My name is Sharon Ostermann and I am a member of the Class of 2013 at the School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of California, Davis.
I was a nontraditional veterinary school applicant in that I came from a psychology background. In fact, I dropped out of graduate school in psychology to pursue a career in veterinary medicine in December of 2007. That was, without a doubt, the riskiest decision of my life. Yet, in March of 2009, when I received acceptances to 2 of the 3 schools I applied to, I knew it was the best decision of my life.
As a nontraditional applicant, I lacked resources such as a career development office or a pre-veterinary student advisor. What I did not lack, however, were research and networking skills. I utilized these skills to educate myself about the veterinary school application process. I am now well versed in prerequisite course requirements, gaining veterinary experience, VMCAS, and interviewing, to name just a few.
My goal is to use this blog to provide helpful advice and tips on getting into veterinary school as well as give future veterinary students a glimpse of what veterinary school is like. Topics I plan to tackle include:
I hope to help you in whatever way I can. Feel free to request a topic at any time and I will do my best to cover it!
Thanks!
~Sharon
Hello Sharon! I am thrilled to have found your blog and heard about your experience as “non-traditional” student. After five years of work experience and a Master’s degree in a total separate (non-science!) field, I am also considering following a life dream of going to vet school, and I am so glad to see someone else who has managed this successfully! I have a few questions for you based on your “About me” section, including where you took your online courses. and which program you volunteered with in Central America, and I was wondering if I can contact you by email? Or maybe you can contact me, if you possibly have time in your busy vet student life? Thank you so much, and keep up the great blog!
Sharon,
Thank you so much for starting up this blog! I too am a “non-traditional applicant”; I graduated college back in 2008 in a foreign country (accredited though, thank god), with a BA in Anthropology, minoring in History. Definitely an atypical major for a vet-school applicant, I’m sure. I was worried about my degree, but extensive net-surfing and your blog really eased my anxiety. I’m currently still living outside of the US, working full-time and saving up as much money as possible so I can dive into the ferocious waves of pursuing the DVM. UC Davis has always been my first choice, so I’ll be checking out your blogs frequently for any updates and tips.
Good luck with school!