ABAC’s pre-vet club announced that fourteen of its members were accepted into veterinary colleges. “Students were accepted into six different colleges across four states and three countries,” said club advisor Dr. Jenny Harper, who teaches biology. Getting into a veterinary college is no easy accomplishment; students must have high GPAs, averaging around 3.6, have at least 500 supervised veterinary hours, 700 animal hours, extracurriculars, and volunteer experience.
Many colleges also require interviews with candidates as part of the acceptance process. The national acceptance rate into veterinary school in the United States is between 10-15%, making the Pre-Vet Club’s accomplishment of fourteen acceptances.
To encourage student success within the club, Dr. Harper received two grants supported by the Capacity Building Grant for Non-land-grant Colleges of Agriculture Program, titled “Southwest Georgia Veterinary Medicine Candidate Growth Capacity Building Program” and “Planning a Georgia Veterinary Science Pipeline: Preparing Students for Careers in Veterinary medicine in the Underserved Region of Rural South Georgia.” These two grants assisted Dr. Harper in building partnerships with organizations and institutions that have offered ABAC students unique opportunities to strengthen veterinary school applications.
The Pre-Vet club provided the opportunity to work with the faculty and staff of the University of Georgia’s Tifton Veterinary Diagnostic and Investigational Laboratory to complete internships, alongside the chance to work with the Georgia Veterinary Medical Association for guidance. Access to these institutions helped make students’ veterinary school applications more competitive, alongside the ability to collaborate with animal shelters, and local veterinarians.
“Personally, I am interested in large animal medicine and through the internship at the diagnostic lab not only was I able to earn research hours, but I was also able to go on farm calls and participate in activities such as dehorning and breeding soundness exams.” says Senior Ashton Curry, who was accepted into veterinary school at the University of Georgia.
Curry said “single most important factor has been the close communication between the students and professors,” and that “Being able to walk up to them at the end of class and they know who you are and what your career aspirations are, has been a blessing in terms of helping find volunteer opportunities and internships.”
The experience Ashton Curry has had echoed the sentiments of the other students who were accepted into veterinary schools. Overall, the pre-vet club saw fourteen students accepted across six colleges, four states, and three countries.
Harper said, “The ABAC Pre-Vet club has worked very hard over the years to provide students with opportunities to strengthen their resumes; develop lasting friendships and networking skills; and learn as much as possible about the veterinary medical field.”
The students who were accepted are as follows: Luke Abel, University of Georgia; Jennifer Albertson, University of Georgia; Jazzmyn Armstrong, Ross University; T.J. Bowden, University of Georgia; Lauren Clayden, Clemson University and the University of Oklahoma; Hayden Crook, University of Georgia; Levi Crook, University of Georgia; Ashton Curry, University of Georgia; Cody Davis, University of Georgia; Mary Davis, University of Georgia and Pennsylvania State University; Makenzie Hester, University of Georgia and Clemson University; Ethan Torres, Royal Veterinary College; Taylor Stegall, Ross University; Megan Williams, University of Georgia