Sad, frustrated, etc.

[potentialsheltervet]

I'll do my best to make a long story short:
I didn't get an interview (or admissions offer) at any of the vet schools I applied to this cycle. Obviously, that was a very big bummer to suddenly be pushing all my plans back at least a year. I'm still very unhappy about it but I'm doing my best to better my application for this time.
I know one of my weaknesses is not having as much vet experience as a lot of other applicants, so I got a job as a vet tech at a local clinic a couple months ago. Rather, I was told I was being hired as a tech: all they've done is stick me in kennel and not teach me anything because "kennel techs can't do that." There's a whole bunch of other things with the vets being very rude/mean to the staff as well as coworkers being exceptionally condescending and derogatory toward one another. I tolerated those things for a bit but when it comes to treatment of patients, something happened Friday that made me draw the line as being firmly inappropriate, and I'm planning to turn in my two weeks' tomorrow.
Except... I just feel so frustrated (and lied to) about the whole situation, and I don't know where to go from here. I've been unhappy at this clinic to the extent that I feel like I'm going to throw up before every single shift because I'm so anxious about what fresh hell I'll encounter when I go in. Anyway, my whole reason in working there is to get more vet experience which they apparently have no interest in helping me accomplish. I know I can't stay there, but I'm at a loss on what to do now. Only a few clinics in my area are hiring, and they either want a tech license (which I don't have) or at least one year of experience (which I kind of have but it's difficult to explain). The dilemma I'm having is I know I hate where I am but I don't know what other option I have to keep getting the experience I know I need. I have a longstanding volunteer situation with a spay neuter clinic that nets me about five hours a week, but I'm thinking schools won't bother looking at me if I don't diversify and get "working" experience considering how this cycle went. I just feel so disgusted and exhausted and conflicted and I don't really know what to do.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[vet102099]

Just put the new hours on VMCAS, apply to a bunch of places, and put that bad experience behind you. Also, write down the scenarios that were bad about the previous practice/how you dealt with that. Many schools ask behavioral questions like this during interviews.

 

[QuinVet]

Also, I don’t know if this advice will help but when I first started out for vet hours I called every clinic within a 45 minute radius and asked them if it was possible for me to get vet experience hours for vet school. I didn’t go in expecting a job but I was offered one. I would call the clinics even if they are not advertising as hiring. I was hired as a tech at a clinic that was not advertising. I also think that you can spin this experience as something you have identified and something you will not stand for going forward in vet med. You value a cohesive environment with no drama. I hope this advice helps in some way!

 

[plsletmein2026]

First, I want to say that I'm sorry you're going through such a hard time. This past cycle was my third time applying before I received an acceptance, so I know how devastating it is to get all the rejections when you feel like you're trying so hard.
I also had an almost identical experience at my first SA clinic! They didn't try to teach me anything and then would get upset with me for not knowing something. I was then slowly pushed out of vet assistant shifts and only scheduled kennel shifts so I ended up leaving after 6 months when I was hired as a vet assistant in a ER/specialty clinic. I have heard similar stories from other people, and I think some small practices try to take advantage of pre-vet students by hiring them in for the "experience" but then push them into the kennel (a position that I'm assuming is harder to fill cause it kinda sucks). I think you *could* have a conversation with your manager about the lack of experience you're getting if you think that would make it worth staying, but it kind of sounds like the work environment isn't positive or healthy either.
Do you have a wildlife hospital or a disease pathology lab (typically run by the dept of ag in your state) near you that you could at least shadow with vets or volunteer for a more diverse experience? Or an ER that might be hiring? It also doesn't hurt to apply to local clinics even if they say they want 1 yr of experience, they may still be interested in YOU!

 

[potentialsheltervet]

Do you have a wildlife hospital or a disease pathology lab (typically run by the dept of ag in your state) near you that you could at least shadow with vets or volunteer for a more diverse experience? Or an ER that might be hiring? It also doesn't hurt to apply to local clinics even if they say they want 1 yr of experience, they may still be interested in YOU

I don't. I live in a town with a vet school so the vet school handles most things. They're hiring for some tech positions but they are STRICTLY licensed and wanting someone who already knows everything. :/
What's really getting my goat is that I don't even want to work in private practice also. I know I want to do shelter med and I'm about to finish my master's in that subject, so spay/neuter for me is relaxing, fun, and goes by very quickly. Tbh if I could just do spay/neuter volunteering I absolutely would. The vet that I work with there I also have known for over two years, so a few of the clinics I've been considering she's been able to give guidance on (a firm no for all of them). She actually told me the clinic I'm working for now is very well known as basically hell to work in since she has another volunteer and past employee who went there and absolutely hate it because of the environment. It's apparently an ongoing issue that no one seems to care about fixing since there's no shortage of pre vet hopefuls in this town.
Really I just want to do shelter med stuff and would happily be a vet assistant except that my local shelter is very far for me to drive each day and I know my limits-- my chronically overcrowded southern shelter where dogs come in healthy and then die of URI or develop behavioral problems is not something my mental health could handle.

 

[orangecats>]

This has been a topic of discussion in the mixed practice clinic I work at. After hearing so many stories like this, I feel so fortunate to have had the opportunity to work with the people I do. Although we’re severely understaffed, just like everywhere, and stressed everyone is super supportive and kind to each other. We have 7 SA vets and 3 LA vets. I will say this, I started working at my clinic as a kennel attendant and then worked both in the kennel and as a vet assistant, and now I’m only a vet assistant/tech. I did not start getting real hands on vet experience until the end of April 2021, applied that fall and was accepted into 2 schools so even if you start getting that experience a little later it is possible! My advice would be to leave the toxic environment and find somewhere you can thrive where they’re willing to teach you and really wish for you to succeed. Also, don’t count out the importance of eLORs, a new clinic has new doctors that you can form a better bond with who can write you amazing letters☺️ Best of luck!!!

 

[cp210]

I’m really sorry that you are going through all of this. I know how frustrating it can be to work so hard for something and not get the results that you want. I hope you are proud of how far you have already come and continue to push forward.

It sounds like the clinic where you are really isn’t a good fit for you. It is not worth the mental and emotional stress to stay there just to gain experience hours, but at least you can add the ones that you’ve already gotten to your application. Many places are so understaffed right now that they are willing to hire inexperienced people, so I recommend reaching out to every place you can, even if they don’t indicate that they’re hiring on their website.

I understand wanting to stick with the area of vet med that you are really passionate about, but schools often look for diversity in your veterinary/animal experience, so definitely don’t close yourself off to other opportunities. I don’t know your background, but you might want to also look into working/volunteering with local rescues or other organizations. I had friends who worked at a tiger rescue and shadowed a duck farmer/vet. I volunteered at a museum that had a collection of exotic species. There are many ways to accrue hours, so don’t give up!

Good luck in your future endeavors!

 

[genny]

Anyway, my whole reason in working there is to get more vet experience which they apparently have no interest in helping me accomplish. I know I can't stay there, but I'm at a loss on what to do now.

So kennel experience is veterinary experience - you're getting exposed to how a general practice runs. I'm sorry they won't teach you tech things, but honestly, that's not something you necessarily need as a veterinarian-to-be. Those are tech skills. I went to school with people who had zero small animal tech experience, and they were expected to pick up the skills they needed during our courses about physical exams + junior surgery.

I would suggest broadening your search - look for reception jobs, not just kennel assistant. Customer service is so important, client communication is a skill all veterinarians need, and you can learn a lot of things at reception. If you get your foot in the door in a good place, then asking about shadowing a vet on your off days is more likely to be successful.

Another place to look for experience - does your vet school have a lab animal resources department? You might ask about shadowing one of the lab animal veterinarians to diversify your experience.

How much shelter med experience do you have? If that's what you're interested in, it's going to look weird on your application if you're not working/volunteering for a shelter. Depending on your financial position, there are also overseas/mission trips that provide veterinary services to underserved populations that you could do as a pre-vet student.

 

[Kaharian]

Really I just want to do shelter med stuff and would happily be a vet assistant except that my local shelter is very far for me to drive each day and I know my limits-- my chronically overcrowded southern shelter where dogs come in healthy and then die of URI or develop behavioral problems is not something my mental health could handle.

I’m so glad that you are conscious of your mental health and definitely that should be your #1 priority. I would, however, encourage you to diversify your experience and interests because if you think now that overcrowding and behavioral issues are something you aren’t sure you want to experience, shelter medicine may not be right for you. I come from a fairly progressive shelter in a well-off neighborhood and we still face issues of overcrowding, disease spread, and euthanizing animals for extreme behavioral issues. And as the veterinarian the responsibility for these issues will fall on you, and you’ll have to make heartbreaking medical decisions while juggling the budget given to you by management. Having your masters in shelter medicine I’m sure you are aware of how it is, but ultimately if it’s really what you want to do I think you do need to volunteer at your shelter and gain more shelter hours. Otherwise to admissions it looks like someone applying to be an equine vet who has never actually touched a horse.

Besides that, I would encourage you to apply to all those job openings. Even if you feel you don’t qualify, let them be the judges of that. No need to disqualify yourself. Also while paid experience is definitely a good thing, volunteering/shadowing at as many places as you can will help in the meantime. And you never know if a clinic might like you so much while you’re shadowing that they want to hire you.

 

[potentialsheltervet]

How much shelter med experience do you have? If that's what you're interested in, it's going to look weird on your application if you're not working/volunteering for a shelter. Depending on your financial position, there are also overseas/mission trips that provide veterinary services to underserved populations that you could do as a pre-vet student.

Right now, around 100 hours from general volunteering and 200ish (? would have to count) from spay/neuter and shadowing the shelter med vet for general care stuff. Overseas trips aren't feasible for me right now unfortunately.

 

[potentialsheltervet]

So kennel experience is veterinary experience - you're getting exposed to how a general practice runs. I'm sorry they won't teach you tech things, but honestly, that's not something you necessarily need as a veterinarian-to-be. Those are tech skills. I went to school with people who had zero small animal tech experience, and they were expected to pick up the skills they needed during our courses about physical exams + junior surgery.

Oh, sure! The thing is I worked at a boarding facility for 2.5 years and got over 2000 hours of kennel tech/daycare experience. (I was a receptionist there, too.) So what I'm interested in is being able to get better at blood draws and whatnot. I don't hate kennel by any means but it's very frustrating that they basically "led me on" regarding what my position would be. Kennel is fine and decent experience but I'm honestly overflowing with kennel experience.

 

[potentialsheltervet]

I’m so glad that you are conscious of your mental health and definitely that should be your #1 priority. I would, however, encourage you to diversify your experience and interests because if you think now that overcrowding and behavioral issues are something you aren’t sure you want to experience, shelter medicine may not be right for you. I come from a fairly progressive shelter in a well-off neighborhood and we still face issues of overcrowding, disease spread, and euthanizing animals for extreme behavioral issues. And as the veterinarian the responsibility for these issues will fall on you, and you’ll have to make heartbreaking medical decisions while juggling the budget given to you by management. Having your masters in shelter medicine I’m sure you are aware of how it is, but ultimately if it’s really what you want to do I think you do need to volunteer at your shelter and gain more shelter hours. Otherwise to admissions it looks like someone applying to be an equine vet who has never actually touched a horse.

Besides that, I would encourage you to apply to all those job openings. Even if you feel you don’t qualify, let them be the judges of that. No need to disqualify yourself. Also while paid experience is definitely a good thing, volunteering/shadowing at as many places as you can will help in the meantime. And you never know if a clinic might like you so much while you’re shadowing that they want to hire you.

So my particular thing with the shelter here is that by overcrowding, I mean 75 dogs in a shelter that should only hold 30. Dogs are coming in totally adoptable and being euthanized for behavior problems that develop in-shelter. My capstone project was actually on behavioral euthanasia in shelters and I am all for euthanizing when it's in the animal's/the public's best interest. My issue is animals languishing in the shelter for months and then being euthanized after essentially suffering the last portion of their life. I just know day-in/day-out that isn't something I would be comfortable with. My goal is to be a full-time vet doing spay/neuter and wellness care as well as overseeing behavior mod implementation at a shelter in, say, Colorado and then consulting remotely with shelters in the South (since that's hands-down the area with the most issues). I strongly dislike living here so I know I won't be practicing in this area anyway, and a lot of that comes from volunteering at my local shelter and seeing the community wide issues that are so resistant to change because people think it's a violation of their rights to be told to confine their dog when she's in heat rather than dumping the puppies every eight months.

 

[max_wildlife]

@potentialsheltervet
i'm sorry you had that experience. i went through something similar back in 2015 -- i was treated so terribly that i thought surely i'd made a mistake. it was made very clear to me that i was worthless. it was the worst work environment i'd ever had, and i'd had 7 years in food service where i was treated pretty rough. that clinic was still the worst, and that particular hospital group still carries that reputation. but aside from wildlife, i only got hands-on tech experience when i ended up going to tech school due to my state's practice act. was genuinely thinking an LVT/PhD route at the time; it's not something i'd typically recommend to people focused on going to vet school because that experience was brutal in itself.

i think it's right for you to set boundaries and leave. i remember the relief i felt when i left that toxic clinic, and the same kind of confusion. it did drive me out for a while. seeing as it seems you are stuck, and shelter medicine is your motivator, but you don't want to work at the shelter near you, and you already want to leave -- is relocating an option, even temporarily?

 

[potentialsheltervet]

i think it's right for you to set boundaries and leave. i remember the relief i felt when i left that toxic clinic, and the same kind of confusion. it did drive me out for a while. seeing as it seems you are stuck, and shelter medicine is your motivator, but you don't want to work at the shelter near you, and you already want to leave -- is relocating an option, even temporarily?

This is unfortunately very complicated.
I would love to live... not here. It's hot and humid, and aside from feeling better mentally/emotionally when it's cold (or at least dry) since I can go outside without burning to a crisp, the heat and humidity make me physically ill. Since summers are regularly 100+ degrees here with at least 70% humidity, and "winter" is usually fluctuating between days that are 40 degrees and those that are 80, I would be much happier in a different climate. I also would be much better off in a different political climate-- we can just leave it at that.
The thing that's tethering me here is mostly finances. Especially with the housing market in its current state, I'm trying to focus on minimizing my student loans in vet school as much as possible by saving now. I'm fortunate to be living with my parents, which despite its annoyances comes with free rent and a guaranteed place for my dogs. One of my dogs is very obviously an APBT mix, so housing is challenging to find even without the financial aspect.
Lastly, my mental stability is... tenuous at best, and I'm pretty concerned about how that would go if I flew the coop somewhere else and found myself without my support system. For the time being it makes the most sense to stay here, as much as I don't like it.
At least one thing I have for sure is being able to get 5+ hours from spay/neuter each week. The spay/neuter vet recently became the medical director as well so I would be able to shadow her in the afternoons again for another 2.5 hours (at least) once I don't have this job. Even if I'm stuck for a bit not able to find a different vet-related job I at least have that, and she wrote me an extremely glowing recommendation last cycle and has already agreed to write another one this cycle so it's a bit of a safety net as far as hours go. I'm above the minimum for all the schools I'm looking at (I have about 450 hours vet experience plus an assorted 3000ish animal experience from some LA/chicken/donkey petsitting in addition to kennel work) but it never hurts to get as much experience as possible.

 

[battie]

1. Take a moment to work through your emotions. It took me 3 cycles to get 1 acceptance and that sucks.

2. When people speak of kennel experience as a means for vet experience, it's simply a means to an end. Tech skills are cool and can help you in some regards during vet school. And really, a vet should know how to do these due to staff shortages. But they aren't necessary to get into vet school. Finding any job or shadowing experience at any hospital gets you hours. The goal right now is to get into vet school; tech skills can come after.

3. Other places to gain veterinary experience:
- Diagnostic Lab at the vet school working in almost any department. If you end up working under a PhD instead, ask to spend time on the necropsy floor or the clin path lab with the pathologists.
- Animal care facilities on campus (small animal, research animal, large animal). Then ask for the ability to spend time with the lab animal vets or the vets overseeing that particular group.
- Research opportunities. Vets/PhDs need people to do the scut work, but it opens doors.

4. Having an alternative job while getting non paid vet hours wherever you find it is not a bad idea if money is a concern.

5. You've mentioned a few other concerns that should be addressed:
- I strongly encourage focusing on your mental health now above all else. If your mental health is tenuous, vet school is a bad idea. I do understand the change from the current monotony of not doing what you want to do with your life will seem as an ideal change to help your mental health. And at first it is. Then you're a month in and your mental health is tenuous at best, just for different reasons. I imagine you will want to go out of state; that strains you. I went to a school 1000 miles away. During the good times, it was difficult; but I at my lowest times, the depression was so bad I don't remember an entire semester. Just missing an entire 5-6 months of my life. And I started vet school without any mental health concerns to speak of. So I highly recommend taking the time to work on mental health.

- Consider skipping a cycle. We don't know any of the rest of your application looks like besides experience and a letter if rec. But there is no set timeline.

 

[potentialsheltervet]

- I strongly encourage focusing on your mental health now above all else. If your mental health is tenuous, vet school is a bad idea. I do understand the change from the current monotony of not doing what you want to do with your life will seem as an ideal change to help your mental health. And at first it is. Then you're a month in and your mental health is tenuous at best, just for different reasons. I imagine you will want to go out of state; that strains you. I went to a school 1000 miles away. During the good times, it was difficult; but I at my lowest times, the depression was so bad I don't remember an entire semester. Just missing an entire 5-6 months of my life. And I started vet school without any mental health concerns to speak of. So I highly recommend taking the time to work on mental health.

This is something I continue to struggle with and will probably be battling my whole life, unfortunately. I've had anxiety and depression to varying degrees since I was about 11, so more than half my life. Sometimes I can cope really well and sometimes I can't. I've been trying to get a handle on things with some success but realistically this is going to be a lifelong concern for me regardless of what I end up doing. I'm working on it but it's probably always going to be a struggle.
The biggest thing for me emotionally that I'm continuing to grapple with is the fact that my grades are pretty good to exceptionally good depending on who you talk to. My overall GPA is a 3.9 or so, science GPA probably about a 3.7. I'm having a hard time recognizing it's really hard to get yourself on paper, especially since apparently every cycle only gets more competitive and for some schools I'm competing against literally thousands of applicants, but... When I was applying I had several vets/vet students tell me that as long as my grades were decent to good, I wouldn't have a problem getting in. So then coming to this cycle and getting a resounding "no" from everywhere when everyone I talked to was essentially like "yeah, you'll get in somewhere" is... A lot. I still struggle not to take it as a personal "your grades are good enough but you, as a person, are pretty terrible." (I know that isn't rational but my brain likes to disagree with what makes sense.)

 

[battie]

This is something I continue to struggle with and will probably be battling my whole life, unfortunately. I've had anxiety and depression to varying degrees since I was about 11, so more than half my life. Sometimes I can cope really well and sometimes I can't. I've been trying to get a handle on things with some success but realistically this is going to be a lifelong concern for me regardless of what I end up doing. I'm working on it but it's probably always going to be a struggle.

If anything, this makes me stand by recommendation more strongly. Going into vet school with a solid plan for coping mechanisms and setting yourself up for success is a must. Whether that's therapy, counseling, medication, other stuff, or a mix of any of those, a plan is necessary. It's completely doable; a lot of veterinary students have chronic, life long mental diseases and are successful. Just as with any chronic disease, there needs to be a management plan to set you up for the best success possible.

The biggest thing for me emotionally that I'm continuing to grapple with is the fact that my grades are pretty good to exceptionally good depending on who you talk to. My overall GPA is a 3.9 or so, science GPA probably about a 3.7. I'm having a hard time recognizing it's really hard to get yourself on paper, especially since apparently every cycle only gets more competitive and for some schools I'm competing against literally thousands of applicants, but... When I was applying I had several vets/vet students tell me that as long as my grades were decent to good, I wouldn't have a problem getting in. So then coming to this cycle and getting a resounding "no" from everywhere when everyone I talked to was essentially like "yeah, you'll get in somewhere" is... A lot. I still struggle not to take it as a personal "your grades are good enough but you, as a person, are pretty terrible." (I know that isn't rational but my brain likes to disagree with what makes sense.)

With your grades being above average, my concerns certainly would be your subjectives, including your hours. But that can also apply to your essays and letters. You likely passed initial rounds of consideration due to being above GPA cut offs. Definitely meet with schools about what shot you down.

Likewise, don't stop improving your application. Next cycle, continue to act as if you're rejected and continue to improve your application

 

[potentialsheltervet]

If anything, this makes me stand by recommendation more strongly. Going into vet school with a solid plan for coping mechanisms and setting yourself up for success is a must. Whether that's therapy, counseling, medication, other stuff, or a mix of any of those, a plan is necessary. It's completely doable; a lot of veterinary students have chronic, life long mental diseases and are successful. Just as with any chronic disease, there needs to be a management plan to set you up for the best success possible.

Absolutely. Part of the problem is me not wanting to admit I need help dealing with things but that's something I'm trying to come to terms with for my benefit.

With your grades being above average, my concerns certainly would be your subjectives, including your hours. But that can also apply to your essays and letters. You likely passed initial rounds of consideration due to being above GPA cut offs. Definitely meet with schools about what shot you down.

Full confession: I wrote all my essays the day they were due. Highly do not recommend and will not be doing the same this cycle. I'm not even going to read the ones I submitted; just going to start over.
Two of the schools, including one of my IS schools, aren't doing file review this cycle because they had so many applications (which I'm salty about but whatever). The other two said they would start contacting people in April so just around the corner, hopefully. I imagine their recommendations will be more vet experience hours, diversify, etc. so essentially what I'm attempting to do right now but never hurts to hear what they say.
Thanks for your suggestions!

 

[sheltermed]

I think most people have it covered, but I just wanted to add a little story of failure with a really happy ending. It took me 3 cycles, 4 years, and moving halfway across the country to get into vet school. When I got in, my school was offering a new dual DVM/PhD program to which I applied and got accepted into - now I'm set up for an incredible career trajectory and will have significantly less debt. I'm not necessarily a believer in "everything happens for a reason," but if my path didn't have all of the twists and turns that it did, I wouldn't be in the position I am today. I am extremely fortunate and could not be happier with how things turned out. It took a lot of blood, sweat, and tears - literally - but all the experience landed me here. If I got this, you got this, we all got this!

 

[VisciolaAmygdala]

I'll do my best to make a long story short:
I didn't get an interview (or admissions offer) at any of the vet schools I applied to this cycle. Obviously, that was a very big bummer to suddenly be pushing all my plans back at least a year. I'm still very unhappy about it but I'm doing my best to better my application for this time.
I know one of my weaknesses is not having as much vet experience as a lot of other applicants, so I got a job as a vet tech at a local clinic a couple months ago. Rather, I was told I was being hired as a tech: all they've done is stick me in kennel and not teach me anything because "kennel techs can't do that." There's a whole bunch of other things with the vets being very rude/mean to the staff as well as coworkers being exceptionally condescending and derogatory toward one another. I tolerated those things for a bit but when it comes to treatment of patients, something happened Friday that made me draw the line as being firmly inappropriate, and I'm planning to turn in my two weeks' tomorrow.
Except... I just feel so frustrated (and lied to) about the whole situation, and I don't know where to go from here. I've been unhappy at this clinic to the extent that I feel like I'm going to throw up before every single shift because I'm so anxious about what fresh hell I'll encounter when I go in. Anyway, my whole reason in working there is to get more vet experience which they apparently have no interest in helping me accomplish. I know I can't stay there, but I'm at a loss on what to do now. Only a few clinics in my area are hiring, and they either want a tech license (which I don't have) or at least one year of experience (which I kind of have but it's difficult to explain). The dilemma I'm having is I know I hate where I am but I don't know what other option I have to keep getting the experience I know I need. I have a longstanding volunteer situation with a spay neuter clinic that nets me about five hours a week, but I'm thinking schools won't bother looking at me if I don't diversify and get "working" experience considering how this cycle went. I just feel so disgusted and exhausted and conflicted and I don't really know what to do.

There are way too many understaffed clinics out there—apply elsewhere as a tech not as a pre vet student trying to get hours. You can also apply to volunteer at a shelter for experience and as a foot in the door to use the tech experience you’ll eventually have to apply as a shelter vet tech in the future.