Hate College but Want to be a Vet

I always loved highschool but I find college has given me depression. I was valedictorian and never got anything but an A in highschool and suddenly I have a 2.8 gpa after two years of college. My advisor has told me I will likely have to enter post grad program to boost my gpa before applying to vet schools but the thought of even more college kills me. I cannot bear the thought of more than 8 years of college when I feel so done after just a year and a half. There is nothing else I want to do besides be a vet and I have wanted to be one since I was in 6th grade. I can’t think of any other options that I want to entertain. My parents are ignorant about the application process and tell me I’ll still be fine to get in but I have failed two pre reqs which I still need to retake and I know it will be many years before I could ever successfully apply.

Thinking of pushing back vet school further just makes me think of when I will ever have time to have a social life and start a family when I am struggling so badly that all of my free time is spent in office hours and tutoring. I have entered so many help programs with no improvement to my gpa and have taken the minimal amount of credits the last 3 semesters. I have only learned that I do not have an aptitude for biology and had almost no prior knowledge for even the most basic classes while most other students seemed to be only reviewing the material. All of last summer I spent being tutored and told myself that this year would be better but my gpa only declined from a 2.9 to a 2.8. I don’t know what to do to ever reach my dream. I never thought I would be one to give up but at this point I don’t know what more to do. I wanted to graduate vet school as early in my life as possible and now have pushed myself back at least two years. All I want to do is be a vet.

What is it exactly that makes you so keen on being a vet? There really is no way around the years of schooling to achieve that goal. However, if your goal is to work with animals, there are other career paths.

What about being a vet tech instead?

I think that it may be helpful to take care of your depression first. Is there a counseling service on campus that you can start with? Is there perhaps a learning disability that you may be unaware of? I will be very honest with you, my daughter is in Veterinary school and there is no such thing as free time. Many times she will go back to the anatomy lab and be there till after midnight. Take care of yourself first, then see if it is still possible to increase your GPA and take the prerequisites. Vet school is a long haul and an even longer one if you want to specialize. Even my daughter takes it one term at a time. Please take care of yourself!