Academic Programs
 

Preparation for Veterinary School

A student in any undergraduate major may apply for entry into veterinary school, as long as they have successfully completed all of the courses required for that particular veterinary school. However, we recommend that a student interested in becoming a veterinarian major in Biology with an Organismal Concentration.

How do I get accepted into veterinary school?

There are only 27 veterinary schools in the United States (30 in all of North America), and only one state has two schools. Most veterinary schools are funded by the state in which they are located, and therefore most “seats” in a veterinary school are reserved for in-state residents. (Those states which do not have a state-funded veterinary school, such as New Jersey, contracts with other states to reserve seats in their school for New Jersey residents. Cornell University, which reserves the bulk of its seats for in-state residents, contracts with states such as New Jersey to reserve a limited number of their seats for these out-of-state residents.) It has been estimated that applicants have approximately one chance in five of being accepted for veterinary school.

Every veterinary school has slightly different requirements for entrance into its veterinary program. New York State residents apply to Cornell University's veterinary school. The information described below is based on Cornell's veterinary school requirements; you should check Cornell University's Web site for up-to-date information, as well as general statistics about their incoming classes.

For more information:

Animal Experience and Keuka's Field Period

Veterinary medicine is an animal-oriented profession, and therefore experience with animals and direct experience with practicing veterinarians are both essential components of the vet school application. Documented experience working with animals can be in a farm or research setting; however, additional experience working directly with a veterinarian is required by all schools. Work in a veterinary practice can be combined with the breeding, rearing, feeding and showing various kinds of animals, including companion animals, livestock, laboratory animals, zoo animals, or wildlife. Most schools consider both the length of time of the animal and veterinary experiences, as well as the type of experiences, to be a critical component of the vet school application. All experiences listed on one's application should be supported with a letter of evaluation.

Keuka College's Field Period is an ideal opportunity to add to the pre-vet student's documented experiences with animal care. Previous Field Period opportunities have included work with local vets on area farms, experiences with wildlife rehabilitation centers, and regional marine research centers, to name a few opportunities. Students receive three semester hours of college credit for each completed Field Period experience (one for each year at Keuka College). Each student selects his (or her) own Field Period, and then works with his/her advisor to design, to document, and to reflect upon each Field Period experience.