Read more to find out more about different ways you can work with wildlife as a veterinarian! There are plenty of opportunities out there for wildlife vets, however the most important things you need to know up front are 1)wildlife jobs are much harder to come by than other jobs in vet med, and 2)wildlife vet med pays a lot less than other vet med jobs. On a related note, given the scarcity of the positions, you would have to be okay with moving around in order to follow jobs. A lot of students who enter vet school with a zoo/wildlife interest change their area of interest during vet sc ..read more

Ever heard the phrase, "work smarter, not harder"? It also applies to studying! The popular triangle pictured on the left to describe college life does NOT have to be your reality if you practice smart studying. Here are a few study techniques for you to try out that I have used during college and vet school. These study techniques are active studying, essentially mental exercises that build neural patterns to reinforce learning, and are much less boring than just skimming your notes over and over, which is more of a passive form of studying that promotes short term memory. If studying is ..read more

While almost none of these subjects are pre-requisites, studying them formally via a college course will certainly help you feel very comfortable with some of the material you'll later cover in the didactic years of vet school. If you have any room in your undergraduate schedule, you'd be doing yourself a favor to take any of these classes. Having prior exposure to these topics will significantly reduce your stress in vet school (I have observed this in my classmates and in myself). Upper-division classes that are intro-level or general are at the appropriate level to groom you for what you'll ..read more

I'm sure you are well aware that veterinary school is going to be expensive, but you may not have realized that the costs actually start with the applications. Application cost may be constraining when trying to select how many, and which, schools to apply to. Though I only applied to four schools (UC Davis, Colorado State, Washington State, and Oregon State), I spent over $1,000 towards applying to vet school alone. The cost of applications will be slightly different for each applicant, so this post can help guide you as you budget and plan your application strategy. Click "Read More" to see ..read more

It's that time of year again! As the class of 2021 students accept their admission offers, applications for the DVM class of 2022 open in May. Here is some advice for those applying to vet school this cycle! Organization is key to completing a quality application on time. By quality application, I mean all your information is present and correct and done in such a way that makes you look like the most desirable vet student you can be​. Here are 10 tips to help your application process go smoothly! ​1. Get a 70-page spir ..read more

Photo from Pinterest. There's so much talk about mentorship these days, and having a great mentor certainly increases your chances of learning about opportunities and navigating your career. But finding a great mentor is not as easy as saying, "will you be my mentor?" People you'd want as mentors tend to be awesome people, and awesome people tend to be extremely busy and involved in many different things. But they often also have one or two mentees, and it's not usually by formal arrangement. Here, I give 3 tips on creating successful mentor ..read more

These are three TED Talks that have had particular impact on me, and have inspired me to achieve great things and many things. The first one is about how we can advance medicine for all species, including humans; second one is about how women hold themselves back; and third is about setting your priorities to drive your time management. I'm always on the lookout for amazing TED Talk speakers and messages! If you know of some, tell me through the "contact" form, or leave a comment! 1. Barbara Natterson-Horowitz- What veterinarians know that physicians don't Take 15 minutes to learn about ..read more

When I was 18, I went on a voluntour/ecotour of the Galapagos Islands through Ecology Project International (EPI) and had the wonderful opportunities to work with the Galapagos National Park to collect field data on free-ranging Galapagos tortoises and clear invasive weeds in the national park. I also got to do many ecotourism activities, like snorkeling and hiking in lava tubes and on multiple islands and seeing almost all of the famous endemic wildlife species. My group and I also spent time with Galapagueno high schoolers. It was an unforgettable 12 days that greatly impacted my career goal ..read more

Wildlife Veterinarian and Infectious Disease Researcher Dr. Jonathan Epstein. Picture from Dr. Elliot Garber's "Uncommon Veterinarian" Podcast. Some schools offer "Dual-Degree Programs", in which a student is admitted with the expectation of completing two degrees, such as a DVM/PhD, DVM/MPH, or DVM/MPVM. Degrees in combination with your DVM can afford you the skills and knowledge for exciting and extraordinary veterinary careers in public health, wildlife conservation medicine and research, biomedical research, academia, and more ..read more

Anyone can tell you that getting into veterinary school means getting experience with animals, getting good grades in science, and creating good relationships with employers and potential letter-of-rec writers. But there are some pro tips that many people don't think to share, or don't realize until they're older. Here, I give you ten tips that are best heard as early in your life as possible, not only to help you get in to veterinary school, but to help you reach any goal you want in life. Note: this article is an adaptation of a handout I passed out during a speaking gig at the UC Davis Ve ..read more