Looking for advice from second time applicants for vet school!

[carlyrsmith]

Hi everyone!

I was looking for advice from anyone who has applied for vet school more than one time. I'm a nontraditional student who has been in the field since 2008 (I'm 28), and I have a BA in theatre (2017) and my RVT license. I have a truckload of experience but a science GPA of 3.2, a Cumulative GPA of 3.2 and a last 45 of 3.38.

I've been a college student since 2010 but 2011-2012 was mostly poor grades and W's (for no good reason ). Since then I've done well in my classes and have mostly received B's in my pre-reqs. I applied this cycle, but have a strong feeling I will need to apply again and wanted advice on how to improve my GPA. My cumulative GPA is a long shot since I have 100's of units, as is my pre-req GPA since I will be done with them in spring. I wanted to know if I should just do my best with the classes I have left and reapply next cycle? If I should take more classes then I had planned to boost my GPA (does which school matter? I'm taking most of my courses at a community college) Look into a masters program?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

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[simbawolf360]

It sounds like to me you may have to consider doing a masters. Your GPA is not terrible but with W's and not a very strong last 45 it might be better to start fresh with a new degree. I know the idea of another 2 years does not seem the most attractive. However, I think it the best way to start fresh in a way and prove that things have changed. GPA is one of the hardest things to fix unfortunately and sounds like it may be your weak point. I also think that it sounds like you have been in school for many years possibly taking very few classes at a time as you work towards vet school. This may not look the best since many school want to know you can handle a lot of classes at once especially a few challenging classes. This again is why I think a masters program would make you a much better applicant.

What is your in state school? Some state schools have lower average GPA's , so depending on where you are from that may change my advice. I am from California so basically in state students need at least a 3.7 all around to have any chance for UC Davis. The only other thing I can think of, if you have not already done so with you application. Is focus on your unique path to wanting to become a veterinarian. I think your age (compared to the other 21 year olds applying )and subsequent maturity and life experience would make you a very unique applicant and could really strengthen you application.

 

[finnickthedog]

I actually made the choice not to improve my GPA. The cost of taking more classes didn't seem worth it to me and I didn't want to spend time on a master's solely for the purpose of boosting my GPA. That said, I made my decision based on considering both the entirety of my application and knowing what the school I was applying to would look at. My school--the only one I applied too and my IS--still evaluated GRE at the time and I had strong scores and strong experience. If you're applying to schools that heavily weigh GPA, then this may not be a viable option. But I just wanted to throw my two cents in as someone who chose to pretty much leave my GPA alone despite the fact that it wasn't great (very similar to yours actually).

 

[carlyrsmith]

It sounds like to me you may have to consider doing a masters. Your GPA is not terrible but with W's and not a very strong last 45 it might be better to start fresh with a new degree. I know the idea of another 2 years does not seem the most attractive. However, I think it the best way to start fresh in a way and prove that things have changed. GPA is one of the hardest things to fix unfortunately and sounds like it may be your weak point. I also think that it sounds like you have been in school for many years possibly taking very few classes at a time as you work towards vet school. This may not look the best since many school want to know you can handle a lot of classes at once especially a few challenging classes. This again is why I think a masters program would make you a much better applicant.

What is your in state school? Some state schools have lower average GPA's , so depending on where you are from that may change my advice. I am from California so basically in state students need at least a 3.7 all around to have any chance for UC Davis. The only other thing I can think of, if you have not already done so with you application. Is focus on your unique path to wanting to become a veterinarian. I think your age (compared to the other 21 year olds applying )and subsequent maturity and life experience would make you a very unique applicant and could really strengthen you application.

UC Davis is my instate school also so my instate chances are tough. I have pretty consistently been enrolled in 12+ units a semester, the difficult thing being that I am working full time. I will definitely consider a masters, just need to find one that makes sense for me and isn't just for the sake of more units.

Thank you for your insight!

 

[carlyrsmith]

I actually made the choice not to improve my GPA. The cost of taking more classes didn't seem worth it to me and I didn't want to spend time on a master's solely for the purpose of boosting my GPA. That said, I made my decision based on considering both the entirety of my application and knowing what the school I was applying to would look at. My school--the only one I applied too and my IS--still evaluated GRE at the time and I had strong scores and strong experience. If you're applying to schools that heavily weigh GPA, then this may not be a viable option. But I just wanted to throw my two cents in as someone who chose to pretty much leave my GPA alone despite the fact that it wasn't great (very similar to yours actually).

That makes sense! What was your instate school? Mine is Davis 😅 and I was trying to avoid the most expensive programs if I could. Thank you for your insight!

 

[meelc]

Hey there! I would highly recommend requesting a file review for Davis through the portal. I did that after getting rejected my first cycle and they were able to tell me I was in the holistic review pool of applicants and recommendations on improving my app. Knowing this really helped me get a gauge on where I stood among other applicants. My first cycle I had a 3.18 science, 3.2 overall, 3.72 last 45. I was able to take a bunch of online science courses and bring it up to a 3.28 science, 3.27 overall, and 4.0 last 45. I don't think Davis is completely out of the question for you, and I think its reasonable to make improvements in your GPA if you can. If you did make it to the holistic review this cycle and didn't get selected for an interview, I would also recommend reviewing essays, letters of rec, even just how you word experiences (and if you are able to gain/add anything this year).

 

[EngrSC]

I actually made the choice not to improve my GPA. The cost of taking more classes didn't seem worth it to me and I didn't want to spend time on a master's solely for the purpose of boosting my GPA. That said, I made my decision based on considering both the entirety of my application and knowing what the school I was applying to would look at. My school--the only one I applied too and my IS--still evaluated GRE at the time and I had strong scores and strong experience. If you're applying to schools that heavily weigh GPA, then this may not be a viable option. But I just wanted to throw my two cents in as someone who chose to pretty much leave my GPA alone despite the fact that it wasn't great (very similar to yours actually).

Ditto. My cGPA was also crap and I had so many credits that it would take forever to pull it up significantly. I also didn't want to pursue a masters due to cost and wasn't sure what I'd even study. I focused on doing well in prereqs and applying with a strong last 45 GPA, as well as diversifying my experiences and establishing strong relationships for LORs. I felt like the rest of my application needed to be stellar to make up for my sad cGPA and everything worked out just fine!