Gap Year Advice???

[LadyVet]

Hi, everybody!
I’m currently an College Senior that will graduate next May and I am nearing a decision that I won’t be able to apply for Vet school this cycle due to a low Cumulative GPA and Veterinary Experience so I’m looking for advice that if anyone took a gap year after undergraduate.
- What paid jobs should you look for that could increase experience?
- How should I save money to apply for the vet cycle?
- What are the pros and cons of taking a gap year before attending vet school?
- Is the myth of taking a gap year really doesn’t make people go back to apply for Vet school true?
- How did your gap year turn out for you?

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[ajs513]

This is what worked for me. So take this all in the context of it being one person’s experience.

1. I think that if you specifically want a good number of hours plus money, then working at a vet hospital as a tech/assistant is a good idea. You could do something like 20 hours a week while you’re still in school, and then up that when your graduate. It’s not enough to impact your academic performance (obviously your experience may be different though) but enough to make good money and gain a lot of hours. Especially if you’re worried about your GPA holding you back. A lot of schools are moving to a holistic admissions process, so having lots of valuable experience can help to make up for a lower GPA, especially if you can’t bring it up much from several semesters of bad grades.

2. Don’t eat out much if you can help it. Buy groceries and cook. It’s much cheaper. Don’t splurge on things you don’t need. Or at least don’t do it often. You want maybe $3,000 in a savings account to keep you from worrying about any sort of finances while going through the process of paying for the GRE, applications, supplemental apps, and interview expenses. If you apply to 5 schools and get interviews at all of them, that could go up to or above $2,000. Shoot for as much in your savings as you can. I had around $4,000 and I went through most of it, but I also applied to 11 schools.

3. I think you get tons of real world experience that you have never had before. You’ve been in school for nearly 2 decades with presumably no breaks. Use this as a time to learn what life is like outside of school. You’ll grow a lot, meet new people outside of an academic setting, and hopefully gain pragmatic experience in the field of veterinary medicine. It can teach you what it’s like to really work in the field without the haze of school, and without only working in small bursts. The cons will be in the next part.

4. This entirely depends on the person and their dedication to becoming a vet. It’s one year. If that small period of time makes you think it’s not right for you, then good. It probably isn’t. If you come out of it still feeling as strongly as you ever have, then it’s probably right for you. It’s a huge decision to go to vet school. Don’t take it lightly, and don’t fight it too hard if you feel like the gap year is changing your interests. This is the rest of your life you’re working towards. Don’t chase something you don’t really want to be doing. So actually that’s not a con. That’s more of a pro if anything.

5. I loved my gap year. I worked a lot, saved money for rent payments and furniture for my apartment at school, and grew a lot as a person. It really did so much for me. I would recommend to anyone who isn’t sure about going to another 4 years of school right after college to take a gap year. It’s the best way, to me at least, to figure out what you’re doing with your life and to get all of your affairs in order to handle what’s going to be a very tough next four years.

 

[Allyal]

Here is my take on this as someone currently in the middle of a gap year before going to vet school in the fall:
1) If you can try to find a job that will help boost experience in areas your lacking in (lab animal, small, vet etc.) There are definitely plenty of animal jobs out there that pays decently. I work as a lab technician in a research facility where I work with lab animals so a veterinary hospital does not have to be your only choice. It is up to your preference and your situation.

2) The advice ^above^ is along the same lines I would say. I also keep track of how much money I'm gaining and spending in a month and putting aside a fraction of the money I earned each month just for school. That way I have enough savings for myself in case any emergencies pop up. Also if you haven't done it already consider using your senior year to getting the GRE done so that cost is out of the way.

3)Pros: no more homework and exams until you go back to school. Its a great break from school. Also I felt I have grown and matured a lot through my job. I was able to learn a lot about myself, which helped when it came to interview time again, especially when I had a behavioral interview. Cons: you fall have not studied for a while, so it might be difficult to return to the constant grind. I'll have to re teach myself to study anyways so I never saw this as big deal.

4)For me no. I never gave up on vet school since it was always an endgame for me and this gap year was a stepping stone for it. I agree with the advice above^^ so I don't need to add any more

5)I have no regrets. As I stated above I have become a better person because of it. You learn things in the real world which you can't find behind a desk. All of the experience I have will be make me a much better vet. I'm honestly glad I got rejected one my first application cycle just so I can have this experience.

Free advice: As a person who got accepted with a lowish cumulative GPA and doesn't posses thousands of veterinary hours it is still possible to get in. Keep doing the best you can and I wish you all the luck!

 

[battie]

What paid jobs should you look for that could increase experience?

Veterinary medicine jobs in general, like assistant or tech jobs. Even a reception job works. But if you need a job that provides more than those positions, you can find a full time job outside the industry and volunteer on the side.

How should I save money to apply for the vet cycle?

I lived with my parents, straight up no shame. So no major bills. If that's an option, I would suggest that route. If not, then I would again suggest finding a higher paying job and save by squirreling away extra funds every pay period.

What are the pros and cons of taking a gap year before attending vet school?

I had two forced gap years since I was only wait listed for several years. In hindsight, I'm happy for my gap years, particularly my second year. I started exploring alternate careers just in case I wasn't accepted and overall got my life more put together. Lol

Is the myth of taking a gap year really doesn’t make people go back to apply for Vet school true?

Not true. Statistically, it takes 1.4 or so application cycles to gain entrance to vet school (last I saw). But there are so many other factors that it isn't just the gap year that causes people to never get in.

How did your gap year turn out for you?

Like I said, I am thankful for my gap years!

 

[MixedAnimals77]

Hi, everybody!
I’m currently an College Senior that will graduate next May and I am nearing a decision that I won’t be able to apply for Vet school this cycle due to a low Cumulative GPA and Veterinary Experience so I’m looking for advice that if anyone took a gap year after undergraduate.
- What paid jobs should you look for that could increase experience?
- How should I save money to apply for the vet cycle?
- What are the pros and cons of taking a gap year before attending vet school?
- Is the myth of taking a gap year really doesn’t make people go back to apply for Vet school true?
- How did your gap year turn out for you?

1-at time of application increasing my experience wasn't as important to me so I actually branched out and tried jobs related to my BS field incase vet school didn't pan out. Otherwise, kennel tech, vet assistant, etc
2-I lived at home during undergrad so definitely if you can no shame do it. I actually saved alot of money this way and am putting a good chunk toward tuition. If you can't putting 50-100 away per paycheck can add up fast! Applying smartly is my best advice to limit your costs.
3- I would say no. If it's truly what you want then you go back and apply. If it's not what you want then that gap year shows you that and TBH that's not a bad thing at all. Another 4 years of education and the debt you better hope you're 100% sure that's what you want. Overall am I happy I'm in vet school, yes. If I would've failed out first year would I have gone back given the opportunity, no-and neither would some of my very close friends.
4- So I didn't take a full gap year. I could have applied a year early, but there was a few classes in undergrad I wanted to take and I had a scholarship to pay for it so I stayed, plus I didn't have the time I wanted to study for the GRE at the time. I ended up with 9ish months off. It was amazing. Looking back if I would've known it made me not want to go back to school after being out. I had a decent job, worked ALOT like 80 hours a week. Literally I would go home to my parents house because I still lived there, sleep, get up work, come home repeat. When I did have a normal 40ish hour week I spent alot of my time out kayaking and hiking. I ended up working with a person from college and we became great friends outside of school she's going to be in my wedding. Sometimes I wish I would have even taken a longer gap than I did because working is way better than being in school (imo but i hate the general concept of school). I did feel like I got to recharge and my first semester of school I didn't feel the stress like everyone else I think because I didn't come straight from undergrad. My best friends feel slightly burnt out all the time because they're doing school straight through. Second semester though I was back to feeling the burn out groove of school. I think taking a gap year especially if you're a traditional student is a blessing in disguise. You grow alot and learn alot and personally think alot of people should have to take a gap year, but I get it. Anyway that's basically my story.

 

[Minnerbelle]

If you have low gpa and low experience, then you’re going to really have to evaluate your plans because just working as a lay staff at an animal hospital or shelter or whatever for a year is still not going to make you much more competitive. There are so many vet wannabes who have years of experience working in those places. If taking a gap year or two or three makes you not want to go back and apply to vet school, I’d consider that a blessing. It means you didn’t really want to go, your life’s priorities changed, or the hill was too much of an uphill for you to continue pursuing, and that’s a good thing to realize. If you want it enough, it’ll happen at some point. Taking the gap year is not what prevents you from going on. You save money for the application cycle by being a financially responsible adult. It’s not cheap, but it’s not that much either. Not something you can’t budget for. Think about how much money you want to have on hand by the time you apply, and save a certain amount every month to get there.

You have a year and 25+% of your curriculum to work on your GPA. Focus on that. Aim for a hefty load you can handle and get a 4.0. That’s going to be the hardest thing to overcome later so invest in yourself now and change that to the best of your abilities. If it’s still not good enough, you can take a few classes during your gap year as well, but it’ll be game over if you continue getting bad grades. Getting better grades now before you’ve cemented in 4 years of credits of bad grades is going to be your biggest bang for your buck. If I were you, I wouldn’t bother applying this year or trying too hard to get experience during the school year if you are committing to taking a gap year.

I took 2 gap years between undergrad and vet school, and I don’t regret it at all. Really the only downside is that it delays getting paid a veterinarian’s salary by the number of years you take . But honestly I think it helped me out personally even on that front because I graduated undergrad in 2008 months before the Lehman shock, and the job market was horrendous for vets between 2009 and 2014. It was just starting to recover when I graduated vet school in 2014.

I took 2 gap years because the research position I took required a 2 year minimum commitment. It was at a big research powerhouse where I was trained as if I were a grad student, and got a lot of autonomy and responsibility resulting in multiple publications in decent impact factor journals. It meant I had a strong reference from a renowned PI from a prestigious institution. It helped a lot. Not only in getting into vet school, but also in securing opportunities and scholarships throughout vet school. I also took that time to volunteer with animals and build leadership experience as well, so it helped add some hours.

 

[Marianer]

Do you have any suggestions on gap year programs? A lot of things can't go on this year because of COVID-19.