There are 2 main things that really stand out to me about my program (UMN); the faculty really being involved with students and supporting us in our career endeavors, and the program's responsiveness to issues raised by students.
Point 1: I was a student rep while I was in my first 2.5 years of vet school, so some of our faculty knew me from that, but then I was gone for the last 4 years doing a PhD. When I came back, so many faculty members were supportive of me, congratulating me on finishing and wanting to chat about what I'd done for the last 4 years, and it made a really welcoming atmosphere for someone coming back into a class I didn't know at all. I also very much want to be a surgeon and have sought out loads of hours hanging out with our small animal surgery department, which they've supported and rewarded through letting me keep coming back
Point 2: I've had multiple meetings with the CVM administration over the years about how the program can do better, and they not only have had those meetings willingly, but have taken the suggestions to heart and implemented changes based on them (sometimes - I'm not going to pretend that academic bureaucracy doesn't exist at UMN because it very much does). As a student representative on both the professional student and grad student level, I've always felt that our voiced concerns were heard.
There are many other good assets about UMN, but those are the main things that make it great in my experience, plus it's my in-state school so it was my least expensive option. That was a major factor when I chose to go here, and I encourage that to be the primary consideration for applicants each year.
