I would really appreciate any opinions and/or experience with either Cal Poly Pomona Animal Health Science Major or Animal Science at Chico State. How difficult are the programs? Thank you for your help. I was accepted today off the waitlist at CPP and I could use your input.
Both are good programs but, surrounded by different environments. Pick based one where you think you’ll feel most comfortable.
Congrats and good luck
CPP leads to certified Vet Technologist degree (NOT a pre-vet program - Animal Science is their pre-vet program) which prepares you to work with mixed animals, mixed settings, with clinical hours enough to go before the vet tech board upon graduation.
Chico is not vet-tech related and is generally considered more about industry work, ag education, or pre-vet.
The CPP program is said to be more rigorous because you are prepared to be a certified technologist assisting with surgeries and to know all there is to know for your career vs. Chico (or CPPs pre-vet) which assumes you are going on to grad school.
CPP is more hands-on and includes horses and small animals. CPP is one of the only 4 year degree Vet Tech programs and therefore its graduates are sought after and better paid than traditional vet tech schools.
Chico does have hands on but not as much unless you get a job/internships at the farm, and only includes beef cattle, dairy cattle, swine, goats, and sheep.
Both are excellent choices so it depends on what career path you see yourself on.
CPP AHS=Working in a vet clinic or serving other animal health needs (think of certified vet tech as a physicians assistant - can do everything except prescribe meds and perform surgery unless under a DVMs supervision) could include industry animals (animal test subjects) or government work (police or military dogs) and can also include farm animals’ health.
Chico AS = Moving on to vet school, or working in research for feed companies, pharma, lab research, working in meat production industry, working in ag education (4-H, FFA)…
And last but not least, one is in Southern CA, pretty central to a lot of activities, urban and otherwise, and the other is pretty isolated in a very rural area but day trips to the mountains/lakes and Sacramento aren’t out of the question.
Good luck and congrats on having a choice!
@grrrrlnxtdoor Thank you so much. I really appreciate your input. This is exactly the education I was looking for to help me decide. You just confirmed my decision. 
So what did you decide? @julben
CPP…city, Disney (i’m a fan), program, proximity to friends and family. Thanks so much! I know its gonna be harder…but I think it will be worth it.
I know you already decided, but coming from someone who has visited both schools (I was interested in both of them for their animal science programs:)), I have to say Chico is not a town I could EVER see me surviving in. Maybe it’s because I’m too much of a southern California ho, but northern California is SO different from southern it’s ridiculous. Once you get north of Santa Barbara it might as well be a completely different state. I highly recommend visiting Chico before committing if you’re not used to that environment. Put it this way: on our tour the guide said that their Whitney Hall building is the tallest building north of Sacramento until Portland. It was probably 8 stories high. It’s that isolated up there.
Chico was definitely a great school but also definitely not for me either- but it could easily be perfect for someone else. I know you’ve already decided but maybe if someone else googles this in the future they’ll see this reply Big congratulations on getting into two great schools and if I get into CPP next year maybe I’ll see you!!! Good luck!
I know this is late. But how is the city of Pomona ? I know it is around LA , but I want to know how that is .