What Residency Wants

[cml156]

I at times feel a little defeated when putting my all into vet school in hopes of pursing a residency post DVM but I feel my grades will hinder me on my application. Are there any success stories out there of individuals who was able to successfully get a residency position without being a straight A student?

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[JaynaAli]

A proven interest in/dedication to the field and stellar letters of recommendation are by far the most important parts of a residency application. Grades matter (and matter more significantly for some specialties than others) but it’s certainly not impossible to get a residency with lower grades. You may have to work harder and be less choosy but it’s possible. I was in the lower half of my class with a 3.2 GPA and I matched to an internship and had multiple residency offers on my second application cycle (my specialty is outside of the match for residencies). Sure my
GPA probably made some programs write me off, but I had tons of experience and I know my letters of rec were outstanding.

 

[cml156]

A proven interest in/dedication to the field and stellar letters of recommendation are by far the most important parts of a residency application. Grades matter (and matter more significantly for some specialties than others) but it’s certainly not impossible to get a residency with lower grades. You may have to work harder and be less choosy but it’s possible. I was in the lower half of my class with a 3.2 GPA and I matched to an internship and had multiple residency offers on my second application cycle (my specialty is outside of the match for residencies). Sure my
GPA probably made some programs write me off, but I had tons of experience and I know my letters of rec were outstanding.

Thank you, that's amazing! What is your specialty if you don't mind me asking? I understand what you mean about it may be specialty dependent. The area I'm interested in is a very small pool of positions every year vs small animal surgery that may have thousands of applicants to sift through and might be more selective with their approach; so I wonder if that makes it more or less worrisome grade wise for my case. It's good food for thought I'll be keeping in mind.

 

[JaynaAli]

I’m a clinical pathologist.