What are my chances?

[deleted493496]

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[abbercadaver]

But the reason I asked this was because I heard it was much better to apply when applications open up and I am wondering if it makes a difference to send in my app ASAP and wait for the score or just submit everything together when the score arrives. And I really hope the score gets through processing on time.. I heard if it's sent not electronically you should give it a month to process.. And Western needs to score by Oct 15.. So I'm a little worried ^^;

Only disadvantage to waiting to submit is the potential for bogging down. Don't submit ASAP; what if you decide to switch evaluators just before the deadline? Just give it a couple'a business days to get through. 🙂

Nothing you can do about the GRE score...just make SURE it's sent to the right school when you sit down to take it. That month might just kill your app if it doesn't get sent straight from ETS when you take the test. 🙁

 

[wildcatj]

Thank you for the reply! I'm planning to take the GRE on the 21st, and I contacted my evaluators yesterday and they asked for a resume to have something to go off on but.. I heard it was good to give them your personal statement also.. And I'm not finished with it yet, I'm still taking my time reading samples and advices but it still ends up sounding corny..haha.
But the reason I asked this was because I heard it was much better to apply when applications open up and I am wondering if it makes a difference to send in my app ASAP and wait for the score or just submit everything together when the score arrives. And I really hope the score gets through processing on time.. I heard if it's sent not electronically you should give it a month to process.. And Western needs to score by Oct 15.. So I'm a little worried ^^;

You should check with the schools that you're applying to and see when the latest date is that you can take the GRE. Generally they have a good idea. You might be ok if Western doesn't need it until the 15th of October, but most other schools need it by the 2nd (not sure if you're applying elsewhere).
Vet schools aren't like med schools when it comes to applications. The VMCAS don't start sending apps out to schools until nowish, so there really isn't a huge benefit to submitting early. Med schools is more of a rolling admissions thing.

 

[HPolar]

hello everybody,

i'd like some help in evaluating my academics as an applicant. i'm not planning on applying until fall 2013 after i graduate from undergrad, but i just got my complete gre score in and i would like to receive an objective opinion about my grades.

overall gpa: 3.281
science gpa: 3.09894

quantitative (new GRE): 159 (77%, equivalent to 750 on the old GRE)
verbal (new GRE): 159 (80%, equivalent to 590 on the old GRE)
analytical writing: 5.0

not considering my animal contact hours, what do you all think of this aspect of my would-be application? i want to go to WesternU one day; their average GRE scores are 151 quantitative (640 on the old scale), 152 verbal (493 on the old scale), and 4 analytical writing.

although i am somewhat happy with my scores, i also left the test thinking i could do better.

considering the GRE's new policy with sending scores, should i take the GRE again? or do you think my scores are good enough to offset my poor gpa?

also, although WesternU is my absolute number 1 choice, i may open up to other possibilities within the coming year; would taking the GRE again be wise considering this?

thanks in advance for all the help! 👍

 

[DVMDream]

hello everybody,

i'd like some help in evaluating my academics as an applicant. i'm not planning on applying until fall 2013 after i graduate from undergrad, but i just got my complete gre score in and i would like to receive an objective opinion about my grades.

overall gpa: 3.281
science gpa: 3.09894

quantitative (new GRE): 159 (77%, equivalent to 750 on the old GRE)
verbal (new GRE): 159 (80%, equivalent to 590 on the old GRE)
analytical writing: 5.0

not considering my animal contact hours, what do you all think of this aspect of my would-be application? i want to go to WesternU one day; their average GRE scores are 151 quantitative (640 on the old scale), 152 verbal (493 on the old scale), and 4 analytical writing.

although i am somewhat happy with my scores, i also left the test thinking i could do better.

considering the GRE's new policy with sending scores, should i take the GRE again? or do you think my scores are good enough to offset my poor gpa?

also, although WesternU is my absolute number 1 choice, i may open up to other possibilities within the coming year; would taking the GRE again be wise considering this?

thanks in advance for all the help! 👍

Your GPAs are on the low end as you already know. Those GRE scores are rather good so I don't think I would chance taking it again unless you feel like you can significantly improve your scores. Ultimately, it is up to you if you want to take the GRE again, I honestly think those scores are pretty dang good. If you feel that you can improve them it won't hurt, but if you do worse then that could be bad.

 

[twelvetigers]

Why is Western your only option you're seriously considering?

As I've said before, I really like Western, but the debt load for that school in particular leaves me reeling. So I wonder why no real consideration of cheaper options thus far?

 

[cnstarz]

Ok so I am new to this so hopefully I am doing it right 😛

I am wondering what my chances for getting into Minnesota, Kansas, Iowa, Michigan, and Colorado would be?! I am a North Dakota resident. I have a very low GPA (2.9), however my graduate school GPA is at 3.8. I will have my Masters in May 2013. I haven't taken't the 'new' GRE yet but will September 24th. I have applied before and was granted an interview at Iowa (did not apply to Michigan or Colorado that round). I have more than enough experience and could post it, but don't want to write it all out if not needed! Anyway, what I am wondering is with that GPA do I even stand a chance? I seem to be freaking myself out....I ended up getting really depressed after I did not get in the 1st try and my grades suffered. Should I write something about that in the 'Explanation Statement' section? I don't want to sound like I am making excuses but I feel that it would be pertinent to the application?

Any advice would be extremely helpful!

Thank you!

 

[NStarz]

Ok so I am new to this so hopefully I am doing it right 😛

I am wondering what my chances for getting into Minnesota, Kansas, Iowa, Michigan, and Colorado would be?! I am a North Dakota resident. I have a very low GPA (2.9), however my graduate school GPA is at 3.8. I will have my Masters in May 2013. I haven't taken't the 'new' GRE yet but will September 24th. I have applied before and was granted an interview at Iowa (did not apply to Michigan or Colorado that round). I have more than enough experience and could post it, but don't want to write it all out if not needed! Anyway, what I am wondering is with that GPA do I even stand a chance? I seem to be freaking myself out....I ended up getting really depressed after I did not get in the 1st try and my grades suffered. Should I write something about that in the 'Explanation Statement' section? I don't want to sound like I am making excuses but I feel that it would be pertinent to the application?

Any advice would be extremely helpful!

Thank you!

Just popping in to say...you stole my username

 

[GeeMale]

I am a parttime freshman at a community college and new to this forum. I have already learned a lot from this forum.

I just finished reading a book about getting into vet school (get into veterinary school 2012) and it says we should all be fulltime and we should also avoid the cc and go to a selective 4year college. the book seems to make sense.

I dont have a prehealth advisor and certainly not a prevet advisor. Can anyone give me advice? Is vet school always fulltime like the book says? Do we really have to establish a fulltime record to get in to vet school? Do I need to transfer?

I dont want to screw up my chances from the very beginning!

 

[bunnity]

Vet school is always full time (more like double full time).

What the book is trying to say is that you need to show that you are able to handle a busy schedule while keeping up academically. Does that mean you are screwed if you go to community college part time at first? Not at all. But should you carry a full course load at a regular college for at least a couple years? Yes.

Also, you will get a lot of conflicting viewpoints on here about how vet schools feel about community college. That's because different vet schools feel differently about it. If you really really want to go to Penn, for example, I would suggest getting into a regular college ASAP. Most other schools are much more accepting of community college, but you should research the schools you are likely to apply to and find out.

Right now, focus on getting used to college and doing well. But keep in your head that you will likely want to transfer after a couple years and look into those options.

And most of us didn't have pre-vet advisors either. You'll be fine, just read this forum, and buy the VMSAR book.

 

[abbercadaver]

I am a parttime freshman at a community college and new to this forum. I have already learned a lot from this forum.


I just finished reading a book about getting into vet school (get into veterinary school 2012) and it says we should all be fulltime and we should also avoid the cc and go to a selective 4year college. the book seems to make sense.

I dont have a prehealth advisor and certainly not a prevet advisor. Can anyone give me advice? Is vet school always fulltime like the book says? Do we really have to establish a fulltime record to get in to vet school? Do I need to transfer?

I dont want to screw up my chances from the very beginning!

Vet school is definitely full time. But your prevet stuff doesn't HAVE to be.

You definitely do not have to be full-time. Nor do you have to avoid a CC (depending on schools...some are picky; most are not, as long as you can provide the syllabus/curriculum for a particular course and show that it meets the needs that they require).

Keep in mind that you only have 5 years to get all of the science pre-reqs before they "expire," so as long as you can finish the prereqs and apply before then, there should be no problems with that. But if you take 5 years to get them all, apply and don't get in--you'll have to retake the earliest classes you took....so I'd aim for being able to do it in four or less, and you're good. 🙂

Of course, check with each individual school before you take my word as gospel. Like I said, some care, most don't. There are a couple of recent-ish threads floating around on this very topic.

EDIT: Also, I agree with bunnity. 🙂 You should try to go full-time at least part of the time. However, if you are a non-trad, this can get very difficult, and I can't really see any vet school penalizing you for balancing a family, a full time job (or two, lol) , and part-time as a student. Just my opinion. And I'm no adcom. Haha.

 

[wildcatj]

Just to add to what abber said, there is a big difference between going to CC part time when you have a full time+ job and not really having a lot else going on. I don't think you would be at a huge disadvantage going part time for a semester at CC, but I would definitely try to up that to full time for next semester and then switch to a 4 year full time. Most semesters at vet school you're averaging 20+ credits, so schools need to see that you'll be able to handle that type of course load.

 

[kakurubird]

Keep in mind that you only have 5 years to get all of the science pre-reqs before they "expire," so as long as you can finish the prereqs and apply before then, there should be no problems with that. But if you take 5 years to get them all, apply and don't get in--you'll have to retake the earliest classes you took....so I'd aim for being able to do it in four or less, and you're good. 🙂

Doesn't this depend on the school, though? I seem to recall some schools having 6 yr limits, some 10, some will disregard past a certain point only if you want them to, etc.
If you're concerned about courses "expiring," I would definitely look into the specific schools you might apply to.

 

[abbercadaver]

Doesn't this depend on the school, though? I seem to recall some schools having 6 yr limits, some 10, some will disregard past a certain point only if you want them to, etc.
If you're concerned about courses "expiring," I would definitely look into the specific schools you might apply to.

My understanding was that almost every school gave a 5-6 year (LSU is 6) time limit on how long science courses are good for. Humanities and the like may be good for up to 10 years, some schools have "if you have a previous degree and come back, we'll still count your social studies/histories/englishes" policy. I'm pretty sure all schools have a cutoff of under 10 years for science prereqs, though.

As far as disregarding courses past a certain point only if you want them to...I doubt that's the case. Science can change pretty drastically within a small time-frame, so I would think it would be a hard-and-fast rule (per school), not person-by-person and if-they-want-to-repeat-them.

Could be wrong, though. I certainly have not read all the US schools' policies on expiring prerequisite courses.

 

[Emiloo4]

I think I remember each school having a different number as well. Some don't even have a limit if I remember correctly.

 

[kakurubird]

As far as disregarding courses past a certain point only if you want them to...I doubt that's the case. Science can change pretty drastically within a small time-frame, so I would think it would be a hard-and-fast rule (per school), not person-by-person and if-they-want-to-repeat-them.

What I meant was like Mizzou's policy (but seems like I didn't phrase it well, so here's how they say it):

You may elect to have all college courses taken and grades received more than six years ago ignored in the academic evaluation. If you elect to eliminate courses and grades six or more years old, the required 60 semester hours of academic credit and all required courses (10 semester credit hours of physical science, etc.) must have been taken within the last six years prior to this application. Repeating courses is not required or generally recommended. New courses fulfilling minimum course requirements are preferred.

The supplemental then has a section where you can either choose to use this policy or not. Seems like it basically helps people if you are rather non-trad and screwed around the first time as an undergrad, but have changed your game and don't want the old stuff to hold you back.


VMRCVM's policy is the one I've looked at closest, since they are my instate and they will permit retakes of science courses more than 7 years old, but don't require it.

Basically, if you've taken things long enough ago for it to matter, definitely look closely at the individual school's policies--especially since some of them seem rather confusing and you'd probably need to clarify specific situations with a real person at the school.

 

[wildcatj]

In this whole 5 year re-take vein I was thinking how much that would suck. Basically that means if someone is traditional, doesn't get in their first or second try and took pre-reqs as a freshman they are kind of screwed...

 

[Emiloo4]

In this whole 5 year re-take vein I was thinking how much that would suck. Basically that means if someone is traditional, doesn't get in their first or second try and took pre-reqs as a freshman they are kind of screwed...

Yeah I didn't even realize it was the case, so when I went to apply this year 3 years out of UG I was scared out of my mind about what it would cost me to retake classes if I didn't get in. Hence my insane shotgunning 😳

 

[485501]

I am a parttime freshman at a community college and new to this forum. I have already learned a lot from this forum.

I just finished reading a book about getting into vet school (get into veterinary school 2012) and it says we should all be fulltime and we should also avoid the cc and go to a selective 4year college. the book seems to make sense.

I dont have a prehealth advisor and certainly not a prevet advisor. Can anyone give me advice? Is vet school always fulltime like the book says? Do we really have to establish a fulltime record to get in to vet school? Do I need to transfer?

I dont want to screw up my chances from the very beginning!

Along with everything people have already said, you should look into whether or not the vet schools you're interested in require some classes to be taken at 4-year colleges. For example, Davis requires that genetics, physiology, and biochem be taken at a 4-year college, though the other prereqs can be taken at community college.

 

[r00]

the closer we get to the deadline the more I am freaking out... UF supplemental is actually due 9/21 so I'm busting my butt to get that essay done before I finish my PS and optional statement for VMCAS...

27/M/Caucasian (idk if that really matters lol) non traditional student.

FL resident applying to UF, UC Davis, Tufts, Penn, and Grenada

B.A. in Psychology 2007

Overall GPA: 3.23
Last 45: 3.83 <~ 2 stupid B's...
^^ all my pre-req except Stats which was an A, and the two I am taking now...

GRE: V:165 (95%) Q: 163 (88%) AW: 4.0 (49%)

5 eLOR:
DACVR - Veterinary Radiologist
DVM
Orgo professor
Chem professor
Dean of Undergraduate studies for my University where I got my degree

~4800 hours as a Radiology Tech in a specialty small animal vet practice working with CT/MRI experience
~2000 hours as a Vet Tech in a small animal/exotics practice including anesthesia, etc.

Tons of philanthropy/community service, various honors societies/awards during my undergrad career.


any ideas how screwed I am?

 

[hpequalslove]

Hey guys! I'm relatively new to this forum, I've been reading around a few threads and really liked the help people were giving each other so I was hoping you'd be able to give me some help or even peace of mind, too!

I'm applying to veterinary school this year. The schools I'm applying to are: CSU, Purdue (I'll be in-state there), Kansas, Wisconsin, Cornell, Illinois, Michigan State, and Missouri. Here's all the info I have for ya guys.

Cumulative GPA: 3.61
Science GPA: 3.6

GRE:
Verbal: 158
Quant: 150

Experience Hours:
(Veterinary Related): 3000 small animal, exotics/avian, research as veterinary technician, researcher, and kennel
(Animal Related):
- 200 exotics/wild life
- 900 at animal shelter so small animal

- Research job for four years, over 1000 hours but not related to animals
- Volunteer research job for one year
- Member of student organization for four years (by the end of this school year), co-president last year and this year

Recommendations from: two veterinarians (one with research, one from clinic I worked at four 5 years), one from animal shelter supervisor, one from professor/employer at research lab

How do my chances seem as of now? I know my GPA could be improved, but there's not much I could do about that applying in this cycle, and I know my GRE Quantitative (AKA the most important part) is definitely not up to par... could this seriously injure my chances at getting into any of these schools? If so, do you have any suggestions on what I could do for future cycles?

Thanks so much!

 

[hpequalslove]

Ok so I am new to this so hopefully I am doing it right 😛

I am wondering what my chances for getting into Minnesota, Kansas, Iowa, Michigan, and Colorado would be?! I am a North Dakota resident. I have a very low GPA (2.9), however my graduate school GPA is at 3.8. I will have my Masters in May 2013. I haven't taken't the 'new' GRE yet but will September 24th. I have applied before and was granted an interview at Iowa (did not apply to Michigan or Colorado that round). I have more than enough experience and could post it, but don't want to write it all out if not needed! Anyway, what I am wondering is with that GPA do I even stand a chance? I seem to be freaking myself out....I ended up getting really depressed after I did not get in the 1st try and my grades suffered. Should I write something about that in the 'Explanation Statement' section? I don't want to sound like I am making excuses but I feel that it would be pertinent to the application?

Any advice would be extremely helpful!

Thank you!

So I got to CSU for undergrad and the admissions director actually talked to people about how they review undergraduate GPAs during their admissions process, so this is the only school I can talk about with some sense of certainty. Something to note if you didn't know already is that CSU does NOT do any interviews, so if you were counting on this to factor in, don't. CSU does an early review process for applicants whose GPAs are below a 3.2? I think. When they do this, they look to see how many hours you were working, how many credits you were taking, in what semesters the GPA plummeted, etc. CSU doesn't even really look at your cumulative GPA, she actually told us they could care less about it. What's really important to them is that you show you can handle upper-level biomedical sciences courses well (since that's what vet school course are). If they see, for example, that your GPA was low beginning undergrad but made significant improvements towards the end, then I think you'd stand a chance there. Admissions also told me that they don't even care about the explanation statement, and rarely read it because they feel it gets too emotional too quickly and they don't really care, harsh truth. What they care about is the "Special Circumstances" or "Disadvantaged" essays that you can optionally fill out in their supplemental app. If there were circumstances BEYOND YOUR CONTROL (they really emphasized this) that created your GPA drop, then you should point those out. For your depression, it could be something to write about under special circumstances but also point out how you improved heavily after. However, if your GPA dropped towards the end of undergrad and didn't pick back up, that's not going to look good. It's also not going to look good if your semester GPAs were really scattered, one high one low one high one low, etc. They want to see consistency.


Phew. Do I ramble or what, sorry. Anyways... I hope this helped at least a little. Your grad school GPA looks awesome (what'd you go to grad school for?) and I wouldn't automatically think you're not going to be seriously considered just because your undergrad GPA may be low. Good luck!

 

[GeeMale]

[QUOTE=abbercadaver;13069597]Vet school is definitely full time. But your prevet stuff doesn't HAVE to be.

You definitely do not have to be full-time. Nor do you have to avoid a CC (depending on schools...some are picky; most are not, as long as you can provide the syllabus/curriculum for a particular course and show that it meets the needs that they require).

Keep in mind that you only have 5 years to get all of the science pre-reqs before they "expire," so as long as you can finish the prereqs and apply before then, there should be no problems with that. But if you take 5 years to get them all, apply and don't get in--you'll have to retake the earliest classes you took....so I'd aim for being able to do it in four or less, and you're good. 🙂


Thanks to everyone who has replied. I learn something new everytime I login.

According to the author, sciences (prevet stuff?) must be taken fulltime. he says the best predictor of future performance is past performance, and since vet school is fulltime sciences, he claims we should all do our sciences fulltime. I'm taking intro biology parttime now. And this 5 year rule thing makes me believe I must be fulltime next semester. How could I possibly finish a AS and BS in 5 years as parttime? Wasn't planning on that. I'm feeling alone and afraid as a prevet at my cc.😕

 

[cnstarz]

Thanks so much! I am going to grad school for Food Safety and doing my thesis on E. coli virulence factors in scour cases that come into the Veterinary diagnostic lab. I appreciate your help and thank you for the luck 🙂

 

[wildcatj]

the closer we get to the deadline the more I am freaking out... UF supplemental is actually due 9/21 so I'm busting my butt to get that essay done before I finish my PS and optional statement for VMCAS...

27/M/Caucasian (idk if that really matters lol) non traditional student.

FL resident applying to UF, UC Davis, Tufts, Penn, and Grenada

B.A. in Psychology 2007

Overall GPA: 3.23
Last 45: 3.83 <~ 2 stupid B's...
^^ all my pre-req except Stats which was an A, and the two I am taking now...

GRE: V:165 (95%) Q: 163 (88%) AW: 4.0 (49%)

5 eLOR:
DACVR - Veterinary Radiologist
DVM
Orgo professor
Chem professor
Dean of Undergraduate studies for my University where I got my degree

~4800 hours as a Radiology Tech in a specialty small animal vet practice working with CT/MRI experience
~2000 hours as a Vet Tech in a small animal/exotics practice including anesthesia, etc.

Tons of philanthropy/community service, various honors societies/awards during my undergrad career.


any ideas how screwed I am?

Because your GPA is on the low side, I would probably reconsider the schools you're applying to (unless you have specific reasons). You're mostly choosing schools that weigh GPA's heavily, so you might not make it past the first cut off. Especially if you have a GPA that improved over the course of your undergrad career (which it sounds like since you're last 45 are great) you'll need to be really careful about where you apply. If you are still open to what schools you'll apply to, take a look around and see what schools look at cum GPA's a little more softly. Otherwise your stats look good though. I think if you apply smart you'll have a much better chance of getting in.

 

[r00]

Because your GPA is on the low side, I would probably reconsider the schools you're applying to (unless you have specific reasons). You're mostly choosing schools that weigh GPA's heavily, so you might not make it past the first cut off. Especially if you have a GPA that improved over the course of your undergrad career (which it sounds like since you're last 45 are great) you'll need to be really careful about where you apply. If you are still open to what schools you'll apply to, take a look around and see what schools look at cum GPA's a little more softly. Otherwise your stats look good though. I think if you apply smart you'll have a much better chance of getting in.

unfortunately, "applying smart" isn't really much of an option... I am married and I own a home in Orlando so I am applying to places where I can be within a decent distance of my wife and where she is applying for medical school. In all seriousness UF is my only real option as her odds are best here in the state... Grenada is number 2 because I have family there

 

[wildcatj]

unfortunately, "applying smart" isn't really much of an option... I am married and I own a home in Orlando so I am applying to places where I can be within a decent distance of my wife and where she is applying for medical school. In all seriousness UF is my only real option as her odds are best here in the state... Grenada is number 2 because I have family there

That makes a little more sense then. IS at FL will be your best bet than obviously. I'm not super familiar with their admissions process, but if you take a look around their website you might get a decent idea of how they go about it. I think if you can get past the first cut off for schools with your GPA you stand a shot.

 

[Emiloo4]

unfortunately, "applying smart" isn't really much of an option... I am married and I own a home in Orlando so I am applying to places where I can be within a decent distance of my wife and where she is applying for medical school. In all seriousness UF is my only real option as her odds are best here in the state... Grenada is number 2 because I have family there

I have to be completely, brutally honest (speaking from personal experience), I think you are wasting your money on Penn and UCDavis. That's JMO, and if you have the money to apply to them, go for it since they don't have supplementals (although that may have changed for Davis this year). Most likely, if you can get into Penn and UCDavis OOS, then you can get into FL IS. That is a harsh generalization and I will probably get slack from a few people about it, but that's JMO. Admissions are completely unpredictable, so you never know, but I'm confused as to why Davis and Penn are options if you are trying to stay in the Orlando area?😕 There are many other schools much closer that you have a better chance of getting into (Auburn, Tuskegee, Miss St, LSU for example).

 

[r00]

I have to be completely, brutally honest (speaking from personal experience), I think you are wasting your money on Penn and UCDavis. That's JMO, and if you have the money to apply to them, go for it since they don't have supplementals (although that may have changed for Davis this year). Most likely, if you can get into Penn and UCDavis OOS, then you can get into FL IS. That is a harsh generalization and I will probably get slack from a few people about it, but that's JMO. Admissions are completely unpredictable, so you never know, but I'm confused as to why Davis and Penn are options if you are trying to stay in the Orlando area?😕 There are many other schools much closer that you have a better chance of getting into (Auburn, Tuskegee, Miss St, LSU for example).

I do appreciate the honesty... I will gladly admit that I haven't done as much research into the individual schools as I could have.


The reason for those two because my wife applied to UCD med, and Temple Med (which is close enough to UPenn that we could live in the middle and drive to our respective schools each day)

Other than already sending transcripts I could always cancel these two still... and I may consider it because she hasn't heard anything back from UCD yet at all - not even for a supplemental app

I applied to Tufts because she applied to Boston U Med... and even though she has already been declined an invitation to interview there I actually do like a lot of what I have ready about Tufts and their wildlife program so I am keeping that application in

 

[Emiloo4]

I do appreciate the honesty... I will gladly admit that I haven't done as much research into the individual schools as I could have.


The reason for those two because my wife applied to UCD med, and Temple Med (which is close enough to UPenn that we could live in the middle and drive to our respective schools each day)

Other than already sending transcripts I could always cancel these two still... and I may consider it because she hasn't heard anything back from UCD yet at all - not even for a supplemental app

I applied to Tufts because she applied to Boston U Med... and even though she has already been declined an invitation to interview there I actually do like a lot of what I have ready about Tufts and their wildlife program so I am keeping that application in

Please please please do your research on what schools you are applying to. I did some, but not nearly enough when I was applying. Schools weigh GPAs differently, their curriculum fits people differently, and there is a rather large difference in costs. My best advice (again from personal experience of wasting a TON of money), if you wouldn't go there if you get accepted, don't even think about applying. It costs lots and lots of money to apply, interview, etc.
So as long as you have done your research, those sound like complete legit reasons to me 👍

 

[kireikirin297]

Ok so I am new to this site, but so far all the advice I have gotten off of here is awesome. I'm wondering what my chances are for getting into vet school:

I'm a PA resident and a senior at Penn State.
GPA: 3.59 Science GPA 3.56
GRE V:161 Q: 158 A: 4.0
Vet experience: 1000 hrs (Small Animal and Equine) and 30 hours Equine Surgery
Animal Exp: Equine-7000; Food Animal-300; Exotic Animal-330; Avian - 200
Research: 100 hrs Plant Biotechnology Research (No publications)
Several Extracurriculars and heavily involved throughout college
5 LORs - 1 Vet; 2 science professors; one research professor; and a supervisor from when i interned at the Pitt Zoo

I'm applying to Cornell, UPenn, Iowa, Purdue, Ross, Tufts, VTech, and Auburn....

 

[orca2011]

Ok so I am new to this site, but so far all the advice I have gotten off of here is awesome. I'm wondering what my chances are for getting into vet school:

I'm a PA resident and a senior at Penn State.
GPA: 3.59 Science GPA 3.56
GRE V:161 Q: 158 A: 4.0
Vet experience: 1000 hrs (Small Animal and Equine) and 30 hours Equine Surgery
Animal Exp: Equine-7000; Food Animal-300; Exotic Animal-330; Avian - 200
Research: 100 hrs Plant Biotechnology Research (No publications)
Several Extracurriculars and heavily involved throughout college
5 LORs - 1 Vet; 2 science professors; one research professor; and a supervisor from when i interned at the Pitt Zoo

I'm applying to Cornell, UPenn, Iowa, Purdue, Ross, Tufts, VTech, and Auburn....

Your GPAs are around the same as mine and you have wayy more hours than I did and I got into Penn, so I definitely think you have a chance with them. Tufts places a lot of emphasis on academics and they told me my GRE scores needed to be higher. I took the old test so I'm not sure how my score compares to yours (I had a 550 V 670 Q 5 W). Is your last 45th credit hour GPA good too? That one tends to be important and saved me for a few schools because it was higher than my cumGPA and science GPA.


I also received an interview at Auburn, so I would think you have a chance there as well. I didn't apply to any of the other schools this cycle, so I can't give you advice on them. I was rejected from VAMD my first cycle, but I had an abysmal number of veterinary hours, so that definitely contributed to that.

 

[kireikirin297]

Your GPAs are around the same as mine and you have wayy more hours than I did and I got into Penn, so I definitely think you have a chance with them. Tufts places a lot of emphasis on academics and they told me my GRE scores needed to be higher. I took the old test so I'm not sure how my score compares to yours (I had a 550 V 670 Q 5 W). Is your last 45th credit hour GPA good too? That one tends to be important and saved me for a few schools because it was higher than my cumGPA and science GPA.


I also received an interview at Auburn, so I would think you have a chance there as well. I didn't apply to any of the other schools this cycle, so I can't give you advice on them. I was rejected from VAMD my first cycle, but I had an abysmal number of veterinary hours, so that definitely contributed to that.

Thanks for the heads up. 🙂 That's awesome you got into UPenn. Congrats! Well my new scores translate to a 620 V and a 740 Q so I guess that's pretty good. I checked their website and I was above their average scores from last year it seems.

Also I'm not sure if I calculated this correctly, but my last 45 is approximately a 3.61. :/ I'm hoping to bring that average up way higher when I send in my transcripts for this fall semester since I got a 3.82 last semester. I had a rough 5th semester that brought my GPA down.

I'm also concerned that I don't have any research publications. How important are those for applications? I know they are really helpful, but I'm hoping its not a big disadvantage either.

 

[orca2011]

Thanks for the heads up. 🙂 That's awesome you got into UPenn. Congrats! Well my new scores translate to a 620 V and a 740 Q so I guess that's pretty good. I checked their website and I was above their average scores from last year it seems.

Also I'm not sure if I calculated this correctly, but my last 45 is approximately a 3.61. :/ I'm hoping to bring that average up way higher when I send in my transcripts for this fall semester since I got a 3.82 last semester. I had a rough 5th semester that brought my GPA down.

I'm also concerned that I don't have any research publications. How important are those for applications? I know they are really helpful, but I'm hoping its not a big disadvantage either.

I had no research experience, whatsoever. I worked as a lab assistant all throughout college, but that is about. Publications are great, but they are by no means required for vet school. They might be more beneficial if you plan on pursuing a DVM/PHd program or are interested in doing research.

 

[idigapony70]

Hi everyone, so I am sending off my applications in a few days and just wanted an honest opinion of what my chances are at the following schools given my stats. I might alter the schools I am sending my apps to based on your answers. Also I don't know if it matters but I am applying with the intent of going into lab animal medicine.


cummGPA: 3.147
last 68 quarter units: 3.685
sciGPA: 3.1

GRE
Q 160
V 156
Just took it on Monday so I am waiting on the Analytical writing and percentages....

350 hours interning at an animal shelter
50 hours working with a lab animal vet and sitting in on institutional animal care and use committee meetings
150 working in a mouse rederivation lab
300 hours co-managing a Howard Hughes Medical Institute mouse colony
180 hours managing the colony myself while working on undergraduate classes
1200 hours working on my own mouse immunology/genetics project

I am applying to Davis, Western, Oregon, Colorado, UPenn, Tufts, Minnesota and Purdue. I chose these schools because I believe they look at the whole application but I could be wrong. They are also my order of preference. I would greatly appreciate your feedback!

 

[Emiloo4]

Hi everyone, so I am sending off my applications in a few days and just wanted an honest opinion of what my chances are at the following schools given my stats. I might alter the schools I am sending my apps to based on your answers. Also I don't know if it matters but I am applying with the intent of going into lab animal medicine.


cummGPA: 3.147
last 68 quarter units: 3.685
sciGPA: 3.1

GRE
Q 160
V 156
Just took it on Monday so I am waiting on the Analytical writing and percentages....

350 hours interning at an animal shelter
50 hours working with a lab animal vet and sitting in on institutional animal care and use committee meetings
150 working in a mouse rederivation lab
300 hours co-managing a Howard Hughes Medical Institute mouse colony
180 hours managing the colony myself while working on undergraduate classes
1200 hours working on my own mouse immunology/genetics project

I am applying to Davis, Western, Oregon, Colorado, UPenn, Tufts, Minnesota and Purdue. I chose these schools because I believe they look at the whole application but I could be wrong. They are also my order of preference. I would greatly appreciate your feedback!

I would definitely suggest applying to schools that will put a lot of weight on your last 45 GPA.

 

[orca2011]

I would definitely suggest applying to schools that will put a lot of weight on your last 45 GPA.

I'm going to 2nd this.

You're applying to quite a few schools that put a good bit of emphasis on GPA. Tufts for one definitely does. I don't know what's considered a decent GRE score, so maybe that will make up for you cumulative and science GPAs. Mine were higher and I was told I was average...same with my GRE score. However, you do have more hours than I did, so that might make up for it. The minimal number of vet hours might also be a problem with them, but you animal experience hours in your area of interest might help make for that. They have some new people in admissions, so I'm not 100% sure how they view things anymore.

CSU typically has an average cumGPA of a 3.6. You definitely have the animal hours to meet their average, but unless I'm reading things wrong, it looks like you only have 50 vet hours. I think CSU said their average in both animal and vet is around a 1000 hours each.

UC Davis typically has a high OOS GPA average and I don't think they take too many OOS applicants. I might be wrong on that.

Western supposedly looks more at the whole application, so that one should be okay.

Penn also kind of puts emphasis on grades, but it is definitely possible to get in with a lower than average GPA. However, if you really only have 50 vet hours, I think that might be a bit of a problem with them and that's based off of my own experiences with applying there twice and doing a file review.


I don't know anything about Minnesota, Oregan and Purdue to give you advice on them.

Are any of those schools your IS and do you actually have a 45th credit hour counted out...don't think anyone does 68 quarter hours...unless that's equivalent to 45th credit hours. I never did anything on the quarter system so I wouldn't know.

 

[idigapony70]

Thanks for the replies! Yes, the 68 quarter units are equivalent to the last 45. I tried to find schools that really emphasize the last 68 units. I know UC Davis puts a tremendous value on that, which is why I picked them. UC Davis is also my IS, so I hope that helps. Are there any others that I may not have considered?

As far as vet hours go, this is where I am getting confused on what qualifies. When I spoke to people at UC Davis, I was told that any experience with a veterinarian or a research scientist counts towards your vet hour total. I worked with a vet at the animal shelter and work with mice for my research project, so as far as Davis goes that should work. I don't know about other schools, and I have seen on here that people count animal research towards their vet hours.

My colony management duties is where the biggest confusion for me arises since I did all the health care. I would contact the vets and ask what treatments should be done and I carried them out myself. If there was something I did not know how to do, the vets would show me. If I were to do a procedure on a mouse it would be done under the guidance of the lab animal vet I shadowed, so I think it should be vet hours but I don't know. What do you guys think?

Also, do these schools take "diversification" into account? I am a Hispanic male, and am the first in my family to attend college. My faculty research mentor has attempted to persuade me to milk that, but I am not too sure it matters. He convinced me to apply to UPenn because of it...

 

[orca2011]

Thanks for the replies! Yes, the 68 quarter units are equivalent to the last 45. I tried to find schools that really emphasize the last 68 units. I know UC Davis puts a tremendous value on that, which is why I picked them. UC Davis is also my IS, so I hope that helps. Are there any others that I may not have considered?

As far as vet hours go, this is where I am getting confused on what qualifies. When I spoke to people at UC Davis, I was told that any experience with a veterinarian or a research scientist counts towards your vet hour total. I worked with a vet at the animal shelter and work with mice for my research project, so as far as Davis goes that should work. I don't know about other schools, and I have seen on here that people count animal research towards their vet hours.

My colony management duties is where the biggest confusion for me arises since I did all the health care. I would contact the vets and ask what treatments should be done and I carried them out myself. If there was something I did not know how to do, the vets would show me. If I were to do a procedure on a mouse it would be done under the guidance of the lab animal vet I shadowed, so I think it should be vet hours but I don't know. What do you guys think?

Also, do these schools take "diversification" into account? I am a Hispanic male, and am the first in my family to attend college. My faculty research mentor has attempted to persuade me to milk that, but I am not too sure it matters. He convinced me to apply to UPenn because of it...

I think most schools will count work under someone with a PhD as vet hours...I'm not 100% and that might vary by school. Whatever you do make sure you make it super clear that those are vet hours. I was actually rejected from Penn due to a misunderstanding that my work at a clinic associated with a shelter work was more of a kennel tech position. I was actually doing all my hours under the veterinarians who worked in the public clinic in the same building. Obviously things ended up working out, but I would hate for something similar to happen to you.


And I do think the schools are expected to aim for a certain amount of diversity like they are for undergrad. However, I might be wrong about that. And I honestly think it will come down to how you present yourself on that matter. I wouldn't go in assuming you'll get in just because you're not the stereotypical applicant.

 

[485501]

Also, do these schools take "deversification" into account? I am a Hispanic male, and am the first in my family to attend college. My faculty research mentor has attempted to persuade me to milk that, but I am not too sure it matters. He convinced me to apply to UPenn because of it...

I think UC Davis has an optional application form for people who are the first in their families to go to college/otherwise don't come from an academics-heavy background. I know a lot of grad schools take 'diversification' into account, but I'm not sure about vet schools other than Davis.

 

[Emiloo4]

I think UC Davis has an optional application form for people who are the first in their families to go to college/otherwise don't come from an academics-heavy background. I know a lot of grad schools take 'diversification' into account, but I'm not sure about vet schools other than Davis.

Yeah, it's an essay you can write. I think they have a few different essay options you can choose from, but they aren't required.

 

[deleted493496]

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[485501]

Hi again.. I took your guys' advice and sent immediately to the school after taking the GRE.

I scored Verbal-155, Quant-158, and haven't received writing score yet.
My cumulative GPA is around 3.2

I'm wondering where I should apply to, I used the ranking listed here http://grad-schools.usnews.rankings...ools/top-health-schools/veterinarian-rankings to find the lowest ranked and see if I can get into those. I will also apply to Ross.
So far, since I am a Texas resident I am going to try
A&M, Western U, Tuskegee, Oklahoma State U, Louisiana State U, and U of Missouri
Wondering if I should bother with Kansas State, I excluded Oregon State and Mississippi State because I took the GRE too late.
Please tell me if these are.. the right choices or if I even have a shot.

Don't base anything on those rankings. There's a whole thread on here about how they're essentially bunk.

Go to each school's website and read about them. Pick schools that you would want to go to if you got in, then from those pick schools that you have a strong application for. So, for example, some schools weight experience more heavily, some care much more about GPA than GRE, some care more about the GRE, etc. If you would want to go to your IS school apply there, and look at OOS schools that offer a lot of spots to OOS applicants.

But really, don't apply to a school you haven't researched. It's a waste of money and time to apply somewhere and then later figure out that you don't want to go there, or that based on what they consider important you didn't have a chance to get in, or that they only take two OOS students with perfect GRE scores per year, or whatever.

 

[Emiloo4]

Please tell me if these are.. the right choices

No one can tell you this but yourself. Vet schools are right and wrong for people for many different reasons, even beyond the admissions process. Take the advice above and do your research. But keep in mind you don't have tons of time left either. Do NOT look at rankings and choose "the lower ones" bc not only are rankings bogus, they don't predict your success as in applicant in any way, shape, or form. Don't sell yourself short on which schools you apply to.

IMO:....

WesternU is a good choice for your stats, but please research their curriculum bc it is FAR from traditional and definitely not for everyone. They do PBL (problem based learning) and essentially start you on cases Day 1 and make you figure it all out on your own. If that doesn't sound like a fit for you, or you don't want to pay 50K a semester in tuition ALONE to attend their veterinary school, then don't apply there.

A&M is your IS so you may have a better shot there, but I think they weigh rather heavily on cumulative GPA.

Tuskeegee, I personally don't know enough about to give you advice.

Oklahoma State does not interview OOS applicants, so an interview will not be weighed into your admission factor. To me, that means you need to have an average GPA, but its not unheard of with your GPA and they do take a good amount of OOS students. If it were me, I would keep Ok State in the running!

LSU helps you out a lot with your science GPA. They take all of your required pre-reqs and add in any As you've received in science courses. This can raise your science GPA, but remember, they do this for all applicants. I am not sure that I would keep LSU based on their lower number of OOS seats and knowing that I got waitlisted (eventually accepted) with a higher GPA and GRE scores. But again, admissions are all crazy and you may be exactly what they're looking for.

I don't know anything about Missouri and I think I cut Oregon State out of my application pile last year due to their lack of OOS seats (I could be wrong on that).

Kansas State, I would definitely add to your list of applications. They have a lot of OOS seats and go through quite a few people on the waitlist if that's where you end up (not hoping you do, just saying). I personally think they are an awesome school, but look into the area (very rural in a small town - not for everyone).

I hope this helps a little, but honestly, there is no one that can tell you whether your choices are right for you or not. I can tell you not to apply to UGA or Cornell as an OOS applicant but other than that, it's up to you and the research and decisions you make for yourself.

 

[deleted493496]

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[Ericaa89]

I just took the GRE and didn't do as well as I had hoped. 161 Verbal 157 Quantitative

I have lots of experience: shadowing an equine vet, volunteering in small animal hospital, and volunteer at therapeutic riding center.

My overall GPA is 3.47 and science is around 3.6.

I also have been riding horses since I was three and competed nationally in jumping competitions.

My top choice is Davis... what are my chances?

 

[Emiloo4]

I just took the GRE and didn't do as well as I had hoped. 161 Verbal 157 Quantitative

I have lots of experience: shadowing an equine vet, volunteering in small animal hospital, and volunteer at therapeutic riding center.

My overall GPA is 3.47 and science is around 3.6.

I also have been riding horses since I was three and competed nationally in jumping competitions.

My top choice is Davis... what are my chances?

Are you a CA resident?

 

[485501]

I just took the GRE and didn't do as well as I had hoped. 161 Verbal 157 Quantitative

I have lots of experience: shadowing an equine vet, volunteering in small animal hospital, and volunteer at therapeutic riding center.

My overall GPA is 3.47 and science is around 3.6.

I also have been riding horses since I was three and competed nationally in jumping competitions.

My top choice is Davis... what are my chances?

How much experience is 'lots'? How many hours, roughly?

Do you have good LORs?

 

[nyanko]

Don't write this in your explanation statement. Maybe something along the lines of "I had to learn how to study" but let's leave out the "I was snowboarding the whole time, barely did a thing for school!" bit. 😉

I literally wrote in my explanation statement "I pretty much only went to college to play hockey and my grades reflect that" regarding my first time around in undergrad. I'm here. 😉

 

[Ericaa89]

Yes