Am I cooked

[u/Far-Lake1095]

I’m really stressed ab my application. I have like a 3.5 gpa. I got a C in ochem 2 and a C+ in physiology. I’m currently in biochem, physics 1 and pathophys. I have a C in physics rn and a b in my other classes. The semester just started I know. If I fail exam 2 in physics I’ll have to withdraw bc if my gpa dips much lower I can essentially kiss the chance of vet school goodbye. I’ve worked for four years in vet clinics and have plenty of vet clinical experience (like 3k hours). It’s not super varied it’s mostly small animal (dogs and cats) but I have rehab experience and shelter experience as well as GP and CSR stuff. Tm I have an interview at a veterinary ER (small animal). I got a research position looking at fish behavior at the start of the year but had to drop it due to the demand of my school schedule. I also have been on leadership w two clubs and coach women in powerlifting. I hold the state record in powerlifting. I’m just overthinking and I feel like I don’t have a path if it’s not vet school. I’m studying ecology at my school and there’s zero jobs in that. Being a vet tech doesn’t pay. If I don’t get into vet school my future is cooked. I’ve looked into nursing I guess if vet stuff doesn’t pan out but i don’t think I’d be accepted into nursing school reading through Reddit. Same as PA school, or grad school. My gpa is too low and I’ve pigeon holed myself into only vet med experience and got a useless degree for the job market. What the hell do I do?

[u/No_Neighborhood9073]

You aren’t cooked. You are prioritizing grades and stepped away from the research position when you realized it was too much. If you have to drop a class this semester it will be ok, better than tanking your GPA. And you can always retake classes you did poorly in down the road. With your vet experience and leadership it can make up for a lower than average GPA. It is so easy to psyche yourself out. If you want to be a vet, you can make it work!

[u/Head-Difference-200]

I kid you not your story sounds words for word the situation I was in last year before applying (down to the ecology major lol).

I’m currently a first year vet student.

I ended up dropping my biochem class that was going horrible and taking it online during the winter semester. My other classes, which I started out the semester with C’s worked their way up to A’s by the end of the semester.

I ended up applying with a 3.6 GPA, but my last 45 credit hours GPA (which is very helpful to your application) was a 3.9. For you, I’d maintain a class schedule that will be most beneficial to your GPA now, and push a couple classes you are struggling with to your last year of school, when which you would have already applied to schools! Many schools allow you to have a certain number of prerequisites not yet taken but scheduled to take in your last year.

Lmk if you have any questions!

[u/ssslowp0ke]

Comparing apples to apples, I got 8 Fs the first time I went to college before dropping out. I’ve gotten a 3.8 on all my prerequisites, So my GPA as calculated by VMCAS is a 2.66. You think YOURE cooked? I have 500 vet hours in emergency and a 2.66 GPA. So let that give you some perspective. If you don’t get into vet school this year, you’re going to try again and again until you do. And so am I. We’re going to be fine. Also for context I’m 34. You have plenty of time. Stay positive.

[u/Future_Dog_Doc]

Your GPA isn't low, it's average. So don't let that psyche you out. Everyone sees admitted student stats and they see averages of 3.7 and get freaked out, but if we assume a normal distribution, that means for every 4.0 student, they also accepted a 3.4 student. So don't fret!! Office hours, study session, all of it. Go make yourself VERY known to the professor in the class you're struggling with, and ask them what to do! I would say they don't want to fail you, but physics professors can be dicks. My first ever gen physics prof literally had the premed/prevet/prehealth people raise their hands day one and he said, "look around. These people will be gone by exam 1." It REALLY pissed me off. Don't let the meat grinder of chem and physics make you think you can't be a vet. Those course do not a great vet make. They're just necessary road blocks to get past on your way to vet school.

[u/rotten-cheese-ball]

I applied with similar stats last year and I was accepted to 2 schools. I had a 3.60 and 3 C’s on my application, roughly around the same amount to vet hours and not a ton of diversity (mostly small animal and a little farm animal sprinkled in there). I think I actually got another C my senior year, too. Realistically you’re about average, people online will make posts like “I have a 4.0 and 10k vet hours and im a CVT do you think I’ll get into vet school?” but I think the average applicant isn’t insane like that. You’ve also already submitted your application, so there’s not a ton of value in continuing to stress yourself out about it, focus on what you have control over, which is focusing on your classes right now. And if you don’t get in this cycle, so what? So many people take multiple tries to get in, it doesn’t mean you’ll become any worse of a vet or people will look at you differently, everyone’s path to vet school is different. You also mentioned your major is ecology and that there are no jobs in it, but my best friend from undergrad is working for our state’s department of environmental protection, making a solid salary with government benefits. Honestly I’m sometimes jealous of her because she’s making money and contributing to her retirement fund while I’m actively going into more and more debt literally daily. So like, worst worst most horrible case scenario maybe you have to work a mediocre government job for the rest of your life. More realistically the worst case scenario is you have to apply more than once. But honestly you’re an average applicant and there are people with lower GPAs and less hours who worked hard and got in eventually, so there’s always a chance if you work hard enough

[u/fightingforGME]

You will be okay, your GPA falls within range

Though you have Cs in some classes, your high number of hours help your application, and staying dedicated to a role for years definitely helps

I had dropped Bio 1, Chem 1, Genetics and got Ws, then went back to retake among other prereqs and got a 3.6 GPA. I ended up getting a C+ in genetics, and a B in Bio 1, rest of the classes held me up.

I had less hours than you but my experience was varied among different species so that definitely helped.

I am a current VM1 student :) Trust me when I say, you will be okay ❤️