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How long does it take to really get your career going after finishing vet school?
I am in community college and will be transferring to a university in two years, just curious on how long it takes to launch your career/finish school.(internship, school, advice, etc.)
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Margaret’s Answer
Jaszmyne, Please do not get too far ahead of this right now; you have a long way to go to be ready to even apply for vet school.
I agree with Liana's answer. You will need to accomplish all the Liana has mentioned. Vet school admissions are really competitive and the four years of vet school are really challenging.
Are you are at community college that offers academic pathways/career counseling? Have you spoken with anyone there or at the university, to which you are transferring to earn your 4 year degree, about your career idea? Speaking with a career counselor (or a few of them for different perspectives) may be very helpful to you.
Seek some experienced vet techs and several veterinarians to whom you can listen for their suggestions and with whom you can discuss your goals.
At this time, focus on getting your B.S. or B.A. with a major and courses that you will need for applying to vet school. Start now looking at vet school admission requirements so you know what undergrad courses are required by a cross section of vet schools. Do you live near a vet school? If so, make an appointment with the admissions office there so you can ask questions and listen to the advice from that person.
You will need really good grades and high scores on the Graduate Record Exams (GREs).
While you are an undergrad, and during summers and breaks, either volunteer, get a entry level part-time job (to start with), or apply for internships at vet clinics/hospitals or any setting (zoos, animal shelters, animal research labs, wildlife research programs) where animals are cared for and where there are veterinarians working as clinicians. You need animal experience and quite a lot of it to be taken seriously by vet school admissions committee members.
You may want to earn your undergraduate degree and then work (at jobs involving animals) for a few years in order to continue to gain experience (in workplaces as well as volunteering), and maybe take a few more courses as needed, and/or focus on really preparing well for the GREs . Working as a vet tech for a few years at least will give you basic clinical skills and confidence and perspectives that will be valuable if you are accepted into a vet school.
You need a lot of animal experience and perspectives about the roles of animals in society to prepare you, at least to some extent, for vet school, and for all the clinical work involved with the vet school education.
If you are accepted into vet school, and then as you progress in vet school, you may begin to develop ideas of what type of setting(s) that you want to work in once you are finished. There are many different possibilities.
AFTER you finish your degree, you will be able to find job postings for a wide variety of positions, you will have some ideas by then about the direction that you may want to go in/workplace where you want to be a clinician, and also explore opps for further training (graduate one year internships and specialty 4 year residencies).
But, right now, you really must NOT be stressing NOW about "getting your career going after vet school." That is several years in the future if things go well for you. It takes a lot of work to reach the goal of becoming a veterinarian, and then a lot of effort and hard work, and good days and bad days, to work day-to-day as a veterinary clinician.
I agree with Liana's answer. You will need to accomplish all the Liana has mentioned. Vet school admissions are really competitive and the four years of vet school are really challenging.
Are you are at community college that offers academic pathways/career counseling? Have you spoken with anyone there or at the university, to which you are transferring to earn your 4 year degree, about your career idea? Speaking with a career counselor (or a few of them for different perspectives) may be very helpful to you.
Seek some experienced vet techs and several veterinarians to whom you can listen for their suggestions and with whom you can discuss your goals.
At this time, focus on getting your B.S. or B.A. with a major and courses that you will need for applying to vet school. Start now looking at vet school admission requirements so you know what undergrad courses are required by a cross section of vet schools. Do you live near a vet school? If so, make an appointment with the admissions office there so you can ask questions and listen to the advice from that person.
You will need really good grades and high scores on the Graduate Record Exams (GREs).
While you are an undergrad, and during summers and breaks, either volunteer, get a entry level part-time job (to start with), or apply for internships at vet clinics/hospitals or any setting (zoos, animal shelters, animal research labs, wildlife research programs) where animals are cared for and where there are veterinarians working as clinicians. You need animal experience and quite a lot of it to be taken seriously by vet school admissions committee members.
You may want to earn your undergraduate degree and then work (at jobs involving animals) for a few years in order to continue to gain experience (in workplaces as well as volunteering), and maybe take a few more courses as needed, and/or focus on really preparing well for the GREs . Working as a vet tech for a few years at least will give you basic clinical skills and confidence and perspectives that will be valuable if you are accepted into a vet school.
You need a lot of animal experience and perspectives about the roles of animals in society to prepare you, at least to some extent, for vet school, and for all the clinical work involved with the vet school education.
If you are accepted into vet school, and then as you progress in vet school, you may begin to develop ideas of what type of setting(s) that you want to work in once you are finished. There are many different possibilities.
AFTER you finish your degree, you will be able to find job postings for a wide variety of positions, you will have some ideas by then about the direction that you may want to go in/workplace where you want to be a clinician, and also explore opps for further training (graduate one year internships and specialty 4 year residencies).
But, right now, you really must NOT be stressing NOW about "getting your career going after vet school." That is several years in the future if things go well for you. It takes a lot of work to reach the goal of becoming a veterinarian, and then a lot of effort and hard work, and good days and bad days, to work day-to-day as a veterinary clinician.
Updated
Liana’s Answer
Hi Jaszmyne,
If you want to become a veterinarian, it will take you eight years! You will need four years of acquiring your BA degree in animal science, wildlife biology, zoology, biology, chemistry, or biochemistry. You will need to take the GRE exam in order for you to get into the vet school. As a matter of fact, you will need four years at a vet school to acquire your Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM). I will need to let you know that vet school is a lot more difficult than medical school.
If you want to become a veterinarian, it will take you eight years! You will need four years of acquiring your BA degree in animal science, wildlife biology, zoology, biology, chemistry, or biochemistry. You will need to take the GRE exam in order for you to get into the vet school. As a matter of fact, you will need four years at a vet school to acquire your Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM). I will need to let you know that vet school is a lot more difficult than medical school.