22 y/o female, New York resident, a 1st-time applicant
Applied: Cornell, LSU, Minnesota, Tufts, Virginia-Maryland, Colorado, Florida, Michigan State, Kansas, UGA, Penn, RVC, Ross, SGU, Purdue, Missouri
Interview Invites: Minnesota, RVC, Tufts, Kansas, Ross, SGU, Missouri
Waitlisted: Cornell, LSU, Virginia-Maryland (waitlisted for interview and then denied), Florida (interview waitlist and never got called for an interview), Tufts (post-interview)
Rejected: Virginia-Maryland, Florida, Colorado, Michigan State, Purdue, Penn, UGA
Accepted: Minnesota, Kansas, RVC, SGU, Ross, Missouri
Attending: Minnesota!!
Overall GPA: 3.54
Science GPA: 3.27
Last 45: 3.84
GRE (Q/V/W): 155/156/4.5
Degree: B.S. in Animal Science as of May ‘19
Veterinary Experience:
- Mixed animal mobile practice (with a focus on equine medicine and lameness/rehab) (300 hours)
- Small animal GP (200 hours)
- Overnight/weekend tech at an equine ICU (400 hours)
- Alpaca husbandry trip to Ecuador (not done under a veterinarian but we practiced veterinary work like castrations, blood draws, and injections with the farm owner so I counted it) (~60 hours)
Animal Experience:
- Pet-sitter for dogs/cats/horses (500 hours)
- Worked on my school’s dairy farm as part of a class for two semesters and TA’d for the program for a semester after (~1000 hours)
- Volunteered at a dog rescue for a summer (200 hours)
- Horseback rider since age 9 (7000 hours)
- Taught riding lessons at a summer camp for two summers (650 hours)
Extracurriculars/Awards:
- Pre-veterinary club member for 3 years, Co-President senior year
- Ski & Snowboard club member
- Outing Club Leader
- Participated in and then led incoming freshman outdoor experience trip
- e-Nable The Future volunteer (helped design/print/assemble 3-D printed prosthetic hands for kids)
- High school varsity tennis team for all 4 years
- A few scholarships/awards I can’t remember off the top of my head
Research:
- Assisted on a friend’s thesis experiment looking into whether or not different forms of Staphylococcus could inhibit growth of Staphylococcus Aureus found in mastitis
Non-Animal Employment:
- I actually had none at the time of my application, but I’m currently working as a retail associate and was able to mention that at an interview (~100 hours)
LORs:
- Small Animal GP DVM (KSU grad) that I worked for 3 years with
- Small Animal GP DVM (Cornell grad) that I worked for 3 years with
- Joint letter from the equine mobile veterinarians I shadow (they’re married and practice together)
- Undergrad advisor who I’ve taken a few courses with and am relatively close with
- Professor for the dairy farm program I worked in
Essay Questions/Personal Statement:
- I was diagnosed with ADD and generalized anxiety right before my freshman year of college and didn’t get my medication/diagnosis sorted out until my second semester which tanked my GPA and caused me a lot of stress (I had like a 2.54 GPA due to C’s in my gen chem and calc classes). I talked about how this actually made me a stronger student once I got myself sorted out because I had to basically re-teach myself how to be a functional student and I excelled after that which shows that I’m not scared of hard work and obstacles.
- I also commuted over an hour and 15 minutes each way to and from home to school in NYC when I was in high school. I talked about how this also shows that I can handle scary situations and think on my feet (I was a 14 year old who took a train, subway, bus, etc. and anyone who knows the MTA can tell you how awful it can be sometimes) and how I’m not afraid to work for what I want and make it work for me. The school offered tons of opportunities I knew would benefit me in the long run, like having a great study abroad program which allowed me to study abroad to Australia for a month and great alumni connections for networking.
- I talked about being an ICU technician because it gave me a ton of hands on experience (giving oral and IV medications, to watching and resetting fluids, running blood-work, assisting during surgeries, and doing post-op care). Being an overnight tech at this clinic was helpful because most of the time I was the only one in the building (vet was on call, but didn't have to be present) so a lot of decisions were put on me in addition to teaching me quick thinking in times of crisis.
- Lastly, I talked about the dairy farm program I was in a lot. 15 of us ran the dairy farm for two semesters and shared the responsibility of feeding and milking the cows, assessing welfare, treating sick and postpartum cows, delivering calves, and making financial decisions for the farm. It taught me a lot about working in a small group with other people and accountability for one’s actions.
(Fun fact I worked the fact that I took a class on conspiracy theories into a couple of my interviews and managed to relate it to vet med which made me stand out (in a good or bad way? You decide). The basis for conspiracy theories is looking for the truth based on incomplete/false information and veterinary medicine can be like that with getting patient histories and full stories/cooperation from owners sometimes.)
), and then rejected: Texas A&M
