Factors when picking a school

Veterinary Science Graduate Certificate from UofI
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whyrightmeow

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So I am in my first year and there are a few things I wish I would have considered before I made my final decision. These are only my opinion, and I won't be offended if yours varies. I am only posting this because I wish I would have read something like it before I made my decision.

I am at The Ohio State University right now as an out of state student.

Positives:
Can apply for resident tuition next year
Great school, nice facilities
Curriculum includes Professional development - basically a 1 credit course on a variety of topics including stress, time managment, finances, etc
Parking is right outside the building
Parking pass is a hang tag, so carpoolers can share 1 tag between several cars
24 hr access to building
Nice recreational facility/wall climbing
Social worker available 24/7 (for when you finally have that meltdown)

Negatives:
Quarter system (not semesters) - this complicates everything. Plus you don't finish until June.
Can only leave for 3 weeks over the summer - so any externship must be in-state unless it is HIGHLY unusual.
Lockers are tiny; a normal bookbag will not fit into them. It is also very crowded when everyone is trying to get to their locker at the same time. (seems minor, I know, but its the little stresses that are the worst)

Things I wish I would have asked:
Is anatomy lab structured, or do you just get a dog and a book? (Our canine anatomy lab is, in my opinion, poorly structured)
Are tests returned to students, or is it against honor code to write down questions from the test? (At OSU vet school no tests are returned, EVER. This bothers me after every test, since I like to know what I got wrong and what the correct answer was - this may have been a deal-breaker for me)
How much (live) animal interaction is there for first year students?
Do you buy class notes or are they posted online so notes can be taken directly on a laptop? (I was amazed at needing to buy 80% of my notes, when I came from an undergrad school that I never once bought a course pack for)
Is the schedule set, or does it change from day to day? (Our schedule has a main theme, but basically changes a little each day)
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JaynaAli said:
It’s cold! My happy temperature is 76ish. This morning it’s 46 out, my apartment is at 63 degrees because I don’t have the heat on, I’m sitting in bed under two blankets, and have a space heater running to heat this little corner of my room.
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My apartment is 67-69 year round :laugh:
That’s what I’ve always grown up with the house being haha
 
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SkiOtter said:
My apartment is 67-69 year round :laugh:
That’s what I’ve always grown up with the house being haha
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I can’t imagine what it would cost to cool my apartment to that temperature. I have 800 square feet and in the summer with the AC set to 78 my electric bill is $160. When the AC isn’t running (like now) it’s more like $55.
 
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imdyinscoob said:
My parents keep our house at 82 lol
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Even in the winter?!

We never had any sort of central cooling, so summer was just whatever temp we could keep the house at with blinds closed during the day and open windows all night to cool it off. But winter heat was never over 68 haha I think my stepdad would have had a stroke if anyone turned the heat above 70
 
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Caiter92 said:
Even in the winter?!

We never had any sort of central cooling, so summer was just whatever temp we could keep the house at with blinds closed during the day and open windows all night to cool it off. But winter heat was never over 68 haha I think my stepdad would have had a stroke if anyone turned the heat above 70
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It’s hot pretty much all year here so yes lol, when we get cold fronts my dad just turns the ac off. I don’t remember the last time we actually turned on the heater
 
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Trilt said:
Plus a power strip so nobody could complain about monopoly on the outlets.
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Yes! I also keep an extention cord at the school because they didn't think to replace the outlets we lost when they remodeled the library.
 
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Do any current students or recent UC Davis grads have updated pros/cons for the school? Would love to hear current opinions on it. It’s my in state which I applied to, and I also applied to KState. Thanks!
 
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marleyandme13 said:
Do any current students or recent UC Davis grads have updated pros/cons for the school? Would love to hear current opinions on it. It’s my in state which I applied to, and I also applied to KState. Thanks!
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Hi there! I'm afraid I'm quiet biased but I'll do my best.
Pros
We operate on a block schedule which I think is a huge pro but people have different likes and dislikes about it. It allows us to focus entirely on one subject at a time and not have to worry about conflicting exams and prioritizing which to study for. I also like the perk of antagonizing friends at other non-block schedule schools during finals, but perhaps you are a better person than I.
We have some of the best faculty anywhere. Most schools have absolutely wonderful faculty so perhaps this isn't unique to Davis, but I truly adore most of our faculty. They all take such an interest in our learning and are very approachable. Some schools also lack one specialty or another, but we have every specialty usually in triplicate.
We have a LOT of scholarships. As a result UC Davis grads usually graduate with below average debt. This is not dependent on financial need, but if you have financial need you will still get more.
I love our community, but I suppose that is entirely dependent on your class.

Cons
Parking is stupid expensive. As a result most people bike, which is nice but can be a hassle.
Living expenses are high, Davis has an incredibly high occupancy rate and good/cheap housing is hard to come by. I rent a tiny room for about $600 a month. Most people have to pay utilities on top of rent including water, sewer, gas and electric (called PG&E). Water is stupid expensive, but being from California you probably already knew that.
We have fire days. New this year. The school actually shut down for two solid weeks but we were still responsible for all the material. The faculty were wonderful about trying to accommodate the difficult circumstances but it sucked regardless.

Let me know if you have any questions!
 
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batsenecal said:
Born in January and raised in CO. Undergrad plus more in NE. Now in IL. If I never see snow again in my life, I could die happy. I hate the ambient temp being less than 75. I've stayed with my parents in TX for about 2 weeks total since they've moved, and the fact they keep their house at 77* is beautiful to me.
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77?! why? Do you mean they heat it to this or set the AC here?

I can't stand when people heat their houses so much lol. I get so uncomfortable, especially at night.
 
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batsenecal said:
That's where the AC is set, and it gets way expensive to set any lower. It honestly feels like 72* because it's so hot and humid outside the house.
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That makes way more sense. I was going to be like, who the **** sets their heat to 77?! Lol I think ours is max 67
 
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Quick question: are Cornell and now Michigan State the only two American schools that do primarily PBL instead of didactic classes? Those are the only ones I can think of but there could be ones I've missed.
 
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Mostly about whether you are happy at the school/any regrets about going? Your biggest issues with the school but also what you find unique about a Penn education?
 
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prevetkid said:
Mostly about whether you are happy at the school/any regrets about going? Your biggest issues with the school but also what you find unique about a Penn education?
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I’m happy and have no regrets. It’s not perfect, but no school is. I think my biggest complaint is our absolutely horrible patient software, but they are replacing that sometime soonish.
 
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Karabiner13 said:
I updated it not that long ago I think ( last year maybe?). 3m would be best to update due to the new skills lab
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Karabiner13 said:
I updated the Ohio State section on the Factors When Picking a School document. There was some outdated information I got rid of, some new information added, and I reorganized it a little

@MiamiVet2021 I know you were interested in pros and cons for Ohio State
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Looks like it was longer (2 years)
 
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Hey wise-ones, in calculating my cheapest school, does anyone know the average scholarship amount students get at Washington? I know it varies, and that a lot comes from one very broad applicant pool that includes most of the school, but I was wondering if it's more or less common, and if it's anything of note ($500 v $5000, etc). :rolleyes: not saying 500 isn't noteworthy
 
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boogercat said:
Hey wise-ones, in calculating my cheapest school, does anyone know the average scholarship amount students get at Washington? I know it varies, and that a lot comes from one very broad applicant pool that includes most of the school, but I was wondering if it's more or less common, and if it's anything of note ($500 v $5000, etc). :rolleyes: not saying 500 isn't noteworthy
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You would probably be better off contacting the individual school. As a rule, I wouldn't bank on any scholarships at all.
 
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boogercat said:
Hey wise-ones, in calculating my cheapest school, does anyone know the average scholarship amount students get at Washington? I know it varies, and that a lot comes from one very broad applicant pool that includes most of the school, but I was wondering if it's more or less common, and if it's anything of note ($500 v $5000, etc). :rolleyes: not saying 500 isn't noteworthy
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As ziggyandjazzy said it's best not to bank on any scholarships. However, I can provide some insight into this. Are you IS or OOS? If OOS Pullman campus? The numbers on the website haven't been updated to reflect what I was told the other day (we gave out more money last year than what is on the website so +550k). Call Stacy and ask her she has all the latest numbers. However, I do know that something like 98% of all students recieve a scholarship at somepoint during enrollment. There are larger scholarships available ones that will pay for a whole years worth of tuition while there are others that are just 500, 1000, or 5000. It really just depends on your area of interest, how you do in school etc. Remember that most scholarships aren't really available at any school as a general rule until you're a second year. There are people in my class that do have scholarships though. If you have more questions feel free to shoot me a pm!
 
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SamtheSheep said:
Any Ohio State students or recent grads have updated pros/cons? Thanks!!
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SkiOtter said:
@mmmdreamerz is a current student @Karabiner13 is a recent grad. No idea if they have time to write some or know someone who does:laugh:
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The likelihood that my post cardio exam brain will be able to piece together a pros/cons list in short order is pretty slim. But if anyone had any specific questions, I’m happy to answer them. I’ll try to update it eventually:)
 
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So at this point every school that I applied to has answered me back with either declines, alternate lists or acceptances, now I need to decide which school to go to.

I understand some people already know which one they are going to, but some of us are trying to choose between different programs.

How are you planning on choosing?
Pro and cons list?
Based on $$?
Based on ranking?
Etc. etc. ?

*The purpose of this thread is not to convince anyone to choose a certain program, but to provide tips on how to reach a decision.
 
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dvm2023 said:
So at this point every school that I applied to has answered me back with either declines, alternate lists or acceptances, now I need to decide which school to go to.

I understand some people already know which one they are going to, but some of us are trying to choose between different programs.

How are you planning on choosing?
Pro and cons list?
Based on $$?
Based on ranking?
Etc. etc. ?

*The purpose of this thread is not to convince anyone to choose a certain program, but to provide tips on how to reach a decision.
Click to expand...
As always and will 1000% be true GO TO THE CHEAPEST OPTION & RANKINGS DONT MATTER. Please see @SkiOtters signature. Beyond that there's a pro/con-factors when choosing vet school doc around here in this thread somewhere. You can view previous discussion on this thread to help. Overall you'll get a standard education no matter where you go if it's accredited. Otherthings to think about PBL vs didactics. Exam schedules. VTH or distrubitive style 4th year. Regular 3yr classroom and 1 year clinics or the 2+2 approach. Overall impression from the school itself from when you visited. However, it is relatively rare I think to have to really think about what school is the best option beyond money considerations once you run the numbers of expected tuition increase, plus loan interest, and COL for the area.
 
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dvm2023 said:
So at this point every school that I applied to has answered me back with either declines, alternate lists or acceptances, now I need to decide which school to go to.

I understand some people already know which one they are going to, but some of us are trying to choose between different programs.

How are you planning on choosing?
Pro and cons list?
Based on $$?
Based on ranking?
Etc. etc. ?

*The purpose of this thread is not to convince anyone to choose a certain program, but to provide tips on how to reach a decision.
Click to expand...
Go to the cheapest school. Compare the total cost of attendance. Tuition. Fees. Housing/general cost of living.
You’ll get a great education wherever you go. It’s NOT worth an extra 10k+ per year, which is 40k extra BEFORE interest. Even if you don’t love the location the school is. It’s four years. And then you can move wherever you want to. Even if you’re not the one paying for school. SOMEONE is. An extra 40k is a years worth of salary for some people. You could get two brand new cars with that. You could put a substantial amount of money towards a house for that amount. You’ll get a great education wherever you go because at the end of the day, everyone has to pass the same exam and every school needs to prepare their students to do so and become competent veterinarians.
 
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SkiOtter said:
Go to the cheapest school. Compare the total cost of attendance. Tuition. Fees. Housing/general cost of living.
You’ll get a great education wherever you go. It’s NOT worth an extra 10k+ per year, which is 40k extra BEFORE interest. Even if you don’t love the location the school is. It’s four years. And then you can move wherever you want to. Even if you’re not the one paying for school. SOMEONE is. An extra 40k is a years worth of salary for some people. You could get two brand new cars with that. You could put a substantial amount of money towards a house for that amount. You’ll get a great education wherever you go because at the end of the day, everyone has to pass the same exam and every school needs to prepare their students to do so and become competent veterinarians.
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Oh look there you are :rolleyes: I was trying to post in their thread but it go moved as I assumed to the appropriate thread
 
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MixedAnimals77 said:
As always and will 1000% be true GO TO THE CHEAPEST OPTION & RANKINGS DONT MATTER. Please see @SkiOtters signature. Beyond that there's a pro/con-factors when choosing vet school doc around here in this thread somewhere. You can view previous discussion on this thread to help. Overall you'll get a standard education no matter where you go if it's accredited. Otherthings to think about PBL vs didactics. Exam schedules. VTH or distrubitive style 4th year. Regular 3yr classroom and 1 year clinics or the 2+2 approach. Overall impression from the school itself from when you visited. However, it is relatively rare I think to have to really think about what school is the best option beyond money considerations once you run the numbers of expected tuition increase, plus loan interest, and COL for the area.
Click to expand...

Quick question - what is VTH vs. distributive style 4th year? I’ve somehow never heard these terms before even though I’ve been going through this process of looking at schools for a year now and have interviewed at some schools as well
 
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spottedfeatherik said:
Quick question - what is VTH vs. distributive style 4th year? I’ve somehow never heard these terms before even though I’ve been going through this process of looking at schools for a year now and have interviewed at some schools as well
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VTH = veterinary teaching hospital, most rotations happen at the school
Distributive model = no teaching hospital, rotations are done at outside practices
 
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WildZoo said:
VTH = veterinary teaching hospital, most rotations happen at the school
Distributive model = no teaching hospital, rotations are done at outside practices
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Thank you!! I guess I’d never heard of those terms before because all the schools I applied to have teaching hospitals (I think), so I assumed every school has a teaching hospital/I didn’t know that any of them required students to do all of their rotations at outside practices (except for LMU, I have heard about them).
 
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spottedfeatherik said:
Thank you!! I guess I’d never heard of those terms before because all the schools I applied to have teaching hospitals (I think), so I assumed every school has a teaching hospital/I didn’t know that any of them required students to do all of their rotations at outside practices (except for LMU, I have heard about them).
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Western also doesn’t have a teaching hospital. I think those are pretty much the only two US schools without a VTH
 
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CanadatoUS2019 said:
Distributive models are pretty rare. There's only one in Canada that does that...
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Due to a lawsuit in 2000 by WesternU, a precedent was set that vet schools didn’t need teaching hospitals. Before this, the distributive model was pretty much unheard of.
 
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Sdcvm2023 said:
Any current student have pros/cons for Auburn, UTK, Mississippi State, and Missouri? I’m struggling to decide!
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:hello:

Factors When Picking A School.docx

I made a few updates for Tennessee (added a few things and took out some stuff that has been changed). Your personal positives and negatives may be different from someone else's, so I left a few of those more subjective things in there. My biggest things:

Pro:
Wonderful, supportive environment. Faculty, staff, and other students really care and we are a big family all there to support each other.

Con:
Out of state tuition is really, really high. I love my school a lot but I can't really recommend that people come here if they have a cheaper option.

Many more things I could list but they are mostly covered in the document. Let me know if you have any questions :)
 
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johnnaboo said:
I mean no, not typically, but there’s definitely a substantial cost. I’m in a LDR and I travel home for breaks and it’s actually cheaper for me to fly for both of those than drive. So that gives you an idea of those costs.

But also there’s things like healthcare. Some universities give free healthcare, others don’t. If you get really ill in school and don’t have healthcare, you’re screwed.

All I’m saying is that it’s more nuanced than simply the face value cost of school. I agree that in general, you should go to the cheapest school. But there’s not a one-size-fits-all imo.
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Some give free healthcare?? Would that include OkState or Purdue?

Also what is PBL vs traditional lecture and how do I found out which one a university uses?
 
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Looking and comparing tuition and I am a bit confused here, is the VIN cost map accurate? Or does it grossly overshoot on COA and other expenses? The jumps it makes are big from tuition to COA.

Also, Okstate has a tuition of around 207,000 for all four years which is not too far off of midwestern's 269,000 and yet Okstate is the 6th cheapest. So the 60k makes that huge difference? or the overall "COA is different"? Not sure if I'm complicating things or missing something.
 
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Vet2022-20224 said:
Looking and comparing tuition and I am a bit confused here, is the VIN cost map accurate? Or does it grossly overshoot on COA and other expenses? The jumps it makes are big from tuition to COA.

Also, Okstate has a tuition of around 207,000 for all four years which is not too far off of midwestern's 269,000 and yet Okstate is the 6th cheapest. So the 60k makes that huge difference? or the overall "COA is different"? Not sure if I'm complicating things or missing something.
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I believe they use the schools' estimates for cost of living when they are calculating the total cost of attendance. It's pretty impossible to standardize COL for all applicants so it can give you a general idea but that is the kind of calculation you'd really need to look into yourself. 60k is a pretty big difference, and I believe Oklahoma State is in a much cheaper COL area than Midwestern.
 
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Vet2022-20224 said:
Some give free healthcare?? Would that include OkState or Purdue?

Also what is PBL vs traditional lecture and how do I found out which one a university uses?
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Don't really know about the healthcare thing and haven't seen any specific examples of schools that have free healthcare.

As far as lectures go, PBL is problem based learning. It's more of a self guided learning style, based on case studies and doing your own research, discussion with other students and facilitators, etc. Every school integrates that into the curriculum to some extent but some lean more heavily in it than others. Western and Cornell come to mind there. Traditional lecture is just what it sounds like.
 
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