How helpful are Open Days for prospective vet med students?

I don’t think I will be able to visit everywhere that offers the course due to time constraints, distance, cost etc. I’m ruling out a couple of courses based on location but wondering how useful people have found the open days when applying for vet medicine? I know there’s no substitute for visiting a location and getting a feel for a place but are there other things you get out of an open day which help you in the application process that can’t be found on websites for example? For some places it might be that I visit the location of a course during the summer holidays with my family just to scope out the area and see it’s somewhere I would like but am I missing out on valuable info if I don’t attend an official event?

Reply 1

louisvbird

Universities Forum Helper

There are slight differences in the vet med programmes but honestly you can learn these from online research. For example, if you would prefer to stay on one campus for the whole course, or if you would have to travel between campuses during the week, or if you live in a city campus for the first few years before moving to another campus further out. Other things like do you get a degree in the middle of the course, are there opportunities for intercalation, do you want your final year rotations to be based in a university hospital or would you prefer the clinical rotations model. etc.

Ultimately, people from all around the world apply to UK veterinary schools without having seen them, because the quality of the education is so good. It's highly unlikely you will be disappointed with any vet school in the UK. They vary somewhat, but not very much really. The curriculum is similar, just organised differently. In addition, many people who apply only get one offer to study veterinary medicine, so they are left with no choice as to where to study - they all end up loving wherever they end up! For these reasons, I think you'll be fine. :smile:

Reply 2

louisvbird

Universities Forum Helper

Some but not all of the Open Days do give tips on the application process, but again, online research should also suffice.

If you have any questions about any of the universities, we will be happy to help guide you if you ask them on this forum. :smile:

(edited 3 months ago)