2nd semester Student thinking of transfering

[GAP57]

Just completed my 1st semester of Vet school at Ross University.
I applied to a few US vet schools, scored interviews but ended up coming to Ross when I wasn't offered a seat at any of the US schools.

I genuinely thought that life at Ross would have been easy to adapt to but it has not and I miss home terribly. On top of that my class is uber competitive and has a lot of cliques which hasn't helped much in terms of forming friends or study groups.

In the beginning I struggled with catching up with the pace of the firehose of information that we were given everyday. As a result my first round of test scores were C's or C+'s and one exam I flat out failed. I revamped my game plan for the second round of test and scored mostly B's, B+'s and a few A's.

So now I'm back on the island getting ready to start my 2nd semester and I'm miserable. I don't think I can do another semester here. Do I have a chance at transferring? I finished 1st semester with a 2.80 GPA

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[cuitlamiztli]

You will most likely have to complete your 2nd semester at Ross even if you intend to transfer. Most schools that I'm aware of only accept transfer applications toward the end of the previous semester (i.e. November for a spring start and May for a fall start). In any event, your chances of transferring successfully depend on where you want to transfer since each school has its own requirements; at Iowa State, for example, there has to be an opening in the class you would like to transfer to (i.e. they lost people), you must have completed prereqs similar to what ISU requires for non-transfer admissions, and so on. You can usually find this information on the school's website.

Also, while it sounds like home sickness/culture shock is the main reason you are looking to transfer, just keep in mind that some of your other concerns (a cliquey class, tons of information all day every day) will probably be the same no matter where you go to school.

 

[GAP57]

You will most likely have to complete your 2nd semester at Ross even if you intend to transfer. Most schools that I'm aware of only accept transfer applications toward the end of the previous semester (i.e. November for a spring start and May for a fall start). In any event, your chances of transferring successfully depend on where you want to transfer since each school has its own requirements; at Iowa State, for example, there has to be an opening in the class you would like to transfer to (i.e. they lost people), you must have completed prereqs similar to what ISU requires for non-transfer admissions, and so on. You can usually find this information on the school's website.

Also, while it sounds like home sickness/culture shock is the main reason you are looking to transfer, just keep in mind that some of your other concerns (a cliquey class, tons of information all day every day) will probably be the same no matter where you go to school.

Cliques are going to be at each school and the information we learn is going to be a lot. I can't escape those two things. But it would be nice to deal with all of those issues a little closer to home.

I will start looking into transfer options and perhaps apply to some of those schools I scored interviews with. Does that give me a leg up on the competition?

Anyone out there with experience transferring from Ross?

 

[cuitlamiztli]

I will start looking into transfer options and perhaps apply to some of those schools I scored interviews with. Does that give me a leg up on the competition?

I'd imagine that it doesn't necessarily, but I honestly have no idea.

There have been a few posters in the past few years who have transferred successfully, but I'm not sure any are still actively posting. It might be worth your time to search the forum, determine who they were (I'd tell you if I could remember!), and PM them directly.

 

[No Imagination]

As I understand it, transfers only happen when a school looses a student (fail out, drop out, ect.) in the first year. Never heard of one happening mid semester (but that doesn't mean it can't) and never heard of one happening after the second year (again, doesn't mean it can't happen).

I would call that one person who is in charge of admissions (usually not a vet, more of a HR person) and tell them that you are seriously considering transferring. Ask if they think there will be any openings in the class and what you should do (mail in application form? Send over transcripts?). Leave your name and number (or send a courtesy email after your call with you contact information). Have everything ready for an application packet should you hear from them. Finally, contact every school in the country... it can't hurt, and its not like there is a lot of them.

Remember, when a school losses a student in the first year, that is lost tuition (possibly out of state) for them for the next 3 years! At that point, they probably just want a warm body.

Just my opinion.

 

[rugbychick16]

We got a lot of island student transfers to K-State, and I do know that unfortunately grades were a huge part of the process of being able to transfer-since you weren't admitted under their original admissions criteria, they want to be sure you can handle the vet school curriculum. The couple students I know for sure had >3.5 GPA to get a transfer spot.

K-State also takes transfers second year when students fail our first semester so there is open spot-we had several students join our class second semester of second year.

 

[twelvetigers]

Oklahoma State seems very similar to KSU as far as transfers. I think we always have some, even without counting any people who leave. Mostly because the 2nd year classroom is a bit larger than the 1st.

I know someone on here that did transfer from Ross to Tufts. She doesn't post anymore, but I do know she worked her bum off to get the transfer.

I also know a former forumite that left Ross because they hated it and are now doing a Master's in French... they seem happy.

And another from IRL that left and is about to start nursing school.

That's all I've got.

 

[sumstorm]

We have had a few transfer students, one from another US school and one from an island school. In both cases, the transfers noted that family/home were a major part of their desire to transfer and they had to make up some stuff they missed (differences in curriculum.) Contact admissions of the schools you are interested in, worse they will say is 'don't bother', but frame it as a desire to be somewhere rather than a desire to escape something/somewhere.

 

[jmo1012]

I'm at SGU and I'll just say that a very large number (unusually large number) of my classmates wanted to transfer after a year here. quite a few came with the intentions of not sticking around (which seems pretty stupid to me). 20+ people applied to various US schools to transfer and only 5 were accepted. I know grades were for sure a big factor - these students were either 4.0ers or very close (as were a large number that applied to transfer). 2 of the 5 were in state to the schools they transferred to. my understanding is that it's pretty competitive as there are very few seats open.

one thing to seriously consider is how your current curriculum matches with the programs you're looking at. it seems pretty rare that students from SGU can transfer into a school without losing a year (or a semester if they were jan. starters) because they need to repeat some of the 1st year curriculum not covered (like parasitology or virology, which aren't covered here until year 2 - instead we have immuno and bact). so think about whether or not you're okay with adding an extra year on to your veterinary journey. also, look at cost. Ross is pretty darn expensive (more than SGU) so maybe it doesnt matter much there, but the 3 students that transferred OOS will be paying substantially more for their career. is the debt worth it? guess thats up to each person to decide for themselves.

these 2 things completely deterred my thoughts on transferring. I'm definitely not willing to lose any time on my vet school sentence and i absolutely refuse to pay $50k+ more (because transferring IS for me isnt an option).

 

[ImNotThatGirl]

I go to Ross right now (just started 4th semester), and a friend of mine transferred from Ross to Oklahoma at the end of our 3rd semester. I believe it is basically based on grades, and she got mostly A's. However, I think Oklahoma takes more Ross student transfers than anywhere else, so I would definitely try there. The downside is, based on the time of year when my friend applied to transfer, she has to wait until this fall to start again (almost an entire year later), and then she still has to repeat her 3rd semester to get all the required classes.

I do agree that I think the cliques and tough classes is pretty much the same at any school. The thing that makes it worth it to me is getting involved in clubs. I feel like I have better friends in the clubs I'm in than I do in my own class lol. Volunteering with clubs is a good study break, and a lot of them teach you things that are clinically important or give you practice with techniques, so you will be better at them when you actually have to do them for a class.

You'll always have those "Only in St Kitts/Ross" days, where all you want is a drive-thru McDonald's hamburger and a hug from your boyfriend/girlfriend/Mom....but the key is finding friends that understand all that and become your island family. And that's maybe where getting involved in school clubs can help. And there's also a school counselor to talk to also, which I have heard she is really good.