Pet Forum / Miscellaneous / Animal Health / December 2005

Howdy.  I'm a fourth year vet student, so I may can offer some advice.  It's
great that you're working with horses already.  You'll definantly want to
diversify your experience.  For someone your age, a part-time job at a small
animal hospital might be a good way to go.  It will get you working with
doctors, and you'll also be able to evaluate how much you like small animal
medicine.  A LOT of people who go into vet school wanting to work with
horses for the rest of thier lives wind up as small animal doctors, for a
lot of differing reasons.  I would also look for other animal-related
experiences that can strengthen your interest in the field as well as your
eventual application.  Just about everybody who applies to vet school has
worked at a small animal hospital, but not a lot of people have ridden
around with a dairy veterinarian, or worked at an aquarium, or helped
rehabilitate raptors.  The key is diversity- you HAVE to stand out from the
other people who apply.

As far as classes, you won't have to worry about that until college.  Every
vet school has a set of classes you have to take, but none of them require
that you major in Animal Science or Biology or the like, so I would say find
something that you have a real interest in as an undergrad major.  My degree
is in physical anthropology, and I can tell you I'd have gone nuts if I had
opted to do animal science (or as it seemed in the two classes I had to
take, "Aren't cows interesting?  Here's how you feed them").  Grades are
important.  You don't have to have a 4.0 to apply to vet school, but the
better your grades are, the better your chances of getting in.  If you can't
maintain at least a 3.5 through undergrad, it reflects poorly on your
chances of surviving vet school.  People do get in will less, but they're
the exception.  When it comes time to take the GRE exam, take it seriously
and prepare for it.  A month or two of prep time can pay big dividends.
Also, get involved on campus.  Demonstrate your leadership abilities.
Again, you want to make your application as interesting as possible.  Oh,
and if you're interested in scientific reasearch, explore that as an
undergrad.  Several of us in my class were published before we got degrees.
Lastly- have fun.  It's college.  It should be a good time.

Books to read?  Naaahhhh.  Your experiences will be a good enough guide.
Lots of people cite James Herriot as inspiration, but I find he tends to
leave out the parts about getting sprayed with diarrhea, bitten by cats with
dental disease, stepped on by draft horses, spit on by llamas, and he
certainly doesn't talk about staying up all night with a ready to foal mare
who just won't the night before an anatomy practical.  If you can go though
all of that and still want to be a vet, then you'll make it.  If not,
reading "All Creatures Great and Small" isn't going to help you.

Hope this helps.  Lemme know if you've got more specific questions.

Josh

Hello

I also want to be a vet. I work for a clinic in Pea Ridge which has a
large equine pratice. If i were you i would start talking to vet school
admissions. If you would like I have contacts to some vet schools. My
cousin also wants to be a vet and is in his first 4 years of collage.

Thomas B
thomasabradford@yahoo.com

Hello

I also want to be a vet. I work for a clinic in Pea Ridge which has a
large equine pratice. If i were you i would start talking to vet school
admissions. If you would like I have contacts to some vet schools. My
cousin also wants to be a vet and is in his first 4 years of collage.

Thomas B
thomasabradford@yahoo.com