<p>I'm an Ecology and Evolutionary Biology major at Princeton looking to apply to veterinary schools when the time comes, and although you do not have to be a biology or related major, you still have to take the required number of credits in each of the required subject areas: i.e. biology/zoology, microbiology, organic chemistry, calculus, physics, biochemistry (not all vet schools require this), and of course English/composition and social sciences. Some schools have a pre-vet track that fulfills much of this automatically, but at my school I have to figure it out more or less on my own. Here is an example of the course requirements for Univ. of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine: <a href="http://www.vet.upenn.edu/admissions/requirements.html%5B/url%5D">http://www.vet.upenn.edu/admissions/requirements.html</a> . </p>
<p>I would not take your sights off vet school, but be aware that there are only 28 vet schools in the country, and they have quite competitive applicant pools. You may have to apply two or three times in extreme cases to finally get in to vet school, but the point is that this level of difficulty is not uncommon.</p>
<p>Since you are in high school, I would contact the colleges to which you are looking to apply. Many schools have something like Health or Medical Professions advising that provides information to both current and prospective students about preparing for medical or veterinary school in college. I would also ask some people in your prospective departments about how people applying to vet school have done in the past and what they did while at said school. </p>
<p>I know for a fact that many students frequently take a gap year (or two) to get veterinary experience, either by volunteering at a clinic (large/small/equine/exotics), or interning at a zoo or aquarium. This is possible because GRE scores are valid for a few years after the testing date. My friend who recently graduated from the University of Virginia is interning with an equine veterinarian outside of Richmond, VA, and he plans to apply to veterinary school in 2008.
In my case, I plan to apply to a combined DVM/Ph.D program which can be extraordinarily selective. I am currently working as a research intern at a zoo in Chicago, and I intend to intern at four more facilities by 2010. After graduation I hope to spend even more time interning under vets and other scientists. </p>
<p>Pre-vet students know that getting into veterinary school is the toughest, so the best strategy is to have a contingency plan, which often involves attending graduate school in animal sciences and possibly re-applying to a DVM program after doing academic work there. </p>
<p>What you have to figure out, as a high school student, is which school will provide you with the most support. Consider which school will provide the easiest means of meeting the requirements, and still enable you to build up your GPA and do well in whatever department you decide to enter. For example, my school has a special section of organic chemistry just for biology majors, which means we are not pitted against the hardcore chemistry majors. State schools like NC State, Rutgers, Purdue, and UC-Davis are often considered, but there are many others that fit the bill. </p>
<p>Just keep in mind that getting into vet school will most likely never be a freak stroke of luck. The interview makes sure of that. If you really have a passion for studying and/or helping animals, then veterinary school is definitely something for you, if not, then I wouldn't recommend veterinary school, just because it is such a huge commitment. Of course, you have a few years to decide, so that takes some of the pressure off. Heck, I'm still not even sure of the logistics. </p>
<p>I hope this helps,</p>
<p>tokyorevelation9</p>
<p>P.S. If you have any questions, feel free to PM me.</p>