Crossing T's and Dotting I's

The devil is in the DETAILS.

VMCAS deadline is looming…

Let’s make sure you’ve got your application straight!

Getting ready to apply to Vet School is a long process- years of taking Prerequisite courses, summers of gaining experience, and then finally- filling out the application. This process is more lengthy than most expect, and it’s better if not done in one sitting.

There are four big sections :

• Personal information (more detailed than expected!)

• Academic History (putting in your transcripts)

• Supporting Information (your essays, experiences, and certificates or licenses you have, and Letters of Recommendation)

• Program Materials (Supplemental applications - small essays for each school you apply to)

In this post, we will address small but important details:

1. Experiences: what to put where

2. The Explanation Statement: it’s optional! When to write it

3. Personal Statement and Supplemental Essay Do’s and Don’ts

4. What to do when VMCAS says your GPA is not what you think it is

5. Make sure your Letters of Rec are in! (and how to prod!)

**Need one-on-one help? Get a mentor HERE!**

First step: log in!

If you haven’t started inputting your info, here is the link to VMCAS, the online portal used by most schools.

Here is the link to TMDAS , used by Texas Schools.

Here is the link to St Matthews direct portal, and St Georges direct portal . (You can use VMCAS for St Georges too.)

** (And don’t forget, St George’s and St Matthews have a cohort that starts in Jan! You could be in vet school. In the Caribbean. In 5 months!)

Here come the DETAILS:

1. Experiences- Vet v Animal Experiences:

How do you know which is which?

Quick answer:

Was there a vet present? Yes→ Vet Experience. No→ Animal Experience

Examples:

• Small animal vet hospital: Vet Experience (paid OR volunteer!)

• Boarding facility: Animal Experience

• Animal Research: goes under RESEARCH. Not veterinary.

• Volunteer at Habitat for Humanity: Volunteer

• Volunteer at Spay/ Neuter Clinic: Veterinary!

• Work at Starbucks: Employment (non-veterinary related)

• Fraternity or Honor club: Extracurricular

Here is VMCAS’s flow chart:

2. The Explanation Statement:

THIS IS OPTIONAL.

This is where you can write about these (potential) things, if you choose:

• missing parental info

• disciplinary action from your past (academic or DUI type stuff)

• explaining why you had a rough time

  • COVID type problems

  • a rough semester due to death, sickness, etc

  • taking time off undergrad for x,y,z reasons

  • why you made an interesting decision that may impact your application

If you have a decent GPA, I wouldn’t utilize this essay for the “rough time” reason above.

If you had straight D’s one semester due to a big reason, or even because you lived like a typical college freshman, sure, use this area to explain yourself.

TIP: Don’t whine.

Don’t blame others (esp a teacher/ prof!)

Be humble.

Keep it short.

3. Essay Do’s and Don’ts

You can access FANTASTIC info in my previous posts here!

My personal Pet Peeves:

• Too long and wordy. Keep your sentences short! Use paragraphs to break it up so it reads easily.

• Don’t be boastful and annoying. Be positive. Seems obvious but… you’d be surprised! Some essays come off leaving the reader with a bad taste in their mouth- it can be like “I feel like I deserve this.” or braggadocios, or sometimes even resentful and mad!

  • Be in tune to the overall feeling this essay gives off. You may need fresh eyes or an opinion from an honest friend to ensure this isn’t you!

• Don’t be overly professional! This isn’t a research paper!

  • Know your audience! Your audience is: Vets! (be appreciative and in awe of this profession- it makes them feel good!) Admission directors (These people are people! Not computers! )

  • Connect. Connect with the reader. Imagine- you are reading Biology text books all day- the kind where each sentence takes full concentration to dissect what they are saying…. and then you get home and get to read a fictional and fun novel. Wouldn’t you rather read the novel?! BE THE NOVEL amongst the biology texts! Tell a story. Be approachable.

Lastly, this website knocked it out of the park. I don’t want to reiterate what they wrote because… why?! Scroll down to the Top 10 Mistakes to Avoid.

4. Your GPA isn’t what you think it is.