What are some reasons you got rejected from vet school?

Does anyone who has got 3/4 rejections know why they were rejected? I was wondering if there were any common mistakes so I can try and avoid them in my application for vet med next year.

Reply 1

perry192

6

Hiya! Former rejectee here. From my experience here's what I would have told myself same time last year.

•

Get work experience, loads of it and get a variety of it. Anything you can get your hands on. Email people, call organisations. Go out of your way. It's true that the minimum requirements now are 70 hours or smth but if you do more, you learn more and you can talk about the lessons you learnt at the interview. Vet schools love that stuff. If you can, get close to your vet and talk extensively with them about their experiences. It helps give you a new perspective on things.

•

Be confident. It sounds silly but it's very much a fake it until you make it sort of situation. Veterinary Medicine isn't just books, the human element is absolutely critical.

•

Keep a work experience journal, you don't want to forget any of the stories you witness at work experience. It's all ammunition for the interview.

•

Apply strategically. Veterinary Medicine is really competitive, to put it mildly. Take Glasgow for example. In 2023 They had 800 applicants, they interviewed 220 and only had 72 seats. That's more than 10 people fighting for one seat. It's good to dream, but it's also important to be holistic or you'll set yourself up for disappointment.

•

Read. Anything you can get your hands on, from books on dog breeds to stories by Veterinarians (I recommend "Never Work with Animals" by Gareth Steel) to articles about the new developments in the Veterinary world. It always comes in handy when you least expect it.

•

Never give up. I was in the same position you are in this time last year. Now I hold an offer from Surrey and Edinburgh, still waiting on the two others. I went into a bit of a depression after my rejections but if your heart truly lies in Veterinary, fight on. It'll be worth it.

That's about all I can think of. I wish you all the best with your applications next year. If it helps, I truly believe my two gap years have made me a far better Veterinary candidate, and I'm going into Veterinary school far more prepared than If I had gone in straight after college.

Reply 2

RandomPerson202

OP

2

Thank you so much for your advice.

Reply 3

Hhehrheheheh

4

Original post by perry192

Hiya! Former rejectee here. From my experience here's what I would have told myself same time last year.

•

Get work experience, loads of it and get a variety of it. Anything you can get your hands on. Email people, call organisations. Go out of your way. It's true that the minimum requirements now are 70 hours or smth but if you do more, you learn more and you can talk about the lessons you learnt at the interview. Vet schools love that stuff. If you can, get close to your vet and talk extensively with them about their experiences. It helps give you a new perspective on things.

•

Be confident. It sounds silly but it's very much a fake it until you make it sort of situation. Veterinary Medicine isn't just books, the human element is absolutely critical.

•

Keep a work experience journal, you don't want to forget any of the stories you witness at work experience. It's all ammunition for the interview.

•

Apply strategically. Veterinary Medicine is really competitive, to put it mildly. Take Glasgow for example. In 2023 They had 800 applicants, they interviewed 220 and only had 72 seats. That's more than 10 people fighting for one seat. It's good to dream, but it's also important to be holistic or you'll set yourself up for disappointment.

•

Read. Anything you can get your hands on, from books on dog breeds to stories by Veterinarians (I recommend "Never Work with Animals" by Gareth Steel) to articles about the new developments in the Veterinary world. It always comes in handy when you least expect it.

•

Never give up. I was in the same position you are in this time last year. Now I hold an offer from Surrey and Edinburgh, still waiting on the two others. I went into a bit of a depression after my rejections but if your heart truly lies in Veterinary, fight on. It'll be worth it.
That's about all I can think of. I wish you all the best with your applications next year. If it helps, I truly believe my two gap years have made me a far better Veterinary candidate, and I'm going into Veterinary school far more prepared than If I had gone in straight after college.

Hey!

I have also got rejected from vet school from my 5 UCAS options. I applied to gateway courses since I am doing BTEC level 3 applied science and I was hoping to try to get in through clearing this year but I’ve heard that’s not so likely for vet school? If not I am thinking of taking a gap year to gain more experience like you said and strengthen my application.

Have you got any tips on how to make your personal statement and application as a whole stand out amongst the other hundreds of applications?

Reply 4

perry192

6

Original post by Hhehrheheheh

Hey!
I have also got rejected from vet school from my 5 UCAS options. I applied to gateway courses since I am doing BTEC level 3 applied science and I was hoping to try to get in through clearing this year but I’ve heard that’s not so likely for vet school? If not I am thinking of taking a gap year to gain more experience like you said and strengthen my application.
Have you got any tips on how to make your personal statement and application as a whole stand out amongst the other hundreds of applications?

You're correct about the clearing thing, It almost never goes into clearing from what I've seen and heard. There is no gold standard personal statement because we're all different, but mine went short intro about my motivations->body(one paragraph for each work experience, I did 5)->short extracurriculars-> short conclusion. Good to hear that you're choosing to do a gap year, focus on improving your soft skills if you're anything like me and use your time wisely. I don't know the BTEC requirements for vet schools but I'm assuming you got rejected after the interviews. The interviews are how you make your application stand out I like to think. It's where you stop being a name on a list and you as a picture gets fleshed out. Remember when talking about work experiences, it's a concise story with a focus on what you learnt. Do mock interviews with your mates, it'll make the real thing less scary. Remember that life is not a race, don't compare your life to others. My two gap years have led me to some of the wildest and most bizarre experiences I couldn't even dream of. Good luck, remember to take pictures and be kind to people. Hope to see you at a conference someday.

Reply 5

Hhehrheheheh

4

Original post by perry192

You're correct about the clearing thing, It almost never goes into clearing from what I've seen and heard. There is no gold standard personal statement because we're all different, but mine went short intro about my motivations->body(one paragraph for each work experience, I did 5)->short extracurriculars-> short conclusion. Good to hear that you're choosing to do a gap year, focus on improving your soft skills if you're anything like me and use your time wisely. I don't know the BTEC requirements for vet schools but I'm assuming you got rejected after the interviews. The interviews are how you make your application stand out I like to think. It's where you stop being a name on a list and you as a picture gets fleshed out. Remember when talking about work experiences, it's a concise story with a focus on what you learnt. Do mock interviews with your mates, it'll make the real thing less scary. Remember that life is not a race, don't compare your life to others. My two gap years have led me to some of the wildest and most bizarre experiences I couldn't even dream of. Good luck, remember to take pictures and be kind to people. Hope to see you at a conference someday.

Thank you so much!

The requirements for BTEC are DDM or DDD, my target grade is a DDD.

Unfortunately I did not get any interviews though and I think it could be because I only have around 45 hours of work experience since my college only allowed me to do 2 work experiences one in first year and one in the second year, and I had no idea that I could just go out there and gain experience myself I thought it had to be approved my college as that is what they first told me when I started college.

But thank you so much for your advice, I am really happy that you have begun your Veterinary journey and I wish you the best!

What are some reasons you got rejected from vet school?

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