The TSR Community Awards 2025 are now live >>

Vet med work experience

Hi! I'm applying this October, and I'm low-key starting to spiral about work experience. I have a 1 week in a small animal practice, 1 week in an equine practice, ~1.5 weeks at a riding stables (ongoing), a morning of lambing and a day at a farm. Is this enough? I'm really worried it's not varied enough as there's no abattoir/lab/wildlife experience, but honestly animal carers in my area must be sick of receiving emails from me because I have asked so many places and got rejected. I also did the Nottingham MOOC/"virtual work experience" thing.

I'm looking to apply to Glasgow, Edinburgh, Nottingham and Harper&Keele or Bristol. Stressing!

Also! Do I have to include all of that work experience in my personal statement? I know a lot have supplementary forms and don't really look at ps, but idk!! Thank you!

(edited 4 months ago)

Reply 1

MikaylaLC

Hey!!

I'm also applying for veterinary medicine in October, although my process definitely isn't as traditional as yours!

In terms of work experience- I think you have a good selection and you don't need to have abattoir/lab/wildlife experience and I don't think universities will penalise you for that.

Here are your Uni requirements (Just as a reminder):
Glasgow: 1 week minimum so you are all good.
Edinburgh: Doesn't ask for specific number of days/weeks.
Nottingham: 5 weeks of work experience, Minimum 3 weeks animal handling (Which you have) , the last 2 weeks can be from customer service roles OR completion of their future learn course OR more animal handling.
Harper and Keele: A little more specific. They want applicants to aim for 2 weeks in a vet practice (Which you have done) and UP TO 4 weeks in a mixture of non clinical placements.
Bristol: No strict requirements.

So really- I'd say that you are all set in terms of work experience. Yes, you will be competing with others that possibly have more- but you meet the minimum entry requirements. Its all about quality of the experience, not quantity.

You should mention these experiences in your personal statement. Even with the forms, the universities that you are applying to want to hear a more in depth exploration of your placements, what you learnt, and how they made you a suitable candidate for their course.
The forms are mainly just a record, universities don't learn much about you or what you did from that!

Also, talking about work experience can be a good way to explain your passion for the course, rather than using overworn phrases.

Let me know if you need anything else.
Best of luck! You will make an amazing vet.

Reply 2

Chair.la

Hi,
I am a second-year vet student at Edinburgh. I remember being sooo stressed about having enough work experience. I think the important thing is just to reflect on the work you have done. Just a heads up, during the interview, they may ask about your work experience and refer to what you have said in your statement. For example, if you talked about a particular case you saw in practice, they may ask about it and expect you to know the biology. I would just recommend singling out certain scenarios which you found interesting and you are comfortable talking about scientifically, as this makes you seem very knowledgeable.
I hope this was helpful. Good luck with your application!!!!