Will they understand?

[agonezz]

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[bipolarbear123]

Hi, this is my first time posting. I thought I'd post to get some feedback on my situation. I currently attend a top 20 undergrad school, which probably does not really matter. For the past year, I have had severe depression issues. My grades were terrible and I basically fell off the planet. With the assistance of my dean, I am currently receiving help, attending regular therapy sessions. The dean also advised me to petition for academic relief for the semester where my grades really dropped. If I am granted the relief, those grades will not affect my gpa. I plan on getting back on route this summer and was wondering what vet schools might think about when they look at my transcript. I know that there are sections on the application where I can explain what I went through but I can only explain so much in words...

Some feedback would be great. Thank you.

Like you said, there is an explanation section exactly for reasons like this. I think it would be fine, especially if your grades previous to your depression are good. Also, it will be good to show improvement in your grades. Bring them up again once you have gone through therapy and are ready to be back in school (or are you still in school? Not sure...). I think it would be good to show that your grades were only affected at that certain point in your life to show a legitimate reason why your GPA suffered.

 

[Minnerbelle]

Unless those grades are completely obliterated off of your transcript, I'm pretty sure they will unfortunately count for vet school apps even if they're not calculated in your gpa on your official transcript.

That being said, a couple bad semesters esp if you have great grades before and after that is something that can definitely be overlooked. There's an explanation statement exactly for this reason. you don't even have to disclose depression as your reason. This has been discussed at length multiple times over the last few years, so I think you could really benefit from a search. There are even great pointers on some of them specifically pertaining to mental health issues, and different approaches to explaining it on your apps

Good luck!

 

[shellbell4e]

This happened to me (severe personal/family issues took place), and throw in an incomplete into the mix...I almost dropped out and took a PELP due to the burden...
At the time of application, the Incomplete was on my transcript. But I did make the class up, and the adcom did ask about that. They were very understanding, and I didn't have to explain too much. I have had great success this application cycle (will be attending my IS UC Davis), despite my GPA suffering greatly (it dropped a whole .5, maybe more, within 2 quarters), and once it drops it is extremely difficult to bring back up. I can tell you more about it over PMs if you would like. Best of luck!

 

[Jamr0ckin]

I'm so sorry you have been going through so much, and I'm glad your school is doing a lot to help you.

I went through a similar situation - was kicked by a horse in the chest and face and suffered from anxiety attacks because I got so far behind in my classes. I was able to get WI on my transcripts - Withdraw (Illness). I explained in my VMCAS what happened and how I learned from it.

Good luck!

 

[agonezz]

Like you said, there is an explanation section exactly for reasons like this. I think it would be fine, especially if your grades previous to your depression are good. Also, it will be good to show improvement in your grades. Bring them up again once you have gone through therapy and are ready to be back in school (or are you still in school? Not sure...). I think it would be good to show that your grades were only affected at that certain point in your life to show a legitimate reason why your GPA suffered.

Thanks for your reply. Yes, I am still enrolled in school and I plan to take things one step at a time

Unless those grades are completely obliterated off of your transcript, I'm pretty sure they will unfortunately count for vet school apps even if they're not calculated in your gpa on your official transcript.

That being said, a couple bad semesters esp if you have great grades before and after that is something that can definitely be overlooked. There's an explanation statement exactly for this reason. you don't even have to disclose depression as your reason. This has been discussed at length multiple times over the last few years, so I think you could really benefit from a search. There are even great pointers on some of them specifically pertaining to mental health issues, and different approaches to explaining it on your apps

Good luck!

I recently heard back from our committee on academic standards and they have granted be retroactive academic relief for my fall semester. This replaces all my passing grades with S and all my nonpassing with U. I searched for depression on student doctor, I guess mental illness would be a better search to get what I'm looking for. Thanks~

This happened to me (severe personal/family issues took place), and throw in an incomplete into the mix...I almost dropped out and took a PELP due to the burden...
At the time of application, the Incomplete was on my transcript. But I did make the class up, and the adcom did ask about that. They were very understanding, and I didn't have to explain too much. I have had great success this application cycle (will be attending my IS UC Davis), despite my GPA suffering greatly (it dropped a whole .5, maybe more, within 2 quarters), and once it drops it is extremely difficult to bring back up. I can tell you more about it over PMs if you would like. Best of luck!

Thanks for replying. It comforts me to know that others have gone through what I have and that they truly understand how hard it gets.

I'm so sorry you have been going through so much, and I'm glad your school is doing a lot to help you.

I went through a similar situation - was kicked by a horse in the chest and face and suffered from anxiety attacks because I got so far behind in my classes. I was able to get WI on my transcripts - Withdraw (Illness). I explained in my VMCAS what happened and how I learned from it.

Good luck!

I am actually very surprised at how much my school has been helping me. I give a lot of credit to my dean who suggested I start therapy. My classes for one semester are being replaced with S and U. I am hoping that this will lessen the drop in my gpa and hopefully not look as bad on my application.

 

[Fly Racing]

Agonezz, I hope you are starting to feel better! A lot have people have been in your shoes so you not alone in this it's really awesome that they removed the grades from your transcript!

A couple of quick side notes I want to add: don't put "I had clinical depression" in the explanation. While mamy people do understand depression, many people also DONT understand. Vet med is also well known for causing/bringing out depression in students and vets alike (not that it would for you specifically, but its an industry issue), so I wouldn't want you to be tagged with that before they even meet you!

I would state something to the effect that you had a medical issue during the term that prevented you from finishing those courses in the traditional manner and that the U/S designation on the transcript reflects that. You can make is sound as professional as possible. Medical issues are private so you are not required to share more than what makes you comfortable.

Also, if you took any prereq courses during that semester, you will need to retake them for a grade even if they gave you a S.

Best of luck!! Clearly you are a pretty cool person based on how much people are bending to help you

 

[Emiloo4]

Agonezz, I hope you are starting to feel better! A lot have people have been in your shoes so you not alone in this it's really awesome that they removed the grades from your transcript!

A couple of quick side notes I want to add: don't put "I had clinical depression" in the explanation. While mamy people do understand depression, many people also DONT understand. Vet med is also well known for causing/bringing out depression in students and vets alike (not that it would for you specifically, but its an industry issue), so I wouldn't want you to be tagged with that before they even meet you!

I would state something to the effect that you had a medical issue during the term that prevented you from finishing those courses in the traditional manner and that the U/S designation on the transcript reflects that. You can make is sound as professional as possible. Medical issues are private so you are not required to share more than what makes you comfortable.

Also, if you took any prereq courses during that semester, you will need to retake them for a grade even if they gave you a S.

Best of luck!! Clearly you are a pretty cool person based on how much people are bending to help you

The best thing you can possibly do is bounce back 100% and show them that this was just a fluke in your life, and you were able to overcome it. I had a pretty crappy situation for 2 of my semesters and I explained the situation in a professional manner, pointed out my perseverance through the episode (I didn't drop out completely like many people would) and my improvement afterwards. Just don't come across as someone making excuses, come across as someone who is proud for overcoming adversity and learned about how to deal with these things in a better manner in the future. They want to know that if something similar happens again, that you are able to overcome it! Congrats on your school being awesome. Now go bust your arse!