What are my chances?

[futurehealervet]

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I'd say you have a pretty good shot for this cycle. Since you have good grades in your upper level science courses, I wouldn't worry too much about the GPA. I can't really say much about how the Master's will help until you get your grades but, assuming you did well, it should make adcoms take a closer look at grades in individual courses and not your overall GPA from undergrad. In case you need to apply another cycle, I would retake the GRE and try for a higher quantitative score. This could balance out any disadvantage from your GPA. Also, did you have anything going on in your life that hurt your grades early on in undergrad. You did well in the upper level courses so if you can explain the earlier grades that would help a lot too. I am pre-vet as well so take what I am saying with a grain of salt. Hope this was helpful! Good Luck!

 

[Emiloo4]

I'd say you have a pretty good shot for this cycle. Since you have good grades in your upper level science courses, I wouldn't worry too much about the GPA. I can't really say much about how the Master's will help until you get your grades but, assuming you did well, it should make adcoms take a closer look at grades in individual courses and not your overall GPA from undergrad. In case you need to apply another cycle, I would retake the GRE and try for a higher quantitative score. This could balance out any disadvantage from your GPA. Also, did you have anything going on in your life that hurt your grades early on in undergrad. You did well in the upper level courses so if you can explain the earlier grades that would help a lot too. I am pre-vet as well so take what I am saying with a grain of salt. Hope this was helpful! Good Luck!

As much as it would be nice for adcoms to think this way (in bold above), it's not always how it goes. It really depends on the school as to how much your overall GPA factors into your application. You can increase your chances by applying to schools that focus more on last 45 GPA. But to be honest, you may find your 3.2 hurting you a little. Not trying to be an arse, but realistically it may be a slight hurdle. Not impossible by any means and I think you have a well rounded application so you stand a chance for sure.

 

[HappyCowsLieDwn]

As much as it would be nice for adcoms to think this way (in bold above), it's not always how it goes. It really depends on the school as to how much your overall GPA factors into your application. You can increase your chances by applying to schools that focus more on last 45 GPA. But to be honest, you may find your 3.2 hurting you a little. Not trying to be an arse, but realistically it may be a slight hurdle. Not impossible by any means and I think you have a well rounded application so you stand a chance for sure.

I appreciate the honesty Emilioo as well as the confidence boost from futurehealervet 🙂
I applied last year to get my name out there and this year I tried to be more selective about where I applied to make sure their standards fit what I bring to the table.

This year I applied to Western, Penn, and Cornell (since I'm a NY resident I figured I'd throw my name in that hat) and I thought Western would be a good fit for me academically as well as cirriculum-wise but so far no word 😕

Anyway, you guys gave me hope. I was worried that my crappy GPA would take me out of the running (although I did have extenuating circumstances during the early semesters when my grades were sub-par and I explained those in my VMCAS app).

And so the waiting continues...

 

[cdndvm]

Hi everybody I'm new here so nice to meet everyone and I have a question that I hope someone can answer. I want to apply to the WCVM as a BC resident and I am currently in third year at the University of Victoria (in BC). However during the end of my first year and beginning of second year of university one of my family members was diagnosed with cancer and I ended up failing two courses (Calculus and intro organic chem). I retook those classes after the treatment period was over and managed a B in calculus and an A- in organic chem, but those F's have really brought down my gpa. I have been working hard in 3rd year and have been getting A's and A-'s, but it feels like my gpa never seems to get higher and I calculate that it will only at about 80% when I graduate in 2 years. Does anyone have any idea if I even have a chance to get into the WCVM? Thanks for you help.

WCVM has a section in the application to explain extenuating circumstances; I would encourage you to carefully explain why you didn't achieve in those two courses. If the remainder of your academic record is excellent, you shouldn't have any issue with two bad grades even though they may drop your overall average.

 

[Cypress]

I appreciate the honesty Emilioo as well as the confidence boost from futurehealervet 🙂
I applied last year to get my name out there and this year I tried to be more selective about where I applied to make sure their standards fit what I bring to the table.

This year I applied to Western, Penn, and Cornell (since I'm a NY resident I figured I'd throw my name in that hat) and I thought Western would be a good fit for me academically as well as cirriculum-wise but so far no word 😕

Anyway, you guys gave me hope. I was worried that my crappy GPA would take me out of the running (although I did have extenuating circumstances during the early semesters when my grades were sub-par and I explained those in my VMCAS app).

And so the waiting continues...

I was accepted with a GPA of 3.02 - so just remember it can be done.

I hate to say its kind of a crap shoot - but it's kind of a crap shoot - it depends on who is applying that year and how you stack up to people that are similar to you.

For example - I'm a little older - returning student - from a slightly different educational background - worked my tail off to prove that my GPA wasn't because I was a bad student - just that I'm a B student - proved I could handle the DVM curriculum by doing a masters, working, and volunteering at the same time - did everything I could to make myself stand out - I didn't do everything that was out there - but chose those things that strengthened my skills and abilities.

Took me 3 tries (2 really solid attempts) to get accepted. It can happen!

And in comparison to other students in my class right now - I'm not behind at all - I'm actually probably handling the stress of lower test scores a little better than some of the kids in my class that are used to getting As on everything.

Don't let your lower (normal by every other standards) GPA get you down! Believe in your abilities and strengthens, accept your weakness, and you'll get in 🙂

Good luck!

 

[Cypress]

How far does getting your Master's go towards helping with admissions? I am working on a non-thesis research project in the spring that is animal-physiology centered
I have:
B.A.-History
Grad Certificate in Chemical Biology (3.5 GPA)
^^Both from Stevens Institute of technology c/o 2012
Working on doing my MS in Biology (physiology concentration) in 1 year right now.

Cumulative GPA: 3.2
Last 45 Credit hrs: ~3.65 (not including my MS grades which will come out in the next 2 weeks)
Science GPA: 3.38 with much better grades in upper level courses (A's in immunology, Biochem 2, Epigenetics, and Molecular Genetics) than lower grades (C+ in Gen Chem I)
GRE: Q-650 V-560 Writing: 4.5 (all from the old test system obviously)

Veterinary Experience:
100 hrs LA
1000 SA
50 hrs Equine
20 hrs Shelter

Animal Experience:
40 hrs Shelter/exotics
600 Equine
800 LA
400 SA

During my undergrad I was also a member of a DIII volleyball team, captain of the Equestrian team, VP of my sorority, founded the Pre-Vet Society, and worked ~20 hrs per week.
Course load was ~17 credits per semester, I took 20 credits my last 2 semesters with mainly upper level and graduate science courses.

I know my grades are my weakest point.
The schools I'm most anxious about are Wester, Penn, and Cornell.
I applied to Penn, Cornell, and Tennessee last year and did not get interviews but was told my experience, letters, and statements were good, just had to work on the GPA (hence the Master's program which I am doing well in)
My main interest is Large Animal (mainly dairy).

Any thoughts would be appreciated (please don't tear me apart!! :-D )

Just reading all your stats and honestly it sounds like you're doing everything you need to.

My GRE scores were very similar to yours - your GPA is actually better than mine.

I did a 1 year Pre-professional Non-Thesis Biology Masters - 30 graduate level biology credit hours in 2 semesters - kicked my ass - but prepared me really well.

Sounds like you're on a good path. I would think about applying to other schools - you never know what they are looking for and who will read your application.

Keeping fingers crossed for invites heading your way soon!

 

[annopia]

I've been a long time lurker, but I'd like a little feedback on my chances this year.

I'm a non-traditional student: graduated undergrad in 2009 with a pretty good GPA, then did a year of law school. I withdrew the second semester (suffering from a very serious eating disorder that required a 3 month partial hospitalization program). I also withdrew from a calc-based physics course that summer, and a trig-based physics course that fall (the summer program was way too soon after I got discharged from the treatment center, and the fall course was withdrawn from when I had to be emergency hospitalized for a week during the semester. I still completed 2 prereqs that fall semester, though).

I realize that my withdrawals from physics, my poor law school grades, and my withdrawal from law school in general are red flags, but I talked about my eating disorder troubles and family pressure to become a lawyer in my explanation statement. I really hope that these do not completely rule me out from getting in. On the positive side, I did get two interviews (Auburn and Tufts) last year, and got waitlisted at Tufts. Tufts actually didn't consider my law school grades when reviewing my app (not sure if that was because of my health issues, or because of the fact that law school has very little to do with vet med).

Also, in my classes since law school (all pre-reqs), I have a 3.87 GPA, including A's in both semesters of Physics.

I'll list my GPA stats both with law and without, since I know for a fact that at least three schools I applied to (Tufts, Edinbor., and Glasgow) do not consider it in their review.

Undergrad GPA (Duke): 3.65
Law School GPA (Wake Forest): 2.00
Cumulative (with law): 3.53
Cumulative (without law): 3.68
Last 45 (with law): 3.26
Last 45 (without law): 3.80
Required (for my hopefully in-state, NC State): 3.66

GRE: 800 quantitative (94%), 690 verbal (97%), analytical 5.0 (87%)

Vet Experience:

357 hours research at the Smithsonian National Zoo
277 hours aquatic vet med (National Aquarium)
417 hours feline general practice
600 hours SA specialty hospital (ophthalmology, radiology, internal medicine mainly)

Animal Experience:

100 hours kennel assistant
50 hours volunteering at the National Zoo's Think Tank, designing their land hermit crab exhibit
400 hours on the Duke Equestrian Team
3000+ hours caring for/researching/rehabilitating land hermit crabs

Work Experience:

1000 hours at a law office

Community Activities:

1 year of Big Brothers Big Sisters
active member/administrator of the Hermit Crab Association
1 year of the Chemistry Outreach program (chemistry education/demos at schools and fairs)

first cycle, I was outright rejected from 8 schools (NC State, VMRCVM, UPenn, Wisconsin, Missouri, Minnesota, Illinois, Colorado State), so I widened my net this year (although it might seem a little excessive...). I didn't have any of that small animal experience last year, however, and I have gotten 5 A's (2 semesters of Physics, Microbiology, Genetics, and Biochem) since then.

Applied to: NC State, Auburn, VMRCVM, UPenn, Tufts, Cornell, Ohio State, Iowa State, Wisconsin, Illinois, Minnesota, UC Davis, Purdue, Colorado State, Glasgow, RVC, Edinbor.
Interviews offered so far: UC Davis, Ohio State, Iowa State, Purdue, Glasgow, RVC
Rejections so far: Colorado State
Schools that interview that I haven't heard from: VMRCVM, Auburn, UPenn, Tufts, Illinois, Minnesota

so...honest opinions about my chances this year? I realize that I have some serious red flags (law school, multiple withdrawals from physics, no LA experience), but I felt that my explanation statement explained the first two pretty well.

Right now I'm working full time at the speciality hospital, but come Spring I'll be working 20 hours and taking 3 classes. My plan if I don't get in this cycle is to get more higher level bio classes that will push law school out of the last 45 hours GPA calculation, and to get some large animal experience.

 

[krh696]

Hey everybody this is my first cycle and I'm worried that I won't get an interview anywhere so some opinions on my stats would greatly be appreciated!!

applied to UF, Auburn, Mississippi, and North Carolina, Female, Florida resident, turn 23 next month (florida supposedly sends out interview invites on my birthday next month so hoping for a birthday present from them! 🙂 ), Bachelor of Science in Biology with minor in psychology for Florida Atlantic University, graduated this past august

Academics:
Cumulative GPA, Science GPA and last 45 hour gpa all around 3.53-3.56, got a C+ in biochem and a C in comparative vertebrate morph, retook both over the summer that i graduated and got A's in both
GRE took it once didn't have enough time to take it again
verbal 152
math 150
a 3.5

veterinary experience
3500+ hours at small animal clinic as both kennel person and technician in training: did variety of things, bathed, walked, fed dogs and cats, x-rays, held for blood pulls and catheters, helped in rooms, got fecals, just recently started pulling blood, it was my first job started at 16 in 2006 till 2008, left for a year to live at school and then they called me to come back and have been there since 2009 now

animal experience
7 hours volunteering with horses at a company that lets mentally and physically deficient children ride them
2 hours on a donkey/miniature pony/sheep farm run by a veterinarian I used to work with
2 hours shadowing a equine vet with my animal science class
3 hours at a dairy farm with animal science class, rectally palpated the cervix of the cows
200 + hours pet sitting dogs and cats

employment:
my job has been at the vet's office for 6 years
during break and summer 70 hours at law office that my mom used to work at filing and separating papers
maybe 100 hours at FAU bookstore worked there for about 6 months answering phones and getting textbooks for students

Honors and awards:

Undergrad:
Cum laude Graduation honors

High school:
honor roll 4 times
perfect attendance
Coach's award for track and field

Extracurricular activities

Undergrad:
Biology Club: Director of Recruitment
Pre Veterinary Club

High school:
Student leadership club
student athlete club
Exchangettes club
Key Club
Track and Field
Softball
Basketabll
Blood Donor

personal statement:
talked about how I didn't want to be a vet until after my father died three years ago and i saw a change in my animals that made me decided to take the vet route, talked about he was sick for a year during my freshmen and sophomore years of college and also how my experiences at the animal hospital i work at has given me a variety of experiences the fact that i work in the back sometimes with animals and in the front with people gives me a look at both sides and my hospital does a lot of reproduction so I know all four methods of reproduction and we are big at breeding so i have seen a lot of c sections and ai's

LORs
1 from veterinarian at sa hospital worked with for 6 years
1 from head veterinarian at said hospital who went to U penn really acknowledged in the field
1 from equine veterinarian and animal science professor at fau

thanks!!

 

[krh696]

well obviously there is something wrong with me application that i can improve on considering I just got rejected from Mississippi today 🙁

 

[futurehealervet]

well obviously there is something wrong with me application that i can improve on considering I just got rejected from Mississippi today 🙁

dont let it get you down, youve still got other schools to hear from. Your GPA looks solid and youve got plenty of experience. Don't give up hope yet! Good luck with the other schools, we are all rooting for you!

 

[Bracco Pointer]

Krh696, definitely don't let the rejection get you down! You've got plenty more chances to be accepted. 🙂 The only thing you could easily improve if you have to apply again would be to get more diverse experience. You're small animal experience is great, but it's only at one clinic, and you have very little large animal experience. Maybe over spring break you could shadow an equine or cow vet and get 50+ hours of solid experience in that field. Depending on the school, they like to see variety. Also, if you end up needing to, you could try to retake the GRE. Good luck, and hopefully all the advice will be moot because you'll get accepted this cycle!

 

[krh696]

i just got rejected by my instate school Florida today so i still have two more schools auburn and north carolina but I'm probably going to apply to schools in the caribbean or apply again next year, getting rejected in state really hurt today

 

[orca2011]

i just got rejected by my instate school Florida today so i still have two more schools auburn and north carolina but I'm probably going to apply to schools in the caribbean or apply again next year, getting rejected in state really hurt today

That actually happens to a good number of people surprisingly, which is why a lot of us say try to apply to a few schools if its' an option because you'd be surprised. I got into OOS schools before my IS (which actually rejected me post interview first).

I would just second was Bracco said. Try to get some vet experience in other areas. Animal experience is great, but a lot of adcoms want to see that you've dabbled in other areas of vet met. I don't know what your GRE score is like (I took the old test) but retaking it never hurts if you think you can improve it. And from there, look again at PS and think about whether your LORs were as strong as they could be. If you don't get in this year and don't pursue the Caribbean schools, set up file reviews with all the schools you applied to. They're usually rather helpful and might shine light on weak spots you didn't think about.

 

[russellang]

i just got rejected by my instate school Florida today so i still have two more schools auburn and north carolina but I'm probably going to apply to schools in the caribbean or apply again next year, getting rejected in state really hurt today

I got rejected at my IS which was Florida last year. I got into 8 schools OOS and declined interview invites at the remaining schools. So this does happen, while I was upset about it now that I have been through one semester at my school I love it and wouldnt look back.

 

[anotherbusybee]

personal statement:
talked about how I didn't want to be a vet until after my father died three years ago and i saw a change in my animals that made me decided to take the vet route, talked about he was sick for a year during my freshmen and sophomore years of college and also how my experiences at the animal hospital i work at has given me a variety of experiences the fact that i work in the back sometimes with animals and in the front with people gives me a look at both sides and my hospital does a lot of reproduction so I know all four methods of reproduction and we are big at breeding so i have seen a lot of c sections and ai's

My uneducated and inconsequential opinion: This was really confusing, and I don't understand how this proves why you want to be a vet or why/how you'd contribute to the field 😕 I also recommend doing a file review. I plan to do them if I can't get into my dream school.

 

[krh696]

After my father died I saw that my dogs were depressed and I realized that dogs go through emotional and physical pain and that's when I realized I wanted to help animals

 

[anotherbusybee]

I would recommend getting personal statement help from a college or professional adviser.

Your story, while certainly very inspiring if written well, sounds a lot like "My *insert family member* died/got sick and, suddenly, I knew I wanted to go into *insert type of medicine*". It's a very cliche story, and a lot of first-time applicants write about stuff like that. While it's okay to talk about the emotional basis of your motivation, you need to go beyond that and describe explicitly why you're a good fit for this profession/why it's good for you. I would recommend seeking the help of a professional adviser 🙂

 

[orca2011]

I would recommend getting personal statement help from a college or professional adviser.

Your story, while certainly very inspiring if written well, sounds a lot like "My *insert family member* died/got sick and, suddenly, I knew I wanted to go into *insert type of medicine*". It's a very cliche story, and a lot of first-time applicants write about stuff like that. While it's okay to talk about the emotional basis of your motivation, you need to go beyond that and describe explicitly why you're a good fit for this profession/why it's good for you. I would recommend seeking the help of a professional adviser 🙂

Not going to lie, my PS had a pretty cliche story in it, but I never got negative feedback on it. I had other stuff in there too so all my focus wasn't on that particular bit, but it's not necessarily a deal breaker if done properly.

 

[krh696]

i had three current veterinarians, a pre health advisor, and a current vet student at UF to read it

 

[anotherbusybee]

And what were their recommendations? Do they have experience sending students to vet school? Knowing how to read and write aren't sufficient for knowing how to edit personal statements. No offense, but your first post that I quoted was one giant, confusing, convoluted run-on sentence. If that's more or less how your PS read, I can understand why it was difficult to garner an interview invite from a veterinary school.

ETA: I'd also recommend retaking the GRE. Those scores are rather low. As I understand, if your GPA is solid, adcoms recommend having an equally strong GRE to back up the idea that you are academically capable.

 

[Virginger]

Question: I got waitlisted OOS for Oregon last year... I improved EVERY category... moved to Oregon and established instate residency... and there is no record of the OSU sending invites over multiple days, and I didnt get an invite. What happened? maybe I am just panicking, but it doesnt look good for me now... last year they told me they interview most (as many as possible) of the IS applicants. sigh. 🙁 🙁 🙁

 

[BGoodl]

Looking for some feedback.

I had really hoped to go to Cornell, mostly for the IS tuition. However I was rejected. I made an appointment with them to talk about it. So if I don't get in elsewhere I will probably spend some time to improve my application and re-apply. I love Tufts, but I don't know if it would make financial sense to pay that much more (about 15k more than Cornell a year), than to re apply to my in state next year. I would love to get into Wisconsin, but it is a long shot. I didn't apply to more schools because I didn't want to be tempted by a really expensive school and go into unrealistic debt.

First time applicant
Applied to: Tufts, Wisconsin, St. George
Rejected from Cornell (my IS)
GPA: 3.67
GRE: 157 V, 161 Q, 4.0 W

Veterinary Experience:
25hrs- Shadow Aquarium vet
250 hrs- Interned at a marine life rescue- worked mostly with seals and sea turtles
200 hrs- worked as an assistant in a vet hospital, mostly grunt work
700 hrs- worked at Plum Island Animal Disease Center with a variety of vets & research scientists on Foreign Animal Diseases, I had to get government clearance to work with the animals
45 hrs- research assistant on a project with mice
30 hrs- shadowing a SA vet
8 hrs- shadow an equine vet

Animal Experience:
70hrs – attending classes with my guide dog in training
66 hrs- farm animal care volunteer
80 hrs- with livestock on a study abroad
180 hrs- various animal experience during my animal science labs
40 hrs- 4-H showmanship class with goats
1000+ hrs- horse back riding, being a basic barn rat ect.

Employment: P/T office worker, Deli worker (summer job), P/t at a winery, P/t waitress at a diner in high school

Extracurricular: there is a lot of them, I'm not going to list them

Recommendations: I used 5 (I'm worry now if that was too much)
Aquarium vet, scientist from plum island, my academic advisor, assistant dean of the college, Internship supervisor at marine rescue

Personal statement: Started with a story about a whale necropsy that I helped with, went into my fascination with the analogous nature of anatomy across the various species, how my interest in vet school has lead me to explore this this, finally my career goals. PM me if you want to read it

Some things I know I can work on- more experience with a regular veterinarian. A lot of my experience is weird and out there. I need to work on getting a solid letter of recommendation from a vet I know really well. My GPA isn't perfect. I'll try to get good grades my last semester, but I don't intend to do a masters degree to bring it up more.

 

[psilovethomas]

Question: I got waitlisted OOS for Oregon last year... I improved EVERY category... moved to Oregon and established instate residency... and there is no record of the OSU sending invites over multiple days, and I didnt get an invite. What happened? maybe I am just panicking, but it doesnt look good for me now... last year they told me they interview most (as many as possible) of the IS applicants. sigh. 🙁 🙁 🙁

Give them a call or send an email about the status of your application.

 

[Beckett]

I am not the best student in the world so I am dreading posting this, but I thought I might as well see what feedback I can get.

25 years old

Degrees:
B.A. in Fine Arts, University of Massachusetts
B.S. in Biology, University of Massachusetts

Cum GPA: 3.16
Science GPA: ~2.90

Veterinary Experience:
- 150 hours experience SA
- 500 hours experience LA
- 400 hours experience wildlife
- 250 hours experience aquatic

Animal Experience:
- 2000+ hours equine
- 100 hours canine training, agility

Letters of Recommendation
- LA Veterinarian
- Senior biologist, I vol'ed for.
- Associate Professor and Advisor
- Physics Lab Coordinator

GRE: 158 verbal; 143 quant; 4 writing

 

[russellang]

Looking for some feedback.

I had really hoped to go to Cornell, mostly for the IS tuition. However I was rejected. I made an appointment with them to talk about it. So if I don't get in elsewhere I will probably spend some time to improve my application and re-apply. I love Tufts, but I don't know if it would make financial sense to pay that much more (about 15k more than Cornell a year), than to re apply to my in state next year. I would love to get into Wisconsin, but it is a long shot. I didn't apply to more schools because I didn't want to be tempted by a really expensive school and go into unrealistic debt.

First time applicant
Applied to: Tufts, Wisconsin, St. George
Rejected from Cornell (my IS)
GPA: 3.67
GRE: 157 V, 161 Q, 4.0 W

Veterinary Experience:
25hrs- Shadow Aquarium vet
250 hrs- Interned at a marine life rescue- worked mostly with seals and sea turtles
200 hrs- worked as an assistant in a vet hospital, mostly grunt work
700 hrs- worked at Plum Island Animal Disease Center with a variety of vets & research scientists on Foreign Animal Diseases, I had to get government clearance to work with the animals
45 hrs- research assistant on a project with mice
30 hrs- shadowing a SA vet
8 hrs- shadow an equine vet

Animal Experience:
70hrs – attending classes with my guide dog in training
66 hrs- farm animal care volunteer
80 hrs- with livestock on a study abroad
180 hrs- various animal experience during my animal science labs
40 hrs- 4-H showmanship class with goats
1000+ hrs- horse back riding, being a basic barn rat ect.

Employment: P/T office worker, Deli worker (summer job), P/t at a winery, P/t waitress at a diner in high school

Extracurricular: there is a lot of them, I'm not going to list them

Recommendations: I used 5 (I'm worry now if that was too much)
Aquarium vet, scientist from plum island, my academic advisor, assistant dean of the college, Internship supervisor at marine rescue

Personal statement: Started with a story about a whale necropsy that I helped with, went into my fascination with the analogous nature of anatomy across the various species, how my interest in vet school has lead me to explore this this, finally my career goals. PM me if you want to read it

Some things I know I can work on- more experience with a regular veterinarian. A lot of my experience is weird and out there. I need to work on getting a solid letter of recommendation from a vet I know really well. My GPA isn't perfect. I'll try to get good grades my last semester, but I don't intend to do a masters degree to bring it up more.

The one thing I would recommend would be to apply to more schools next year. Tufts and wisconsin are very difficult to get into; in fact I refused to even apply to wisconsin OOS because of the stats of the OOS applicants that get accepted. There are many OOS schools that also offer lower tuition rates, Missouri and Ohio allow you to gain IS residency.

 

[annopia]

I've been a long time lurker, but I'd like a little feedback on my chances this year.

I'm a non-traditional student: graduated undergrad in 2009 with a pretty good GPA, then did a year of law school. I withdrew the second semester (suffering from a very serious eating disorder that required a 3 month partial hospitalization program). I also withdrew from a calc-based physics course that summer, and a trig-based physics course that fall (the summer program was way too soon after I got discharged from the treatment center, and the fall course was withdrawn from when I had to be emergency hospitalized for a week during the semester. I still completed 2 prereqs that fall semester, though).

I realize that my withdrawals from physics, my poor law school grades, and my withdrawal from law school in general are red flags, but I talked about my eating disorder troubles and family pressure to become a lawyer in my explanation statement. I really hope that these do not completely rule me out from getting in. On the positive side, I did get two interviews (Auburn and Tufts) last year, and got waitlisted at Tufts. Tufts actually didn't consider my law school grades when reviewing my app (not sure if that was because of my health issues, or because of the fact that law school has very little to do with vet med).

Also, in my classes since law school (all pre-reqs), I have a 3.87 GPA, including A's in both semesters of Physics.

I'll list my GPA stats both with law and without, since I know for a fact that at least three schools I applied to (Tufts, Edinbor., and Glasgow) do not consider it in their review.

Undergrad GPA (Duke): 3.65
Law School GPA (Wake Forest): 2.00
Cumulative (with law): 3.53
Cumulative (without law): 3.68
Last 45 (with law): 3.26
Last 45 (without law): 3.80
Required (for my hopefully in-state, NC State): 3.66

GRE: 800 quantitative (94%), 690 verbal (97%), analytical 5.0 (87%)

Vet Experience:

357 hours research at the Smithsonian National Zoo
277 hours aquatic vet med (National Aquarium)
417 hours feline general practice
600 hours SA specialty hospital (ophthalmology, radiology, internal medicine mainly)

Animal Experience:

100 hours kennel assistant
50 hours volunteering at the National Zoo's Think Tank, designing their land hermit crab exhibit
400 hours on the Duke Equestrian Team
3000+ hours caring for/researching/rehabilitating land hermit crabs

Work Experience:

1000 hours at a law office

Community Activities:

1 year of Big Brothers Big Sisters
active member/administrator of the Hermit Crab Association
1 year of the Chemistry Outreach program (chemistry education/demos at schools and fairs)

first cycle, I was outright rejected from 8 schools (NC State, VMRCVM, UPenn, Wisconsin, Missouri, Minnesota, Illinois, Colorado State), so I widened my net this year (although it might seem a little excessive...). I didn't have any of that small animal experience last year, however, and I have gotten 5 A's (2 semesters of Physics, Microbiology, Genetics, and Biochem) since then.

Applied to: NC State, Auburn, VMRCVM, UPenn, Tufts, Cornell, Ohio State, Iowa State, Wisconsin, Illinois, Minnesota, UC Davis, Purdue, Colorado State, Glasgow, RVC, Edinbor.
Interviews offered so far: UC Davis, Ohio State, Iowa State, Purdue, Glasgow, RVC
Rejections so far: Colorado State
Schools that interview that I haven't heard from: VMRCVM, Auburn, UPenn, Tufts, Illinois, Minnesota

so...honest opinions about my chances this year? I realize that I have some serious red flags (law school, multiple withdrawals from physics, no LA experience), but I felt that my explanation statement explained the first two pretty well.

Right now I'm working full time at the speciality hospital, but come Spring I'll be working 20 hours and taking 3 classes. My plan if I don't get in this cycle is to get more higher level bio classes that will push law school out of the last 45 hours GPA calculation, and to get some large animal experience.

i posted this a while ago...just wondering if anyone had some feedback?

 

[cvanthof]

i posted this a while ago...just wondering if anyone had some feedback?

I don't know how qualified I am to give you my opinion (this is my first cycle), but what the hell:

I think your better-than-average GRE scores will make up for your GPA, especially if they count law (not that a 3.6~ is bad, especially with you background explanation)

Only advice for you is you need more variety in your vet experience, specifically LA. In general, just work on your hours, both animal and vet.

That's all I got, though. Looks good, otherwise 👍🙂

 

[vethopeful2011]

Looking for some feedback.

I had really hoped to go to Cornell, mostly for the IS tuition. However I was rejected. I made an appointment with them to talk about it. So if I don’t get in elsewhere I will probably spend some time to improve my application and re-apply. I love Tufts, but I don’t know if it would make financial sense to pay that much more (about 15k more than Cornell a year), than to re apply to my in state next year. I would love to get into Wisconsin, but it is a long shot. I didn’t apply to more schools because I didn’t want to be tempted by a really expensive school and go into unrealistic debt.

First time applicant
Applied to: Tufts, Wisconsin, St. George
Rejected from Cornell (my IS)
GPA: 3.67
GRE: 157 V, 161 Q, 4.0 W

Veterinary Experience:
25hrs- Shadow Aquarium vet
250 hrs- Interned at a marine life rescue- worked mostly with seals and sea turtles
200 hrs- worked as an assistant in a vet hospital, mostly grunt work
700 hrs- worked at Plum Island Animal Disease Center with a variety of vets & research scientists on Foreign Animal Diseases, I had to get government clearance to work with the animals
45 hrs- research assistant on a project with mice
30 hrs- shadowing a SA vet
8 hrs- shadow an equine vet

Animal Experience:
70hrs – attending classes with my guide dog in training
66 hrs- farm animal care volunteer
80 hrs- with livestock on a study abroad
180 hrs- various animal experience during my animal science labs
40 hrs- 4-H showmanship class with goats
1000+ hrs- horse back riding, being a basic barn rat ect.

Employment: P/T office worker, Deli worker (summer job), P/t at a winery, P/t waitress at a diner in high school

Extracurricular: there is a lot of them, I'm not going to list them

Recommendations: I used 5 (I’m worry now if that was too much)
Aquarium vet, scientist from plum island, my academic advisor, assistant dean of the college, Internship supervisor at marine rescue

Personal statement: Started with a story about a whale necropsy that I helped with, went into my fascination with the analogous nature of anatomy across the various species, how my interest in vet school has lead me to explore this this, finally my career goals. PM me if you want to read it

Some things I know I can work on- more experience with a regular veterinarian. A lot of my experience is weird and out there. I need to work on getting a solid letter of recommendation from a vet I know really well. My GPA isn’t perfect. I’ll try to get good grades my last semester, but I don’t intend to do a masters degree to bring it up more.

I applied to a similiar batch of schools. You have some really interesting and unique experiences, so maybe focus more on the typical SA and LA clinical practice like you're already thinking. I wouldn't worry about the number of references, I used every single one for Cornell, plus extras that I had on VMCAS and not on Cornell. As long as they're each representing an individual experience or aspects of that experience, I think it's fine. If you don't want to take any more classes, and you feel like you could improve your GRE score, maybe knock it through the roof with a prep class and really make some noise with that so to speak. It's already really good.

I had the same train of thought on Tufts vs Cornell; 15k is a lot. Tufts is an amazing school though, so if you end up there, hats off! I think if I hadn't gotten into Cornell I would have gone to Tufts even though it's more expensive, but it's a personal decision.

 

[BGoodl]

Thanks for the feedback everyone, I didn't take a GRE prep class the first time - just studied a lot with a couple books, so a GRE prep course might help improve my score some more.

 

[485501]

I am not the best student in the world so I am dreading posting this, but I thought I might as well see what feedback I can get.

25 years old

Degrees:
B.A. in Fine Arts, University of Massachusetts
B.S. in Biology, University of Massachusetts

Cum GPA: 3.16
Science GPA: ~2.90

Veterinary Experience:
- 150 hours experience SA
- 500 hours experience LA
- 400 hours experience wildlife
- 250 hours experience aquatic

Animal Experience:
- 2000+ hours equine
- 100 hours canine training, agility

Letters of Recommendation
- LA Veterinarian
- Senior biologist, I vol'ed for.
- Associate Professor and Advisor
- Physics Lab Coordinator

GRE: 158 verbal; 143 quant; 4 writing

I'm just a pre-vet, so I'm no expert, but I'd say that with that science GPA it's going to be very difficult to get accepted. Is there any way you can bring your GPA up? Retaking the GRE and totally rocking it would also help.

 

[annopia]

I don't know how qualified I am to give you my opinion (this is my first cycle), but what the hell:

I think your better-than-average GRE scores will make up for your GPA, especially if they count law (not that a 3.6~ is bad, especially with you background explanation)

Only advice for you is you need more variety in your vet experience, specifically LA. In general, just work on your hours, both animal and vet.

That's all I got, though. Looks good, otherwise 👍🙂

thanks for the feedback! i think LA experience is definitely something thats lacking in my application...ive got variety in my SA (specialty and general), zoo, and aquatic, but zip experience with anything large (unless you count rheas!).

 

[cdndvm]

I am not the best student in the world so I am dreading posting this, but I thought I might as well see what feedback I can get.

25 years old

Degrees:
B.A. in Fine Arts, University of Massachusetts
B.S. in Biology, University of Massachusetts

Cum GPA: 3.16
Science GPA: ~2.90

Veterinary Experience:
- 150 hours experience SA
- 500 hours experience LA
- 400 hours experience wildlife
- 250 hours experience aquatic

Animal Experience:
- 2000+ hours equine
- 100 hours canine training, agility

Letters of Recommendation
- LA Veterinarian
- Senior biologist, I vol'ed for.
- Associate Professor and Advisor
- Physics Lab Coordinator

GRE: 158 verbal; 143 quant; 4 writing

Hi. Your GPA is unfortunately not competitive; most (if not all) the US vet med programs have applicants with 3.6+ solid GPAs that you have to compete with. Have you considered a second undergrad degree? If you go this route you need to be sure you identified why you didn't succeed the first time around, as you really need to get stellar grades to bring up your cGPA. Additionally, you will need to demonstrate to admission officers that you have shown a positive trend in your grades, and that you can handle the academic rigors of a heavy, difficulty course load.

Good Luck!

 

[503372]

Hi. Your GPA is unfortunately not competitive; most (if not all) the US vet med programs have applicants with 3.6+ solid GPAs that you have to compete with. Have you considered a second undergrad degree? If you go this route you need to be sure you identified why you didn't succeed the first time around, as you really need to get stellar grades to bring up your cGPA. Additionally, you will need to demonstrate to admission officers that you have shown a positive trend in your grades, and that you can handle the academic rigors of a heavy, difficulty course load.

Good Luck!

No offense cdndvm, but I think it's kind of unrealistic and a bit harsh to suggest that Beckett do a third undergraduate degree. It's all well and good if you have a trust fund or wealthy parents, but a bachelor's degree does not come cheaply and it would take a long time to start from scratch. I'm not here to start an argument with you about funding. All I am saying is that I don't believe the suggestion to be a correct one.

I believe it would probably be more pertinent to take additional upper-level sciences classes and improve your last 45 GPA. Improving your GRE scores would help too. I do not think that having a 4.0 GPA is a requirement to be a excellent veterinarian. Anyone who believes this acts in a exclusionary manner in order to bolster their own self worth and demean those who they believe to be less superior. That being said, the study and practice of veterinarian medicine requires as much intelligence as it does devotion, persistance, and sacrifice.

So the most important piece of advice I can give is to not allow yourself to become chronically discouraged, no matter how long it takes, because it will happen if you really want it.

 

[Emiloo4]

No offense cdndvm, but I think it's kind of unrealistic and a bit harsh to suggest that Beckett do a third undergraduate degree. It's all well and good if you have a trust fund or wealthy parents, but a bachelor's degree does not come cheaply and it would take a long time to start from scratch. I'm not here to start an argument with you about funding. All I am saying is that I don't believe the suggestion to be a correct one.

I believe it would probably be more pertinent to take additional upper-level sciences classes and improve your last 45 GPA. Improving your GRE scores would help too. I do not think that having a 4.0 GPA is a requirement to be a excellent veterinarian. Anyone who believes this acts in a exclusionary manner in order to bolster their own self worth and demean those who they believe to be less superior. That being said, the study and practice of veterinarian medicine requires as much intelligence as it does devotion, persistance, and sacrifice.

So the most important piece of advice I can give is to not allow yourself to become chronically discouraged, no matter how long it takes, because it will happen if you really want it.

I however think this last paragraph of your post is also unrealistic. I know plenty and plenty of people who wanted it more than most of us, and still couldn't make it happen. So although it's encouraging, I think it's unfair as a blanket statement bc it only gets people's hopes up. Unfortunately it's just not realistic.
That being said, I don't think the OP has completely impossible stats to overcome, but it will be tougher than most.

 

[russellang]

No offense cdndvm, but I think it's kind of unrealistic and a bit harsh to suggest that Beckett do a third undergraduate degree. It's all well and good if you have a trust fund or wealthy parents, but a bachelor's degree does not come cheaply and it would take a long time to start from scratch. I'm not here to start an argument with you about funding. All I am saying is that I don't believe the suggestion to be a correct one.

I believe it would probably be more pertinent to take additional upper-level sciences classes and improve your last 45 GPA. Improving your GRE scores would help too. I do not think that having a 4.0 GPA is a requirement to be a excellent veterinarian. Anyone who believes this acts in a exclusionary manner in order to bolster their own self worth and demean those who they believe to be less superior. That being said, the study and practice of veterinarian medicine requires as much intelligence as it does devotion, persistance, and sacrifice.

So the most important piece of advice I can give is to not allow yourself to become chronically discouraged, no matter how long it takes, because it will happen if you really want it.

I think that she should not pursue another degree but take a semester or two of additional courses to at least show you can manage that courseload. She cannot overcome that gpa but at least she can have a decent last 45 credit gpa.

I also agree that grades are not everything to be a great veterinarian. I have worked with several vets who graduated at the top of their class but lacked acceptable clinical and communication skills, instead they focused most of their attention on grades. Unfortunately in this field to be successful you have to have many strengths and once your out in practice your gpa does not make a difference. I do understand why residencies focus everything on grades since they have no other universal way to evaluate all applicants but I think that experience is more important.

 

[cdndvm]

No offense cdndvm, but I think it's kind of unrealistic and a bit harsh to suggest that Beckett do a third undergraduate degree. It's all well and good if you have a trust fund or wealthy parents, but a bachelor's degree does not come cheaply and it would take a long time to start from scratch. I'm not here to start an argument with you about funding. All I am saying is that I don't believe the suggestion to be a correct one.

I believe it would probably be more pertinent to take additional upper-level sciences classes and improve your last 45 GPA. Improving your GRE scores would help too. I do not think that having a 4.0 GPA is a requirement to be a excellent veterinarian. Anyone who believes this acts in a exclusionary manner in order to bolster their own self worth and demean those who they believe to be less superior. That being said, the study and practice of veterinarian medicine requires as much intelligence as it does devotion, persistance, and sacrifice.

So the most important piece of advice I can give is to not allow yourself to become chronically discouraged, no matter how long it takes, because it will happen if you really want it.

Nowhere did I say you need a 4.0 to be a good vet. I dont think pre-vet school grades have anything to do with the quality of practitioner you become. But a GPA of 2.9 is not going to get anybody into vet school. Period. I dont know how anybody could even argue with that. If this candidate doesn't want to give up on vet school then I think they're looking at dramatically improving their GPA, and they're going to have to demonstrate that over 2, 3 or maybe even 4 more years of undergrad or grad school. If that's the case, you might as well enroll in a degree course that may give you a job at the end that you would be happy with incase vet school never happens.

Your advice to continue to perservere, and that one day your dreams will be realized given enough applications and time, is simply palliating someones feelings.

Honest advice (even if you think its discouraging) is better then providing blind encouragement in the face of a clearly deficient application.

 

[Member Name 123]

Look for some advice on improvements, know my chances arent good this time around

21 year old male
B.S in Biology
GPA-3.22
Science- 3.33
Last 45 credit hrs- 3.48

Lacking greatly in animal experience thanks to college athletics (suggestions on where to get some good experience welcomed) but have lots of non-animal related community service and such

Letters of recommendation
1) Veterinarian from my number 1 school (VMRCVM)
2) Pre-vet advisor/zoology professor
3) College sports coach

GRE- 157 in both

Any helpful feedback would be much appreciated!

 

[kernel]

Look for some advice on improvements, know my chances arent good this time around

21 year old male
B.S in Biology
GPA-3.22
Science- 3.33
Last 45 credit hrs- 3.48

Lacking greatly in animal experience thanks to college athletics (suggestions on where to get some good experience welcomed) but have lots of non-animal related community service and such

Letters of recommendation
1) Veterinarian from my number 1 school (VMRCVM)
2) Pre-vet advisor/zoology professor
3) College sports coach

GRE- 157 in both

Any helpful feedback would be much appreciated!

It would be helpful if you could tell us a little more about your community service experiences. How do you think you stand out compared to other applicants? It's important to really make yourself shine when your GPA isn't stellar (don't worry, a lot of ours' aren't--mine sure isn't!).

As for animal experience, I would start by going to local shelters and signing on as a volunteer. Most of them would welcome your help as someone to clean the animals' cages and play with them! 🙂
You might also swing by a couple of local veterinary clinics, introduce yourself, and ask if there are any shadowing opportunities available. This worked for me, you just have to be persistent (but friendly, not annoying!)

 

[FeartheDogMonky]

Look for some advice on improvements, know my chances arent good this time around

21 year old male
B.S in Biology
GPA-3.22
Science- 3.33
Last 45 credit hrs- 3.48

Lacking greatly in animal experience thanks to college athletics (suggestions on where to get some good experience welcomed) but have lots of non-animal related community service and such

Letters of recommendation
1) Veterinarian from my number 1 school (VMRCVM)
2) Pre-vet advisor/zoology professor
3) College sports coach

GRE- 157 in both

Any helpful feedback would be much appreciated!

No idea where you're located, but I would definitely start searching for volunteer opportunities in your local area. There are organizations that set you up with events needing volunteers (I use Hands-On in Florida), so perhaps there's one similar to that in your area. I would also check with your local SPCA as well. As mentioned previously, you will start out cleaning cages, walking dogs... nothing glamorous, but it is time that is precious when you're starting at ground zero. I was also fortunate to find a wildlife rescue/rehab facility in my county that has been great. Showing these places that you're willing to devote the time, energy and patience to start from square one will pay dividends.

As far as experience with a vet, I second contacting your local clinics and asking for volunteer/shadow opportunities. Due to insurance constraints, you may run into the problem I initially had where I was only able to watch and help when things got out of control because two dogs got loose and one needed to be restrained. Other than those 2 minutes of restraint time, it was hands-off. You'll have better luck with a private practice though. Recommend starting with your personal vet if you have one, then branching out from there.

Since I'm a little older and starting this process a lot later than others, I am in the same boat with you in hoping that my previous life experiences and such help me stand out. In addition to the obvious academic requirements for admission, make yourself shine in any other way possible since you're competing with 1,000's-10,000's of hours with other applicants.

Hope it helps! Good luck.

 

[Jess Monster]

I'm actually not a first time poster, but it's been years since I did this so 😱....

I'm 26, first time applicant, graduate student
BS in Animal Sciences w/ minors in Zoology and Public Health (2010)
MPH (expected in the next year)

Undergrad GPA: 3.29
Graduate GPA: 3.4 ish (at time of application)

GRE: 1120 (560 Q, 560V, 5.5 A)

This year, I only applied to Ohio State (IS and alma mater). Realistically, financially, socially - it's where I see myself being. Maybe not the wisest choice in hindsight but it's a learning process, right? I haven't received an interview invite yet, but since they're doing things differently from previous years I don't know what to expect at all and obviously, time is running out, so this whole process is rather depressing. 🙁

Science GPA: approx. 3.3 (good biology student, bad chemistry student - i.e. mostly C's and some retakes)

Vet hours: ~ 1000
- 30 hours equine/large animal
- 550 hours veterinary emergency management at USDA national office in DC
- 150 hours with state vet on rabies program
- 150 hours working with veterinarians in Kenya on wildlife/livestock/human issues
- Also, 400 hours lab work in swine nutrition under a PhD (I included this as "animal" but this year it qualifies as "vet" so...)

Animal hours: over 3000

I really underestimated some of my earlier, not-so-well-documented stuff but these hours include equestrian camp volunteer, 4-H, raising/breeding rabbits/dogs throughout childhood, a fair amount of animal shelter volunteering, Animal Response Team activities, ownership of multiple types of animals, etc.

Honors:
- presented research in undergrad and in grad school (latter, internationally)
- received grant to travel and research in Kenya in 2011
- Dean's List a few times in undergrad
- a few scholarships in undergrad (one was for 4-H)
- Honor Roll throughout high school plus other awards from those days

Activities:
- advisor for volunteer program through the university
- member of public health clubs and animal science clubs
- study abroad in Ireland and Chile (research in Kenya and Ethiopia)

LoR's:
- director of my grad program (vet and professor at OSU)
- director of USDA-VS division I interned for a few year ago (also a vet)
- co-founder of an equestrian camp I volunteered with a few summers ago

Adversity/Explanation issues:

I discussed my horrible chem grades and what I learned from retaking them and still not performing super well (I went from failing to C's in O-chem). Basically, chemistry is not a strength and while I do quite well in lab based work, regardless of how I tailor my study habits, I still don't achieve exceptional grades. BUT, I'm rather good at biological sciences and I definitely feel that my performance there is representative of my aptitude for the veterinary sciences.

Also, due to an accident in September 2011, I was left with a severely broken arm which was temporarily paralyzed. I was in the middle of the application when this happened. At the time I didn't know how damaged my arm was or if I was going to have a permanent physical disability. When you're 25 and contemplating a life with one usable arm, that alone is a lot of stress to deal with outside of application stress. Needless to say, I decided not to submit that cycle.

Luckily, I mostly recovered with physical therapy, but it's still not 100% and I'm a little touchy about the subject, so I was hesitant to mention it on my application. It helps explain things though, like why I had not applied previously and why there was a downturn in my grades last year (going from almost all A's to mostly B's).



Well, that was long. Posting these things is like the academic version of a striptease in a shark tank.

 

[kernel]

I'm actually not a first time poster, but it's been years since I did this so 😱....

I'm 26, first time applicant, graduate student
BS in Animal Sciences w/ minors in Zoology and Public Health (2010)
MPH (expected in the next year)

Undergrad GPA: 3.29
Graduate GPA: 3.4 ish (at time of application)

GRE: 1120 (560 Q, 560V, 5.5 A)

This year, I only applied to Ohio State (IS and alma mater). Realistically, financially, socially - it's where I see myself being. Maybe not the wisest choice in hindsight but it's a learning process, right? I haven't received an interview invite yet, but since they're doing things differently from previous years I don't know what to expect at all and obviously, time is running out, so this whole process is rather depressing. 🙁

Science GPA: approx. 3.3 (good biology student, bad chemistry student - i.e. mostly C's and some retakes)

Vet hours: ~ 1000
- 30 hours equine/large animal
- 550 hours veterinary emergency management at USDA national office in DC
- 150 hours with state vet on rabies program
- 150 hours working with veterinarians in Kenya on wildlife/livestock/human issues
- Also, 400 hours lab work in swine nutrition under a PhD (I included this as "animal" but this year it qualifies as "vet" so...)

Animal hours: over 3000

I really underestimated some of my earlier, not-so-well-documented stuff but these hours include equestrian camp volunteer, 4-H, raising/breeding rabbits/dogs throughout childhood, a fair amount of animal shelter volunteering, Animal Response Team activities, ownership of multiple types of animals, etc.

Honors:
- presented research in undergrad and in grad school (latter, internationally)
- received grant to travel and research in Kenya in 2011
- Dean's List a few times in undergrad
- a few scholarships in undergrad (one was for 4-H)
- Honor Roll throughout high school plus other awards from those days

Activities:
- advisor for volunteer program through the university
- member of public health clubs and animal science clubs
- study abroad in Ireland and Chile (research in Kenya and Ethiopia)

LoR's:
- director of my grad program (vet and professor at OSU)
- director of USDA-VS division I interned for a few year ago (also a vet)
- co-founder of an equestrian camp I volunteered with a few summers ago

Adversity/Explanation issues:

I discussed my horrible chem grades and what I learned from retaking them and still not performing super well (I went from failing to C's in O-chem). Basically, chemistry is not a strength and while I do quite well in lab based work, regardless of how I tailor my study habits, I still don't achieve exceptional grades. BUT, I'm rather good at biological sciences and I definitely feel that my performance there is representative of my aptitude for the veterinary sciences.

Also, due to an accident in September 2011, I was left with a severely broken arm which was temporarily paralyzed. I was in the middle of the application when this happened. At the time I didn't know how damaged my arm was or if I was going to have a permanent physical disability. When you're 25 and contemplating a life with one usable arm, that alone is a lot of stress to deal with outside of application stress. Needless to say, I decided not to submit that cycle.

Luckily, I mostly recovered with physical therapy, but it's still not 100% and I'm a little touchy about the subject, so I was hesitant to mention it on my application. It helps explain things though, like why I had not applied previously and why there was a downturn in my grades last year (going from almost all A's to mostly B's).



Well, that was long. Posting these things is like the academic version of a striptease in a shark tank.

Jess, I just wanted to pop in and say that I have VERY similar stats to yours (although I have not taken any grad-level courses). I, too applied to my IS and only my IS. I DID land an interview, so I am sending you good vibes.
While I also think that, in hindsight, applying "a bit more broadly" so as to increase my chances would have been a better choice, I'm trying to stay positive about my decision. The "financially" and "socially" parts or your reasoning are huge factors, don't forget that!

Hang in there and best of luck getting an interview.
Signed,

- Another O-chem disliker-person

 

[acg86]

Hey guys! I was wondering if you all might be able to give me some advice on my chances so far. I am going to be applying this summer for Fall of 2014. I am a senior in my undergrad and this will be my first time applying.

22 years old, male, Maryland resident

Degrees:
Working on B.S. in biology from Towson University

Cum GPA: 3.905
Science GPA: 4.0
Last 45 hours: 4.0
Haven't taken biochem or my advanced writing yet, but those are the only pre-reqs I am missing for the schools I am applying to


Veterinary Experience:
1250 hours as a volunteer at a SA hospital
2000+ hours and counting. Currently a technician in training at the same hospital I was the volunteer. I work at least 2 days a week when I am in school
70 hours with horses
I may be working with a veterinary dermatologist this summer also

Animal Experience:
~3500+ hours. I have been a pet sitter since I was 8. I have done mostly dogs and cats.

Lab Work
-100 hours in a genetics lab. I mostly just learned how to run gels, it was a lot of just sitting around waiting for the gels to go haha.
-I am going to be working with a Veterinary Microbiologist this semester and summer too so that should be able to get at least 100 more hours this semester

Letters of Recommendation
-Towson University Med Micro professor
-Towson University Orgo 2 professor
-Veternarian I work with
-Head tech/owner of the hospital I work with (same practice as the vet letter)

GRE:
510 verbal
570 quant
just took it today so I am not sure of the % nor the writting portion, though I have heard that unless you get a low score it really doesn't matter all that much.

Other areas
- Secretary of my school's Pre-vet club
- member of BBB honor society
-I was a collegiate athelete for my first year of school. I was a diver for my school's swim and dive team
-Before I was hired at my hospital, I was a lead server at a resturant I worked at. I had a large leadership role helping the newer servers. I worked there for 5 1/2 years before I was hired at the hospital.
-Member of NSCS
-Member of Golden Key Honour Society
-Dean's List for all 6 semesters
-Nominated for Merck Outstanding Performance in Organic Chemistry


My concerns:

-Basically all of the vet experience is from one clinic and largely with small animal. I know that I want to work with small animals, but I'm still unsure if I should varry my experience more.

- I have almost no LA experience

- I don't own any pets of my own. I would love to have a pet, but my mom doesn't like animals all that much (funny how I picked vet med then huh? lol) That is largely why I got so into pet sitting. It was like I could have dog or cat for a little, but I couldn't take it home.

- I did take one semester off of school. Which is why I am set to graduate in the Fall rather than this spring. I had a lot of family issues going on. Not to go into too many details, but a death and my parents split among other things within a 3 week period.

- I also feel like my verbal GRE score is a little low, but I am happy with my overall score so I really don't plan to retake it.


This summer I plan to apply to VMRCVM (my IS), Tennessee, Georgia, and UPenn
My number 1 would be tech

Let me know what you think,
Thank you so much!

 

[Hotfillyky]

Hey guys! I was wondering if you all might be able to give me some advice on my chances so far. I am going to be applying this summer for Fall of 2014. I am a senior in my undergrad and this will be my first time applying.

22 years old, male, Maryland resident

Degrees:
Working on B.S. in biology from Towson University

Cum GPA: 3.905
Science GPA: 4.0
Last 45 hours: 4.0
Haven't taken biochem or my advanced writing yet, but those are the only pre-reqs I am missing for the schools I am applying to


Veterinary Experience:
1250 hours as a volunteer at a SA hospital
2000+ hours and counting. Currently a technician in training at the same hospital I was the volunteer. I work at least 2 days a week when I am in school
70 hours with horses
I may be working with a veterinary dermatologist this summer also

Animal Experience:
~3500+ hours. I have been a pet sitter since I was 8. I have done mostly dogs and cats.

Lab Work
-100 hours in a genetics lab. I mostly just learned how to run gels, it was a lot of just sitting around waiting for the gels to go haha.
-I am going to be working with a Veterinary Microbiologist this semester and summer too so that should be able to get at least 100 more hours this semester

Letters of Recommendation
-Towson University Med Micro professor
-Towson University Orgo 2 professor
-Veternarian I work with
-Head tech/owner of the hospital I work with (same practice as the vet letter)

GRE:
510 verbal
570 quant
just took it today so I am not sure of the % nor the writting portion, though I have heard that unless you get a low score it really doesn't matter all that much.

Other areas
- Secretary of my school's Pre-vet club
- member of BBB honor society
-I was a collegiate athelete for my first year of school. I was a diver for my school's swim and dive team
-Before I was hired at my hospital, I was a lead server at a resturant I worked at. I had a large leadership role helping the newer servers. I worked there for 5 1/2 years before I was hired at the hospital.
-Member of NSCS
-Member of Golden Key Honour Society
-Dean's List for all 6 semesters
-Nominated for Merck Outstanding Performance in Organic Chemistry


My concerns:

-Basically all of the vet experience is from one clinic and largely with small animal. I know that I want to work with small animals, but I'm still unsure if I should varry my experience more.

- I have almost no LA experience

- I don't own any pets of my own. I would love to have a pet, but my mom doesn't like animals all that much (funny how I picked vet med then huh? lol) That is largely why I got so into pet sitting. It was like I could have dog or cat for a little, but I couldn't take it home.

- I did take one semester off of school. Which is why I am set to graduate in the Fall rather than this spring. I had a lot of family issues going on. Not to go into too many details, but a death and my parents split among other things within a 3 week period.

- I also feel like my verbal GRE score is a little low, but I am happy with my overall score so I really don't plan to retake it.


This summer I plan to apply to VMRCVM (my IS), Tennessee, Georgia, and UPenn
My number 1 would be tech

Let me know what you think,
Thank you so much!

Your grades are fine and so are your GRE scores. I wouldn't sweat the verbal score as it seems that adcoms are more interested in quantitative scores. Get some more varied experience--check with your DVMs, they may know someone to hook you up with.

I would try to get in somewhere so that you can at least see some type of LA stuff. You might be surprised. It is so different from SA that it makes it very interesting.

You can use the explanation statement on the VMCAS to address your family issues and how you overcame it.

Good luck!
🙂

 

[CloudlessNights]

Just wanted to add that it's really difficult to get into Georgia OOS (I think they take 10 or less OOS'ers a year).

 

[Emiloo4]

Just wanted to add that it's really difficult to get into Georgia OOS (I think they take 10 or less OOS'ers a year).

More like 1 lol. At least there was only one from 2015 and they were from Puerto Rico. Maybe 2 last year? Can't remember.

 

[kakurubird]

More like 1 lol. At least there was only one from 2015 and they were from Puerto Rico. Maybe 2 last year? Can't remember.

7 two years ago but 1 the year before that.

http://www.vet.uga.edu/admissions/statistics

And those are enrolled numbers, not necessarily number accepted.

 

[Mairee22]

I'm going through an early career change and could use some suggestions. I have a BS in Psychology with 3.94 overall GPA. In May I will have a Master's in Clinical and Counseling Psychology, with about the same GPA (3.9ish). I have presented research at several conferences and have a published article or two. I've applied to Clinical Psychology programs and currently have a few interviews set up, but I really just want to become a veterinarian. I'm going back to community college to get more pre-requisite courses fulfilled next year, but I'm just wondering how feasible it is for me to try and get into vet school with my background that has nothing to do with becoming a vet?? I'm worried that I'm basically starting over and that it will take me a good few years to actually become a competitive applicant. Any suggestions or anything would be greatly appreciated.

 

[annopia]

I'm going through an early career change and could use some suggestions. I have a BS in Psychology with 3.94 overall GPA. In May I will have a Master's in Clinical and Counseling Psychology, with about the same GPA (3.9ish). I have presented research at several conferences and have a published article or two. I've applied to Clinical Psychology programs and currently have a few interviews set up, but I really just want to become a veterinarian. I'm going back to community college to get more pre-requisite courses fulfilled next year, but I'm just wondering how feasible it is for me to try and get into vet school with my background that has nothing to do with becoming a vet?? I'm worried that I'm basically starting over and that it will take me a good few years to actually become a competitive applicant. Any suggestions or anything would be greatly appreciated.

I was similar to you...graduate in '09 with a degree in Classics with minors in psych and chem. did a year of law school and then decided that what i really wanted to become was a vet. at that time i had zero bio courses or physics, and no experience with animals. so I really started getting experience and taking courses in the fall of '10, and although I applied in last years cycle and got wait listed, it is only this cycle (class of 2017) that i feel like i'm really a competitive applicant. Since then (fall 2010) i've gotten roughly 1800-2000 hours of combined experience in small animal (general and specialty), zoo, and aquarium vet med, as well as having taken 11 courses I needed for various schools.

the real question i think is: how badly do you want it? its going to be awhile before you can seriously apply, and if you would be almost as happy doing something with your current degree, you might want to try that. i knew after a year of law school that law wasn't for me, and had no problem making very little money for about 3 or 4 years to strengthen my application, because i knew that this career is the only one that i would find fulfilling. you've got a great GPA, but a lot of course work (and getting experience) in front of you. if its what you want, and your prepared to go through a lengthy process of getting things done, then i certainly think you can do it.

there are certainly people who get into vet school after years of being in completely different fields-i don't think that looks negative on your application as long as you can explain why you decided on vet med. if you want it and are willing to set aside a year or two or three and apply yourself, you could certainly make a go of it.

just my two cents.

 

[orca2011]

I'm going through an early career change and could use some suggestions. I have a BS in Psychology with 3.94 overall GPA. In May I will have a Master's in Clinical and Counseling Psychology, with about the same GPA (3.9ish). I have presented research at several conferences and have a published article or two. I've applied to Clinical Psychology programs and currently have a few interviews set up, but I really just want to become a veterinarian. I'm going back to community college to get more pre-requisite courses fulfilled next year, but I'm just wondering how feasible it is for me to try and get into vet school with my background that has nothing to do with becoming a vet?? I'm worried that I'm basically starting over and that it will take me a good few years to actually become a competitive applicant. Any suggestions or anything would be greatly appreciated.

It's definitely very feasible and even more so since you have a great GPA from both of these programs. You'd have to do well in your science prereqs and do well on the GRE too.

What I think most of us would recommend first is to get experience in the veterinary field before definitely making the switch, especially if you haven't done so already. You might find that it actually is what you thought/expected and it would majorly suck to spend all that money on the coursework. Start calling veterinary hospitals to see if they will allow you to shadow. Avoid using the word volunteer as it could throw up a red flag for insurance reasons. You don't need to be completely hands on to learn about the profession. If you can't find a hospital to let you shadow, local shelters are a good place to start getting animal experience which could lead to gaining experience at a hospital.

 

[Crystalight33]

So, I've been lurking for a couple months and posting occasionally, so I figured I would try to get some honest feedback about my stats.

About me: Non-trad, 30 years old, female. Tennessee resident. First time applying.
Applied to Auburn (interview Feb 4), Mississippi State (interview Feb 6), and Tennessee (no news yet)

Degrees: Bachelors of Music (education) '04 and Masters of Music (performance) '06

Cum GPA: 3.75
Physical sci GPA: 3.85
Bio and Ag GPA: 4.0
Last 45 GPA: 4.0

GRE: 159v (84%), 151q (56%), 4.5w (72%)

Veterinary Experience:
~2000 hours at a single doctor SA clinic as a vet assistant
~9000 hours at a multi doctor SA clinic as a vet assistant
~250 hours at a rural mixed practice as a vet assistant
~600 and counting hours working the emergency shift at a different mixed practice

Animal Experience:
12 hours of riding lessons (they're so expensive!!)
5 hours of volunteering to draw blood for HW tests at the humane society

Employment:
Gulf Coast Symphony musician, Rapides Symphony musician, TA during my masters degree, camp counselor at a music camp

Honors/Awards:
Deans list, graduated Cum Laude for my bachelors, featured soloist with the Lake Charles Symphony

Other: pre-vet club, student science association, community band, music sorority

Letters of Reccomendation: two of the vets I worked with for 5 years, and my genetics professor (all my schools only wanted three...). I waived my right to see them.

Personal statement: I opened by comparing a specific orchestra piece I played to a dog with a broken premolar. I talked about how playing that piece gave me a sense of personal accomplishment that was the same as when I got a personal thank you letter from the aforementioned dog's owner. When I realized I got more satisfaction from that thank you note than from playing an important orchestral work, I knew I needed to go back to pursue my DVM. I then talked about the different clinics I worked in and the types of cases I saw. I gave some examples of interesting cases I'd seen and how I wasn't satisfied just assisting the doctor, I wanted to be the doctor.

I had lots of people read it and like it, but when I went to submit it (the week before VMCAS was due) I was 6k characters too long! I cut out lots of unnecessary fluff and am happy with the end product.

I didn't write anything in the explanation area because I didn't really feel like I needed to explain anything.... Maybe I should have put why I switched from music to veterinary medicine? I'm preparing to answer that in my interviews.

I feel like my GPA is pretty strong, but my GRE isn't. I'm not a great standardized test taker. I also couldn't come up with very much for animal experience because it is pretty much all veterinary related. I never had pets growing up, so I couldn't even put that 😳.

I would really appreciate any feedback you can give me 😍