What are my chances?

[cs5910]

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Degree: Animal Science
Graduating Spring 2014

GPA: 3.44
Last 45 hrs: 3.37
Science GPA: 3.22
GRE: V 141 Q 156 (didn’t study, plan on retaking it soon)

Experience:
-200 hours SA clinic
-70 with cattle
-50 with swine
-25 with raptors
-20 shadowing a vet
-200+ hours of research

Other:
-Learned many lab techniques while doing research
-Scholarship Athlete at Div. I University in two sports (track and cross country)
-Team Captain
-National College Athletic Honor Society Chi Alpha Sigma member

Also I am currently applying for a research fellowship. Hoping it makes all of these stats above look better. I am just curious as to what level of vet schools would even consider me. I should have above a 3.5 after this semester based off of what I am taking.

Hey AURunner...

Just curious about your name, were you a runner at Auburn? If you were, use that to your advantage!!! I was a Division-1 swimmer and captain for all 4 years at my university. My interviewers LOVED how I tied NCAA swimming into my applications in terms of work ethic/time managment/leadership. If you were a runner at your school, talk about how you were able to balance 30+ hours a week of training and traveling (my sport required 3-a-day practices), with a rigorous degree. Work on raising your GPAs and they will be really impressed with how you balanced your sport, classes, and vet experience. It will help show them you will be able to handle the time requirements of vet school.

If you weren't a runner, I am sorry for the lengthy post!! Hopefully it can help someone here!

 

[AURunner]

cs5910 yes I am a runner at Auburn University! I will definitely try to improve my GPA and talk about the balance of school and sports in an interview if I hopefully get one next year!

 

[cs5910]

cs5910 yes I am a runner at Auburn University! I will definitely try to improve my GPA and talk about the balance of school and sports in an interview if I hopefully get one next year!

Perfect! I even included being a student-athlete into my personal statement (how the characteristics I developed from my sport/being captain will help me be a great vet student/practitioner)...

Actually, at my Auburn interview two weeks ago, my interviewers were very impressed with the student-athlete stuff in my PS and in my VMCAS resume, I bet they will be even more impressed with an athlete from their own school! Use that to your advantage! You worked hard to succeed as a student-athlete, definitely incorporate that! I would be happy to help you with reading your personal statement if you need help!

 

[ThePiedPiper]

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[toratora]

I cannot stress this enough. Applying smart can really make or break a cycle.

Every school has different criteria they use to "score" applicants. It's important to find schools that score in a way that favors your stats.

For example.. I have a high cum gpa and last 45 hrs, but a lower GRE. It was important to find schools that focused on grades more than GRE. It just so happened that Mizzou weighs GPA highly, and GRE pretty low ( only 4% of their academic scoring!!! Wahhhooo!! ) turns out Mizzou was my dream school so it worked out.. Now if I applied to Florida they probably would've rejected me outright bc they weigh the GRE at 50% of their academic scoring!! Does that make me a bad applicant or less deserving? I don't think so.

The moral of the story is that when your deciding where to apply, figure out what your strengths/weaknesses are and apply with that in mind! Look for places that emphasize what your strength is and it can really help!!

How do you know what the criteria for each school is? Do you just base it off the previous acceptance stats? Sorry if this seems like a dumb a question D:

 

[ThrowMeABone]

You have to do a bit of digging. Most places will post that on their website, others wont post it at all. You can also try and see if schools post stats for accepted classes. And I would have to agree with the applying smart. Especially with regards to Mizzou, I had a stronger GRE than GPA and was rejected. In retrospect, that wasn't a great school for me to apply to.

For me, prerequisites were a big limiting factor. So first figure out where you can apply based on the courses required by each school, then figure out each school's admission formula (where possible), and then think about where you could see yourself! Good luck!!!

 

[ellsworth]

Most schools make exceptions even to their own posted minimums. I have a terrible GPA (almost anyway you cut it) but a good GRE score, Peace Corps, grad school and lots of animal and vet experience. If I had followed the minimum GPA rules I wouldn't have gotten offers at 3 of 4 schools. Also one school said GRE was only 5% and GPA 50% but I still got an offer.

My experience is that most of those stats they give are for the Traditional path students. Those of us going non trad need to apply fairly broadly. My first cycle I applied to 7 schools got 2 interviews (Davis and WSU) and waitlisted. My second cycle (17 applications) both those schools rejected me but I got interviews at Ohio, VMRCVM, AVC, and Glasgow (I had applied to 2 of those the year before and heard nothing). Apply broadly you never know what may catch the eye of someone on an admissions committee.

 

[toratora]

Another one of my concerns is that a lot of schools have extra prerequisites such as speech, animal nutrition, animal science. The problem is, here in Southern California it is nearly impossible to add these classes. Will schools make exceptions?

 

[orca2011]

Another one of my concerns is that a lot of schools have extra prerequisites such as speech, animal nutrition, animal science. The problem is, here in Southern California it is nearly impossible to add these classes. Will schools make exceptions?

I have substituted a literature course for a writing course with a couple schools, but I needed to provide the school with a syllabus, course description and email from the professor stating the grades were primarily determined by papers. To figure any of that out, you need to contact the school a head of time. If not, many of those classes can be taken online. I'm not quite sure how online speech classes work, but I know people have done them.

 

[macita183]

Another one of my concerns is that a lot of schools have extra prerequisites such as speech, animal nutrition, animal science. The problem is, here in Southern California it is nearly impossible to add these classes. Will schools make exceptions?

If a course isn't usually offered in the undergrad programs, the vet schools you are applying to may let you take the course online. I remember when I was deciding where to apply several schools has Animal Nutrition as a pre-req and had a note that this course could be taken online. Oklahoma State has Animal Nutrition as an online course and I remember reading on SDN that several students had taken it through them.

The biggest thing is to check with the individual school. What one school might accept online another might not. If your main undergrad institutes don't offer the required courses and you can't find it online, check with the community colleges. I am taking Public Speaking right now through a community college near me (since the one at the main 4 year college did not have any open spots/class time conflicted with my work schedule). It is a hybrid class so we meet every couple weeks to present our speeches and the rest is done online. The school I needed this course for was fine with that model.

Moral of the story, check with the schools. I haven't heard of a school forgoing a pre-req just because it wasn't offered near you.

 

[toratora]

If a course isn't usually offered in the undergrad programs, the vet schools you are applying to may let you take the course online. I remember when I was deciding where to apply several schools has Animal Nutrition as a pre-req and had a note that this course could be taken online. Oklahoma State has Animal Nutrition as an online course and I remember reading on SDN that several students had taken it through them.

The biggest thing is to check with the individual school. What one school might accept online another might not. If your main undergrad institutes don't offer the required courses and you can't find it online, check with the community colleges. I am taking Public Speaking right now through a community college near me (since the one at the main 4 year college did not have any open spots/class time conflicted with my work schedule). It is a hybrid class so we meet every couple weeks to present our speeches and the rest is done online. The school I needed this course for was fine with that model.

Moral of the story, check with the schools. I haven't heard of a school forgoing a pre-req just because it wasn't offered near you.

It's not that it's not offered, the problem is it is nearly impossible to add... :/ Like waitlist full within a couple of days, twenty students showing up begging to be added the day school st

 

[toratora]

If a course isn't usually offered in the undergrad programs, the vet schools you are applying to may let you take the course online. I remember when I was deciding where to apply several schools has Animal Nutrition as a pre-req and had a note that this course could be taken online. Oklahoma State has Animal Nutrition as an online course and I remember reading on SDN that several students had taken it through them.

The biggest thing is to check with the individual school. What one school might accept online another might not. If your main undergrad institutes don't offer the required courses and you can't find it online, check with the community colleges. I am taking Public Speaking right now through a community college near me (since the one at the main 4 year college did not have any open spots/class time conflicted with my work schedule). It is a hybrid class so we meet every couple weeks to present our speeches and the rest is done online. The school I needed this course for was fine with that model.

Moral of the story, check with the schools. I haven't heard of a school forgoing a pre-req just because it wasn't offered near you.

It's not that it's not offered, the problem is it is nearly impossible to add... :/ Like wait list full within a couple of days, twenty students showing up begging to be added the first day of class

 

[ellsworth]

Another one of my concerns is that a lot of schools have extra prerequisites such as speech, animal nutrition, animal science. The problem is, here in Southern California it is nearly impossible to add these classes. Will schools make exceptions?

Don't know about animal nutrition and animal science but I was able to get an exception for the public speaking from Kansas as I had public speaking experience but not from Western. So it depends on the school best thing is to email them and see if they will let you have an exception.

 

[Lupin21]

Another one of my concerns is that a lot of schools have extra prerequisites such as speech, animal nutrition, animal science. The problem is, here in Southern California it is nearly impossible to add these classes. Will schools make exceptions?

What part of southern california? I had no problems taking these classes, but I was in LA.

 

[cadisestrama]

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[ThePiedPiper]

Hi... Just wondering what my chances are as well. I recently graduated (December 2012). My main concern is my lack of vet experience, which I'll hopefully be getting some in the coming months and especially over the summer... (probably only during the summer...) and the diversity of animals. I don't have any LA experience and only some SA experience...

Cum, last 45, Science GPA: ~3.8
GRE: 161 V, 170 Q, 6 A

Degree: B.A. Biology

Veterinary Experience:
-50 hours zoo vet hospital
-(planning on getting some hours at a wildlife health clinic this summer)

Animal Experience:
-200 hours SA
-50 hours wildlife
~690 hours aquatic birds

Your academic scores seem solid to me and very competitive, but you're right about the experience. Working at a zoo and seeing as you'll be working at the wildlife health clinic, it sounds like you've got your wildlife hours in, but you'll probably want to gain some experience in SA and LA as well. Veterinary schools often talk about how it's good to have a depth of experience in one area, but it's also good to show that you have a breadth of experience as well. Getting some clinic hours with a LA vet and/or SA vet couple help your application exponentially, but I think once you work on getting more veterinary hours (especially in the areas of SA and LA), you'll have a very, very solid application. 🙂

 

[cadisestrama]

@ThePiedPiper: Thanks! Yeah.. I'm hoping to shadow/volunteer at a SA clinic starting mid-March... I emailed a vet. Hopefully he/she'll let me or whatnot... >3< If not... Then I'll try this summer (at the same time as the wildlife health clinic) but augh... if I don't and only get wildlife vet experience... Would that make it impossible to get into vet school?

 

[ThePiedPiper]

@ThePiedPiper: Thanks! Yeah.. I'm hoping to shadow/volunteer at a SA clinic starting mid-March... I emailed a vet. Hopefully he/she'll let me or whatnot... >3< If not... Then I'll try this summer (at the same time as the wildlife health clinic) but augh... if I don't and only get wildlife vet experience... Would that make it impossible to get into vet school?

I'm not going to say it'd make it impossible, but from what I've seen (and I'm speaking as someone who's working to improve her own application as well), it will make it difficult. For example, I believe to even apply to Davis, you need something like 180 veterinary hours but most people are going in with a number more like 3,000. So while I don't want to say it's impossible, it will make it difficult, because in addition to your personal statement, your experience is going to be a part of what sets you apart. When you have students applying with an average GPA of 3.7-3.8, you're only marginally ahead of the more competitive applicants academically, and if you then compare them in terms of experience, if someone has 1,000 hours between SA, LA and wildlife, they may have a one-up on you if you only have <1000 hours of only wildlife and some schools might feel you're at a disadvantage or as though you haven't quite been given a chance to explore vet med and determine whether or not it's really for you.

I'll keep my fingers crossed that you're able to get some shadowing in at a SA clinic, though I would definitely follow-up the e-mail with a phone call/office visit, just so that they know you're serious. 🙂 But I think getting in some varied experiences is going to be what helps your application the most. I don't want to say that it's impossible, because I've seen people on here get in with limited experience hours and great academics, but I will say that it's going to be much harder for you when you consider the fact you're compared against people with great GRE scores, 3.8 GPAs and thousands of varied animal and vet experience hours combined. Worst comes to worst, though, and you simply work on gaining more experience and apply the next cycle. 🙂

 

[dovelover]

Yeah.. I'm hoping to shadow/volunteer at a SA clinic starting mid-March... I emailed a vet. Hopefully he/she'll let me or whatnot... >3< If not... Then I'll try this summer (at the same time as the wildlife health clinic) but augh... if I don't and only get wildlife vet experience... Would that make it impossible to get into vet school?

I got three acceptances with primarily zoo vet experience! And specifically bird zoo vet experience at that! I had only about 20 hours SA and 28 hours lab animal... no large animal. However I had 1000 hours of zoo vet experience, plus 500 hours animal experience at the same place, and my experience was very in depth and I was fortunate enough to be heavily involved in some crazy big, fascinating cases that gave me awesome things to talk about in my PS/interviews. I had a bit more variety in my animal experience than my vet, but my only large animal experience was still with things like alpaca and donkeys and goats at a children's zoos... no production animal or equine experience to speak of!

Your GPA is pretty strong and your GRE's are awesome. If you follow through with your plan for more experience, you should be pretty good, provided you devote yourself full time+ to getting vet hours. It's okay to focus more on one area (not ideal, but turned out alright for me) but make sure you still get exposure to other areas. Try to find somewhere else to shadow in addition to the SA vet, whether it be a specialty or emergency clinic, a LA or equine vet, etc. You don't need a ton of hours in these areas (but more is better), but at least some exposure will be looked upon more positively.

Also, when you have one area of your application that is weaker, you will need to make sure nothing else on your application falls through the cracks. Spend a lot of time on your personal statement, make sure your experience descriptions are well written. If you have any interesting extra curriculars or life experiences that's always a plus too. It's all about how your present yourself.

 

[Naturalist]

I've been getting kind of discouraged lately about vet school, I'd like to see what you all think about me so far...I'm finishing up my second year of college this semester. I'm a junior in terms of credits, but I'm still going to take a full four years to graduate.

Degree: B.S. in Biology (Minor in Chemistry)
GPA: 3.80
Science GPA: 3.826
GRE: I haven't taken it yet, I will this summer

Vet Experience: 200 hours as a volunteer shelter vet tech (supervised by a vet)
150 hours in a shelter clinic, helping with surgery recovery

Animal Experience: 1000+ hours riding horses all through elementary school-high school
200+ hours working alone on a horse stable in my senior year of high school
50 hours in cat adoptions at the shelter in college
15 hours dog walking at the shelter in college
Participation in my shelter's "Mutt March" fundraiser (not sure if this counts)

I started volunteering with a wildlife place today. I'm going to be transporting animals to their vet and working with him at his clinic. I can only do this once a week, so hours are limited.

Also, I'm hoping to start research this summer on mosquitoes.

What does everyone think? I'm worried about the GRE and my low hours of experience. Plus I got a B in organic chemistry I, and I think I will in organic chemistry II. I'm also really bad at writing personal statements. Thanks to anyone who gives feedback!

 

[parula]

I've been getting kind of discouraged lately about vet school, I'd like to see what you all think about me so far...I'm finishing up my second year of college this semester. I'm a junior in terms of credits, but I'm still going to take a full four years to graduate.

Degree: B.S. in Biology (Minor in Chemistry)
GPA: 3.80
Science GPA: 3.826
GRE: I haven't taken it yet, I will this summer

Vet Experience: 200 hours as a volunteer shelter vet tech (supervised by a vet)
150 hours in a shelter clinic, helping with surgery recovery

Animal Experience: 1000+ hours riding horses all through elementary school-high school
200+ hours working alone on a horse stable in my senior year of high school
50 hours in cat adoptions at the shelter in college
15 hours dog walking at the shelter in college
Participation in my shelter's "Mutt March" fundraiser (not sure if this counts)

I started volunteering with a wildlife place today. I'm going to be transporting animals to their vet and working with him at his clinic. I can only do this once a week, so hours are limited.

Also, I'm hoping to start research this summer on mosquitoes.

What does everyone think? I'm worried about the GRE and my low hours of experience. Plus I got a B in organic chemistry I, and I think I will in organic chemistry II. I'm also really bad at writing personal statements. Thanks to anyone who gives feedback!

I think you're on the right track with getting wildlife experience, even if it's not many hours, it's still diversity. Research should help a lot too.

Ok, a B in Orgo 1 wont hurt your chance of getting in even a little bit. I had a friend who got a D in biochem and got in, you don't need a 4.0 to be a great doctor!

Don't worry about the GRE until you know your score. I didn't do great on the GRE and I got in. As long as you keep your GPA right around where it is or higher, you should be ok (assuming you don't absolutely bomb the GRE).

As long as you keep this up, you seem like a perfectly competitive applicant!

 

[Naturalist]

Thank you so much for replying so quickly!!

I guess what I want to know is...I'm doing mostly what I should be doing, but what can I do to stand out? I'm petrified of interviews and public speaking, and my personal statements always sound cheesy. How do I get involved in a SA clinic? I tried at least 10 vets last summer, and I didn't hear back from a single one.

Also...my school is weird, and makes almost every science class 4 credits (only a select few don't have labs). Does this help me? I can't take a ton of classes at a time because each of them has a lab, but hopefully they like seeing that so many of them do? Even Calculus had one...

I'm glad to hear organic chemistry won't kill me. I hate that class!

Do you like Illinois? I think the vet I volunteer for went there, and I was thinking of making that one of my top choices (I'm in-state for VMRCVM).

 

[Kpowell14]

Thank you so much for replying so quickly!!

I guess what I want to know is...I'm doing mostly what I should be doing, but what can I do to stand out? I'm petrified of interviews and public speaking, and my personal statements always sound cheesy. How do I get involved in a SA clinic? I tried at least 10 vets last summer, and I didn't hear back from a single one.

Also...my school is weird, and makes almost every science class 4 credits (only a select few don't have labs). Does this help me? I can't take a ton of classes at a time because each of them has a lab, but hopefully they like seeing that so many of them do? Even Calculus had one...

I'm glad to hear organic chemistry won't kill me. I hate that class!

Do you like Illinois? I think the vet I volunteer for went there, and I was thinking of making that one of my top choices (I'm in-state for VMRCVM).

A B in organic 1 will not kill you.. I got a C in organic 1 and Physics 2 and still got in!! Just make sure you keep your GPA up where it is now and continue to get more experiences. Then study your butt off for the GRE and Apply Smart!!

 

[Naturalist]

Thanks, that's reassuring! Did you get in on your first try?

 

[Kpowell14]

Thanks, that's reassuring! Did you get in on your first try?

Yes I did! And to my top choice school! It is definitely possible!!

 

[parula]

Thank you so much for replying so quickly!!

I guess what I want to know is...I'm doing mostly what I should be doing, but what can I do to stand out? I'm petrified of interviews and public speaking, and my personal statements always sound cheesy. How do I get involved in a SA clinic? I tried at least 10 vets last summer, and I didn't hear back from a single one.

Also...my school is weird, and makes almost every science class 4 credits (only a select few don't have labs). Does this help me? I can't take a ton of classes at a time because each of them has a lab, but hopefully they like seeing that so many of them do? Even Calculus had one...

I'm glad to hear organic chemistry won't kill me. I hate that class!

Do you like Illinois? I think the vet I volunteer for went there, and I was thinking of making that one of my top choices (I'm in-state for VMRCVM).

You're doing exactly what you should be doing! I think having your mosquito research will make you stand out! Also, don't forget to have fun! Undergrad goes by WAY faster than you think it will and you'll never get to do it again (probably)...have fun!!

Science classes having labs won't hurt you, you just need to make sure you complete all the requirements of the schools you're applying to. I'm not sure if it will help you out tooooo much, I don't think many schools require you to have a ton of lab time.

Illinois is fine...I don't want to go here for vet school for personal reasons. There are a lot of people who absolutely love the vet school, it depends what you want out of your time and money. PM me if you have any more questions about Illinois- I'd be happy to answer anything!

As for public speaking, it totally blows. The only way to get better is by practicing, which also blows. But if your research goes well perhaps you can present it at conferences and get public speaking experience that way. Giving talks at conferences helped my public speaking skill tremendously! From crying about taking a public speaking class freshman year to giving a talk about my work in a 150+ person auditorium took a lot of painful, no fun work but I'm so glad I did it!

Personal statements- get somebody who rocks at them to read yours...that's really the only solution I can think of....

As for experience, it's tough. I recommend asking to shadow instead of volunteer (implies liability) or work (who's got money these days anyways!) ....but that's about all I can say on that. I haven't worked in a clinic in years, I want to go into research and haven't spent a lot of time trying to be in a clinic since I decided that.

 

[Naturalist]

You're doing exactly what you should be doing! I think having your mosquito research will make you stand out! Also, don't forget to have fun! Undergrad goes by WAY faster than you think it will and you'll never get to do it again (probably)...have fun!!

Science classes having labs won't hurt you, you just need to make sure you complete all the requirements of the schools you're applying to. I'm not sure if it will help you out tooooo much, I don't think many schools require you to have a ton of lab time.

Illinois is fine...I don't want to go here for vet school for personal reasons. There are a lot of people who absolutely love the vet school, it depends what you want out of your time and money. PM me if you have any more questions about Illinois- I'd be happy to answer anything!

As for public speaking, it totally blows. The only way to get better is by practicing, which also blows. But if your research goes well perhaps you can present it at conferences and get public speaking experience that way. Giving talks at conferences helped my public speaking skill tremendously! From crying about taking a public speaking class freshman year to giving a talk about my work in a 150+ person auditorium took a lot of painful, no fun work but I'm so glad I did it!

Personal statements- get somebody who rocks at them to read yours...that's really the only solution I can think of....

As for experience, it's tough. I recommend asking to shadow instead of volunteer (implies liability) or work (who's got money these days anyways!) ....but that's about all I can say on that. I haven't worked in a clinic in years, I want to go into research and haven't spent a lot of time trying to be in a clinic since I decided that.

Thanks so much! That's amazing advice. I did take a Biological Speech class last semester, but with the few presentations I've done this semester I don't think it helped! I really do need to practice more. If my research actually makes it anywhere, I have at least 3 conferences my professors want to take me to. It's too early to be scared though!

I think I am very interested in shelter medicine. I probably need to see how another shelter is organized before I say this, because the one I'm at now is no-kill and the vet is AWESOME...and she has told me a lot about other shelters without such great organization where a lot of unnecessary tragedies happen 🙁 But I do like the unique challenges associated with it, at least from the position I'm in now.

I would like to perform research more oriented towards veterinary medicine, but I don't know where to begin. I don't think there are any veterinary research labs near me.

I will definitely take your advice on asking to shadow! There are now 3 clinics within walking distance of me since I've moved, and so I really need to get on that.

Good luck on your research! I sort of knew someone who went to UF for graduate school, and he studied something about horse fertility. It sounded cool, and I definitely wish you the best!

Wow, I sure ramble...thanks again for your advice. I definitely need the reminder to have fun! I hope you are having fun as well.

 

[parula]

Thanks so much! That's amazing advice. I did take a Biological Speech class last semester, but with the few presentations I've done this semester I don't think it helped! I really do need to practice more. If my research actually makes it anywhere, I have at least 3 conferences my professors want to take me to. It's too early to be scared though!

I think I am very interested in shelter medicine. I probably need to see how another shelter is organized before I say this, because the one I'm at now is no-kill and the vet is AWESOME...and she has told me a lot about other shelters without such great organization where a lot of unnecessary tragedies happen 🙁 But I do like the unique challenges associated with it, at least from the position I'm in now.

I would like to perform research more oriented towards veterinary medicine, but I don't know where to begin. I don't think there are any veterinary research labs near me.

I will definitely take your advice on asking to shadow! There are now 3 clinics within walking distance of me since I've moved, and so I really need to get on that.

Good luck on your research! I sort of knew someone who went to UF for graduate school, and he studied something about horse fertility. It sounded cool, and I definitely wish you the best!

Wow, I sure ramble...thanks again for your advice. I definitely need the reminder to have fun! I hope you are having fun as well.

I'm taking a 9 month break from school...and having WAYYYYY too much fun with it 🙂 Cooking, dancing, playing in bands....Gotta remember to let loose every once in a while or else you'll go nuts!

 

[Naturalist]

Sounds like fun! I like surfing myself. I can wait for the water to warm up again.

 

[cadisestrama]

I'm not going to say it'd make it impossible, but from what I've seen (and I'm speaking as someone who's working to improve her own application as well), it will make it difficult. For example, I believe to even apply to Davis, you need something like 180 veterinary hours but most people are going in with a number more like 3,000. So while I don't want to say it's impossible, it will make it difficult, because in addition to your personal statement, your experience is going to be a part of what sets you apart. When you have students applying with an average GPA of 3.7-3.8, you're only marginally ahead of the more competitive applicants academically, and if you then compare them in terms of experience, if someone has 1,000 hours between SA, LA and wildlife, they may have a one-up on you if you only have <1000 hours of only wildlife and some schools might feel you're at a disadvantage or as though you haven't quite been given a chance to explore vet med and determine whether or not it's really for you.

That's true. Okay well if I don't get in this cycle... I'll definitely try amping up my vet hours and the diversity of my experiences.

I'll keep my fingers crossed that you're able to get some shadowing in at a SA clinic, though I would definitely follow-up the e-mail with a phone call/office visit, just so that they know you're serious. 🙂 But I think getting in some varied experiences is going to be what helps your application the most. I don't want to say that it's impossible, because I've seen people on here get in with limited experience hours and great academics, but I will say that it's going to be much harder for you when you consider the fact you're compared against people with great GRE scores, 3.8 GPAs and thousands of varied animal and vet experience hours combined. Worst comes to worst, though, and you simply work on gaining more experience and apply the next cycle. 🙂

Haha. Yes. fingers crossed. 🙂

 

[dovelover]

Thanks so much! That's amazing advice. I did take a Biological Speech class last semester, but with the few presentations I've done this semester I don't think it helped! I really do need to practice more. If my research actually makes it anywhere, I have at least 3 conferences my professors want to take me to. It's too early to be scared though!

Public speaking and interview skills are really not the same thing. I am a quiet, introverted person with hit or miss small group communication skills, but I have always been an excellent public speaker. My interview skills are hit or miss, but I'm definitely better there than I used to be. There are many types of communication, and being good at one does not automatically you'll be good at another, and vice versa. But you've still got two years to go, and a lot can change in two years. I've been out of school for almost two years now, and I am definitely not at all the same person I was back then. I'm far more confident and a much better communicator. Plus, vet school interviews come in many shapes in sizes. Some depend much more on your communication ability, others much more on a lot of preparation (aka behavioral interviews...)

Along the two years is a long time concept (technically 1.5 years until your application will be due, I suppose), don't worry too much about your experiences. You're on a really good path right now. Let things sort of unfold as they may. You might love your research and want to do more, or you might hate it. Look for a fun internship or something for next summer if you don't decide to continue this summer's research. If you want to go into SA medicine, definitely try harder to get shadowing. If not, don't sweat it too much. Just because most people apply with significant SA hours doesn't mean you need to, I only had 20 SA shadowing hours and got in.

The only way to write a good personal statement writing is to spend a lot of time working on it, and rewrite as many times as you need to (I think I started over 5 times) Start early (this is coming from a peson currently trying to write a personal statement for an MPH application in less than a week... not fun), but not too early. Don't worry about it now. Give yourself a year. Your thoughts, goals, and experiences will change dramatically in that time, so anything you wrote now would probably be useless anyways. But start jotting down ideas about things you've learned from experiences you've had, what your current interests in the profession are. These could help you with your brainstorming process when you actually start to work on the actual essay. Even if your goals have changed, it's helpful to remember where you came from, as that change in focus could end up being the whole focus in your PS, you never know!

And pleeeaase don't freak out over the B. I got Bs in quite a few of my basic sciences... gen chem II, ochem II, both biochems, two of my basic bios (those were really my own fault, had nothing to do with it being particularly difficult material). You'll likely get some (or many) Bs and--god forbid--Cs in vet school, so get used to it now.

 

[ThePiedPiper]

Public speaking and interview skills are really not the same thing. I am a quiet, introverted person with hit or miss small group communication skills, but I have always been an excellent public speaker. My interview skills are hit or miss, but I'm definitely better there than I used to be. There are many types of communication, and being good at one does not automatically you'll be good at another, and vice versa. But you've still got two years to go, and a lot can change in two years. I've been out of school for almost two years now, and I am definitely not at all the same person I was back then. I'm far more confident and a much better communicator. Plus, vet school interviews come in many shapes in sizes. Some depend much more on your communication ability, others much more on a lot of preparation (aka behavioral interviews...)

This is a really good point. I interview very well but am absolutely terrified of public speaking. Delivering a presentation, I become tense, sweaty, red and stutter and yet I'm completely calm a few questions in to an interview. I wonder if this will change when I'm interviewing at schools when there's a panel and not simply one other person (or at least I'm under this impression). I don't know if this is the right place to ask, but may I ask what you mean about preparation for behavioural interviews? I've never been through a behavioural interview, so am curious as to what sorts of things you have to prepare.

 

[dovelover]

I don't know if this is the right place to ask, but may I ask what you mean about preparation for behavioural interviews? I've never been through a behavioural interview, so am curious as to what sorts of things you have to prepare.

It's just that with behavioral interviews you have to be able to pull sometimes very obscure life experiences out of your butt to be able to answer their questions. Like ,"Tell me about a time you had to apologize to someone for a situation you were directly responsible for." Like, what? Quickly coming up with answers to these things is nearly impossible if you haven't prepared (aka, outlined all of your life and vet experiences to pull out stories that illustrate positive and negative points they might ask about in interviews, finding as many sample questions as you possibly can and brainstorming answers). I was fine on all my questions (I had 2 purely behavioral interviews) except ones that weren't remotely similar to any I'd prepared for--like the one above. I ended up blabbering on about the dog I wanted to adopt against my parents' wishes (I live with my parents right now) who wound up chewing apart walls and tearing up the carpet and scratching up the door, etc. I had to completely skip a question during my AVC interview (not all interviews let you do this) because I just could not come up with any examples to answer the question with, and this made me panic, and the more I panicked, it got even harder to come up with an answer. But it all turned out alright as I got in at both schools 🙂

 

[epivetlove]

Hi all! I've been lurking for quite a while and decided to go ahead and make my first post. I'm a little ashamed of posting my stats since most others seem so competitive, but I have hope that I'll get in eventually. Or if not, I'm very interested in getting a PhD in Epidemiology...so that's my backup. My stats are as of Spring 2012. I'm in my last semester of my MS in Epidemiology and have been doing really well, so hopefully these'll be boosted a little by the time I apply this year.

Me: 25 y/o, non-trad, female, Texas resident
cGPA: 3.25 (undergrad + grad)
sciGPA: 3.09 (ouch!)
Last 45: 3.56 (should be a 4.0 if I continue to make all As this semester)
GRE: 163 V, 154 Q, 3.5 A (retaking in May and actually studying this time)
My graduate cGPA is 3.89 and sciGPA is 3.78 (curse you Biostatistics!). I also plan on retaking some of the science classes I did poorly in (O-Chem and Biology II) this summer.

Vet experience:
4,600 hrs. in small animal medicine (dogs/cats)
570 hrs. in wildlife (white-tailed and axis deer)
395 hrs. in large animal/equine
32 hrs. in food production
120 hrs. exotic (mainly pet birds)

Animal experience:
~7,000 cattle (worked summers/winters at my grandfather's beef ranch)
~2,500 equine (father breed/trained cutting horses)
~1,800 paid pet-sitting (cats)
~800 reptile (volunteered at a reptile sanctuary)
112 avian (volunteering at a bird rehab clinic on Sundays)
25 wildlife (collected brain stem samples from white-tailed deer)
I know there are rules on quantifying pet ownership, so I haven't included any of that. I have owned (or currently own) dogs, cats, ferrets, birds, reptiles, fish, horses, and rabbits.

Other experience:
100 hours as a collegiate tutor
150 hours as an advocate for people with disabilities
300 hours as an after-school mentor (K-3rd grade)

I've mostly worked in the veterinary field, so most of my experience is with animals. I didn't do so well in my undergrad studies because I was made fun of for my weight often enough that I became terrified to attend classes. Lame excuse, I know, but that's how it was for me and my social anxiety was already off the charts back then. I've slimmed down quite a bit and have really come into my own. I'm much more confident in my abilities and feel I'm ready to apply, even though my stats aren't that impressive. I've pored over all the threads on this site and have really looked at what schools will give me the best chance. I'm hoping that my interest in public health/epidemiology helps me stand out, even though I don't have any veterinary epidemiology experience. It's really hard to come by, I've found! I hope to discuss in my personal statement my desire to work for the EIS (Epidemic Intelligence Surveillance), as my heart is really in disease outbreak investigation (zoonoses).

 

[ThePiedPiper]

Hi all! I've been lurking for quite a while and decided to go ahead and make my first post. I'm a little ashamed of posting my stats since most others seem so competitive, but I have hope that I'll get in eventually. Or if not, I'm very interested in getting a PhD in Epidemiology...so that's my backup. My stats are as of Spring 2012. I'm in my last semester of my MS in Epidemiology and have been doing really well, so hopefully these'll be boosted a little by the time I apply this year.

Me: 25 y/o, non-trad, female, Texas resident
cGPA: 3.25 (undergrad + grad)
sciGPA: 3.09 (ouch!)
Last 45: 3.56 (should be a 4.0 if I continue to make all As this semester)
GRE: 163 V, 154 Q, 3.5 A (retaking in May and actually studying this time)
My graduate cGPA is 3.89 and sciGPA is 3.78 (curse you Biostatistics!). I also plan on retaking some of the science classes I did poorly in (O-Chem and Biology II) this summer.

Vet experience:
4,600 hrs. in small animal medicine (dogs/cats)
570 hrs. in wildlife (white-tailed and axis deer)
395 hrs. in large animal/equine
32 hrs. in food production
120 hrs. exotic (mainly pet birds)

Animal experience:
~7,000 cattle (worked summers/winters at my grandfather's beef ranch)
~2,500 equine (father breed/trained cutting horses)
~1,800 paid pet-sitting (cats)
~800 reptile (volunteered at a reptile sanctuary)
112 avian (volunteering at a bird rehab clinic on Sundays)
25 wildlife (collected brain stem samples from white-tailed deer)
I know there are rules on quantifying pet ownership, so I haven't included any of that. I have owned (or currently own) dogs, cats, ferrets, birds, reptiles, fish, horses, and rabbits.

Other experience:
100 hours as a collegiate tutor
150 hours as an advocate for people with disabilities
300 hours as an after-school mentor (K-3rd grade)

I've mostly worked in the veterinary field, so most of my experience is with animals. I didn't do so well in my undergrad studies because I was made fun of for my weight often enough that I became terrified to attend classes. Lame excuse, I know, but that's how it was for me and my social anxiety was already off the charts back then. I've slimmed down quite a bit and have really come into my own. I'm much more confident in my abilities and feel I'm ready to apply, even though my stats aren't that impressive. I've pored over all the threads on this site and have really looked at what schools will give me the best chance. I'm hoping that my interest in public health/epidemiology helps me stand out, even though I don't have any veterinary epidemiology experience. It's really hard to come by, I've found! I hope to discuss in my personal statement my desire to work for the EIS (Epidemic Intelligence Surveillance), as my heart is really in disease outbreak investigation (zoonoses).

To be honest, given your grad school education and breadth (and depth) of experience, not to mention your unique interests, you seem like a very, very competitive applicant to me, especially if you raise your GPA by doing better in the courses you did poorly in.

 

[Naturalist]

Public speaking and interview skills are really not the same thing. I am a quiet, introverted person with hit or miss small group communication skills, but I have always been an excellent public speaker. My interview skills are hit or miss, but I'm definitely better there than I used to be. There are many types of communication, and being good at one does not automatically you'll be good at another, and vice versa. But you've still got two years to go, and a lot can change in two years. I've been out of school for almost two years now, and I am definitely not at all the same person I was back then. I'm far more confident and a much better communicator. Plus, vet school interviews come in many shapes in sizes. Some depend much more on your communication ability, others much more on a lot of preparation (aka behavioral interviews...)

Along the two years is a long time concept (technically 1.5 years until your application will be due, I suppose), don't worry too much about your experiences. You're on a really good path right now. Let things sort of unfold as they may. You might love your research and want to do more, or you might hate it. Look for a fun internship or something for next summer if you don't decide to continue this summer's research. If you want to go into SA medicine, definitely try harder to get shadowing. If not, don't sweat it too much. Just because most people apply with significant SA hours doesn't mean you need to, I only had 20 SA shadowing hours and got in.

The only way to write a good personal statement writing is to spend a lot of time working on it, and rewrite as many times as you need to (I think I started over 5 times) Start early (this is coming from a peson currently trying to write a personal statement for an MPH application in less than a week... not fun), but not too early. Don't worry about it now. Give yourself a year. Your thoughts, goals, and experiences will change dramatically in that time, so anything you wrote now would probably be useless anyways. But start jotting down ideas about things you've learned from experiences you've had, what your current interests in the profession are. These could help you with your brainstorming process when you actually start to work on the actual essay. Even if your goals have changed, it's helpful to remember where you came from, as that change in focus could end up being the whole focus in your PS, you never know!

And pleeeaase don't freak out over the B. I got Bs in quite a few of my basic sciences... gen chem II, ochem II, both biochems, two of my basic bios (those were really my own fault, had nothing to do with it being particularly difficult material). You'll likely get some (or many) Bs and--god forbid--Cs in vet school, so get used to it now.

I didn't do so hot on my in-class mock interview...but so far I've always done well on job interviews, so hopefully that's my strength? I need to do well in the MMIs, since that's what my IS uses...unfortunately I'm not the most empathetic person! It's something I have to work on I guess. I'm glad to hear that time pulled you out of your shell. I hope something similar happens to me. I make an effort to speak up every time I volunteer. I think the vet's picked up on it and has really tried to help me too. I do a lot better with just a little help...Any pressure and I crumble.

I'm applying to a Banfield today; I just need to finish my cover letter. Hopefully I can stay long term. I just really don't know how to compete against people who have been getting a variety of vet and animal experiences since childhood (or they just push themselves past the brink of exhaustion?)

Can you get an internship the summer you apply and still put it on your VMCAS? I'm definitely curious about that.

Thanks for the great advice on the grades and personal statements. That really makes me feel better. Hopefully not so much better that I don't study for my organic test next week Personal statements are really hard because I'm just so average. I don't really have a special story. I just love science, biology, anatomy, and animals...so it's a good fit.

 

[Naturalist]

epivetlove, I really don't think you have much to worry about!!! You seem much more competitive than me.

 

[dovelover]

I didn't do so hot on my in-class mock interview...but so far I've always done well on job interviews, so hopefully that's my strength? I need to do well in the MMIs, since that's what my IS uses...unfortunately I'm not the most empathetic person! It's something I have to work on I guess. I'm glad to hear that time pulled you out of your shell. I hope something similar happens to me. I make an effort to speak up every time I volunteer. I think the vet's picked up on it and has really tried to help me too. I do a lot better with just a little help...Any pressure and I crumble.

I'm applying to a Banfield today; I just need to finish my cover letter. Hopefully I can stay long term. I just really don't know how to compete against people who have been getting a variety of vet and animal experiences since childhood (or they just push themselves past the brink of exhaustion?)

Can you get an internship the summer you apply and still put it on your VMCAS? I'm definitely curious about that.

Thanks for the great advice on the grades and personal statements. That really makes me feel better. Hopefully not so much better that I don't study for my organic test next week Personal statements are really hard because I'm just so average. I don't really have a special story. I just love science, biology, anatomy, and animals...so it's a good fit.

I applied to Banfield a few weeks ago (before I knew I got into vet school). Haven't heard anything from them, and I wrote a darn good cover letter, thank you very much...

Mock interviews are often much harder than actual interviews. Especially if the person you're doing it with isn't a complete stranger (I did one with the vet I work with and it was the most nerve racking thing EVER). I found that the more nervous I was for an interview, the better I did. When the stakes are real (and as high as getting into vet school), you will likely do better.

You can put any experience you get up to the day you turn in your application! I started a zoo internship last September was able to put the first 4 weeks of it on my application.

And by the way, most people who apply to vet school are "average." Really. Most people don't have an incredible life story or major life changing event. Pick out the most interesting 1 or 2 cases you've seen in your experiences and use them to make your PS unique. You can talk about what they taught you about the profession, or how they illustrate or developed personal qualities you have that will make you a good vet. The vet school application process is really much more about how you present yourself than what your stats and specific life experiences actually are.

 

[dovelover]

Hi all! I've been lurking for quite a while and decided to go ahead and make my first post. I'm a little ashamed of posting my stats since most others seem so competitive, but I have hope that I'll get in eventually. Or if not, I'm very interested in getting a PhD in Epidemiology...so that's my backup. My stats are as of Spring 2012. I'm in my last semester of my MS in Epidemiology and have been doing really well, so hopefully these'll be boosted a little by the time I apply this year.

Me: 25 y/o, non-trad, female, Texas resident
cGPA: 3.25 (undergrad + grad)
sciGPA: 3.09 (ouch!)
Last 45: 3.56 (should be a 4.0 if I continue to make all As this semester)
GRE: 163 V, 154 Q, 3.5 A (retaking in May and actually studying this time)
My graduate cGPA is 3.89 and sciGPA is 3.78 (curse you Biostatistics!). I also plan on retaking some of the science classes I did poorly in (O-Chem and Biology II) this summer.

Vet experience:
4,600 hrs. in small animal medicine (dogs/cats)
570 hrs. in wildlife (white-tailed and axis deer)
395 hrs. in large animal/equine
32 hrs. in food production
120 hrs. exotic (mainly pet birds)

Animal experience:
~7,000 cattle (worked summers/winters at my grandfather's beef ranch)
~2,500 equine (father breed/trained cutting horses)
~1,800 paid pet-sitting (cats)
~800 reptile (volunteered at a reptile sanctuary)
112 avian (volunteering at a bird rehab clinic on Sundays)
25 wildlife (collected brain stem samples from white-tailed deer)
I know there are rules on quantifying pet ownership, so I haven't included any of that. I have owned (or currently own) dogs, cats, ferrets, birds, reptiles, fish, horses, and rabbits.

Other experience:
100 hours as a collegiate tutor
150 hours as an advocate for people with disabilities
300 hours as an after-school mentor (K-3rd grade)

I've mostly worked in the veterinary field, so most of my experience is with animals. I didn't do so well in my undergrad studies because I was made fun of for my weight often enough that I became terrified to attend classes. Lame excuse, I know, but that's how it was for me and my social anxiety was already off the charts back then. I've slimmed down quite a bit and have really come into my own. I'm much more confident in my abilities and feel I'm ready to apply, even though my stats aren't that impressive. I've pored over all the threads on this site and have really looked at what schools will give me the best chance. I'm hoping that my interest in public health/epidemiology helps me stand out, even though I don't have any veterinary epidemiology experience. It's really hard to come by, I've found! I hope to discuss in my personal statement my desire to work for the EIS (Epidemic Intelligence Surveillance), as my heart is really in disease outbreak investigation (zoonoses).

Your experience is excellent! Honestly, it would probably make up for a lower GPA at most schools. And your graduate GPA is so good that you won't even have many issues with that. However you'll want to do some research into how each school you're interested in calculates GPAs. Make sure you pick schools that factor in graduate school courses for your cum./last 45 GPA (I think most US schools do, but not as common in international schools). It is however more frequent to find schools that won't count graduate courses as prerequisites (often unless you have don't have any other courses that would count), so your prerequisite GPA not being as high as your others. Be wary of retaking courses, as not all schools will take the newer grade, or will average them instead of replacing them. This was recently discussed at length in another thread, I think.

Not sure how your GREs are without the percentile rankings... I took the old GRE so I can never remember what the new scores mean! But you do want to get up that analytic writing score, I can say that much. The others don't look bad, I think?

You should be a very competitive applicant, as long as you are smart about where you apply and do your homework in finding out how they calculate GPAs.

 

[toratora]

What part of southern california? I had no problems taking these classes, but I was in LA.

Really??? Which school did you take it at? I am actually in the LA area as well. Looking at ELAC and PCC specifically.

 

[toratora]

Hello all! I am fairly new to this website but I am hoping to apply this summer. I think my GPA is pretty good but I'm wondering if I should retake the GRE. Does it suck? And I know I definitely need more hours for volunteer. Any and all advice is appreciated! Thank you very much! 😀

About me: 23 years old, female. California resident. First time applying.

Degree: Bachelors of Science with a major in biological sciences
Cumulative GPA: 3.665
Science GPA: 3.705
Last 45 GPA: 4.0
GRE: 153V (57%), 156Q (68%), 5A (92%)

Veterinary Experience:
I have volunteered for 62 hours at my SA practice and then I got hired as a receptionist working about 25 hours a week and I have been there for about a month today so that is 100 hours more

Animal Experience:
200+ hours research working with axolotls: tasks included caring for the lab animals, anesthetizing the animals, and microsurgery
Currently volunteering (Animal care volunteer program) at my local zoo and I only have 24 hours to date

Honors/Awards:
Dean's honor list for 8 quarters
Golden Key Honor Society Scholarship recipient
Undergraduate Research Opportunities Grant recipient

Others:
Member of Drifting Pretty
Volunteered at rock climbing wall as belayer/supervisor for college gym
Rockclimbing instructor at climbing gym after I graduated
Bee keeping (novice)
Foodblogger (I make food and post the recipes)
Poster presentation of research at UROP symposium
Alpha Epsilon Delta Pre-Medical Honor society (includes random volunteer work)
Golden Key Honor Society (includes random volunteer work)
Worked as assistant/receptionist at Human Colon and Rectal Surgery Office for 1 year
Volunteered in Hospital Pharmacy for 2 weeks

Letter of Rec:
SA Veterinarian
Research Professor
Zoo Volunteer Program coordinator (not definite yet cause I haven't asked)
Human Anatomy Professor

Personal Statement: (tentative) I will most likely discuss my research and my interest in surgery, my interest in medicine and how I went from premed to prepharm to finally prevet, perhaps my dog as well (he has tons of health issues and my vet literally saved his life and I strive to be as compassionate as he is someday because I've had two other vets that just didn't care)

 

[dovelover]

Hello all! I am fairly new to this website but I am hoping to apply this summer. I think my GPA is pretty good but I'm wondering if I should retake the GRE. Does it suck? And I know I definitely need more hours for volunteer. Any and all advice is appreciated! Thank you very much! 😀

About me: 23 years old, female. California resident. First time applying.

Degree: Bachelors of Science with a major in biological sciences
Cumulative GPA: 3.665
Science GPA: 3.705
Last 45 GPA: 4.0
GRE: 153V (57%), 156Q (68%), 5A (92%)

Veterinary Experience:
I have volunteered for 62 hours at my SA practice and then I got hired as a receptionist working about 25 hours a week and I have been there for about a month today so that is 100 hours more

Animal Experience:
200+ hours research working with axolotls: tasks included caring for the lab animals, anesthetizing the animals, and microsurgery
Currently volunteering (Animal care volunteer program) at my local zoo and I only have 24 hours to date

Honors/Awards:
Dean’s honor list for 8 quarters
Golden Key Honor Society Scholarship recipient
Undergraduate Research Opportunities Grant recipient

Others:
Member of Drifting Pretty
Volunteered at rock climbing wall as belayer/supervisor for college gym
Rockclimbing instructor at climbing gym after I graduated
Bee keeping (novice)
Foodblogger (I make food and post the recipes)
Poster presentation of research at UROP symposium
Alpha Epsilon Delta Pre-Medical Honor society (includes random volunteer work)
Golden Key Honor Society (includes random volunteer work)
Worked as assistant/receptionist at Human Colon and Rectal Surgery Office for 1 year
Volunteered in Hospital Pharmacy for 2 weeks

Letter of Rec:
SA Veterinarian
Research Professor
Zoo Volunteer Program coordinator (not definite yet cause I haven’t asked)
Human Anatomy Professor

Personal Statement: (tentative) I will most likely discuss my research and my interest in surgery, my interest in medicine and how I went from premed to prepharm to finally prevet, perhaps my dog as well (he has tons of health issues and my vet literally saved his life and I strive to be as compassionate as he is someday because I’ve had two other vets that just didn’t care)

Your GPAs are pretty good, especially for schools that put more emphasis on last 45 than cumulative. I would retake the GRE.

If you continue working 25 hours a week at the SA hospital you will end up with about 920 vet hours, which is a workable number. You're definitely going to want to add in more variety though. Try keeping the reception job going and throw in shadowing at a LA/equine/exotics/wildlife/lab animal, etc. vet. Try seeing if you can get an 2 days or so a week internship somewhere working with animals other than SA (wildlife center, zoo, etc.), as internships generally have greater responsibility attached than volunteering.

For the research experience, were you actually doing to research or were you working as a lab technician? Depending on who was supervising you this could count as vet experience.

If you work hard at improving your experience hours, you'll have a decent shot at getting in next year. Remember though that it is not just about number of hours. It is also about quality and variety of experience, as well as gaining an appropriate understanding of the profession (will you get enough exposure to the actual vet work working as a receptionist?) I know that being a receptionist can often be the hardest job in the clinic, and often provides people with good things to talk about for their personal statement, but you'll also have to prove you understand the realities of being a vet, not just of working in a vet's office.

You probably don't want to center your PS around your sick dog. That's sort of cliche and not looked upon very highly by admissions committees. That may be more a story for an interview. If you do work it into your PS at all, make sure you talk about it impacting you in a rational, adult way, not an overly emotional and "that was the moment I knew I needed to be a vet", way. Wait until you get more experience before you start crafting your PS. It'll really be much easier.

Also, since you are getting your hours somewhat last minute, you'll want to make it clear to the adcoms that this wasn't just a spur of the moment, last minute career change. You'll want to prove that you really understand the realities of the profession and want to do it anyways, and that you're in it for the long haul.

 

[jlindp]

.

 

[jlindp]

Hi all! I've been lurking for quite a while and decided to go ahead and make my first post. I'm a little ashamed of posting my stats since most others seem so competitive, but I have hope that I'll get in eventually. Or if not, I'm very interested in getting a PhD in Epidemiology...so that's my backup. My stats are as of Spring 2012. I'm in my last semester of my MS in Epidemiology and have been doing really well, so hopefully these'll be boosted a little by the time I apply this year.

Me: 25 y/o, non-trad, female, Texas resident
cGPA: 3.25 (undergrad + grad)
sciGPA: 3.09 (ouch!)
Last 45: 3.56 (should be a 4.0 if I continue to make all As this semester)
GRE: 163 V, 154 Q, 3.5 A (retaking in May and actually studying this time)
My graduate cGPA is 3.89 and sciGPA is 3.78 (curse you Biostatistics!). I also plan on retaking some of the science classes I did poorly in (O-Chem and Biology II) this summer.

Vet experience:
4,600 hrs. in small animal medicine (dogs/cats)
570 hrs. in wildlife (white-tailed and axis deer)
395 hrs. in large animal/equine
32 hrs. in food production
120 hrs. exotic (mainly pet birds)

Animal experience:
~7,000 cattle (worked summers/winters at my grandfather's beef ranch)
~2,500 equine (father breed/trained cutting horses)
~1,800 paid pet-sitting (cats)
~800 reptile (volunteered at a reptile sanctuary)
112 avian (volunteering at a bird rehab clinic on Sundays)
25 wildlife (collected brain stem samples from white-tailed deer)
I know there are rules on quantifying pet ownership, so I haven't included any of that. I have owned (or currently own) dogs, cats, ferrets, birds, reptiles, fish, horses, and rabbits.

Other experience:
100 hours as a collegiate tutor
150 hours as an advocate for people with disabilities
300 hours as an after-school mentor (K-3rd grade)

I've mostly worked in the veterinary field, so most of my experience is with animals. I didn't do so well in my undergrad studies because I was made fun of for my weight often enough that I became terrified to attend classes. Lame excuse, I know, but that's how it was for me and my social anxiety was already off the charts back then. I've slimmed down quite a bit and have really come into my own. I'm much more confident in my abilities and feel I'm ready to apply, even though my stats aren't that impressive. I've pored over all the threads on this site and have really looked at what schools will give me the best chance. I'm hoping that my interest in public health/epidemiology helps me stand out, even though I don't have any veterinary epidemiology experience. It's really hard to come by, I've found! I hope to discuss in my personal statement my desire to work for the EIS (Epidemic Intelligence Surveillance), as my heart is really in disease outbreak investigation (zoonoses).

Our interests are super similar! I haven't heard of EIS, though. Is that through the CDC, by chance? Just out of curiosity, where are you getting your graduate degree?

 

[toratora]

Your GPAs are pretty good, especially for schools that put more emphasis on last 45 than cumulative. I would retake the GRE.

If you continue working 25 hours a week at the SA hospital you will end up with about 920 vet hours, which is a workable number. You're definitely going to want to add in more variety though. Try keeping the reception job going and throw in shadowing at a LA/equine/exotics/wildlife/lab animal, etc. vet. Try seeing if you can get an 2 days or so a week internship somewhere working with animals other than SA (wildlife center, zoo, etc.), as internships generally have greater responsibility attached than volunteering.

For the research experience, were you actually doing to research or were you working as a lab technician? Depending on who was supervising you this could count as vet experience.

If you work hard at improving your experience hours, you'll have a decent shot at getting in next year. Remember though that it is not just about number of hours. It is also about quality and variety of experience, as well as gaining an appropriate understanding of the profession (will you get enough exposure to the actual vet work working as a receptionist?) I know that being a receptionist can often be the hardest job in the clinic, and often provides people with good things to talk about for their personal statement, but you'll also have to prove you understand the realities of being a vet, not just of working in a vet's office.

You probably don't want to center your PS around your sick dog. That's sort of cliche and not looked upon very highly by admissions committees. That may be more a story for an interview. If you do work it into your PS at all, make sure you talk about it impacting you in a rational, adult way, not an overly emotional and "that was the moment I knew I needed to be a vet", way. Wait until you get more experience before you start crafting your PS. It'll really be much easier.

Also, since you are getting your hours somewhat last minute, you'll want to make it clear to the adcoms that this wasn't just a spur of the moment, last minute career change. You'll want to prove that you really understand the realities of the profession and want to do it anyways, and that you're in it for the long haul.

Thank you!

And as I feared, I suspected I that I have to retake the GRE 🙁 . Too bad they don't really look at analytical scores, I did decent on those.

To clarify, I did research on woundless skin healing. There was no vet supervision so I don't think it is considered vet hours. Although, we did treat for fungal outbreaks. Pretty much planned my entire project and were responsible for animals I worked on.

I am currently volunteering at the zoo. I have had the opportunity to work with elephants, babirusa pigs, gazelles, anoa, and exotic birds. My responsibilities include helping the keeper clean poo, preparing diet, and behavioral enrichment exercises. Of course, all under the supervision of my keeper.

As for the vet office, I have shadowed my veterinarian, observed surgeries, and assisted in restraining the animals. In my receptionist position, a lot of it is communicating with the clients and often times explaining things. I still do get to handle the animals as a receptionist when we take animals to the back or bring them to the front. Occasionally, I still help the techs in restraining animals.

 

[dovelover]

Thank you!

And as I feared, I suspected I that I have to retake the GRE 🙁 . Too bad they don't really look at analytical scores, I did decent on those.

To clarify, I did research on woundless skin healing. There was no vet supervision so I don't think it is considered vet hours. Although, we did treat for fungal outbreaks. Pretty much planned my entire project and were responsible for animals I worked on.

I am currently volunteering at the zoo. I have had the opportunity to work with elephants, babirusa pigs, gazelles, anoa, and exotic birds. My responsibilities include helping the keeper clean poo, preparing diet, and behavioral enrichment exercises. Of course, all under the supervision of my keeper.

As for the vet office, I have shadowed my veterinarian, observed surgeries, and assisted in restraining the animals. In my receptionist position, a lot of it is communicating with the clients and often times explaining things. I still do get to handle the animals as a receptionist when we take animals to the back or bring them to the front. Occasionally, I still help the techs in restraining animals.

I apologize if anything I wrote before didn't make sense or sounded weird... I was distracted by talking to my parents about loan debt at the same time (and that is very distracting...)

Was your research by any chance supervised by a PhD scientist? Because then it can count as vet experience, technically.

Also, your zoo volunteering sounds more involved than I'm used to zoo volunteering being, so pretty similar to an internship. The only reason I suggest internships is that on paper they often look more impressive than volunteering as they are more formal programs generally with higher levels of responsibility. But not a huge deal if you're getting good experience!

 

[Fragaria]

I have a quick general question about the GRE -

Do you have to have a major to take the test? And what are some books/tips you guys could recommend me to start reading up on it before I take it? (I plan to take it possibly next year)

 

[Emiloo4]

I have a quick general question about the GRE -

Do you have to have a major to take the test? And what are some books/tips you guys could recommend me to start reading up on it before I take it? (I plan to take it possibly next year)

Anyone can take it if they have the $160 (or whatever it is now), so no, there is absolutely no pre-req required to take the GRE.
I would suggest any Kaplan or Princeton Review book. You can get them on amazon pretty cheap. They teach you sort of the ins and outs of how the tests are made and how to outsmart them sort of. I also bought GRE for Dummies and it was actually a really helpful book.

 

[Fragaria]

Anyone can take it if they have the $160 (or whatever it is now), so no, there is absolutely no pre-req required to take the GRE.
I would suggest any Kaplan or Princeton Review book. You can get them on amazon pretty cheap. They teach you sort of the ins and outs of how the tests are made and how to outsmart them sort of. I also bought GRE for Dummies and it was actually a really helpful book.

Thanks! That's very helpful!
What about subject-wise? I'm a little confused how it works, do you just take one subject? >__<

 

[ThePiedPiper]

I have a quick general question about the GRE -

Do you have to have a major to take the test? And what are some books/tips you guys could recommend me to start reading up on it before I take it? (I plan to take it possibly next year)

I don't believe you have to have a major. I've heard the Princeton books are really good. 🙂