Which animal work experience should I choose?

[xyhh]

I am in high school, planning to apply to UK vet schools and am currently trying to get as much experience as possible.

I've recently found 2 potential work experiences and both of them seem quite appealing, so I'm having trouble choosing between them. (Both non-clinical animal experiences, as I already have enough clinical) One is an opportunity with accommodation on a dairy farm with ~70 cows, the other one is being a farm hand during a Fair at an amusement park, so also lots of work with animals such as, sheep, cows, chickens, pigs, horses, llamas, etc. Both of them are on the same two weeks so I can only do one of them. The Fair pays minimum wage.

Pros and cons of each:
Diary farm
pros- Dairy farming is common and very hands on, more related to vet med
Opportunity to gain knowledge about cattle husbandry and management
cons- Pretty far; I need to take a 6 hours bus to get there. My parents are worried about me travelling alone😅
No pay

Fair
pros- Paid position

Lots of communication with humans which vet schools might value: educating people about livestock, interacting with the kids at the petting farm, answering questions etc
Close to home
cons- Not species specific
Might not learn as much compared to a dairy farm

Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks!

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[EB73674]

I’d be curious to see what others think about this, but I’d personally go for the fair position - it’s way closer, and it actually pays, and you get a good variety of experience with different animals & you can tout the educational/communication aspects of it. You don’t need to break the bank or majorly inconvenience yourself just to get experience, especially non-clinical experience!

 

[violetvett]

I agree with all of @EB73674's points. You will have plenty of time to gain experience with dairy cattle at vet school, especially due to the UK vet schools' AHEMS requirements! IMO the fact that it's not species specific might actually be a plus, as most vet schools appreciate diverse experiences.