Marlena Lopez

11.  Is it hard knowing that you love animals, but will have to put them down?
 
Putting down animals will be extremely difficult; however seeing an animal suffering from unnecessary endless pain would be even more difficult. Veterinarians are compassionate, hard-working, good people; they pour their heart and soul into their work and would not recommend euthanasia of your beloved companion unless it was necessary to prevent the animal from suffering any further pain.

I have heard from many veterinary professionals that one of the biggest frustrations of the job is knowing that there are medical options available to potentially save the animal, but the owners opts not to continue with treatment. Veterinary care can be expensive, but if your veterinarian is recommending a diagnostic test, treatment, or surgical option for your pet, they are doing so with your beloved animal companion's best interest in mind. 
 

12.  What is the most challenging part about becoming/being a veterinarian? 
 
I always thought that getting into veterinary school would be the hardest thing that I had to do; it is extremely competitive and it’s difficult to achieve high marks in the pre-requisite classes while obtaining the years of clinical and animal handling experience that you need to have a competitive application for U.S. vet schools. But I was wrong! Vet school itself has been an incredibly challenging.

First year in vet school I took some really hard emotional blows. I didn't receive the marks I had expected on my exams. I had always excelled in school up until this point and it was incredibly challenging to face the fact that I was not the top of my class anymore, I felt like I was just barely scrapping by. I heard that many vet students face this same challenge; the university gathers a cohort of the best and the brightest all in one room and then sets a new curve. Even though I knew this was a common phenomenon in vet school, I somehow thought that I would be unaffected by it. I thought that I didn't care what marks I received, so long as I was learning what I needed to become a great vet, but over time my confidence began to quiver and my exam anxiety rose. 

It's really hard to work your butt off for a subject, going through each lecture several times, staying up late and waking up early to study each day, give up your social life and not seeing a single soul outside of vet school for months, and then have all of that effort be reduced down to a minimal pass or even fail really breaks your confidence. However, what I have learned is that my performance on a few exams does not represent the type of veterinarian that I will be. I know the material, and I know that I will be a compassionate and well educated veterinarian. I have learned that I can't gain my confidence from my university marks as I used to, but instead by recognizing how much I have learned and grown as a student.  
 

13.  What is the most difficult challenge that you have faced?

Vet school has been a bunch of highs and lows. I can only speak from my experience, but there are times were you have so much to study that you don't literally don't go outside besides walking between classes for weeks, and there are times were you're so overwhelmed and stressed that you don't think you're going to make it through the semester. I think that stress occurs at every school. however, at every school you also grow an incredible bond with your class mates because they are walking through the fire with you and no matter where you go, you will always have the support of your family and friends. 

There have been times were I've called my best friend whom I haven't spoken to in months to cry and vent and she was just there for me, to encourage me to stick with it because "pressure makes diamonds" and "tough times don't last, but tough people do." Vet school is tough and there is no denying that, but in the big scheme of things, it is only a few tough years that will set you up for a wonderful career. 

That being said, some schools do offer a better student experience than others. What I wish I had done before choosing a school was have lunch with a few different vet students from each school and ask them what their experiences were like, if they liked their faculty, what support the faculty offers students, etc. Truth be told, if I had done that, I probably wouldn't be at the university I am now. I was too focused on the rankings and not on student happiness. 

The support that you receive from the faculty plays a large role in student happiness. If I could turn back the clock, I would've investigated my university better.

Some things I think are important to enquire about are:

• What are the teacher to student ratio in labs? In some of my labs there are 130 students to two professors which makes it really difficult to ask questions. 

• What sort of support and counselling systems are available for students? Vet school can be very stressful and your university should recognize this and offer some sort of support for their students.

• Does the university help you find external placements? Some universities really help their students apply for externships by telling them where and when they can apply, while others leave it totally up to the student. It was disappointing to hear that I had missed out on applying for a competitive zoo final year externship because the deadline was mid-year first year. I didn't even know to start looking for externships that early, and I had only heard that I missed the opportunity from friends at another university where they informed their students and gave them the information on how to apply.

• Do the professors offer office hours, and if so, does your schedule allow you the time to meet with them? My schedule during my first two years of vet school consisted of classes or labs from 9am-5pm everyday with an hour off for lunch. The work week of most professors in Australia overlap with that schedule and I found it really difficult to schedule meetings with my professors. 

But I don't want to just focus on the negatives, I have also had some absolutely wonderful experiences in school, most of which have come from my class mates and external placements.