What can we help you find?

Moving into Surgery, Externships

It seems as though the further I get into veterinary school, the faster the semesters seem to fly by.  

As I am writing this post, it is week eight of my second semester as a second-year veterinary student.  It seems like just yesterday that it was week one. 

Probably the most exciting thing about this semester has been starting surgery.  We have our “Introduction to Surgery” course this semester, and it has been such a great experience.  

Even the simple things, like learning how to wrap our surgery gowns and instruments and how to get scrubbed and gowned for surgery, have been exciting for me. So far this semester, we have already practiced a liver biopsy and an abdominal exploratory.  

One of the coolest things about introductory surgery is the extremely realistic models we get to use to practice procedures on. Each model even has its own pump system that simulates blood flow and bleeding.  

I think that practicing on these realistic models is a great way to gain confidence before having real patients put in front of us; the things we are practicing and learning in our clinical skills and surgery courses are going to make us much more confident when it comes time to perform real procedures.  

I definitely feel like I leave every semester of veterinary school more and more confident and prepared to help my future patients.  

Right now, I am focused on going into equine medicine after I graduate, and so in the midst of studying, I am also arranging summer externships.  

I can say that I am truly lucky to have such an amazing group of professors who have been willing to meet with me outside of class to help me establish connections with clinics that I want to extern at.  

I am excited to take what I have learned this semester, and past semesters, and apply it during my externships!

My Veterinary Education Update

I have officially finished another semester of veterinary school! It feels awesome to have another semester under my belt.

 

Though this was definitely my toughest semester so far, I feel as though I have learned so many valuable things from my classes.

 

Clinical pathology was probably my favorite course this semester; clinical pathology encompasses how to perform and interpret lab work, and I really enjoyed how clinically relevant I felt it was.

 

I enjoyed this course because it got me excited to spend time in the clinic over the winter break and practice reading and interpreting lab data. I will be spending a lot of my break working at a clinic and putting what I have learned into action.

 

While I am always excited to go back home and apply knowledge, it is always even more exciting to see just how much I have learned.

Staying in the Spirit

carter mcadooI am currently halfway through the third week of my second semester in veterinary school.

I made it through my first semester and I loved it. It was very hard at times but the one thing that never dissipated was my excitement to be furthering my knowledge in veterinary medicine.

I have learned so many things in such a short amount of time.

One thing that I was looking forward to going into winter break was getting to go and apply my knowledge in a clinical setting.  I am by no means a veterinarian yet but in just one semester I have learned so many applicable things.

While working over winter break I found myself able to communicate with the veterinarians in the practice. I did not understand everything, but I was able to talk to the veterinarians and learn from them.

I am so excited to continue learning so that I can continue to apply my knowledge.

A ‘Test’-y Situation

carter mcadooAs I’m writing this, I am finishing up my fifth week of classes in my first year of veterinary school.

At this point I have had an anatomy exam, a physiology exam, and my first immunology exam.  I am a little worn out, but the one thing that never fades is how much I am loving vet school. I have been working toward this goal my whole life and because of that I am truly enjoying my time.

The things we are learning have a new level of pertinence to them and I am trying to soak up as much as I can. We have had multiple opportunities to get hands-on experience with animals, which makes the whole process so much fun.

It is a lot of hard work being in vet school, but my experiences during my undergraduate career are helping me to be successful. Being a biomedical sciences student as an undergraduate, I learned how to effectively manage my time and focus on my studies. Taking classes like anatomy and physiology in my undergraduate days also set me up for success in my first graduate years. I am very happy that I made the choice, four years ago, to pursue a degree in biomedical sciences.

Being Accepted into Vet School

Carter M.It is official: I have been accepted to the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine!

I am so overwhelmingly excited to be a part of the class of 2022. Come this May, I will be graduating with a degree in biomedical sciences and then in August I will start vet school.

I am excited to be graduating, but at the same time, I am not all that focused on it. For a lot of people, graduation is the end of it, but for me, I graduate and then move on to more schooling.

I think that on graduation day I will be really excited because all of my friends and family will be here celebrating. Up until then, though, vet school is really what is on my mind.

I was so happy when I found out I had been accepted, but then I had the realization of, “wow, I really have to do this now.” It has not even started yet and my mind is filled with so many different questions. I constantly think about what it is going to be like and if I am going to be able to handle it.

At the end of the day, I turn my focus back to the here and now. My main focus right now is learning as much as I can about physiology.

In going forward, I just focus on the fact that I have conquered a lot in my undergraduate years and I will continue to do what it takes to be successful.

Interviewing for Vet School

Carter M.During this past winter break, I was invited to interview with the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine. Upon receiving the emailed invitation, I was elated; it was a very surreal feeling. I have wanted to be a veterinarian for as long as I can remember and getting my interview made it suddenly feel real.

Obviously, I had not been accepted at that point but getting my interview was a huge step for me. My interview date was about two weeks from when I received my email.

The interview process for Texas A&M’s vet school is in the form of multiple mini interviews (MMIs). On the date of the interview, you show up and have six mini interviews, with the idea being that if someone does not do as well in one of his or her interviews, not all hope is lost.

Each interview lasts eight minutes, and they fly by. Prior to my interview, I had gone online and found practice MMI questions, and each night I would sit down with my mom (who is a veterinarian) and we would do mock interviews. This really helped me get comfortable with the process.

The day of my interview I was nervous, but at the same time, I was excited. Interviewers stress the fact that they want everyone to have fun in their interviews; I tried to focus on this and I think it really helped me. I just tried to enjoy each topic I was given.

When it was all said and done, I felt really good about how I had done. Now all that is left is to just wait.