Vet Requirement Info Sheet 9-14 Update
Vet Requirement Info Sheet 9-14 Update
This is an overview and should in NO WAY substitute for personally reviewing the requirements of each school
1
Tufts University requires two semesters of math. One of the required classes can be a statistics course
taken outside of the math department
2
University of Pennsylvania requires either BioStats or Statistics taken through the math department. At
Hunter BioStats is a graduate level course that requires instructor permission prior to enrollment.
3
Organic Chemistry II (CHEM 224) is a pre-requisite for BIOL 203 at Hunter College.
4
Virginia Maryland Regional College requires two semesters of math in Algebra, Geometry,
Trigonometry, Calculus, or Statistics.
All of the schools mentioned above require scores for the Graduate Record Examination (GRE). Cornell
also accepts scores from the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT) in place of the GRE.
Each school has additional requirements in the social sciences, humanities, math, and writing. This
document is only intended to be an overview of the science pre-requisites.
Veterinary programs prefer courses that are taken at 4-year institutions with rigorous science programs.
Students who are biology majors or who have taken more upper level science courses are generally the
preferred applicants. However, being well rounded in the social sciences and the humanities is also
important to veterinary programs. Students might consider biology as a major, with a minor in a social
science or humanities area.
There are only 28 veterinary schools in the country and only one of those schools, The College of
Veterinary Medicine at Cornell University, is in NY. Most veterinary schools give priority to state
residents, increasing the competitiveness for out of state applicants. For example Virginia-Maryland
Regional College of Veterinary medicine currently accepts 95 students giving only 15 seats to students
outside of Virginia and Maryland.
While many veterinary programs will consider applicants who have completed 90 undergraduate
credits, the more coursework completed the stronger the application. Completion of your bachelor’s
degree is highly recommended. The average GPA for admitted students is between 3.5-3.7 for the 28
veterinary schools.
Experience with animals, particularly in a veterinary capacity, is crucial to your application. Most schools
require that students have experience with both large and small animals. Generally speaking,
completing at least 600 hours with a veterinarian is recommended. Working with large animals at a zoo,
wildlife refuge, or aquarium is also recommended and, again, many schools require experience with
large animals. Veterinary schools usually require at least one letter of recommendation from a
Veterinarian, which makes this kind of experience even more crucial. For the most accurate and up-to-
date information, refer to the individual veterinary schools for their requirements.
Research experience also makes for a good veterinary school applicant. The Psychology and Biology
departments at Hunter may be able to provide students with animal research experience.
If you are planning on applying to Veterinary School, you will need to get a committee letter. You should
open a file with the Pre-Health Professions Office and start collecting evaluations and recommendations
from the appropriate faculty, instructional staff, and supervisors. You can do this by going to:
http://www.hunter.cuny.edu/prehealth/links-resources. To learn more about committee letters and
your Pre-Health file, please see the guides on the Pre-Health Website at
www.hunter.cuny.edu/prehealth .
Helpful Websites:
The College of Veterinary Medicine at Cornell University allows students to join their e-mail listserv and
receive their newsletter. If you are interested in getting the most up-to-date information regarding
veterinary medicine and the application process follow this link:
http://www.vet.cornell.edu/admissions/GetUpdates.cfm