. The VIN tool has OrSU at around 170k and I can't really justify applying to schools that would be nearly double the cost...

I would like to apply to UCD but can't because I have one semester of A&P which doesn't meet their requirement (and can't take the adjacent class in fall because I have to take 3-4 other science classes). Same applies for Ohio. I guess I should list the upper level bio classes I have taken to see if anyone knows off the top of their head a cheaper OOS school where I could apply. I've taken cell physiology and 1 semester of anatomy and physiology. I intend to take micro and genetics this fall. I have also taken calc and a number of humanities/social science classes. I haven't taken a speech class (possibly could?), animal nutrition (will take in Spring if NC state is looking good/possible), or designated English (but I received AP credits and have taken writing intensives at my LA school which I think would count. Thanks for any advice!

I'm pretty sure UC Davis accepts online physiology courses. @Coopah did you say the one from University of New England worked? That class has rolling start dates so it would be a good choice if it's approved.

If your science GPA is close to your cumulative GPA and your quant GRE isn't too bad, you have an excellent chance of getting an interview there. Once you get to that stage, 100% of the decision is based on the interview and they don't care about vet hours as long as you're over the minimum, so I think it would be a good choice for you.

Your stats are very strong and I would be surprised if you didn't get into any of the four schools you mentioned, though I don't know much about what Oregon State likes to see. Your main issue is hours and diversity- both NC State and Missouri like to see at least three areas of vet med. If you keep working on hours, I think you'll be fine. If I were in your situation, I'd apply to the schools mentioned (including UC Davis), keep working on hours, and be open to possibly having to apply again. I don't think you'll have to, but I think since your GPAs are so strong, it makes more sense to apply twice than to go to a very expensive OOS school.
 
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I'm pretty sure UC Davis accepts online physiology courses. @Coopah did you say the one from University of New England worked? That class has rolling start dates so it would be a good choice if it's approved.

If your science GPA is close to your cumulative GPA and your quant GRE isn't too bad, you have an excellent chance of getting an interview there. Once you get to that stage, 100% of the decision is based on the interview and they don't care about vet hours as long as you're over the minimum, so I think it would be a good choice for you.

Your stats are very strong and I would be surprised if you didn't get into any of the four schools you mentioned, though I don't know much about what Oregon State likes to see. Your main issue is hours and diversity- both NC State and Missouri like to see at least three areas of vet med. If you keep working on hours, I think you'll be fine. If I were in your situation, I'd apply to the schools mentioned (including UC Davis), keep working on hours, and be open to possibly having to apply again. I don't think you'll have to, but I think since your GPAs are so strong, it makes more sense to apply twice than to go to a very expensive OOS school.

Yes I agree. If I didn't get in to OSU or the others, I think I would probably hold off and apply in a year. I was planning to take a gap year originally but figured there isn't all that much to loose by applying now.

As for UCD, should I wait to see what my quant score is? I'm not sure what a competitive one would be for them but I could of course look at previous stats. If I did end up applying, how would I make it known that I was going to take physiology online? Just add that school, say University of New England, and then add that class as a future one? That's what I was planning to do for the animal nutrition online course. Also, my science GPA is basically the same as my cumulative, it's in the 3.85 area.

For vet hours, I just got some with a LA vet this week. I hope to get more this summer but it will be hard while doing research and working on apps. My research supervisor said we will have a lab animal vet come by so I could get some hours with them. I also have some hours bringing our rehabbing animals (mostly birds) to the vet in order to get xrays and the like but I'm not really sure how to add those. My host dad while studying abroad was a vet, so I could add a few for that, but again I think it would be tricky wording.
 
I'm pretty sure UC Davis accepts online physiology courses. @Coopah did you say the one from University of New England worked? That class has rolling start dates so it would be a good choice if it's approved.

If your science GPA is close to your cumulative GPA and your quant GRE isn't too bad, you have an excellent chance of getting an interview there. Once you get to that stage, 100% of the decision is based on the interview and they don't care about vet hours as long as you're over the minimum, so I think it would be a good choice for you.

Your stats are very strong and I would be surprised if you didn't get into any of the four schools you mentioned, though I don't know much about what Oregon State likes to see. Your main issue is hours and diversity- both NC State and Missouri like to see at least three areas of vet med. If you keep working on hours, I think you'll be fine. If I were in your situation, I'd apply to the schools mentioned (including UC Davis), keep working on hours, and be open to possibly having to apply again. I don't think you'll have to, but I think since your GPAs are so strong, it makes more sense to apply twice than to go to a very expensive OOS school.
Yes UC Davis takes University of New England. It is kinda expensive though. I would recommend filling out a form on their website for conformation that they'll take your classes. If you can I would high recommend applying there. They give you IS tuition after the first year but the cost of living can be high.
 
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Yes I agree. If I didn't get in to OSU or the others, I think I would probably hold off and apply in a year. I was planning to take a gap year originally but figured there isn't all that much to loose by applying now.

As for UCD, should I wait to see what my quant score is? I'm not sure what a competitive one would be for them but I could of course look at previous stats. If I did end up applying, how would I make it known that I was going to take physiology online? Just add that school, say University of New England, and then add that class as a future one? That's what I was planning to do for the animal nutrition online course. Also, my science GPA is basically the same as my cumulative, it's in the 3.85 area.

For vet hours, I just got some with a LA vet this week. I hope to get more this summer but it will be hard while doing research and working on apps. My research supervisor said we will have a lab animal vet come by so I could get some hours with them. I also have some hours bringing our rehabbing animals (mostly birds) to the vet in order to get xrays and the like but I'm not really sure how to add those. My host dad while studying abroad was a vet, so I could add a few for that, but again I think it would be tricky wording.

UC Davis does like their quant scores but you're pretty competitive already. They like last 45 and science before quant gre anyways. And yes just add that school and say you'll take that class in the future.
 
Yes I agree. If I didn't get in to OSU or the others, I think I would probably hold off and apply in a year. I was planning to take a gap year originally but figured there isn't all that much to loose by applying now.

As for UCD, should I wait to see what my quant score is? I'm not sure what a competitive one would be for them but I could of course look at previous stats. If I did end up applying, how would I make it known that I was going to take physiology online? Just add that school, say University of New England, and then add that class as a future one? That's what I was planning to do for the animal nutrition online course. Also, my science GPA is basically the same as my cumulative, it's in the 3.85 area.

For vet hours, I just got some with a LA vet this week. I hope to get more this summer but it will be hard while doing research and working on apps. My research supervisor said we will have a lab animal vet come by so I could get some hours with them. I also have some hours bringing our rehabbing animals (mostly birds) to the vet in order to get xrays and the like but I'm not really sure how to add those. My host dad while studying abroad was a vet, so I could add a few for that, but again I think it would be tricky wording.

Yeah, take a look at their stats for the past few years. Keep in mind that last year was particularly competitive- I wouldn't expect it to be quite so bad this year (but of course I have no way of knowing). The GRE is the least important thing they look at so I wouldn't worry much, but if you want to wait you can. UC Davis doesn't require any essays or anything so you can really wait until the last minute to apply if you choose.

Yep! Just add it as a future class. They don't look at pre-reqs until after you're accepted so it doesn't matter much. Definitely fill out the course substitution request form on their site before you take the class to make sure it works.

It sounds like you'll have a decent amount of diversity! I know Missouri in particular likes research experience, and I'm sure other schools do too to some extent. Admissions can be a bit of a crapshoot, but I really think you'll be just fine.
 
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Yes UC Davis takes University of New England. It is kinda expensive though. I would recommend filling out a form on their website for conformation that they'll take your classes. If you can I would high recommend applying there. They give you IS tuition after the first year but the cost of living can be high.
When does UCD usually let people know of interviews/acceptance? For spring semester, I have to maintain at least 12 credits for athletic eligibility and online courses don't count for that. It would stress me out to need to enroll in the physiology course in say January (in addition to animal nutrition perhaps) if I don't know whether I stand a chance at acceptance or not. I would rather not take 12 credits and 2 online courses since I only need 7 credits to graduate (before Fall semester, although more in my major). Does that makes sense?
 
When does UCD usually let people know of interviews/acceptance? For spring semester, I have to maintain at least 12 credits for athletic eligibility and online courses don't count for that. It would stress me out to need to enroll in the physiology course in say January (in addition to animal nutrition perhaps) if I don't know whether I stand a chance at acceptance or not. I would rather not take 12 credits and 2 online courses since I only need 7 credits to graduate (before Fall semester, although more in my major). Does that makes sense?
Not really but I can answer your question regardless. I had my interview around Dec 5th last year and I was notified of the interview in late October I think? I was told I was accepted around Jan 6th if I recall correctly.
 
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