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Down to #4 on Davis waitlist. SO CLOSE. YET SO FAR. Hello to the four people thinking about going to Davis - you don't reeeeally want to, right?

I’M NUMBER 1 ON THE DAVIS WAITLIST im gonna pee my pants

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Does anyone know how much the Oregon State waitlist moves? As of right now it is not ranked but I was just wondering how past waitlists have been. Thanks!
 
Waitlisted for OVC-Guelph international pool! I'm trying to stay optimistic but also trying to stay realistic and focus my efforts on beefing up my app for reapplying in the next cycle. I was pretty unsuccessful in this cycle, so I was also looking for some program opinions. My last 45 is pretty high(~3.8), but my science and cumulative are just ok(~3.2). I already have a masters, so even though I'm retaking some science courses, it won't boost my GPAs too much at this point. Obviously, I know how important grades and GPAs are, but I was wondering if anyone had suggestions of schools that had great equine programs that also tend to do a more holistic review of apps. I'm a CA resident so I will be reapplying to Davis for IS. Some schools I have been looking into for next cycle are Penn, UF, Iowa State, Kansas State, and Michigan State. Feel free to shoot me a message if you have any suggestions, thanks!
 
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Waitlisted for OVC-Guelph international pool! I'm trying to stay optimistic but also trying to stay realistic and focus my efforts on beefing up my app for reapplying in the next cycle. I was pretty unsuccessful in this cycle, so I was also looking for some program opinions. My last 45 is pretty high(~3.8), but my science and cumulative are just ok(~3.2). I already have a masters, so even though I'm retaking some science courses, it won't boost my GPAs too much at this point. Obviously, I know how important grades and GPAs are, but I was wondering if anyone had suggestions of schools that had great equine programs that also tend to do a more holistic review of apps. I'm a CA resident so I will be reapplying to Davis for IS. Some schools I have been looking into for next cycle are Penn, UF, Iowa State, Kansas State, and Michigan State. Feel free to shoot me a message if you have any suggestions, thanks!
Illinois only uses GPA/GRE to determine who gets the rest of their app and I think it may be factored into who gets an interview but I’m not positive. Once you make it to interviews though, academics aren’t considered at all and it’s 75% the rest of your app 25% your interview. Could be a school to consider.
 
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I’M NUMBER 1 ON THE DAVIS WAITLIST im gonna pee my pants
Something that you might want to hear: I'm currently accepted to Davis but am now #29 on the OOS waitlist to Wisconsin-Madison, my preferred school. Over 100 people have been called off of Wisconsin's waitlist for the past few years (though it typically doesn't move until after the deadline), so my chances of being offered admission there eventually seem high.

I'll likely initially accept my offer to Davis, then giving up my spot after the deadline if admission to Wisconsin is offered. Here's hoping we both get what we want!
 
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Waitlisted for OVC-Guelph international pool! I'm trying to stay optimistic but also trying to stay realistic and focus my efforts on beefing up my app for reapplying in the next cycle. I was pretty unsuccessful in this cycle, so I was also looking for some program opinions. My last 45 is pretty high(~3.8), but my science and cumulative are just ok(~3.2). I already have a masters, so even though I'm retaking some science courses, it won't boost my GPAs too much at this point. Obviously, I know how important grades and GPAs are, but I was wondering if anyone had suggestions of schools that had great equine programs that also tend to do a more holistic review of apps. I'm a CA resident so I will be reapplying to Davis for IS. Some schools I have been looking into for next cycle are Penn, UF, Iowa State, Kansas State, and Michigan State. Feel free to shoot me a message if you have any suggestions, thanks!
You should include Mississippi State in there as well. At least from people I know who applied (myself included) they don’t care as much about GPA as their statistics would make you think. And Penn is a good choice as long as you’re not concerned about cost. Penn is a very expensive school for out of state students. However, they do the whole holistic thing really well and seem to look at applicants past just their stats. Yes, they take a lot of 4.0 students but they also take people with tons of interesting experience to make up for lower stats. And their Equine program is top notch.
 
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Waitlisted for OVC-Guelph international pool! I'm trying to stay optimistic but also trying to stay realistic and focus my efforts on beefing up my app for reapplying in the next cycle. I was pretty unsuccessful in this cycle, so I was also looking for some program opinions. My last 45 is pretty high(~3.8), but my science and cumulative are just ok(~3.2). I already have a masters, so even though I'm retaking some science courses, it won't boost my GPAs too much at this point. Obviously, I know how important grades and GPAs are, but I was wondering if anyone had suggestions of schools that had great equine programs that also tend to do a more holistic review of apps. I'm a CA resident so I will be reapplying to Davis for IS. Some schools I have been looking into for next cycle are Penn, UF, Iowa State, Kansas State, and Michigan State. Feel free to shoot me a message if you have any suggestions, thanks!
CSU is definitely one to consider. They do holistic review and have a great equine program!
 
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CSU is definitely one to consider. They do holistic review and have a great equine program!

I absolutely love CSU, but I applied this last cycle and didn't even make it to interviews so I wasn't sure how strategic it would be to reapply there :/
 
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This should not be a thing anyone is not concerned about. Please stop with that.
There are a good number of students who have family who pay for/help pay for their schooling. I said in my post that it’s expensive. I’m not trying to hide that. But I’m not going to say “it’s expensive so you shouldn’t apply.” I’m just putting it out there. Some people genuinely don’t have to worry about cost.
 
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There are a good number of students who have family who pay for/help pay for their schooling. I said in my post that it’s expensive. I’m not trying to hide that. But I’m not going to say “it’s expensive so you shouldn’t apply.” I’m just putting it out there. Some people genuinely don’t have to worry about cost.
SOMEONE is spending that money, whether it’s you taking out loans or your parents helping. You should STILL try and minimize how much you’re spending because that’s still SOMEONE’S money. An extra fifty or hundred thousand dollars they’re paying for your tuition could mean working for an extra 5 years. It’s not worth it for anyone to have to pay more if there is a cheaper option. EVERYONE should genuinely be worrying about cost. Because that’s someones money they’re playing with, whether it’s their own or someone else’s.
I’m not saying to not apply there. I’m saying that you should still be concerned about the cost.
 
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SOMEONE is spending that money, whether it’s you taking out loans or your parents helping. You should STILL try and minimize how much you’re spending because that’s still SOMEONE’S money. An extra fifty or hundred thousand dollars they’re paying for your tuition could mean working for an extra 5 years. It’s not worth it for anyone to have to pay more if there is a cheaper option. EVERYONE should genuinely be worrying about cost. Because that’s someones money they’re playing with, whether it’s their own or someone else’s.
I’m not saying to not apply there. I’m saying that you should still be concerned about the cost.
My point in saying that was that you should only really apply to more expensive schools if you’re willing to spend the money for it if you get in. If Penn is the only school that accepts you but you’re not willing to pay for it, then there’s no point in applying.
 
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My point in saying that was that you should only really apply to more expensive schools if you’re willing to spend the money for it if you get in. If Penn is the only school that accepts you but you’re not willing to pay for it, then there’s no point in applying.
No, you said apply if you aren’t concerned about cost. That is not true. You should still be concerned about it even if you ARE willing to pay that much. Obviously people aren’t going to apply to expensive schools if they aren’t willing to pay that much, but they STILL should be concerned with the cost, even if they have someone else footing the bill. Most parents don’t have 300k+ laying around to pay and have it not be a big deal at all and not affect anything. You should STILL minimize costs whenever possible.
 
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No, you said apply if you aren’t concerned about cost. That is not true. You should still be concerned about it even if you ARE willing to pay that much. Obviously people aren’t going to apply to expensive schools if they aren’t willing to pay that much, but they STILL should be concerned with the cost, even if they have someone else footing the bill. Most parents don’t have 300k+ laying around to pay and have it not be a big deal at all and not affect anything. You should STILL minimize costs whenever possible.
Minimizing cost is definitely extremely important when picking a school, however I also believe that the experience and what that program has to offer can change things as well. For example if you're looking to specialize in something after graduating and certain schools have electives and rotations for that specialty practice, it would be in someone's better interest to try to go there. This is just my opinion because I went to a school OOS for undergrad for this particular reason, there were better opportunities for me here and yeah I'm in debt by a lot but I personally believe that the experience I've had up till now is nothing like that if I had went somewhere else so I kind of took that in mind while applying to vet schools. But of course there still are many schools that are cheaper that still might have the program you're interested in, I'm just saying that although cost is very important to look at, it's ultimately what the best program is for each individual as well :)
 
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Minimizing cost is definitely extremely important when picking a school, however I also believe that the experience and what that program has to offer can change things as well. For example if you're looking to specialize in something after graduating and certain schools have electives and rotations for that specialty practice, it would be in someone's better interest to try to go there. This is just my opinion because I went to a school OOS for undergrad for this particular reason, there were better opportunities for me here and yeah I'm in debt by a lot but I personally believe that the experience I've had up till now is nothing like that if I had went somewhere else so I kind of took that in mind while applying to vet schools. But of course there still are many schools that are cheaper that still might have the program you're interested in, I'm just saying that although cost is very important to look at, it's ultimately what the best program is for each individual as well :)
No. ESPECIALLY since you’re looking to specialize you should be looking to minimize costs. You are going to get a great education at whatever school you go to. You don’t need to spend an extra 200k to go to some other school if you get into an in state that is cheaper.
It. Is. Not. Worth. It.
It is not putting you that much ahead of people from other schools in terms of specializing. You can get great experiences in whatever field you’re interested in during off blocks/vacation blocks and off campus rotations. It’s not worth the extra debt if you have a cheaper option.
 
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No. ESPECIALLY since you’re looking to specialize you should be looking to minimize costs. You are going to get a great education at whatever school you go to. You don’t need to spend an extra 200k to go to some other school if you get into an in state that is cheaper.
It. Is. Not. Worth. It.
It is not putting you that much ahead of people from other schools in terms of specializing. You can get great experiences in whatever field you’re interested in during off blocks/vacation blocks and off campus rotations. It’s not worth the extra debt if you have a cheaper option.
Well what I'm saying is, for example, I want to specialize in animal behavior and one school I applied to does not have any programs like that such as class electives or a fourth year rotation but another school I applied to does and this is something I'm very interested in. I only applied there to see if I would get in and decide which would be better for me to go to of I get into both schools or only one. But in my opinion, why would I go to a school that, even though I will learn the same things, I won't have an opportunity at all to learn things I'm interested in where as if that other school is a bit more expensive, they have those opportunities for me? Yes money is important but I still strongly believe that you should find the right program for you. And like I said, this is an opinion that I have. And not every school is like this and not every school is gonna charge you an extra 200k for this as well.
 
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Vet school is very much what you make of it. The fact is that, no matter where you go, you are still going to have to work hard and dedicate a lot of blood, sweat, and tears if you have some particular interest area that you’re wanting to break into, especially in niches as small as zoo medicine, for example, where everyone knows each other and connections are everything. All AVMA accredited schools will provide you the framework that you need to jumpstart your career; all will provide you with opportunities to delve into specific areas if you would like to. It’s up to you to take full advantage of them, and that is the case no matter where you go. No matter if you go to the most expensive or the least expensive school, no matter if you go the most highly ranked school or the lowest ranked one. Again: vet school is what you make of it.

Also consider what happens if you end up leaving school or changing career interests entirely. Or if you try to specialize but are unable to due to a poor GPA (vet school is stupid hard). Things happen, life can be one hell of a roller coaster, and people change. If, however unlikely, something happens and you are not able to finish school or you change your mind afterward and pursue something else, you will be in a far better position, with far more financial freedom, with a lesser debt burden.

In the overwhelming majority of cases, the cheapest option available for vet school is the best one. There’s no reason to pay $50k, $100k, $150k more for the same degree. The schooling itself only lasts four years. The environment surrounding the school only lasts four years. The debt lasts so, so much longer and will have a very significantly larger impact on your future life and career trajectory than the name of your school will.

It’s easy to look at the career with rose-colored glasses from your perspective as a (presumably) pre-vet. It’s easy to tell yourself that you’re going to be in a lot of debt but it’s okay and it’s justified because you KNOW exactly what you want to do with your degree and it will all sort itself out. But things do change and our plans don’t always work out. I’m living proof of that and I’m, literally, paying dearly for it now.

Best to be as proactive about this as possible from the outset. The debt is very, very real.
Yeah, I understand this, I'm a lot in debt from undergrad but I'm just saying that you don't want to be in a program you're going to be unhappy in and like you said, it's what you make of it. It was just my two cents! Of course don't pick a school that is extremely more expensive but I think in the long run, it could be worth it if you paid a little more for certain experiences. And I'm not in vet school yet so obviously, what do I know, but from my experience in undergrad, I'm just passionate about finding the right school for me because I don't want to go to a school where I will struggle with classes or not find clubs or certain electives interesting. Of course we will all struggle with certain classes but I definitely think the experience at certain schools can make it easier or harder to cope with certain situations
 
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Waitlisted for OVC-Guelph international pool! I'm trying to stay optimistic but also trying to stay realistic and focus my efforts on beefing up my app for reapplying in the next cycle. I was pretty unsuccessful in this cycle, so I was also looking for some program opinions. My last 45 is pretty high(~3.8), but my science and cumulative are just ok(~3.2). I already have a masters, so even though I'm retaking some science courses, it won't boost my GPAs too much at this point. Obviously, I know how important grades and GPAs are, but I was wondering if anyone had suggestions of schools that had great equine programs that also tend to do a more holistic review of apps. I'm a CA resident so I will be reapplying to Davis for IS. Some schools I have been looking into for next cycle are Penn, UF, Iowa State, Kansas State, and Michigan State. Feel free to shoot me a message if you have any suggestions, thanks!

I've heard that UF is really really focused on GPA and not very holistic. Just something to consider! Please correct me if I'm wrong. Also, Western is super duper holistic and accepts GPAs as low as 2.9 sometimes if your experiences and everything else are stellar. Best of luck on OVC!
 
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but from my experience in undergrad, I'm just passionate about finding the right school for me because I don't want to go to a school where I will struggle with classes or not find clubs or certain electives interesting

I think what people are trying to get at is that veterinary schools are very much unlike undergrads in that there isn't disparity between them in regards to how much one program will help in specialization over another for several reasons.

A ton of schools are missing a ton of specialists (not to mention the schools who don't even have a teaching hospital). However, those schools do not do any worse in their students gaining a residency than the schools that do. This is because:

1) The students interested in specializing are spending their long breaks on externships at practices with specialists between 1st and 3rd year.

2) They're doing off campus rotations at the same locations during 4th year.

Everyone going into vet school anticipates that they'll spend a boat load of time on the services they're interested in. That's not how it works out very often because there is so little free time during the school year. Your breaks are really where the bulk of your networking takes place. There's also the fact that schools lose services depending on the clinicians. My school had a great behaviorist up until January. The behaviorist has since moved on and we currently now don't have a behaviorist. So just because a school has a specialty now doesn't mean they will by the time you join the program.

It's also impossible to know if a program will be right for you until you spend some serious time there. Interview day and personal tours are made to make you want to go there and think it's right for you. For most students, the only ones who truly know if that program will work for them are those who did undergrad there and spent considerable time at the vet school. Otherwise, just like every other business, vet schools are marketing themselves to you.

In the long run, every school produces every type of specialist because of the effort those students put into the networking. Where you go has arguably the lowest level of influence on your future career.
 
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Does anyone know how much the Oregon State waitlist moves? As of right now it is not ranked but I was just wondering how past waitlists have been. Thanks!
For in state or OOS?
I know several of my classmates who have been admitted from both applicant pools though somewhat easier for OOS students.
 
I just got waitlisted at Auburn IS today. Does anyone know the chances of getting pulled off?
 
Waitlisted IS for UF and OOS for Mississippi State... any good odds?
 
Also waitlisted at Mississippi (OOS) but very hopeful! I've heard they go well into their alternate lists so I think it's a pretty good place to be.
 
Less than a month to go before April 15! :) And yes, I do have a countdown running on my phone because I have nothing better to do (who can focus on studying at a time like this!?)
 
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Less than a month to go before April 15! :) And yes, I do have a countdown running on my phone because I have nothing better to do (who can focus on studying at a time like this!?)
I've been counting down the days ever since I got put on my first waitlist in January. Now I'm on 6 and only a month to go!
 
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I've been counting down the days ever since I got put on my first waitlist in January. Now I'm on 6 and only a month to go!

Sorry if you already posted this somewhere, but is there a particular school that you're hoping to get pulled off the waitlist first?
 
Sorry if you already posted this somewhere, but is there a particular school that you're hoping to get pulled off the waitlist first?
I'd honestly be happy going to any of the ones I'm waitlisted at. But probably Kansas State or Illinois! I'm trying not to compare too much right now because I'm focusing more on my backup plan to gain more experience and reapply, so I haven't really thought about which is my favorite. If I end up getting pulled off multiple I'll probably end up going to the cheapest school since I'm OOS for all of them.
 
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I'd honestly be happy going to any of the ones I'm waitlisted at. But probably Kansas State or Illinois! I'm trying not to compare too much right now because I'm focusing more on my backup plan to gain more experience and reapply, so I haven't really thought about which is my favorite. If I end up getting pulled off multiple I'll probably end up going to the cheapest school since I'm OOS for all of them.

Right on! I'm wishing you the best and hope you hear great news soon!
 
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Right on! I'm wishing you the best and hope you hear great news soon!
I'll be rooting for you too! Maybe we will both get pulled off Western's waitlist and be classmates!:highfive:
 
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No they don’t disclose our rankings unfortunately
They will tell you what quartile you’re in! When I called to find out they told me I was actually #1 on the list! (For OOS)
 
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No they don’t disclose our rankings unfortunately
I was told the same thing at Mississippi before interviews, but last week I emailed them and they told me! Worst case scenario they say they won't disclose...
 
I was told the same thing at Mississippi before interviews, but last week I emailed them and they told me! Worst case scenario they say they won't disclose...
Oh haha I totally read that as “what’s your IS ranking” not “state ranking”. Yes I’m in the second quartile
 
I know for med school people who are wait listed can and sometimes do write a letter of intent to the school they are most interested in attending. I don't know how it works for vet med though, is this frowned upon or just uncommon? Has anybody else ever heard of this?
 
I know for med school people who are wait listed can and sometimes do write a letter of intent to the school they are most interested in attending. I don't know how it works for vet med though, is this frowned upon or just uncommon? Has anybody else ever heard of this?

This doesnt happen in vet med. You could do it but I've never heard about anyone doing it. It doesnt help your chances because on how vet school admissions are ran. There are definitely people who have asked about it. Would not recommend.
 
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I know for med school people who are wait listed can and sometimes do write a letter of intent to the school they are most interested in attending. I don't know how it works for vet med though, is this frowned upon or just uncommon? Has anybody else ever heard of this?
I did so and it didn’t change my number on the waitlist.
 
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This doesnt happen in vet med. You could do it but I've never heard about anyone doing it. It doesnt help your chances because on how vet school admissions are ran. There are definitely people who have asked about it. Would not recommend.

Thanks for the insight!
 
Saw that University of Florida's waitlist already started moving, for anyone waiting!
 
Waitlisted at LMU. I have a lot to improve Incase i need to apply again next cycle!
 
Ooh, what's the scoop?

I am SO sorry - I saw a post on the APVMA facebook that was asking if anyone had been pulled from waitlists, and I saw someone had been pulled from UF. There was also someone who said on the same post that she was accepted at Tufts, but I misinterpreted this as that she was pulled from the waitlist. So sorry again!!!
 
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