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2018 Veterinary applicants

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Hey! I'm a 2018 applicant too!

For a levels I'm doing biology, chemistry, maths and further maths - so much work but so much more interesting than GCSE so that's good😊

I've done quite a lot of work experience but still struggling to find any with cows or farm vets and not quite got lambing sorted yet for Easter so any advice would be great!

Thanks!
Original post by Canine Copycat
Hey! I'm a 2018 applicant too!

For a levels I'm doing biology, chemistry, maths and further maths - so much work but so much more interesting than GCSE so that's good😊

I've done quite a lot of work experience but still struggling to find any with cows or farm vets and not quite got lambing sorted yet for Easter so any advice would be great!

Thanks!


What's your current approach to getting work experience? Are you ringing or writing? Don't stress too much about farm vets- it's great to get one but they are notoriously difficult to get! Usually vet schools class equine as your LA vets and they are often a little bit easier to get into
Original post by Canine Copycat
Hey! I'm a 2018 applicant too!

For a levels I'm doing biology, chemistry, maths and further maths - so much work but so much more interesting than GCSE so that's good😊

I've done quite a lot of work experience but still struggling to find any with cows or farm vets and not quite got lambing sorted yet for Easter so any advice would be great!

Thanks!


For lambing check out this website: http://www.nationalsheep.org.uk/next-generation/jobs-work-experience/lambing-experience/
It isn't open yet but will be in a few weeks. Once you have found a farm placement you will find it far easier to gain others in my personal experience as farmers tend to all know one another and provided you work hard and impress the farmer they may be happy to recommend you.
Hey! Im also a 2018 veterinary applicant.

Im taking A level Biology, Chemistry, Maths and Further Maths.

I have currently got juat under 8 weeks WE in a wide variety of animal environments but im struggling with getting farm work.

Im currently deciding what unis to apply to. I original thought of applying to Nottingham, Cambridge, Glasgow and Edinburgh. I dont want to go to Liverpool, RVC or Surrey.

What do people think of Bristol Veterinary University?

And what is everyone applying to as their 5th option???
Original post by Anderson2727
Hey! Im also a 2018 veterinary applicant.

Im taking A level Biology, Chemistry, Maths and Further Maths.

I have currently got juat under 8 weeks WE in a wide variety of animal environments but im struggling with getting farm work.

Im currently deciding what unis to apply to. I original thought of applying to Nottingham, Cambridge, Glasgow and Edinburgh. I dont want to go to Liverpool, RVC or Surrey.

What do people think of Bristol Veterinary University?

And what is everyone applying to as their 5th option???


Personally I loved Bristol but I've heard mixed opinions of it from other people. It really depends on you personally. Why don't you want to go to Liverpool, RVC or Surrey?
Original post by Adam the vet
Personally I loved Bristol but I've heard mixed opinions of it from other people. It really depends on you personally. Why don't you want to go to Liverpool, RVC or Surrey?


I personally dont agree how Liverpool using volume of work experience to cut off the majority of its applicants before they are even considered for interview. RVC will just be unrealistic for me to live there due to all of the transportation costs etc. And surrey hasnt been accredited yet and wont be until my first year at vet school.

Are you at vet school? If so which one and what did you put as your 5th option if you did not get in?
Original post by Anderson2727
I personally dont agree how Liverpool using volume of work experience to cut off the majority of its applicants before they are even considered for interview. RVC will just be unrealistic for me to live there due to all of the transportation costs etc. And surrey hasnt been accredited yet and wont be until my first year at vet school.

Are you at vet school? If so which one and what did you put as your 5th option if you did not get in?


Liverpools way of selection is actually brilliant. It really shows who has put the effort in and who's dedicated and applicants who have a real inside to what being a vet is really like... you'd have to question whether some people at other universities really know what the career involves as they are required to do less work experience, and can explain a number of students dropping out in the first few years when it starts to get tough. Don't write a university off just because you don't agree with their selection criteria. Secondly there's applicants who get interviews at liverpool with the minimum of 10 weeks work experience, so it's not all about quantity.


Surrey may not have been accredited yet, but it won't have any issues getting accreditation. They've put thousands into the university and the resources they have to teach students. Again, don't write off somewhere purely because it hasn't been accredited yet.

A lot of people put bioveterinary/ some form of science degree as their 5th choice as a back up, many don't take up that option however and if they don't get into vet school they take a gap year and try again the following year, so I wouldn't get held up over the 5th choice too much, pick something you find interesting and you think you might like to do as a back up, at the end of the day you don't have to choose to do it.


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Original post by Lizziefickling
Liverpools way of selection is actually brilliant. It really shows who has put the effort in and who's dedicated and applicants who have a real inside to what being a vet is really like... you'd have to question whether some people at other universities really know what the career involves as they are required to do less work experience, and can explain a number of students dropping out in the first few years when it starts to get tough. Don't write a university off just because you don't agree with their selection criteria. Secondly there's applicants who get interviews at liverpool with the minimum of 10 weeks work experience, so it's not all about quantity.


Surrey may not have been accredited yet, but it won't have any issues getting accreditation. They've put thousands into the university and the resources they have to teach students. Again, don't write off somewhere purely because it hasn't been accredited yet.

A lot of people put bioveterinary/ some form of science degree as their 5th choice as a back up, many don't take up that option however and if they don't get into vet school they take a gap year and try again the following year, so I wouldn't get held up over the 5th choice too much, pick something you find interesting and you think you might like to do as a back up, at the end of the day you don't have to choose to do it.


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Thanks!!

I have already done nearly 9 weeks WE in a wide variety of things.

I still dont think that I will be applying to Liverpool as work experience can be gathered very easily by some people in some areas and I read in their stats that their average week count was just below 30! The area im from doesnt have as many oppurtunites to gather WE and I do not have the capability of travelling around. I believe that I have an in depth view into the career and will continue doing WE as I enjoy it and to learn more about the science, ethics and welfare behind each role. I feel that Liverpool excludes quite a lot of applicants like me who cannot achieve dozens of weeks as it is the very first stage of their application process so I feel that for me it may just be a wasted application.

For my 5th option im thinking of Natural Science just because its quite versatile and sounds quite interesting.

Is it common for vet applicants to take a gap year and then re apply?

Thank you very much for all your help and time btw :smile:
Original post by Anderson2727
I personally dont agree how Liverpool using volume of work experience to cut off the majority of its applicants before they are even considered for interview. RVC will just be unrealistic for me to live there due to all of the transportation costs etc. And surrey hasnt been accredited yet and wont be until my first year at vet school.

Are you at vet school? If so which one and what did you put as your 5th option if you did not get in?


I've just applied and awaiting interview offers at the moment. I wouldn't rule out any uni until you've had a look at the open day and gotten a feel for the place! I've put the RVC gateway programme as my 5th choice as I do match their criteria
Original post by Adam the vet
I've just applied and awaiting interview offers at the moment. I wouldn't rule out any uni until you've had a look at the open day and gotten a feel for the place! I've put the RVC gateway programme as my 5th choice as I do match their criteria


Very best of good luck adam, I hope you get in!

Where have you applied and how much WE have you done?
Thank you! I've applied to Nottingham, Bristol, RVC and Liverpool for the 5 year course then the RVC gateway.
I've done 4 years at a dog daycare centre every Saturday, 2 years at a bird of prey centre every Sunday , 2weeks SA practice, 1 week equine practice, 1 week dairy, 2 weeks children's farm, 1 week SA referral practice, 1 week livery yard and a day at an abattoir
Original post by Adam the vet
Thank you! I've applied to Nottingham, Bristol, RVC and Liverpool for the 5 year course then the RVC gateway.
I've done 4 years at a dog daycare centre every Saturday, 2 years at a bird of prey centre every Sunday , 2weeks SA practice, 1 week equine practice, 1 week dairy, 2 weeks children's farm, 1 week SA referral practice, 1 week livery yard and a day at an abattoir


Let us know how you get on! Im sure you will get in! :smile:
Original post by Anderson2727
Thanks!!

I have already done nearly 9 weeks WE in a wide variety of things.

I still dont think that I will be applying to Liverpool as work experience can be gathered very easily by some people in some areas and I read in their stats that their average week count was just below 30! The area im from doesnt have as many oppurtunites to gather WE and I do not have the capability of travelling around. I believe that I have an in depth view into the career and will continue doing WE as I enjoy it and to learn more about the science, ethics and welfare behind each role. I feel that Liverpool excludes quite a lot of applicants like me who cannot achieve dozens of weeks as it is the very first stage of their application process so I feel that for me it may just be a wasted application.

For my 5th option im thinking of Natural Science just because its quite versatile and sounds quite interesting.

Is it common for vet applicants to take a gap year and then re apply?

Thank you very much for all your help and time btw :smile:


Yes the avg student has 30 weeks but that's on application, not the avg no that get an interview, and Liverpool interview a lot of applicants every year! But that's fair enough if you feel it's a wasted application. I wasn't in an area that was particularly easy to get work experience, unfortunately had to travel for it, and a lot of other applicants have done the same, it's just something you have to do - i started work experience when I was 13 haha!

It's very common for students to take a gap year and reapply the following year, in my year for example over half the year who applied as a school applicant took gap years, either to resit exams, or to go travelling etc before starting uni. Universities don't look down on applicants who have had gap years, as long as you can show you've done something productive in the gap year like travelling or work experience or working towards re-sit exams, they just don't want an applicant who has spent a whole year out sitting at home sleeping and watching TV, which is fair enough!


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Original post by Angry cucumber
Aber is also very rural, there are not many vets that are large enough to support the teaching of students.

ABristol and Liverpool both stretch into Wales and are very near to the border indeed.

It's going to pressurise the new grad job market very hard and with Newcastle considering a vet school to....

Furthermore Surrey at times struggled with getting enough teaching staff ready before doors opened. So where another new establishment is going to recruit from, who knows.

Im not in favour of it, but what will be, will be

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:00000 Newcastle are thinking about a vet school????? This would be the answer to all my problems haha
Original post by katerebecca
:00000 Newcastle are thinking about a vet school????? This would be the answer to all my problems haha


you would think but not necessarily :wink: its been rumored for a few years but i don't think there's any subsistence to the rumours
Original post by Louiseee_
you would think but not necessarily :wink: its been rumored for a few years but i don't think there's any subsistence to the rumours


Yeah, I've just tried having a google and have come to no avail :/ it would be good having one up here, it's really awkward that we are literally the only area of England to not have one 😫😂
Hi Everyone,

I'm a fourth year at Cambridge vet school, feel free to shoot me any questions about the course here/applying/vet student life!

To all those worrying about work experience at LA vets, I applied with only SA vet experience and got 3 offers, so it is definitely not an absolute requirement for all vet schools. Also, Cambridge only require 2 weeks work experience and just care about the quality of work experience rather than it being a tick-box exercise of getting certain numbers of weeks in this or that but perhaps not gaining a huge amount from it, so do consider Cambridge as an option, too!
As you guys probably know I'm now in Year 12 and I'm studying Biology, Chemistry and History. I'm just going to ask the ultimate question: do you guys have any general tips and advice for getting through A Levels and applying for Vet school? I'm also thinking of doing an EPQ if you have any advice about that etc. How did you guys go about getting WEX and when throughout the two years did you do it? What was A Level Bio and Chem and History (if you did it) like? Any advice at this point would be gladly accepted, I'm having a bit of a confidence crisis at the moment 😂😂
Original post by laser174572
Hi Everyone,

I'm a fourth year at Cambridge vet school, feel free to shoot me any questions about the course here/applying/vet student life!

To all those worrying about work experience at LA vets, I applied with only SA vet experience and got 3 offers, so it is definitely not an absolute requirement for all vet schools. Also, Cambridge only require 2 weeks work experience and just care about the quality of work experience rather than it being a tick-box exercise of getting certain numbers of weeks in this or that but perhaps not gaining a huge amount from it, so do consider Cambridge as an option, too!


Hi. Cambridge is the vet uni I really would love to go. What college are you at? Which 4 unis did you apply to? Which were the 3 you got offers at? What was the cambridge interview like? What work experience did you have? Sorry about the vast number of questions, I would really appreciate any info you can offer me as you are where I ideally want to be in 5 years time! Thank you very much!
Original post by katerebecca
As you guys probably know I'm now in Year 12 and I'm studying Biology, Chemistry and History. I'm just going to ask the ultimate question: do you guys have any general tips and advice for getting through A Levels and applying for Vet school? I'm also thinking of doing an EPQ if you have any advice about that etc. How did you guys go about getting WEX and when throughout the two years did you do it? What was A Level Bio and Chem and History (if you did it) like? Any advice at this point would be gladly accepted, I'm having a bit of a confidence crisis at the moment 😂😂


i think my biggest advice for vet school and A levels (and probably life in general), is to learn how to manage your time effectively, especially if you're going to EPQ. I used to have a free on tuesday mornings in college so I penned that in as my 'go to costa and do two hours of EPQ research/planning' time.

Also, don't put too much pressure on yourself and proritise getting you grades. My biggest mistake in year 12 was that I was doing 4 AS levels, General studies A level, learning to drive, trying to do volunteering every weekend and work experience in the holidays (and even missing college to do it which was very stupid) and doing grade 7 violin. unsurprisingly I failed AS chemistry :tongue: it is much easier to do a gap year to get more WEX if thats the reason you were rejected, but it is so much harder and more stressful trying to get in if you have to resit a year (it is possible but i wouldnt want to do it again!)

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