Iowa State

Virginia Tech - but someone mentions it above.

My spouse is a Cornell Vet School grad. Most important for getting into a good Vet school is great undergraduate grades wherever you go, a demonstrated interest in being a Vet from summer jobs, and the necessary pre-reqs (Biology, Organic Chemistry, etc).

Anonymous wrote:Can anyone suggest any schools in MD or VA with a vet program?

UMD has pre-vet program.

Anonymous wrote:My DC wants to be a vet. DC is interested in Cornell, which reputedly has a great vet college, but I wonder if DC would do just as well in the application process for vet school with a degree from a SLAC and all of the right prerequisites. Appreciate any advice from people who have done a college search for a DC with similar interests. BTW, DC is probably competitive for the most selective schools except Ivies (Cornell may be a reach) so specific college recommendations are appreciated if anyone has a similar DC following this path at another school. Also, DC does have animal related work and volunteer experience, which we have heard is important. TIA!

Berry College in Georgia-on 25,000 acres. 90 % of prevet students are accepted into vet school.

Anonymous wrote:OP, sorry to get off track, but I have a tween who wants to be a vet (at this point!). May I ask what kind of animal-related work and volunteering your child did in her teenage years? Thanks.

NP here but mine volunteered at wildlife refuge in costa rica-
We did it as a famy but tbere are teens doing home stays too.
Proyecto Asis

DS is thinking about this path. We visited VA Tech, since it has a vet college, but the undergrad animal science major seemed too specialized to him for now. He is going to another school where he can major in something he likes and take all the prereqs so that he can apply to the vet college down the road if he wants to. Our only hesitation was that the school he chose is known as being pretty tough with grades. And to answer the other PP, my son has gotten animal experience working in the summers at a "pet resort" (aka boarding facility). He also volunteered for a little while at a therapeutic horseback riding place.

There is no need to do undergrad at a school with a vet program. Approach this like pre-med: go to a school that's affordable because vet programs are not cheap. It's better to be a big fish in a small pond because the main determiner of admission is GPA and not how impressive the school is. Make sure to take all the required classes but major doesn't matter.

Cornell can wait for grad school.

Good luck!

OP, sorry to get off track, but I have a tween who wants to be a vet (at this point!). May I ask what kind of animal-related work and volunteering your child did in her teenage years? Thanks.

Can anyone suggest any schools in MD or VA with a vet program?

You don't need a special "pre-vet" program at a University. She can apply to vet school with the required pre-reqs. However, that said, there may be some value in being in an environment where other students are working towards the same goal -having a vet school on campus will be inspiring. I think it helps with motivation and they have a community. Different topic but similar, DD, not knowing what she wanted to do: went from biology major to pre-pharmacy to BS Grad to Pharmacy School at the same university. I think the environment made all the difference in her case.

For undergrad, your DC should go to the best school he/she can get into academically, and then just take the necessary prerequisites, it does not have to be a school that has a vet school. Vet schools are harder to get into even than med schools, and very important to get good grades, and to work in some sort of animal-related jobs or lab jobs in the summers. A post-bacc year doing research at somewhere like NIH is the type of experience needed to get into somewhere like Penn or Cornell, the two most academic/research-oriented vet schools.

You've probably looked at this, and I think US news is overrated, but this might give you some ideas for schools to look at:

http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-health-schools/veterinarian-rankings

I would suggest maybe UNC-CH for undergrad and NCSU for Vet school. I attended both and I thought they were wonderful schools. It would be fairly close, tuition is cheap, and with the Research Triangle Park in Durham nearby, there are lots of opportunities for co-ops/internships. Our own vet went to NCSU and she's great. DD had thought about doing vet school, but has changed her mind, so back to the drawing board for us (oh well). FWIW I got the impression that despite the rivalries between the two schools, attending one seemed to give you a leg up in being accepted in the other for graduate programs. Good luck OP!

I'm a little biased being from Colorado but Colorado state university is highly ranked. Fort Collins is a cute town. It's no boulder however. In the long run I would say the vet schools don't require a pre vet program just a biology or similar degree. My friend who went to vet school at CSU did go there for undergrad.

My DC wants to be a vet. DC is interested in Cornell, which reputedly has a great vet college, but I wonder if DC would do just as well in the application process for vet school with a degree from a SLAC and all of the right prerequisites. Appreciate any advice from people who have done a college search for a DC with similar interests. BTW, DC is probably competitive for the most selective schools except Ivies (Cornell may be a reach) so specific college recommendations are appreciated if anyone has a similar DC following this path at another school. Also, DC does have animal related work and volunteer experience, which we have heard is important. TIA!