Which Vet Schools Weight Grades Heavily?

[Danielle Frasier]

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I applied to my IS vet school and was denied. They do not take GPA into account aside from having above a 3.0 GPA. I have veterinary and animal experience, but I guess not enough.

I have a high GPA, and in the next cycle would like to apply to vet schools that are more likely to accept me. What veterinary schools in the United States put a heavier weight into GPA?

Thank you in advance for the help.

 

[SkiOtter]

Most schools have on their website how they evaluate candidates. It's pretty simple to find it on most schools websites how they choose applicants and if they have a formula.

 

[cdo96]

I read this title as
“Which Vet Schools Gain Weight Heavily?”

I came here to be like

 

[flameshock]

I read this title as
“Which Vet Schools Gain Weight Heavily?”

I came here to be like

The answer is “D: all of the above”

 

[SkiOtter]

The answer is “D: all of the above”

accurate emoticon

 

[cdo96]

The answer is “D: all of the above”

I work out twice a week with a trainer and I still gain weight. Granted I know I’ll lose weight finals week because of anxiety/ not being able to eat/ forgetting to eat, but still. Jeesh.

 

[SkiOtter]

i like how quickly we can completely derail a thread.

 

[genny]

I applied to my IS vet school and was denied. They do not take GPA into account aside from having above a 3.0 GPA. I have veterinary and animal experience, but I guess not enough.

I have a high GPA, and in the next cycle would like to apply to vet schools that are more likely to accept me. What veterinary schools in the United States put a heavier weight into GPA?

Thank you in advance for the help.

What's your IS? I can't imagine an IS school rejecting an applicant with a high GPA unless the application is lacking in some other areas. And if that's the case, your best bet is probably a file review followed by addressing the areas of concern that the school identifies. Because OOS schools are going to have the same concerns, regardless of GPA.

 

[flameshock]

I work out twice a week with a trainer and I still gain weight. Granted I know I’ll lose weight finals week because of anxiety/ not being able to eat/ forgetting to eat, but still. Jeesh.

I’ve actually lost about 12 pounds since coming back from spring break, but I’ve been pretty aggressive about my food intake. Do I think I’ll continue when we start clinics in three weeks?

...we’ll see.

 

[SkiOtter]

What's your IS? I can't imagine an IS school rejecting an applicant with a high GPA unless the application is lacking in some other areas. And if that's the case, your best bet is probably a file review followed by addressing the areas of concern that the school identifies. Because OOS schools are going to have the same concerns, regardless of GPA.

michigan state does not factor gpa into admissions or interview offer decisions. pretty sure thats who theyre talking about.

 

[genny]

michigan state does not factor gpa into admissions or interview offer decisions. pretty sure thats who theyre talking about.

Well, in that case, just about every other school in the universe will weight GPA more than a school that doesn't use it at all. But my suggestion still stands.

 

[Danielle Frasier]

What's your IS? I can't imagine an IS school rejecting an applicant with a high GPA unless the application is lacking in some other areas. And if that's the case, your best bet is probably a file review followed by addressing the areas of concern that the school identifies. Because OOS schools are going to have the same concerns, regardless of GPA.

My In State is Michigan State. I don't think they rejected me because my GPA was high, it just did not carry ANY weight in their file review. I did a file review, and she looked at my GPA, and discretely suggested I apply to schools where my GPA will be taken into account in their selection criteria. So I am going to make a point of applying to schools that consider GPA as part of their selection criteria.

Some schools aren't clear on how they weigh GPA, like I have not been able to tell with: Wisconsin, Kansas, Ohio, North Carolina, Georgia, or Oregon

 

[SkiOtter]

Well, in that case, just about every other school in the universe will weight GPA more than a school that doesn't use it at all. But my suggestion still stands.

yep, i agree. MSU has a weird way of evaluating candidates on this scale of different categories, one being agriculture, which the only way to get full points for that category is to have grown up on a farm *insert upside down smiley face here*
it sucks. i'm sorry i didnt grow up on a farm because my dad didn't continue the family tradition and went to school instead??

 

[SkiOtter]

My In State is Michigan State. I don't think they rejected me because my GPA was high, it just did not carry ANY weight in their file review. I did a file review, and she looked at my GPA, and discretely suggested I apply to schools where my GPA will be taken into account in their selection criteria. So I am going to make a point of applying to schools that consider GPA as part of their selection criteria.

Some schools aren't clear on how they weigh GPA, like I have not been able to tell with: Wisconsin, Kansas, Ohio, North Carolina, Georgia, or Oregon

kansas state likes last 45 gpa. does not care about cumulative iirc.

 

[SkiOtter]

My In State is Michigan State. I don't think they rejected me because my GPA was high, it just did not carry ANY weight in their file review. I did a file review, and she looked at my GPA, and discretely suggested I apply to schools where my GPA will be taken into account in their selection criteria. So I am going to make a point of applying to schools that consider GPA as part of their selection criteria.

Some schools aren't clear on how they weigh GPA, like I have not been able to tell with: Wisconsin, Kansas, Ohio, North Carolina, Georgia, or Oregon

Admission Requirements - University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine
wisconsin.
not hard to findddddd. most schools have their selection criteria laid out on their website or you can email them.

 

[Danielle Frasier]

not hard to findddddd. most schools have their selection criteria laid out on their website or you can email them.

I see which GPA they consider and they say it is considered in the evaluation process, but not how heavily it is considered. Other schools have given a percent weight GPA is given, or implied its importance. How can I tell how important the GPA is in their selection criteria? I was hoping people had an idea of how much or little these schools factor it in?

 

[MDB74]

You're going to have to contact those specific admissions offices if you want to know that. Although, I strongly suspect that if they don't give an exact weighted number on their sites then you will get a generic "gpa is one of the criteria we use but we try to evaluate the candidate holistically" response. Pretty much impossible for us to tell how much admissions cares unless they explicitly list it.

 

[SkiOtter]

I see which GPA they consider and they say it is considered in the evaluation process, but not how heavily it is considered. Other schools have given a percent weight GPA is given, or implied its importance. How can I tell how important the GPA is in their selection criteria? I was hoping people had an idea of how much or little these schools factor it in?

If the schools don’t tell you on their website, how are we supposed to know either? Like I said before, contact the schools by email and expect to wait a bit for an answer because right now they’re busy with acceptances and starting calling waitlist people.
You have to do some of the leg work yourself when applying to a professional school.

 

[DVMoftheFuture]

Honestly I feel like any advantage you gain by applying to a vet school that weights GPA more heavily will be totally lost when you consider the fact that you will be put in the OOS pool at any other school. Many vet schools receive 1,000+ OOS applications. You're looking generally at a 5-10% acceptance rate, worse at some of the more popular schools to apply to OOS. In comparison, last year Michigan State received 215 IS applications and admitted 78 IS students. To get in OOS, most applicants have a great GPA, as well as great experience, great recommendations, great essays, etc. In addition, consider the additional cost. Only WSU and NCSU are cheaper for OOS than what you would pay IS at Michigan. Both those schools have an OOS acceptance rate of ~3%.

 

[supershorty]

This is the kind of thing where file reviews and contacting schools directly is most helpful.

 

[Lupin21]

My In State is Michigan State. I don't think they rejected me because my GPA was high, it just did not carry ANY weight in their file review. I did a file review, and she looked at my GPA, and discretely suggested I apply to schools where my GPA will be taken into account in their selection criteria. So I am going to make a point of applying to schools that consider GPA as part of their selection criteria.

Some schools aren't clear on how they weigh GPA, like I have not been able to tell with: Wisconsin, Kansas, Ohio, North Carolina, Georgia, or Oregon

yeah, after this month, you may shoot an email to these schools asking how they feel about you as an applicant. I know Wisconsin was very good at chatting with me about my application when I was applying, but that was a while ago now. haha

Did your reviewer not have anything to say about the rest of your app? As others have stated, there had to be a better reason they didn't accept you. When applying, do your best to bring what makes you unique amongst applicants into focus. What life experience have you gained that will make you a force in the field? What individual attributes do you have that will make the class as a whole stronger? Those kinds of things are incredibly valuable.

 

[twelvetigers]

I see which GPA they consider and they say it is considered in the evaluation process, but not how heavily it is considered. Other schools have given a percent weight GPA is given, or implied its importance. How can I tell how important the GPA is in their selection criteria? I was hoping people had an idea of how much or little these schools factor it in?

Here's the plus side of your situation, OP:

Getting more animal and veterinary experience and trying to get a better letter of recommendation (if needed) is much easier than trying to raise a cruddy GPA after you have enough hours of classwork being averaged.

Does that make sense?

If you end up having to re-apply, try to get advice on how to improve your application and then ... well, do what they suggest. It's a lot easier to get 50 hours with an equine veterinarian (or whatever) than it is to raise your GPA from a 3.2 to a 3.5 with 90 credit hours. Like... a lot easier. So, I know it sucks, but you can be thankful for that. And this is coming from someone with 180+ undergrad credit hours and more like a 3.0 GPA but hella hours of veterinary experience and stuff. I would have loved for Wisconsin to have that approach, but I don't think they did seven years ago when I was applying. Luckily, I did manage to get into my IS (after three tries).

Chin up and make sure you meet with them to see how you can improve your app - I bet you can do a lot. 🙂

 

[RedLauren]

Look up Texas A&M they have an exact formula of how much each gpa is weighted. And yes, they care about gpa a lot.

 

[SkiOtter]

Look up Texas A&M they have an exact formula of how much each gpa is weighted. And yes, they care about gpa a lot.

TAMU also only takes 10 OOS students

 

[pp9]

yep, i agree. MSU has a weird way of evaluating candidates on this scale of different categories, one being agriculture, which the only way to get full points for that category is to have grown up on a farm *insert upside down smiley face here*
it sucks. i'm sorry i didnt grow up on a farm because my dad didn't continue the family tradition and went to school instead??

I can relate to this, especially with Michigan being my IS. Do they still make you do those 5 mini essays though? I peeked at their website just now and couldn't find anything on them, unless I missed it.

Probs an unpopular opinion, but I don't feel that someone growing up on a farm deserves special recognition over another applicant. A good number of my LA oriented classmates actually did not grow up surrounded by animal ag, and a few of my SA oriented classmates did grow up surrounded by animal ag. Hell, I know several of my classmates who switched to LA during vet school (previously SA or zoo), or switched out of LA to something else because they don't want to risk having to move to BFE for a job.

A lot of people/vet schools seem to be stuck on the idea that we are in a national farm vet shortage, but tbh there just isn't enough demand to support that many vets per x mile radius depending on region, and the demand for independent LA vets will only decrease as farms continue to be industrialized/bought out by big companies.

It's a really touchy subject for some, though, and discussing what deserves some sort of special consideration on a vet school application can really get people heated quickly, lol.

 

[youngkal]

I feel like you don’t need to grow up on a farm to fufill that requirement because I didn’t but I was apart of swine and dairy research and i shadowed LA and equine vets.

Like others said you can gain the experience, or describe what you had differently. Don’t just talk about what you did but also what you got from it.

Good luck! You’ll get there

 

[SkiOtter]

I can relate to this, especially with Michigan being my IS. Do they still make you do those 5 mini essays though? I peeked at their website just now and couldn't find anything on them, unless I missed it.

Probs an unpopular opinion, but I don't feel that someone growing up on a farm deserves special recognition over another applicant. A good number of my LA oriented classmates actually did not grow up surrounded by animal ag, and a few of my SA oriented classmates did grow up surrounded by animal ag. Hell, I know several of my classmates who switched to LA during vet school (previously SA or zoo), or switched out of LA to something else because they don't want to risk having to move to BFE for a job.

A lot of people/vet schools seem to be stuck on the idea that we are in a national farm vet shortage, but tbh there just isn't enough demand to support that many vets per x mile radius depending on region, and the demand for independent LA vets will only decrease as farms continue to be industrialized/bought out by big companies.

It's a really touchy subject for some, though, and discussing what deserves some sort of special consideration on a vet school application can really get people heated quickly, lol.

Yep there were still 5 mini essays last year I believe (but could be remembering from the year prior)
And tbh I agree that they shouldn’t get special recognition over other applicants. Just because I didn’t grow up on a farm doesn’t mean I’m not still a decent candidate. MSU is also my IS.

 

[SkiOtter]

I feel like you don’t need to grow up on a farm to fufill that requirement because I didn’t but I was apart of swine and dairy research and i shadowed LA and equine vets.

Like others said you can gain the experience, or describe what you had differently. Don’t just talk about what you did but also what you got from it.

Good luck! You’ll get there

Growing up on a farm IS the only way to get full points in that category. You can’t make up for it with more hours in LA. You CAN make up for it in with high scores in other categories but you can’t get full points in that section without growing up on a farm.

 

[youngkal]

Yep there were still 5 mini essays last year I believe (but could be remembering from the year prior)
And tbh I agree that they shouldn’t get special recognition over other applicants. Just because I didn’t grow up on a farm doesn’t mean I’m not still a decent candidate. MSU is also my IS.

Our prevet club was told they will be decreasing the number of questions this year (maybe only 2).

 

[Coopah]

Well OP, I know Davis is in the middle of changing up their admissions process to be more holistic but as of right now it has only affected IS students. I like Davis as an OOS student because they allow to switch to IS after a year and take plenty of OOS students. The hard part is getting an interview, but they care a lot about numbers. If your last 45 GPA and science GPA is good, along with a decent Quant GRE and LOR they'll interview you. After that it's based on your interview. Not IS or OOS status, nor GPA, just your interview. Good luck with next application cycle!

 

[finnickthedog]

Yep there were still 5 mini essays last year I believe (but could be remembering from the year prior)

Nope. The last year of the 5 mini essays was the year before (c/o 2020).
Last year the supplemental was I think 2 mini essays that were somewhat easier to write.

Our prevet club was told they will be decreasing the number of questions this year (maybe only 2).

Weird. They keep changing it.

 

[JustPaws]

Nope. The last year of the 5 mini essays was the year before (c/o 2020).
Last year the supplemental was I think 2 mini essays that were somewhat easier to write.



Weird. They keep changing it.

Pretty sure I wrote 7 essays on the Michigan portion of the vmcas.
Ethics, hobbies, diversity, responsibility to someone, difficulties getting to vet school, conflict resolution, and something I wrote a personal story about but don't remember the prompt.

Not on my computer to look at the saved application

That was in addition to the three essays on the general side of the app.

 

[finnickthedog]

Pretty sure I wrote 5-7 essays on the Michigan portion of the vmcas. not on my computer to check for sure

That was in addition to the three essays on the general side of the app.

They aren't the 5 essays that @pinkpuppy9 was talking about though, which I believe they used to use every year up until last year when they had like 2 questions and this year they apparently had more questions but they weren't the same as the old ones.

 

[JustPaws]

They aren't the 5 essays that @pinkpuppy9 was talking about though, which I believe they used to use every year up until last year when they had like 2 questions and this year they apparently had more questions but they weren't the same as the old ones.

Gotcha, didn't realize from her post that the 5 used to be repetitive

 

[SkiOtter]

Pretty sure I wrote 7 essays on the Michigan portion of the vmcas.
Ethics, hobbies, diversity, responsibility to someone, difficulties getting to vet school, conflict resolution, and something I wrote a personal story about but don't remember the prompt.

Not on my computer to look at the saved application

That was in addition to the three essays on the general side of the app.

^^yeah that’s what I was remembering.

They aren't the 5 essays that @pinkpuppy9 was talking about though, which I believe they used to use every year up until last year when they had like 2 questions and this year they apparently had more questions but they weren't the same as the old ones.

Had no idea what the old ones were but I remembered this year there being at least 5 of them so that’s what I was going with 😛

 

[Danielle Frasier]

Look up Texas A&M they have an exact formula of how much each gpa is weighted. And yes, they care about gpa a lot.

For those of you who have been to the College Town, Texas area (Texas A&M), how unbearably hot is it? I grew up in Michigan so I'm trying to figure out if I could live there. Summers show highs of 90, and pretty high humidity....

 

[cdo96]

For those of you who have been to the College Town, Texas area (Texas A&M), how unbearably hot is it? I grew up in Michigan so I'm trying to figure out if I could live there. Summers show highs of 90, and pretty high humidity....

ehhhh. you learn to manage it. You’re also rarely outside in vet school during the didactic years so it doesn’t matter all that much, in my opinion

 

[SkiOtter]

For those of you who have been to the College Town, Texas area (Texas A&M), how unbearably hot is it? I grew up in Michigan so I'm trying to figure out if I could live there. Summers show highs of 90, and pretty high humidity....

I went to Dallas for like 2 days in mid-August last year and felt like I was melting outside in the 98 degree heat. Granted, this was most definitely not enough time to acclimate to the temperature and I was outside for like 8 hours (in shade) one of the days. If I hadn’t been outside for 8 hours and it was just running between car and inside, I wouldn’t have been sweating to death (as much)

 

[Danielle Frasier]

Look up Texas A&M they have an exact formula of how much each gpa is weighted. And yes, they care about gpa a lot.

They have their own application portal right? Like they don't use VMCAS? Does anyone have any experience with it?

 

[RedLauren]

They have their own application portal right? Like they don't use VMCAS? Does anyone have any experience with it?

Yeah they use TMDSAS. I never had any problems with it. Its the same information you enter in your VMCAS. I know they don’t have many OOS spots but their OOS tuition is cheaper than many schools’ instate.

 

[RedLauren]

For those of you who have been to the College Town, Texas area (Texas A&M), how unbearably hot is it? I grew up in Michigan so I'm trying to figure out if I could live there. Summers show highs of 90, and pretty high humidity....

I live in College Station and I grew up in Houston. This is the only climate I’ve ever known and I’m used to it. I’d rather be hot than cold and I found Michigan impossible to enjoy because I was so damn cold all the time lol. Summers are hot there’s tons to do outside to stay cool like float the river or go to the beach. Fall and spring are georgous and are both a pleasant 60 - 75 degrees. Winters are very mild it’s usually above 55 for most of it.

 

[RedLauren]

It definitely opens up more doors for things to do. The thing that drove me crazy about winter in the Midwest was being stuck inside day after day.

 

[Aqua_girl87]

I live in College Station and I grew up in Houston. This is the only climate I’ve ever known and I’m used to it. I’d rather be hot than cold and I found Michigan impossible to enjoy because I was so damn cold all the time lol. Summers are hot there’s tons to do outside to stay cool like float the river or go to the beach. Fall and spring are georgous and are both a pleasant 60 - 75 degrees. Winters are very mild it’s usually above 55 for most of it.

I'm the direct opposite! I grew up in New England, so I'm used to the cold. I moved down to NC a couple years ago where the winters were not really winters to me and, even though I loved the area, I could not envision myself staying here long term. I'm super excited to be going to MSU where they actually have a decent amount of snow during the winter. I'm one of those weird people who LOVE the snow.