Work Experience Vet Medicine

[Boldly]

DC yr 11 is thinking of doing vet medicine at uni. With those of you with children already n studying / in yr 12/13 what work experience and how much did they do? She does have a horse so is v experienced on that side but wondering what types and variety of work experience would be best. Thank you

I trained as a vet. I wouldn't particularly recommend it as a career choice but for work experience I did lambing, had a weekend job at a petting farm from 13, worked at the stables on my other weekend day, and did weeks at various vet practices during the holidays. You'll struggle to get vet practice work experience though as most practices only take uni students so may have to contact a few.

@Boldly she'll need some vet practice experience and some animal husbandry. There are not really set limits these days but you'll need enough to understand the profession. 3 weeks vet and husbandry is minimum. Most will have lots more. Liverpool interview all who have the relevant experience they require (all Unis differ).

Details here

www.liverpool.ac.uk/veterinary-science/study/how-to-apply/

Each Uni has different forms to fill in as part of the application process and these determine whether you get that interview.

Most practices will take school students these days. Don't need lambing.

@Whatabouthow not all young vets plan on staying in the UK. Australia and New Zealand are actively recruiting them.

our vets have said previously would take her.
Have spent enough money with them over the years so def owe us 😭 can I ask why you wouldn’t recommend. I have been reading a lot about the awful stress of it.

That's very handy! If they do large animal too be sure to say you give permission for her to go out on visits.

I really enjoyed the problem solving side of it, and surgery. I didn't enjoy being shouted at by owners when I'd just spent nine hours saving their pet and they weren't happy with the bill. People don't understand how much medical care costs because we have the NHS and hospitals see thousands of patients so can spread the cost of diagnostic imaging. But vets just don't see that level of traffic. Which means you can get images done quickly without waiting months, but it will cost you. Same for surgery - oxygen etc is pricey. I didn't enjoy working all of the hours and being on call (although that is changing now as most practices contract out their on call) for little thanks.

But I can also say that there's very little change she'll listen to that - I absolutely ignored the vets who I did work experience with who told me to consider other options 😂

Make sure she has a realistic idea what it’s like - our work experience students swan in 9-4, take an hour for lunch and faff about wiping kennels. She needs to know the 8.30-7.30 shifts that are standard, the working weekends, the difficult conversations about cost and euthanasia. The attrition rate for new grads now is ridiculous.
I had dairy, horse, rescue centre and vet experience when applying (a long time ago). Public facing roles are also valuable in building up the skills needed to interview well - a lot of vet schools now MMI interviews which test multiple different skills, involve role play etc

thank you and @Whatabouthow for the advice. It’s an equine vets. I can imagine the conversations you have had about costs. Unfortunately we got to know our vets very well because horses! She was with her first pony the entire time it was pts and the vets were brilliant explaining it all to her, this was after months of unsuccessful rehab. She does long days at yard often doing 10+ horses on her own.
Will get her to go and speak to vets we know. Thank you I know it’s an awfully hard job and school are keenly promoting it, she goes to a state school in Hackney and they have a medical bursary support program for potential medical and veterinary students. have told her to think long and hard about it. Ultimately her decision.

I'm on a train sitting next to a current 5th year. You don't need loads of experience but variety is good. If you look at Liverpool they value a customer facing job just as much.

Placement hours are long. Course is long and needs commitment as lots to learn. But if you love it then it sounds fun. DD didn't have lambing but did have 5 different vets and hours at stables and small animal rescue places. Got 4 offers from a v non vet family and went to local comp.

Thank you for taking time to respond. Yes I have said she has to be sure what wants to do as v hard. I think she would like to play horses all day but she is realistic enough to know that need ££££ otherwise glorified dogsbody. She is lucky in respect she is academically strong so had lots of options but absolutely adament doesn’t want to work in an office. Lots of food for thought for her

My DD is 2nd year vet student. She applied twice (no offers first time round), but for her first try she had a week each at two different small animal vet practices, volunteering at our local city farm and a MOOC (this was tail end of Covid and the unis were accepting courses in lieu of hands-on experience to some degree). She did look at lambing but couldn’t make it fit round school, and a lot of farms prefer older helpers. She got two interviews but no offers.

She reapplied post A-level and in the time between exams and application, accrued another week at a country vet’s that did some cows and horses as well as small animals, and a month at the RSPCA shelter (they will only take over-18s though). This time she got three interviews and two offers.

No regrets yet about her choice of course. But be warned, the workload is insane!

I also wouldn’t recommend veterinary. The pay is poor. The hours are long and the clients are honestly disgraceful. I despise people more and more the longer I do the job.
It can be a door in to other work, research/lab etc so possible to avoid clients.
The course is intense with long hours too. Not something to rush in to if she’s not 100% sure

Do you have a rescue centre near you? Particularly one of the bigger charities.
I volunteer for Cats Protection at one of the cat centres and they take on work experience from age 16. There will be day to day cleaning and feeding etc.
However, staff do a health check on newly admitted cats and a vet will come in weekly to see how cats are, do vaccinations etc. I would imagine Blue Cross, Wood Green, RSPCA etc would be similar. It would be useful learning about animal health and handling those animals.

My friend's DD got the dream Saturday job (paid!) at a canine hydrotherapy centre, so I'm sure work experience would be possible.

Another vet who wouldn't recommend it either!
I left practice within 3 years of graduating and have worked elsewhere ever since.

Other countries are an option. Although DD has met some very happy vets who have been doing it a long time. The graduate schemes seem to offer good support for the first 2 years. We will see.

our vets have said previously would take her.
Have spent enough money with them over the years so def owe us 😭 can I ask why you wouldn’t recommend. I have been reading a lot about the awful stress of it.

Not the poster you asked but you've answered your own question here.
The sheer entitlement of clients is a major reason vets leave the industry.

You have chosen to keep a pet. By doing so you are taking on the responsibility of paying for it's medical care. But somehow because you've used a professional service you feel they owe you something? Does your hairdresser owe you anything? Or your dentist? I hope your DC has a very very thick skin.

@Longtermuser I think the comment was v light hearted and jokey. Any people facing role involves dealing with idiots (I'm a teacher and some of the parents ...... ps jokey comment).

All I can say is DD has loved the course (yes it's difficult, long and lots of parasites to learn, but seems a lot of fun is had along the way too). She loves her placements, which now include her doing her own consults and surgeries, and for now she's happy with her career choice. If the UK doesn't work out she'll head to Canada (NAVLE done), or Aus.

Work experience needs to be varied & you need to reflect on what you've learned. Keep a diary so you can remember specific cases to talk about. And know why being a vet is hard and what other roles vets can do.

Unis now do lectures and OSCEs on dealing with difficult, arrogant and entitled clients. Not the real world but it's a start.
Personally the 3 days in the abattoir would have finished me off 🤢.

Hi @mumsneedwine our dds are nearly there! Mine has discovered an absolute passion for equine work in her last 2 years and cannot wait to get started. It’s so sad to hear the repeated story about retention but my dd has met many very happy equine vets in her placements and remains optimistic…. @Boldly if your dc has her heart set on vet med then she should go for it, but be aware of the genuine pressures and serious issues with the career and of the gruelling nature of the course. We were well prepared but I am still surprised at the lack of holidays the students get and the need for deep pockets to fund the car, travel and accommodation costs involved in all the EMS placements. Overall my dd has enjoyed the course ( she only has 4 months to go) and I really think owning a horse through her school years has been very good preparation for the dedication and hard work required to become a vet so your dc will have that in her favour. Lots of animal handling experience is really useful beforehand as is being confident talking to people from very varied backgrounds.

Ds24 thought of being a vet and was quite committed and from 15 worked on a farm and then got work at 17 in a vets. He ultimately decided it was not for him. A friend of ds17 has an offer from Nottingham for 3 B's and did no real work experience at all. We toured all the vet schools with ds and found it really helpful and informative so definitely worth doing as many open days as possible when the time comes.

@Scottandcharlene hello 👋. So glad all going well - they do seem to find their interest. DD went off equine as too much driving 😂. She finished her last EMS last week ! What a 5 years it's been - bit of a pandemic, lots of AVS and balls and lots of cute animal cuddling.

And I agree that deep pockets are needed to get them an Airbnb near a placement, but she does have friends without a car and they managed somehow. However Unis do help a lot if not able to afford - DDs pay petrol and some accommodation is provided. And they also give grants to do the fun stuff abroad, so funded some of her Africa and Thailand EMS.

@mumonthehill that's a v low offer from Notts ! Their contextual is usually ABB. they did go into clearing last year with BBB but turned out it was for 2 places (& given to people who got AAA apparently). And no wex is v v unusual too as Notts ask about it at interview. He must have something v outstanding about him !

Just adding this as don't want anyone thinking this is normal ! I'm also a teacher who supports students into vet med.

This is Notts current policy on wex. Just so others are aware this is the normal amount required.