Hardest year in vet school? And summarize each year in 25 words or less.

[wheelin2vetmed]

I know it's going to be different for each person, and I realize the second 2 years is a lot different than the first two, but what year was/is the hardest for you?

Also, it would be informative (and I know it will be funny) to see each year summarized in 20 words or less. And I know @DVMDream will make a backhanded response, so let's get that out of the way early, shall we?

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[cowgirla]

Year 1: suckiest. WTF was I thinking / I don't belong here / back up plan= margarita beach shack.
Year 2: slightly less sucky. Beach shack still appealing.
Year 3: interesting stuffs but holy burn out, batman.
Year 4: learning all the things you slept through in 1-3. Clinics = Exhaustion but live animals, yay.

 

[Trilt]

I'll do it in 10.

1st: Anatomy, physiology and knowing nothing.
2nd: Tests. Tests everywhere. Cut things occasionally.
3rd: Fun material... interrupted by cows & horses. Senioritis™!
4th: Metaphorical light. Long hours, bitchwork, but maybe I know something?

edit: and yeah, second year sucked the worst by far. my give-a-**** fell off a cliff at about halfway through, so that helped a bit, though.

 

[Minnerbelle]

Second year was the worst. Thousands of hours studying and dozens upon dozens of exams later, you still have no friggin clue how to treat anything. It seems like doctorhood is million of years away.

1st: basic material seemingly irrelevant to practice but **** you need to know. Exams. Battle of egos between gunners.

2nd: depressing. Life = exam. Will never be doctor. Serious apathy and anger sets in. Go to class two days/wk.

3rd: maybe I'll be doctor one day. Fun stuff. Totally apathetic about school/exams. Show up only for exams and labs.

4th: game time.


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[Coquette22]

Second semester, first year was the worst. More anatomy, tons of exams, feel like you know nothing, embryology happened, reproductive physiology happened, my dad died and my roommate turned out to be a sociopath. (Those last two are probably unique to me though...)

1st: Holy crap this is happening, hey I can actually do this but I'm exhausted, these people are awesome!
2nd: Wheee, less class time, yay bacteria and pathology!
3rd: I've never written this many exams in my life, someone make it stop, is it fourth year yet?
4th: I'm never gonna be a good doctor despite what everyone is telling me, oh ****, I just graduated.

 

[Ashgirl]

1st: Sucked. Adjusting to the sheer volume of material while knowing nothing and having classes that were dull and seemed irrelevant = not fun and stressful.
2nd: Much more interesting, but holy information overload! Biggest obstacle this year is apathy + burnout.
3rd/4th: TBD! I imagine there will be a lot of exhaustion and excitement intermixed with "I don't know what to say or where to put my hands or what I should do or how I will ever be a doctor" moments.

 

[MassDVMMPH]

Second year was the worst by far - if you can survive second year, you will graduate from vet school.

First year: Overwhelming. How in God's name do they expect me to learn all this stuff? Curled up in a corner crying more than once.
Second year: Have learned how to study. No more breakdowns. Ridiculous amounts of information to memorize. More interesting though. Permanent headache from studying so much.
Third year: Everything coming together. Grand Rounds presentations of seniors actually make sense now. Subjects more clinically oriented.
Fourth year: Scutwork. Stress. More scutwork. Find out you genuinely like the vast majority of your classmates. Oh my God, it's over. Where did the time go?

 

[Frozenshades]

First year was fine, easiest year by far.
Second year was tougher, especially spring. Just so much class time, probably the most of any semester.
I can't decide if third year has felt the hardest because it is, or because of my level of apathy and tiredness. At least less lecture time than year 1 and 2 though.
Ready for clinics to start.

 

[orca2011]

1st: Holy information overload. Tears. Sinus infection from hell. Spent too much money on alcohol. Started skipping class.
2nd: living hell. Never ending tests. Lived off caffeine and junk food. Made slightly better by my new dog.
3rd: More interesting. More sleep, less studying. more hands on. Early entry!
4th: Sort of a doctor now. Can't believe I'm responsible for lives in 10 weeks. Whole different level of exhaustion. Senioritis currently.

 

[Filly Bay]

1st year: Oh crap, I never did learn how to study efficiently... Finding your place in the world (and your friends!)
2nd year: The worst by far. Never ending exams and studying. Playing constant catch-up yet feeling like I learned nothing.
3rd year: MUCH better. Realized I did learn things and applied them to cases. Lots of hands-on and first live surgery!!!
4th year: TBD in T-51 Days

 

[SocialStigma]

1st year: Easy (disclaimer: I took immunology, virology, anatomy, and physiology in undergrad).
2nd year: Hardest year by far in terms of number of tests/exams and information we're expected to remember.
3rd year: Things are getting interesting. Yay junior surgery, finally get to cut something!!
4th year: Easy because there's no studying once the NAVLE is over, but days are longer because of paperwork/being on call etc.

 

[Bracco Pointer]

1st Year: Origins, insertions, innervations, useless blah-blah.

2nd Year: Exams. So many Exams. But cool classes - so win?

3rd Year: Coating ceremony and baby doctor status. Awesome sauce.

4th year.... Adulthood looming....

 

[StartingoverVet]

Hardest year in vet school? Whichever one you are currently in.

 

[DVMDream]

I'll have a response once I finally get home

 

[Minnerbelle]

Hardest year in vet school? Whichever one you are currently in.

Oh no no, not true. Second year was def the most miserable.




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[dyachei]

1st year: oh man, gotta get used to everything - the classes, the expectations and all the class time.
2nd year: worst year by far, so many classes and all are super important. Most risk of burn out
3rd year: starting to slack off, easiest year by far. And way more interesting
4th year: More fun but longer hours.

 

[epivetlove]

First: Oh, this isn't so bad...I can do this! Wait. Wait, stop. I can't believe I'm actually paying for this torture.
Second: Odd man out, but I'm enjoying second year. Lots of free time and the classes are interesting, though there's a butt-ton of information.
Third: Not here yet, but ELECTIVES! Medicine courses! Mini-clinics! Only 16 hours in the Spring semester for non-large animal folks.
Fourth: Have heard this year is the best, but the hours can be long and some rotations can be soul-sucking.

 

[DVMDream]

1st year:

2nd year:

3rd year:

4th year:

 

[twelvetigers]

1st year: Woohoo! Wait... wait. This kinda sucks. Ugh.

2nd year: Uuuuuuuuugh. UGH.

3rd year: Maybe that information could be useful, but seriously, ugh.

4th year: Some yay, some ugh, some cluelessness. Followed by a resounding "am I done yet?" And then finally, "Oh ****, I'm done. They want me to go make decisions about patients? Like real decisions about real patients??"

 

[hazelmoo]

I'm officially scared

 

[503372]

1: Optimistic. Just happy to be a vet student. Novel. Scared to death about failing the year. Overall, content academically and socially.

2: Worst. Worst. Worst. Is this high school? Drama. Bad living situation. Zero support initially. Want to leave. Get through it.

3: Apathy. Attend class less. Meet better group of friends and work with better people! Think I’ll at least get through vet school in one piece. Petrified at the thought of practicing in a few short years. Think of exit plan.

4: ?

Not 25 words, but there you go.

 

[CalliopeDVM]

First year: Do I really belong here? I know nothing, and there is so much to learn!
Second year: The worst by far. A hell of -ologies, with massive amounts of stuff to memorize. Very high stress.
Third year: More interesting, more integrative. Starting to feel like I can use what I've learned. Improve learning/studying.
Fourth year: Much longer hours, but much more interesting. Sleep deprivation but light at the end of the tunnel is visible.

Second year was definitely the toughest and the most stressful. I believe everyone in my class broke down in tears at least once throughout the year.

 

[lilylilac]

Wow everyone is making me look forward to second year...

 

[VetMed2020]

I'm officially scared

I was thinking the same thing

 

[pinkpuppy9]

Based on these posts and what I've heard of of SDN, second year is the worst no matter where you end up attending. I've also been told 2nd year sees the most students being asked to leave due to grades. So yay.

My first year so far: Why are we learning ___ NOW when we're going to learn it in-depth in our third year?! This is supposed to be the 'normal' year. Why is my canine cadaver so fat? Is this a nerve or fascia? Oh...it was a nerve...oops. Why are we hearing conflicting info for the exact same thing in different subjects? How is time going by so fast? Am I the only one in my class that feels this lost and clueless with this material? Can I go home yet?

ETA: I ignored your 25 word rule. Sticking it to the man.

 

[sarakittykat]

I think I'm officially insane because these posts made me even more excited to go to vet school this fall...

 

[503372]

I think I'm officially insane because these posts made me even more excited to go to vet school this fall...

It's important to keep up that excitement. You might need it for later on. Then again you could be one of those people who loves everything about vet school.

 

[katryn]

1st year: Memorize all the things! Oh god I'm back in high school, social anxiety hell.

2nd year: Frantically try to keep up with -ology hell. Thank god our class brains hand out study guides like candy. (And personally, try not to barf or snore during class, yay pregnancy!)

3rd year: Holy **** this is actually starting to make sense and get interesting. Why is the give a sh** gone?

4th year: Learning to make intelligent decisions on long hours and no sleep. OMG NAVLE, and wait, did we just graduate?

For me, it was a toss up between 2nd or 3rd year being harder. I think 2nd year probably wins. 3rd year was hard for me mainly because of having a baby to take care of and being chronically sleep deprived.


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[deleted498041]

Based on these posts and what I've heard of of SDN, second year is the worst no matter where you end up attending. I've also been told 2nd year sees the most students being asked to leave due to grades. So yay.

My first year so far: Why are we learning ___ NOW when we're going to learn it in-depth in our third year?! This is supposed to be the 'normal' year. Why is my canine cadaver so fat? Is this a nerve or fascia? Oh...it was a nerve...oops. Why are we hearing conflicting info for the exact same thing in different subjects? How is time going by so fast? Am I the only one in my class that feels this lost and clueless with this material? Can I go home yet?

ETA: I ignored your 25 word rule. Sticking it to the man.

No way. Third year is the worst at my school. I think all Western grads would agree.

 

[katatak]

@Rwwilliams I would agree on what I have overheard

As a second year western student I am a bit nervous about next year...

 

[WelshCob]

1st: OMG this is happening!
2nd: The never ending story....
3rd: OMG I survived second year!
4th: I'm not ready for the real world, can I go back to 1st year?

 

[deleted498041]

@Rwwilliams I would agree on what I have overheard

As a second year western student I am a bit nervous about next year...

You should be. Did you go to the panel on Friday?

 

[Jamr0ckin]

First year: why am I here? Everything sucks. Maybe I don't want to be a vet after all.

Second year: ooh, this is so much better! Learning doctor things now.

Third year: why am I here? Everything sucks. Too far to quit to now.

Fourth year: oh, i dont hate everyone. No sleep. Soooo many charts.

I hated first year WAY more than any other year. And I've been in chronic pain due to a a back and hip injury since summer between first and second year. Third year was a mix of easy classes and super hard ones. I stopped going to class regularly in first year to preserve my sanity, as sitting in class for long hours exacerbated my pain.

 

[WulfpackChica]

First Year: Tears, frustration, doubt. I could be making more money rather than having more student loans.
Second Year: Learn all the things. Accept the grades... everyone is suffering together.

First year was the hardest for me, because I was readjusting from being out in the adult world. I had to teach my self how to study again and learn time management. It was hard to accept it was okay to not well. It was rough adjustment full of tears and fear that I was going to get kicked out. Academically second year is far more difficult, because of the 18-20 credit hours. However, after speaking with some people at the end of first year I have got better handle on my anxiety and there are far less tears (actually, there has been no tears shed over school this year). When I get my grades back, I just say "that sucks, there is nothing I can do about it now" and focus on the next task at hand. Also, those that were in the top of my class during our first year are also drowning, which in a slightly selfish way makes me feel better.

Okay that was way longer than it was suppose to be, but it is the truth

 

[wheelin2vetmed]

So is it safe to say many of you had a fear that you would fail out or not make it? Or at least a lot of you?

I'm kinda battling with that right now, and I'm 5 months away from starting (holy balls, it's getting clooooser). It's not me saying it to my friends who are in vet school so I can get the "Don't worry man! You'll be just fine, you're smart!!" responses to make me feel better, and it's not so bad that it's keeping me up at night, but I am thinking about it. I just don't want to be that statistic that fails out.

I think I've prepared myself well in terms of study habits, setting priorities, and already adjusting my "Gotta get A's on everything" mindset to the realities of vet school, but I'm still dealing with this more than I usually do on things of this nature, which is weird for me.

What was it like for some of you?

 

[Ashgirl]

So is it safe to say many of you had a fear that you would fail out or not make it? Or at least a lot of you?

I'm kinda battling with that right now, and I'm 5 months away from starting (holy balls, it's getting clooooser). It's not me saying it to my friends who are in vet school so I can get the "Don't worry man! You'll be just fine, you're smart!!" responses to make me feel better, and it's not so bad that it's keeping me up at night, but I am thinking about it. I just don't want to be that statistic that fails out.

I think I've prepared myself well in terms of study habits, setting priorities, and already adjusting my "Gotta get A's on everything" mindset to the realities of vet school, but I'm still dealing with this more than I usually do on things of this nature, which is weird for me.

What was it like for some of you?

Absolutely. But thankfully most of the time this fear is unfounded, and for most people this feeling is a part of what is called "imposter syndrome" (the feeling that you aren't good enough or smart enough or that you don't belong).

The main things to realize are: 1) The admission's committees are good at their jobs. If they would not have accepted you if they didn't think you could handle it. 2) There will be a support system in place (professors, tutors, upperclassmen, family, classmates), so if you fall and need to reach out for help, it will be there for you to catch you. 3) The imposter syndrome is wrong. You are smart enough, good enough, etc. Do not let it convince you otherwise. 4) You won't believe me when I say this, but you will adjust to the craziness somewhat as you go along. You may struggle, sure, but you will get better and better at studying, juggling exams, etc.

 

[CalliopeDVM]

So is it safe to say many of you had a fear that you would fail out or not make it?

It was less concrete than that......more of a form of imposter syndrome. Thinking that it had somehow been a mistake that I'd gotten in, and that any day now I expected to get a letter saying it had been a mistake and I didn't really belong there. That was pretty common among my classmates too. And, strangely enough, I see it in some new grads too (did they really mean to graduate me? maybe it was a mistake and I didn't really earn my degree? type of stuff).

 

[rockatiel]

It was less concrete than that......more of a form of imposter syndrome. Thinking that it had somehow been a mistake that I'd gotten in, and that any day now I expected to get a letter saying it had been a mistake and I didn't really belong there. That was pretty common among my classmates too. And, strangely enough, I see it in some new grads too (did they really mean to graduate me? maybe it was a mistake and I didn't really earn my degree? type of stuff).

I'm definitely feeling that now and I haven't even started school yet. I'm not surprised though, because I still have doubts everyday about why my LOR writers would ever have good things to say about me lol.

 

[twelvetigers]

I'm still waiting for someone to come tell me I'm dumb and make me go home.

 

[wheelin2vetmed]

I'm still waiting for someone to come tell me I'm dumb and make me go home.

You're so dumb. Pack up your **** and go home, will ya?

 

[deleted676737]

I'm definitely feeling that now and I haven't even started school yet. I'm not surprised though, because I still have doubts everyday about why my LOR writers would ever have good things to say about me lol.

I'm already starting to feel a touch of imposter syndrome, too; I think it's just really common in this profession.

 

[heyyimhayley]

It was less concrete than that......more of a form of imposter syndrome. Thinking that it had somehow been a mistake that I'd gotten in, and that any day now I expected to get a letter saying it had been a mistake and I didn't really belong there. That was pretty common among my classmates too. And, strangely enough, I see it in some new grads too (did they really mean to graduate me? maybe it was a mistake and I didn't really earn my degree? type of stuff).

It makes me feel a lot better to read this from current vet students and veterinarians. As excited as I am to start vet school, this is a constant fear in my head... that they made a mistake accepting me and I'm not actually capable of becoming a veterinarian. It comes out more for me when I think about clinics... I feel like I know how to study and take tests, but things like learning technical skills and diagnosing and surgery scare me.

 

[dyachei]

Yep. Definitely had that fear. But here's the thing: even if you do fail? They usually let you repeat the year. And there's a ton of support.

I was convinced all through 1st and 2nd year i was going to fail out. By 3rd year, it was still a worry, but I didn't have the energy to care as much.

I'm 5 years out and the imposter syndrome is still very real.

 

[wheelin2vetmed]

I feel like I know how to study and take tests, but things like learning technical skills and diagnosing and surgery scare me.

It's kind of the opposite for me. I don't know if I can really make the comparison of my years in the sport of skydiving and soon in flight school to surgery/technical veterinary skills, but hell, I will. I'm sure @StartingoverVet may share the same feelings as I do. I could spend all day long at ground school learning about how to handle parachute malfunctions, control flight, how to fly my body, take off and landing an airplane, but I learn by doing. Especially in situations where it literally could result in death if things go wrong (either for yourself or others), of course there's going to be fear.

But systems have been put in place and developed over many many years to help you with this. Baby steps. It takes a little while, but the fear eventually goes away (for the most part), and after awhile, you will see how far you've come. After thousands of jumps, I sometimes wished that feeling of fear came back, because it helps you grow. For those that don't listen to the fear, think they're the ****, and know it all, I think that's where you get into trouble.

 

[MassDVMMPH]

I was terrified every single semester for the first three years that I was going to flunk out of vet school. My vet school made it a policy to not dismiss anyone who made it to fourth year. If anyone flunked a rotation, they would just have to repeat it until they got a passing grade. But, if you made it through the first 3 years, you were guaranteed to leave with a DVM. That's the only reason that I wasn't terrified throughout 4th year as well.

In reality, I did quite well grade-wise in vet school and was never anywhere near flunking out, but the fear was always there. Oh, and during the first semester of first year, I was terrified that someone had made a mistake and the school had really planned to admit someone else whose name was similar to mine, and they had admitted me instead. Someone from the administration actually came over to me one day in anatomy lab and told me that they wanted to see me after the lab was over, but wouldn't tell me why. I was almost sick to my stomach. I went to the administration only to find out that I had been awarded a scholarship and they wanted to take photos of me and the company representatives. Boy, was that a relief!

 

[deleted676737]

It makes me feel a lot better to read this from current vet students and veterinarians. As excited as I am to start vet school, this is a constant fear in my head... that they made a mistake accepting me and I'm not actually capable of becoming a veterinarian. It comes out more for me when I think about clinics... I feel like I know how to study and take tests, but things like learning technical skills and diagnosing and surgery scare me.

This is actually pretty much identical to how I'm feeling. I'm not as worried about the didactic years as I am about clinics, which seems to actually be the opposite of how most vet students feel. It always seems to take me a little longer to grasp more technical skills (I was one of those students who preferred lecture over lab, for instance); I have no doubt that the schools have safeguards in place to make sure that we will be safe and competent practitioners, but I still have this fear that I'm going to miss some obvious clinical sign while diagnosing or make a horrific mistake that ends up injuring or even killing an animal. While I know that all veterinarians make mistakes, some with more serious consequences than others, I think it's still a rational and typical fear of students.

Honestly, though, I almost feel like I didn't deserve my acceptance. That I got in on some fluke. With my stats the way they were, I am still blown away by how well over this application cycle went. That being said, it does cause me to second-guess myself and if I actually have what it takes to become a veterinarian. I ground myself by reminding myself that, with their comparatively very low attrition rates, it's pretty clear that U.S. vet schools will not accept a student that they do not feel reasonably assured can make it through and pass NAVLE (they want that tuition $$, after all). That helps me feel a bit better, at least.

 

[orca2011]

So is it safe to say many of you had a fear that you would fail out or not make it? Or at least a lot of you?

I'm kinda battling with that right now, and I'm 5 months away from starting (holy balls, it's getting clooooser). It's not me saying it to my friends who are in vet school so I can get the "Don't worry man! You'll be just fine, you're smart!!" responses to make me feel better, and it's not so bad that it's keeping me up at night, but I am thinking about it. I just don't want to be that statistic that fails out.

I think I've prepared myself well in terms of study habits, setting priorities, and already adjusting my "Gotta get A's on everything" mindset to the realities of vet school, but I'm still dealing with this more than I usually do on things of this nature, which is weird for me.

What was it like for some of you?

Most definitely. I nearly failed anatomy and development biology and failed quite a few tests first year and one or two 2nd year. After those two 2nd year, I haven't been close to failing, even the large animal rotations where I legit know nothing and just give them small animal differentials to work with.

A lot of it for me was adjustment, the impister sybdrome and remembering that I have to study the way that works for me and not for everyone else. I do still have days where I feel like I shouldn't be here and I think some of thay resolves around how I was accepted here honestly. However it's obviously not a rational fear since I'm doing fairly well in clinics and got the internship I wanted.

 

[Felixor90]

I would try to work out the imposter syndrome ASAP, even if it means going to therapy. When I got in last year, my "am I gonna be accepted" anxiety was replaced with "am I gonna fail out" anxiety. I was barely able to hold any food down the week leading up to orientation and it only got worse when classes started. The very first 10 minutes of the first anatomy lecture, I felt lost and started having the "what the F am I doing here; I'm not smart enough to make it" thoughts. These thoughts continued while I studied and it really hindered my ability to retain information. As you can imagine, I didn't do so hot that first semester. My grades clearly reflected my self doubts and every bad grade I got made it worse, to the point that I started having panic attacks on an almost-daily basis.

It wasn't until more than halfway through the semester that I sought out the help of the vet school psychologist who started working with me on building up confidence and lowering my anxiety. I know of several of my classmates that also sought out her help and it helped us all out tremendously. I'm 100% convinced that I wouldn't have made it through that hell of a semester without some professional help. Once my confidence was up, I was able to focus on my studying and my grades have improved so much! This semester, I'm able to study half as much and do twice as good, and more importantly, I'm able to retain information and apply it to other subjects and exams, which gives you that "oh **** I'm actually becoming a doctor" feeling.

TL;DR: Learn from my mistake and seek out help early on if you're having those feelings of doubt and anxiety before it affects your grades. Vet school is a very stressful journey and the constant stress will bring out some of the worst feelings and thought you've ever had. There is no shame in seeking out help!

 

[DVMDream]

I completely failed a class first year. Had to retake the one exam that was worth 90% of the grade during that summer. If I hadn't passed that retake, I would have needed to repeat the course and my graduation would not be until next year. Luckily, I passed.

Apparently, I am horrible at (or honestly just don't give two hoots about) food safety. Or how chickens are housed. Or what it the maximum degree angle of a truck ramp that pigs can run up.

There are going to be things/subjects in vet school that you are better at and/or care more about than other things. You might fail an exam at some point or two or three, just be sure you know the reasons behind your failure. If you know why then you can adjust and do better the next time. The issue isn't do people fail in vet school on occasion, the issue is how you handle that and correct it. For most US schools, you can fail an exam and it won't be a huge deal as long as you do well on the other exams. The only reason I had to repeat the exam that summer was because the one exam I failed was worth 90% of the grade for that course. I knew why I failed, I studied harder, corrected some bad habits and did just fine.

You will be ok as long as you are aware of how you are doing and actively trying and/or getting help when needed.

 

[rockatiel]

I'm sure this has been asked 10000000.82827 times... Did any of you guys feel burnt out from undergrad before starting? I know it needs to be dealt with this summer and I really do think the long vacation will help me, but did it affect your first year at all? I think that's what I'm most worried about right now.