Hi everyone! My name is Jasmin and I am a second year student here at WSU College of Veterinary Medicine. I am originally from Belfair, a smaller town on the west side of the state. As prospective students, I’m sure your eager to hear my story and everyone else’s on how they did it. So here it goes.
I didn’t consider veterinarian as a career possibility until my sophomore year of high school. I have always been around animals. My family has a small hobby farm with everything from horses, chickens, pigs, sheep, goats, and pheasants, to the occasional cow. I was an active member of 4H for 8 years and have been barrel racing since middle school. My star barrel horse contracted Equine Herpes Virus-1 in 2005, and it was trying to nurse her back health that made me realize, I could do this. I could be a vet. After all, it couldn’t get much worse than removing feces right?
That was my starting point, I know most people probably had some sort of experience like me and it came down to hard work and personal drive to get them through those tough classes (for me it was focusing in chemistry). I came to WSU after doing two years at a community college with the running start program. This program allowed me to graduate from high school with both my high school diploma and an Associate of Science. I graduated from WSU with a Bachelors in Animal Science in May 2009.
During my undergraduate time at WSU, I became involved in Block and Bridle, a livestock industry club. I loved the opportunity to handle cattle and make contacts in the industry. The summer before I applied to veterinary school, I shadowed at two clinics close to home to make sure veterinary medicine was still what I wanted to do. I shadowed at both an AAHA accredited small animal practice and a mixed animal practice. I enjoyed both experiences and continue to work at on during school breaks.
I would like to become a large animal veterinarian and deal with food animals and horses. I don’t mind the idea of a mixed animal practice, but large animal is my primary interest. WSU’s vet school is a great because it allows students to study all species, so I don’t have to focus on one just yet.
So that’s my story of my vet school pursuit. However, my advice to prospective students is to see everyone’s story, and realize that people get in from all walks of life. Our class had ages 20-40 admitted with a varying GPA and experience level. So take everyone’s story as evidence that everyone is different and don’t stress the details. And lastly GO COUGS!
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