Veterinary Medicine 2015 hopefuls!

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Reply 1940

Sorry for the late reply but I'm doing an EPQ at the moment on Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome in dogs and cats. I'm finding it really interesting - much more so than I thought I would! - and it's also got me a lot more interested in research than I was before. It also gives you a headstart at interview stage as you are knowledgeable about a particular subject, should they ask, and in a situation like that talking about something which you are confident about could be a big help! As for critical thinking, I think that some of the questions in the BMAT have a critical thinking-y feel to them so it could be useful for that? But obviously A-levels are more important and it would maybe be good to make sure that you're coping with them first! :smile:

Thanks i might give critical thinking a pass, we can't do EPQ untill year 13.

Reply 1941

Whooh1

Did anybody else get the pre-BMAT course information from UCAS yesterday. Might be worth doing next year if you need a high score to get into the university you want.

Reply 1942

username1183574

Question - in general, do you think that veterinary schools would rather you got 3 A*s and had less work experience or got 3 As and had more work experience? Just out of interest, obviously aiming for both haha

Reply 1943

Angry cucumber

Original post by Ebbsy

Depends entirely on the vet school :smile:

Reply 1944

CanineVet

Original post by LadyEcliptic

That's okay, thanks for explaining :smile:

Norbrook was INCREDIBLE to say the least, and because Northern Ireland is their main site, I got to go everywhere, I even got to go to their farm, and it is the fanciest place I've ever seen! I even got to do practical work, I think the shorter you stay, the more variety you get to see :smile:

They have incredibly high standards, they record everything they do, even if they open the fridge, they have to note it down, and that's the reason they are the only company in (Europe?) licensed to sell to around the world :3 They are lovely, if you can get down I would recommend it. I also got placed with a Vet, so it's good to see the work vets do other than the usual in practice stuff!!
It's okay, I can't really count the riding school though (problems with the owner, she's a bit of a.. hmm... Plus it was 3 years ago so... :/ [I had no problems with the owner by the way, my mum did and I'd be worried about reference, long story but!) And I never got to see much out at the vets neither. (Okay, well, usual, castrations, spays, vaccinations, different things like that! Plus, 2 on farm slaughters. First time I had ever seen something like that in real life!)
I'd be quite a shy person, so asking for things is a big problem for me ^^' I should probably start asking more questions...
The milking was good, I'm surprised I got it! But I learned a lot, it was great getting hands on with the cows haha!

What sort of WE have you got?

Sounded like you had a great time! And all that other WEx sounds amazing too :smile:

.

I am starting to organise my WEx for next year so I will definitely keep that in my mind! :biggrin:

There's a list on my profile, I am hoping to do more :smile:

Original post by LadyEcliptic

That's probably one of the worst things I'm worried about, should I ever be fortunate enough to get one!!

Some of them do MMI, I think Liverpool do. I know some do like stations, asking you all sorts of questions, analyzing graphs etc. They really like to weed out students so they do haha!

I have heard of that one before. Is it the RVC that do the stations? I can't remember... I only vaguely knew through stalking other year threads during the past application cycle :lol:

Reply 1945

beckycat

Original post by CanineVet

I have heard of that one before. Is it the RVC that do the stations? I can't remember... I only vaguely knew through stalking other year threads during the past application cycle :lol:

RVC do have stations in the interview, there are 6 stations each lasting 5 minutes. 4 of them are manned stations and the other 2 aren't and involve written exercises. I'm not sure how much more I'm allowed to say, but you get an email giving each of the station names if you get invited to interview. There is also a group exercise as part of the interview :smile:

The whole thing isn't as bad as it sounds and I actually quite enjoyed the whole thing.

Reply 1946

kalouki10

Original post by beckycat

The whole thing isn't as bad as it sounds and I actually quite enjoyed the whole thing.

Liverpool have the stations at interview too and Bristol introduced them this year too. RVC have had them for a couple of cycles now I think. Liverpool had 7 stations, Bristol had 5. I personally preferred the MMI style of interview and found it fun :smile:

Reply 1947

beckycat

Original post by LadyEcliptic

Please tell us more!! I am actually seriously bugging about this if I am fortunate enough to get an interview! Like, what sort of stations and all are their, and how is it best to prepare for them?

I don't know how much the interviews change from year to year so I obviously can't go into any more detail than this as it would give you and anyone who reads it an unfair advantage.

The MMI consists of 6 stations each lasting 5 minutes with a minutes break in between each one, it sounds horrific but its honestly not that bad and it goes so fast you don't have time to get too nervous whilst you're there. If you get invited to an interview they email you the title of each of the stations, they'll cover things like work experience and ethics. Just make sure you keep up to date with any current issues, for example TB and Schmallenburg virus, use the DEFRA and BVA websites and Farmers Weekly magazine. If you can, get some copies of the Veterinary Times or Vet Records from your local vets when they've finished reading them some.

Make sure you have something to say about each of the placements you put on the work experience questionnaire and what you learnt from them, it would not look good if you had nothing to say about them! For the ethics stations, if you make a point make sure you are able to justify your answer as they will question what you say. On the observation station just say whatever thoughts and comparisons springs to mind, that's what I did. Also there is a calculation to do at one of the stations, the maths isn't hard just make sure you read all the information carefully as it is easy to miss something.

The group exercise then lasts 10 minutes, its honestly nothing to worry about, as a group you just need to systematically work through each of the answers. There's not really much more I can say about that without saying exactly what's involved, but its nothing hard.

Good luck I wish you all the best with your application next year and if you need any help with anything, feel free to drop me a message :smile:

Reply 1948

GGKeams

Hi guys- I'm back!
I was just wondering if anyone else is going to the VetMed taster day at Cambridge on September 18th? Also, has anyone booked any uni visits yet?

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Reply 1949

beckycat

Original post by LadyEcliptic

No no I understand you can't give much information away!! :smile:

I don't want an advantage over everyone else ^^' I just was curious as to what type of stations there were (I had heard there was stats and reading graphs, not a strong point!)
So long as I know there is nothing to worry about, that's all I really care about!!
Thank you :3

Are you in Vet school currently?

Starting at RVC next month :biggrin:

Reply 1950

SklIsMentalAbuse

Hey! Was wondering is anyone doing any lambing sessions next year? Would love to get a placement and would like to hear anyone's experience in that field of work :').

Reply 1951

chaarlotte

hey, i haven't posted in ages but i just want to say that i'm now applying for 2014 entry. however i'm expecting 4 rejections due to my (extreme) lack of work experience so this won't be the last you'll see of me :tongue:

. only got told today in school that my first draft of my personal statement is due on friday :eek:

and i'm also cramming in revision for the BMAT. whilst other 2014 applicants have got their act together, i'm rushing around trying to get things done and looking for as much work experience as possible (got another placement at a SA vet and trying to find LA vet/lab/abattoir right now) so yeah :smile:

Reply 1952

Nessie162

I think it's time for me to officially join this thread, although I am applying this year. :smile:

I'm just applying for the RVC gateway program this year due to too little WE to apply anywhere else. (and bad grades :colondollar:

)
My chances of getting in are very slim so it's very possible that I might be taking a gap year and applying for '15 entry (after resitting my exams and getting more WorkEx of course :tongue:

)

So.... Hello :hello:

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 1953

hannapoole

I've been away since the start of August so it's just taken me forever to catch up on what everyone's been doing on here etc!

Well done to everyone on your results you all did amazing!!

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Reply 1954

Little Tail Chaser

Hi everyone :smile:

Been gone for over a week as well so I just caught up.

Thing is, over the past week I've been thinking (a rare occurrence :wink:

) and I'm just not sure that vetmed is the course for me any more. It's not due to a lack of interest, but my GCSE results left a lot to be desired :lol:

, which wasn't exactly a surprise but there you go. There are other jobs out there that involve working with animals, so it's not like I have to change my mind entirely, not that I was even 100% certain in the first place. I'll probably still volunteer at the farm as often as I can, but to be honest I really don't enjoy work experience as much as I used to; the whole process of writing letters etc is frankly exhausting, as is travelling each day, and I doubt that's going to get any easier if I need to travel further for lambing etc next year. Doing less(/none! I've done a fair bit now so I could probably get away with what I've done so far, ~20 weeks, if I'm going to apply for something less competitive) will certainly save me a lot of time (and money!), so I'll be better able to focus on my studies. One girl who started volunteering at the farm a few months after I did spent years preparing to apply for vetmed, but she's recently changed her mind as is applying for biology in October so I suppose it's good that I've made this decision now :smile:

I'll probably still hang around in this thread, though :smile:

. I like hearing about what you guys do :h:

You can't get rid of me that easily, I'm like Lassie :ahee:

Reply 1955

skatealexia

Original post by Little Tail Chaser

Hi everyone :smile:

Been gone for over a week as well so I just caught up.

Thing is, over the past week I've been thinking (a rare occurrence :wink:

) and I'm just not sure that vetmed is the course for me any more. It's not due to a lack of interest, but my GCSE results left a lot to be desired :lol:

I'll probably still hang around in this thread, though :smile:

. I like hearing about what you guys do :h:

You can't get rid of me that easily, I'm like Lassie :ahee:

Oh no

. Can I ask what they were at all, or would you like to PM me to talk? Definately good you've made this decision now. I'd just bear in mind that a lot of animaly jobs aren't particularly well paid, and it's quite hard to find one now as well :/. My friend did animal management and shes really struggling to find even anything remotely related. Although vet nurse seems a more viable career path. Please stick around though! You were so enthusiastic and you would be missed! :hugs:

.

I've had doubts over the years too. One massive one at the end of my GCSE's and I've still got doubts now in places.. It's a lot of work, and years of your life you'll never get back if it is the wrong decision.

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 1956

Little Tail Chaser

Original post by skatealexia

Oh no

I got 3A*s (bio, maths and ICT), 11As (well, if you count BTEC PE which is apparently equivalent to two :tongue:

) and a C (French :ahee:

) so vetmed isn't necessarily out of the question. I wasn't actually disappointed, but uhh... the family was less impressed :colondollar:

. I'm still going to do A-Levels and I'm taking facilitating subjects, although admittedly they are a bit sciencey (bio, chem, maths, phys), so I'll just see where that goes. If the worst comes to the worst I could get a completely unrelated job and just have a load of pets, I'd still love to start breeding rats one day if time/money/space will allow for it :smile:

!

I'll still stick around though definitely :yep:

Hopefully I can make myself useful but giving contacts to fellow Londoners and such :h:

Reply 1957

Angry cucumber

Original post by Little Tail Chaser

Hi everyone :smile:

Been gone for over a week as well so I just caught up.

Thing is, over the past week I've been thinking (a rare occurrence :wink:

) and I'm just not sure that vetmed is the course for me any more. It's not due to a lack of interest, but my GCSE results left a lot to be desired :lol:

I'll probably still hang around in this thread, though :smile:

. I like hearing about what you guys do :h:

You can't get rid of me that easily, I'm like Lassie :ahee:

Hold your horses

Many people have changes of mind about wanting to do vet med, after I did my GCSEs I was the same as you are now... I had no wish to do vet med anymore - I wanted to become a farm labourer (I was that disillused :tongue:

) - I was sick of school and work experience. I wanted an easier life where I wouldn't have to work my guts out academically etc. I talked to my rents about dropping out of A levels and so on.

My parents advice is the same that I'm giving you now - don't rush your decisions about your future career. You've been thinking a week.. That pales into insignificance compared to your career length.

For the record - having 20 weeks as a city kid is pretty incredible tbh, that's the same as what I applied with and I live out in the sticks. You've also got a perfectly legit reason not to do lambing aswell! I and just about everyone at vet school didn't cover every single base with w/e - I didn't have lambing either. I also had no kennel work, whilst 12 of my 20 weeks w/e came from dairying, you've got just as complete if not more complete "portfolio" than I and many others have/ had!

By all means cut the amount of w/e you're doing to concentrate on your studies - most people do!

If youre worried about not being clever enough etc, me and anyone else who hangs around the forum, can see that your a knowledge sponge for vetty things! You've definitely got the brains!

Finally - you say your not enjoying w/e as much as you used to - you might be suffering from boredom as you are working at the same place(s) a lot. You seem to have really enjoyed dairying as it was a new experience, even though the traveling was a killer.

Right thats enough of my rambling, if you want to chat or ask questions feel free to quote or PM me :smile:

Don't throw years of work out the window due to a week, give it time and you may find you change your mind. Exams can be resat, and after A levels, GCSEs aren't that important in comparison.

AC

Edit: 3A*s and 11As - wth! Those are incredible results! Your family are crazy to be disappointed, those results are brilliant and you should be very proud and hold your head high!!

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(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 1958

Little Tail Chaser

Original post by Angry cucumber

Hold your horses...
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Being a farm labourer is actually one of the things that I was considering doing, although I'm pretty sure that this isn't really a viable option either for a variety of reasons :tongue:

. Firstly, living where I do is obviously going to be an issue, as I'd probably have to spend a lot of time and money to get in/out of the city each day. If accommodation was provided in my wages then I probably wouldn't get much money on top of that, and once you've factored in food and other living costs it would take a looooong time before I'd have enough money to move up and buy my own place. Secondly even though I have been going to the farm for quite a while I will still admit that I know virtually nothing :tongue:

. Farms, especially proper commercial places, would have no reason to hire me if the other people asking to work there grew up on farm environments. I actually emailed by head of science and convinced him to let me self-study GCSE agriculture, but I later changed my mind because, honestly, farmers aren't really going to give two ****s whether or not I have the knowledge on paper. They're just going to want someone who can show that they know what they're doing and get on with it :tongue:

. Finally, farm work is very demanding, and although there's nothing I can do about it the truth is that, being female, I'm going to be weaker than my male counterparts. I'm no weakling, some of the other workers at the farm have nicknamed me Muscles and I'm the one they get to shift haybales and sacks of feed :lol:

, but still, I'll never be anywhere near as strong as the bodybuilder-esque blokes :tongue:

So yeah, I can't see that happening :tongue:

Maybe I'd be suited to something a bit more biology related. If I *do* change my mind back again and decide that I *do* indeed want to go for VetMed then my GCSEs and A-Levels will (hopefully!) still let me do that :smile:

.

Knowing that you didn't manage to do any lambing or kennel work before you applied is actually really reassuring. These are sort of the last two placements that I thought were almost compulsory that I haven't done. I've been trying really, really hard to get a kennel place but it's just not happening :frown:

. I phoned up and emailed about ten places over the past few weeks, and nobody could offer me anything for a variety of reasons, which was really disappointing :frown:

. I could go further, but I'm really struggling to justify the travel time it would involve. I'm really no stranger to hours of travelling each day, but to get to these kennels we're talking about a bus journey, train journey, then an hour and a half of walking each way, which I don't know if I could handle for an entire week or so. The journey was manageable for dairy work because I was only there for a couple of hours and the farmer was a total bamf and he gave me a lift back to the station each day. I didn't think that kennel/cattery work would be hard to find in London, but clearly I was mistaken :frown:

Lambing is looking totally out of the question at the moment. I do know of a beef herd that has chickens and sheep so I'd like to go there just so that I can say I've done at least a day at a commercial beef/poultry/sheep place, but again it's bloody miles away so doing anything more than a couple of days is just out of the question. Arrrggghhhh. London. Why.

I'll definitely cut down on the wex though. I think I've covered all of the compulsory bases to a reasonable degree (I still don't have any official LA vet work but I saw the vet do PDs at the dairy farm and I've seen bTB testing and equine dentistry at the urban farm as well so that might count? ), so I'm not rushing any more. As I said I'll keep going to the farm, and I might ask if I can start going to the exotics vet every week because that has probably been my favourite placement so far :biggrin:

I also have some stuff already booked, but apart from that I think I'll give it a bit of a rest before I die of exhaustion :lol:

!

Oop super long reply. I'll shut up now. Thanks a lot though man, seriously what you're saying means a lot and is super helpful :h:

Reply 1959

skatealexia

Original post by Little Tail Chaser

Agreed that your results are pretty amazing! You only need 5 As for vet med! I only got 5a*,4a and 2b which was the best in my school but not as great as some and remember I got four offers! I agree with angry cucumber, you're obviously suited for this career. I think you should give it a shot anyway as you could always change your mind and change to another degree after a year in a vet med degree and still get full funding for a different course xx