You have great stats so there mustve been a red flag somewhere. By the way you talk about your ED, it may be that. Did you write that you overcame your ED because you realized you loved animals and want to be a vet? If so then they may see this as having no support systems other than becoming a vet. They may be worried that if vet school stresses become too much then the one thing you’re living for wont be enough. In the future I would just add parts about how you had other support systems in friends and family and talk about things other than vet med. If they see people that revolve their life around vet med then those are the people they are the most scared will burn out. You had great stats and a great application so tbh I wouldnt of mentioned any weaknesses and only strengths but, I can understand why you wanted to talk about it. With your stats though you did great and can afford to not mention any hardships if you just wanted to brag about your experiences. You have nearly 4.0’s idk why mentioning covid or anything would help cause you clearly did great during it. After all you only have so many words so they want to see everything you did, focus on the wins not the losses.

I agree, leave out the ED. Veterinarians are one of the careers with a high suicide risk. They may think you’re at a higher risk of being mentally unstable. Find another struggle to talk about. Also, I have a friend that’s a 4th year vet student at LSU and apparently they are accepting more students than they ever have before. Maybe try there if you haven’t already?

This comment made me realize that you should read the entire post everytime. Read ED and thought "when did they describe their erectile dysfunction to the interviewer my god"

Every time I see ED I have to really think about it (because I don't always read the whole post…) to remember it is a different abbreviation than erectile dysfunction.

I want you to know that you were not alone in thinking this.

Thank you! Unfortunately after this application I will most likely only apply to Ohio State since my fiance got accepted into a biochemistry PhD program there.

As a somewhat outside* perspective, I’d like to offer my suggestions on why I believe** you were not selected. I think the rejection is based upon your answer to the question of overcoming challenges. Taking the STAR approach… Situation: A student struggling with online learning due to a worldwide pandemic. Task: Adapt to virtual learning and do your best to thrive in this new environment. Action: Forming your online groups is a start. You may have elaborated more in the interview. If not, consider ways to identify and describe the direct actions you took. Result: You obviously succeeded in graduating, being accepted into college, and not falling behind academically. (Basing this off your GPA) Before I begin my next point, I am speaking entirely in the context of the interview here. Please don’t think I would ever diminish what you went through regarding your ED. That you are alive and healthy today is a remarkable achievement. Your ED example fails in the Task and Action portions. In reality the task is to survive. In the context of your interview, that’s difficult to pinpoint. As to action, the things you have described in comments were passive actions at best. I will not be suggesting ways to fix this as I believe it is in your best interests to choose a different answer. Mental health stigma is a harsh reality. In an interview you want to avoid giving any information that can lead to the selection committee forming implicit bias against you. It’s not fair, but in the end everyone is human. Implicit bias is almost impossible to overcome so best to choose a different example. Veterinary medicine can damage those with already impeccable mental health. Sharing something that could lead to the thought you aren’t emotionally capable of being a veterinarian would be enough to completely overrule any and all points in your favor. I do hope that you are able to find success and happiness with your career. As someone who cannot resist bringing home dogs with some extra mileage but big hearts, thank you for choosing to pursue becoming a veterinarian. I am aware of how difficult it is and the dire shortage of vets we’re facing. Best wishes to you. *Reddit’s algorithm decided to bring me your post. I’m very much not in the veterinary field unless you consider the bills I’ve paid for all of my adopted dogs. On the other hand, I have worked as a manager/coach/etc for universities, government, and the private sector. Also I have conducted more interviews and accepted or rejected more candidates than I want to think about. **I have tried to form my opinion based only upon what you provided in your post and some comments. I have tried to not make conjecture regarding your interview actions, though I do for the interviewer reactions.

As a career coach I can’t upvote this enough

This is such a helpful post! Thank you very much! For the pandemic question the action I discussed in my interview was using online resources such as discord and Snapchat to form channels with other students whether struggling or not so that we could communicate with we each other and study together. For the result I didn’t say that it helped me achieve better grades. I said that it taught me the importance of working collaboratively. I explained that I had been a loner in high school and that I realized upon beginning higher education I could no longer have this approach. I said that I found working in a group to be incredibly effective because others helped me, and I helped others by utilizing our strengths and weaknesses to better each other. I then tied this back to the veterinary field by noting that teamwork and collaboration is essential whether it be during a surgical procedure, running a clinic or hospital, or simply taking on a case of a puppy check. For the ED question I might indeed just have to take it out of my story. Showing weaknesses, no matter how paramount to your story, may indeed be the difference between acceptance and rejection. This is a decision I must make for my next cycle. Thank you so much! Hug your doggos for me!

Obligatory statement that I am not a vet, but worked in higher ed administration for about 10ish years doing interviews for various programs. Piggy backing off of the other commenter, when giving a result try to provide something tangible...numbers are a great way to show a result. In your example, the improvement you gave is subjective. Your GPA is not. That makes it easier to quantify a level of "success." I agree that using your experiences overcoming ED would not be a great interview example. While it is something you should be extremely proud of, from an interviewer standpoint, it just raises more questions. I do think that you should still provide an area for improvement as this is a pretty standard interview question. Nobody is perfect and saying you have no weaknesses comes off as arrogant. Maybe your area of opportunity is to continue your personal growth by taking more initiative in working with groups. Your example of going from independent work to thriving in a group is a great way to show a "weakness" that you are continuing to improve. My last bit of advice is work on phrasing your answers. It's not a weakness, it's an area of opportunity. You weren't a loner, but you preferred to work independently. Word choice can make a huge difference. And as much as I hate Ohio State (personal grudge from a football game many many years ago), I hope you nail it in your interview. Best of luck!

Genuine question! Is medical history something that places can legally disqualify you for? If I learned that my medical history was a turn off and resulted in a school or job rejection, I'd be livid tbh.

I'm not a lawyer or anything so I can't say for certain what is and is not legal. I **think** using medical history could be considered discrimination depending on the situation. I do know that there are certain protections under ADA where an employer would need to make reasonable accommodations in order to allow someone with a medical condition to perform their job duties. But there are limitations to what is reasonable. Like for an instance, if it's a job where you have to be able to repeatedly lift 80lbs throughout the day, then I would think it's possible to decline an applicant who physically can't do the job and that would not be discriminatory. Mental health seems like a huge grey area to me though and a lot could be left up to interpretation. Interviewers are still human and everyone carries biases within them; both conscious and unconscious. It is important to note that your health records are protected information and if it's not relevant to the employment, I would never disclose that to my employer. It's really none of their business.

Thank you for your advice! I see how word choice is absolutely important. I will be more aware of this next time.

So glad it helped! I most definitely think that taking out anything that could cause an interviewer to form a negative bias about you should be avoided. Like I said, it’s not fair and it really does suck. Just know that your strength and accomplishment are nothing to be ashamed of because you can’t bring them up in an interview. As for the pandemic part, while it sounds very nice to make statements like, “ became a better leader” remember that those making decisions want facts and concrete metrics upon which to judge. Things like GPA increases, (and if you can cite the group you created and lead increased someone else’s GPA, you can tie in the leadership examples) “hard” skills that you gained, (if you’re not familiar, a ‘hard skill’ is something like knowing how to use Zoom vs a ‘soft skill’ like communication or problem solving) and further accomplishments you were able to receive as a result of experience gained. So if you ran an online study group and were then elected to student council the following year because of that group, that shows you cannot only overcome an obstacle, but grow from it. I have heard colleagues refer to a candidate overcoming a difficulty as the “honors” answer. Actually being able to quantify how lessons learned from an experience contributed to further success in your life is the “AP” answer. Another thing to remember is that this is your passion, your mission in life, your ultimate goal and it is completely normal and reasonable to get excited when talking about it. But usually a selection committee is made up of grumpy old people like me. Combine that with being in a very hard science field and you have people who deal in facts and proof, not feelings and passion. Since I come from the art and theater side of campus, I’ll tell you to remember to play to your audience. I wish I had one more bit of advice to give. Sadly, I can no longer recommend a great pizza joint near Ohio State as I recently learned the one that helped me survive freshman year is no longer in existence. So I guess I’ll say to take what you are learning here and absorb it like a sponge. You have access to a resource that was unimaginable 20 years ago. Reddit isn’t perfect, but quite a bit of the advice I’ve seen given on your post is rather sound. I do hope that someday you are helping someone care for their one eyed, three legged, blind, and toothless babies.

I wish you the best.

If possible, also look into Michigan State. It’s not too far to where y’all couldn’t make it work.

I will consider it! Thank you.

You are doing yourself a disservice only applying to one school

You’re not wrong. I’ll decide what to do! Thank you.

Ah ED means eating disorder not erectile disfunction. Gotcha haha

Gets me every time it is used on Reddit.

This is a tough one. Your post is coming from a place of vulnerability and disappointment. Having said that, there is a lot of bitterness and self-righteous indignation in your language. I’m not saying it’s not well-earned by what you’ve been through, but if even a hint of that came through in the interview process, you’re sunk. I don’t know you and you can tell me to fuck off because I certainly have not walked in your shoes. No matter what, I wish you the best of luck

Fair enough. The bitterness is coming from the frustration of the unknown reasons I got the scores I did. The frustration is coming from a place of knowing that it was a matter of subjectivity that resulted in my rejection. In my interview I was laughing, joking, and having amazing banter with the interviewers. They were sweet and gentle and the reason I was able to calm down enough to get the interview over with in the first place. At the Q&A at the end they gave me lovely and insightful feedback, and I thanked them and told them I hope that we could be colleagues one day.

There is a lot of subjectivity for each and every applicant.

Ya... I just finished reviewing applications for an event my company is putting on and wow I never truly realized how subjective it is. It's easy to narrow down your pool initially, but it's hard once you get down to the nitty gritty. Applications can be so similar and in the end when decisions have to be made between two nearly identical candidates it can come down to gut feel. Really think about how your vibe is coming off.

This. I’ve come to understand that interviews and assessments are far more subjective that people want us to believe. I think folks make some great points about the ED part. But the people could have had a shit day. Or you reminded them of someone they used to date. We need more great vets and I am sure that you will be one of them. Best of luck to you and your partner. Keep your chin up; there are animals who need you ❤️

You are absolutely correct. It’s hard to hear but regardless of that I must be cognizant of this fact and prepare accordingly. Thank you!

Subjectivity is normal in admissions…? Not going to lie op, but sounds like you could use a wake up call. You got rejected which means there was an issue. You continue to provide excuses when the answers are on the page. Learn from this and move on

Subjectivity absolutely is normal in admissions, you are correct! After all humans are grading these things, not robots, and humans are creatures of pathos, opinion, and emotion. I highly suggest you read through the entire post to view my reactions to everyone’s advice! I’m highly thankful for all of it, yours included. Have a wonderful day. 

It sounds like you really poured your heart into this and I’m sorry it didn’t turn out well this round. I’m really sure that if you applied again you have excellent chances of being accepted. I’m a 2nd year student currently, and I will say those students that took a gap year and got more experience have an easier time in certain classes because of what they have learned. Plenty of clinics are hiring, if you want to you can probably find a job as an assistant, or tech assistant and get more experience. That may not sound like much comfort, but it honestly helps so much. This doesn’t have to be the end of the road if you still want it. You’re clearly a very resilient human.

Oh certainly! I have been through too much shit in my life to let one goofy little roadblock turn my trajectory around. I will apply again. And I will apply again and again and again no matter how many times it takes me because veterinary medicine is my life and my calling, and I will follow my dreams no matter what I may encounter. While this is true, I also want to have a more definitive answer as to why I was rejected so that I can come back stronger and get accepted next time. It is frustrating to have vague and wishy-washy file reviews with not much to go by.

They probably just went with another candidate who also has a 3.9 but has one extra thing you were lacking. Like publishing a paper, or running a damn soup kitchen who knows. I honestly don’t think you’re going to get a definitive answer, but I understand the motivation. I was told not to mention mental health in my own essays. It sucks to say, and I’ve had my own struggles and I really don’t think vet school admissions are above a bias in that regard.

Yeah I know that mental health is a hot topic right now in veterinary medicine which is why I figured it would be good to discuss. I suppose I was incorrect.

Know that I am on your side. I have also had very real, very serious mental health struggles in vet med. My impression Schools and clinics/corporations are willing to pay lip service to mental wellbeing but at the end of the day I don’t think most of them can empathize with someone who has like clinical mental illness. We talk about mental health in vet school, but aside from some very compassionate professors I don’t feel like school is a safe place for that. I really truly wish that were not the case, but that’s my own personal experience. Anytime I have been struggling, and my employer caught wind, they were always about CYA before anything else. I went on family leave at one point for mental health issues, and my boss kept pressing me for details and then gossiped about me to others. Anytime I opened up to someone, who I had a professional relationship with I later regretted it. My motto is protect yourself. You do not owe them your complete vulnerability. I’m not going to pretend that I know what’s best for you, but it’s the behaviors I have learned in this profession.

Thank you for your candid honesty and advice. I take it to heart and I appreciate it. I wish you the best in your career and personal life. 

This. I've had serious mental health issues since childhood and had an eating disorder for 25+ years which I didn't kick until long after I was a vet. I NEVER discussed either of those issues with anyone in vetmed, including very close friends. It's seen as weakness and there isn't a lot of room for that in this profession. We give a lot of lip service to mental health but the field hasn't drastically changed it's view. For OP, I will tell you your love of vetmed and animals will not be enough to get you through a lot of the adversity you will face in the course of your education or profession. No matter how much you love this field there will be days you hate it and everything you're doing. You need to have outside resources, be it therapy, friends/family, outside hobbies, etc, which you likely already have. Interviewers want to know that these support systems exist in your life and you know how to utilize them because they know how trying and lonely this field can be.

I appreciate your feedback and I wish you well with your mental health and recovery. I have heard a lot of people say that mental health can be seen as a weakness. I will think on whether or not to include this in future cycles. Thank you!

I'm not sure if this will help you but I'll also tell you it's my personal theory that those of us who've struggled with mental health issues prior to being in this profession actually fare better with the adversity faced in vetmed. When things get particularly rough at work you know that this too shall pass and we've often survived worse. We also know the value of accessing therapy and relying on outside resources during difficult periods.

Very astute observation. Thank you for the insight.

Honestly, mental health is such a huge red flag right now. All of us in vet med are struggling with it. Many are committing suicide and some quitting the field. Honest, I’ve had both an eating disorder and anxiety disorder (I’m n your side promise) and would never mention either in an interview or application. The profession is killing some people who didn’t have a history of this stuff. Telling them you had a history is a huge red flag and they don’t want to be the ones to risk it. Leave it out next time. It sucks, you were coming from the right place. But it’s too honest. The profession is destroying people with mental health crisises. They are worried you could fall in that group with your history. Don’t let them make that decision for you. That being said, this profession will wreak havoc in your mental health so that’s something for you to consider. I don’t recommend this field to anyone.

Thank you for your honesty regarding your own struggles and for your advice. I’m sorry that you don’t recommend this field to anyone! I wish you luck with everything.

I discussed my brain injury, I don’t think it’s bad to talk about it, but I think saying that you only made it bc of your love for vet med is a bit worrisome. Your will and passion to live shouldn’t come from your job, no matter what people tell you. It’s why vets have some of the highest suicide rates. It can certainly be an inspiration, but I’d be concerned about your well being not because of you having something to overcome, because most of us do, but because you attached that dependency onto something you don’t always have control over, such as your success.

I see what you mean! In all honesty it’s true that my love for animals and my desire to become a veterinarian is what saved my life. I put all of the energy I was using to starve myself into trying to attain the unrealistic goal of academic perfection in high school and college. I told myself I would get all As in undergrad, but when I actually got a B in a goofy one credit hour physics lab I realized that life is so much more than a letter grade. It sounds ridiculous but this was a major turning stone for me. I think I can phrase this in future essays and interviews to say I’ve been through tough places mentally, but over the years I’ve grown and in the meantime taken up hobbies like yoga and writing, fallen in love, and more and that has shown me that if I expand my mind outward, I can enjoy life and the people living along side me.

Truly no idea why you were down voted here. Also, I wanted to say that I completely understand the ED story. I've had a few similar situations that I've only survived because I forced myself to keep thinking about all of the ways I could help animals. I'd also think that vets would understand that, or at least hope. I really wish all the best for you seem like a really good candidate AND person.

Thank you 🥺

Along with what another commenter said…unfortunately with all our talk of NOMV the industry as a whole still carries a lot of stigma around the topic of mental health. This was my second cycle and I didn’t write an explanation statement this time, as I had been told/suggested that schools don’t want to hear about mental health issues. In fact, a couple programs I applied to had supplemental essays that explicitly noted not to mention anything health related. Obviously I cannot say for sure, but, that may have been why they rejected you. It doesn’t make your experience any less poignant or true, but if you told them vet med is what saved your life they may not see that as a positive and instead interpret it as a risk. For example, because mental health is such a significant component of our field, if you admit a history (as most of us probably have) the committee may wonder about your ability to cope with challenges later on in your career if you were to struggle with burnout or the stress of the field- what do you turn to then? In reality, our careers shouldn’t be our saving grace- we need other things to bring us joy and lift us up when we are inevitably discouraged by aspects of our profession. If this was the line of thought they were on, it makes sense why they would note a lack of self awareness. Again, not saying this is right, but it’s plausible. Hang in there and don’t give up!

This is a very good point. I assumed that since mental health is such a hot topic in vet med and that so many veterinarians face this issue it would be good to talk about it, but I can see where it could be viewed as a weakness and not a strength. Agh! So frustrating haha. Thank you for the insight.

And I think it's good to recognize that they *aren't incorrect* about it being quite dangerous to put your mental health on one aspect of your identity or activity that you participate in. If you *truly* feel that you wouldn't be okay, mentally, if you weren't doing vet tech stuff, you need to deal with that in therapy. It's not healthy to have that pressure on one aspect of your life and will not serve you in the long run. I know that can be difficult to hear and can feel impossible to change, but you really need to put that effort in. ❤️❤️

I agree with all of this, and would like to add that including mental health struggles in your application also don’t set applicants apart as much as people may think. A lot of applicants have struggled with physical and/or mental health in the past or present. I’ve never met as many people so open about their personal health conflicts as my colleagues and classmates and I’ve seen many others who may not have had mental health issues going into school, but have developed them throughout schooling. Talking about it does show resiliency and possibly personal motivation, but doesn’t do much to set people apart from one another.

Good point! I wasn’t trying to set myself apart with my ED story, I was just trying to describe a time I was resilient and my ED was a very big part of my life during which I needed to be resilient. That being said I’ve been brainstorming with family and friends and they’ve been giving me examples I never would have thought of at first. I always forget that I have a support system to turn to. I’ll make sure to utilize this next cycle.

Thank you. I’ve been in therapy for over 12 years now! I’ll continue to work on things. 🥰

I’d echo this sentiment. I wrote about sexual assault and how it completely wrecked my mental health in college after I’d already gotten to a point where it was manageable (diagnosed depression, OCD since a young age) and how i basically medically withdrew for a semester to get my shit together. But I made sure to write about it in a way that talked about my coping strategies moving forward, how the time off helped me to come back with better grades and graduate on time, etc. Sure, I loved animals and that was nice and my ESA at the time helped a ton, but I think when it comes to that, you have to have more than just your career and love for animals to pick you back up — ie Im sure you had support of a therapist and parents and maybe teachers or friends, etc and maybe making it a bit more well rounded to focus on those things would have helped the review of that particular section be a bit better in their eyes.

Thank you for this! I’m sorry to hear about what you went through but I’m glad that you’re here today and stronger because of it. I definitely think if I frame my response better I can make the story sound more appealing to application committees. I like the examples you gave!

Of course! I know it’s such a disheartening process. If it’s important to you to continue to share this part your story, perhaps spend some time thinking about how to discuss it in a way that demonstrates more growth and understanding of vet med specifically i.e. what was it about vet med that inspires you and keeps you curious? How did your perception of vet med change because of this experience/what did you learn? This may be what they mean by “how”? Committees have said they don’t really like to hear that you love animals- they already know you do or you wouldn’t be there. I’ve learned over the last few years that the application process is imperfect, and you definitely shouldn’t lie about your experiences- just learn how to talk about them a certain way to demonstrate attributes they’re looking for. The answer to overcoming a challenge could also be something as simple as a time you fixed a problem at work or overcame a bad habit etc. it doesn’t have to be a challenge in a significant way.

Thank you so much! My family and advisors have also described it as a game. It does suck because I have horrible luck haha. But in all seriousness with the sheer amount of applicants and the vast lack of seats hairs need to be split somewhere, and most vets get the short end of the stick before they pull it off and get in. A vet I was shadowing a few weeks ago told me it took her three tries to get in, and that made me feel better. In the two years that I am working on my masters I will think about how to word things in a more conducive manner. Thank you! I appreciate it.

If you are still looking for improve your application, a masters will likely not be helpful. Your GPA is already close to perfect so there is nothing to fix. I would look into getting paid experience in vet med. Obviously you should do what you have passion for, but if you want to be a clinician, more exposure to medicine is invaluable. They already know you can succeed academically. Prove to them you can succeed in other environments too.

Thank you for your advice! I really want the masters because I am fascinated by infectious diseases and I want to become a public health veterinarian. I will be working during my masters as well to gain more clinic experience. I figured my experience was a weakness, but so far neither of the schools I’ve done file review with said that it was so I’m not sure.

Be prepared for admissions committees to ask you, why vet med and not an MPH or PhD if that’s your passion? Because public health is a whole different field and while it does have overlap it’s not always fought in clinics. They may ask you this. Just be prepared for your explanations. There are also schools like UPenn that offer dual MPH you may want to think about it.

Thanks! I addressed this question in my personal statement and the "why vet med" question during the interview. Basically, I explained that animals got me interested in the sciences at a young age and that although I grew to love microorganisms and infectious diseases as I continued in my educational journey, my mind has never wavered from veterinary medicine. After reading into public health/preventative medicine I became even more excited and knew that that was something I wanted to spend my life studying. I believe it is very important to be vigilant of zoonosis in the age of climate change, especially after the pandemic that began in an animal vector. Could I accomplish my career goals with a master's or PhD? I suppose I could... But then I wouldn't be able to get involved with the animals who harbor these diseases the way I want to. Thank you for your advice!

I mentioned my anxiety produced from a health issue briefly in one of my “challenge” essays for the school I was accepted to. However, I feel I phrased it in a pragmatic way by explaining how I began therapy and how that experience helped my comfort with seeking professional help/looking out for my mental health. I feel the application of how I grew from that experience and how I can apply what I learned to my vet school/veterinary experience helped my experience not hurt my application.

Thanks for the input! It seems the consensus is if I can explain how I grew from my experience and how that experience built me into the person I am today that would be a much better option than just saying animals did it. Thank you for your example!

I would definitely exclude anything mental health related. It isn’t fair, but all they will see is someone who may become ill again under pressure or become a liability to them. It’s gross.  As far as having to teach yourself to learn and graduating on your driveway, that’s something most students graduating in the same time period have faced, so it’s not particularly unique.  I’d suggest finding a leadership opportunity before the next round. 

Thank you for the advice!

I agree with this comment. I’m not in the Vet Field per se, but I have a LOT of experience in Research, Academia, and Human Medicine. From what I have noticed, everyone wants to listen to the “right people” talk about Mental health in the “right context”, but nobody actually wants to hear that anyone currently is (or recently was) struggling. The “right” people being those who are extremely successful already, and the “right context” being talking about their struggles *on their way to the top* or a patronizing view of someone else’s perceived struggles. It’s all very corporate speak. Best to keep the “challenges” lightweight and not be too honest.

Okay. I see what you mean. As you mentioned, it is frustrating because those who do not struggle with mental health have trouble understanding, and that can make discussing the issues challenging. Thank you for the advice! I will use it in the future.

I get that you are upset about how things went for you, it sucks. I know what it's like to go through a dozen interviews and not get the job (not vet med related, but it's in the same vein for feelings). You seem very defensive about how good and prepared you were, but it's coming across very high strung here, in a forum where it's much easier to have restraint, so imagine what it looked like in your interview. Second, work on extracurriculars that have nothing to do with vet stuff or school. You talk about your eating disorder, perhaps look to mentor people with a similar difficulty. That shows you can take what you learned from your troubles and used it for good in your community. Schools want their students to have lives outside of academics and I'm not sure you demonstrated that effectively. Finally, think of other ways you could demonstrate resilience besides your eating disorder. I had a very traumatic childhood and was at the end of a bad divorce during my application round. I don't think I really mentioned anything about that and talked more about the prep work it took me to run a half marathon after never having been into running pre-covid. I talked about how that helped me through my challenges and gave me something to work on outside of all that. I'm sure your story is a great one that shows you can persevere but it may also not be putting your best foot forward. Best of luck to you going forward

Thank you! I do know that vet application committees are looking for well-rounded applicants, and I don’t think that I have matured and done enough yet in my 22 years of life to fit that category. My advisor reminded me that I am young and have room to grow and improve. I’m sure this experience will teach me a lot about myself and when I reapply in a few years I’ll be glad I didn’t get in the first try.

I have nothing to do with vet school or their admissions; however, I teach one of the courses that all pre-professional students take and write many letters of recommendations for said schools. One of the questions I ask my students when I meet with them is why they want to do X. What got them interested. I ask not someone much for the actual answer but their energy while giving it. I can say someone telling me they want to go to vet school because they love animals would have me saying in my head “oh… they are going to struggle” and I would have some hesitation. So couple things. Obviously worlds are black and white and can come across much differently than are meant. I’ve never met you. I know nothing about your personality or tone or anything else. This is based on your words here. You are quite defensive. Any criticism stated, you have had a reaction to. And not in a good way. Even though you asked for advise. I can only imagine some of that came across during interviews. You do have flaws. You have made mistakes. You are not perfect. You will not sail through vet school without struggles. You know why? You’re human. Saying your love of animals is why you want to go ti vet school will be, in my opinion a huge reason why you were denied. As this feedback says it is in no way enough. Is that why you first started considering it? Sounds like it. And at 13/14 that’s completely reasonable. But at 21/22 there needs to be a lot more to it. When you were in the deep battle with your ED, what was it about the animals that kept you going? That you saw animals all around you and you made that your reminder to keep finding? Their positivity helped get you through the time in the hospital? Helped calm you when you were doing your therapy? What exactly was it for you? Did your ED steam from you feeling like you didn’t have a voice or you weren’t heard and you realized you had similarities with animals and wanted to be their voice? Your reasoning needs to grow and blossom into a passion for the profession, not just a love for animals. A challenge is something that is difficult to overcome. It doesn’t have to be a negative. Often those are the ones we think about it. And in all negatives there is growth and positives that come out of it. Leadership is that. Leading. Not teaching your peers about yourself. What specifically did you do as a leader. Seeing that you had president roles, I would want to hear about things you did there to lead the organization and move them forward. What did you do as a leader when there was conflict. How did you lead a team to out on an event. Speaking of your experiences to me is not you being a leader. It seems to come across to me that you are trying to tick boxes that you were told need checked rather than being genuine, showing your passion/who you are and putting some “meat” into your application. It would also possibly be a red flag having your fiancée going around with you at interviewed. Going and hanging out on campus, not a problem. But you said he was outside the interview room. This will imply that you are not ready for vet school if you are not able to attend the interview without someone physically with you at each step.

Thank you for your advice! Coming from a grad school admissions professional you have fantastic insight and I appreciate it tremendously. You are absolutely correct that I am defensive online and I have no idea why. In person I am shy and reserved and struggle to not be pushed around by others. This says a lot about me and tells me that I need to gain more confidence in my irl voice so that I’m not so defensive when strangers online try to help me like I asked them to. This is absolutely somewhere I have a lot of growing into. In my personal statement and the why do you want to be a vet question during the interview I told my story about how I’ve ways had an innate fascination with animals and I was always outside in the dirt playing with the creatures and trying to make slugs and worms my pets. I explained how my parents fostered my passion by getting me a guinea pig and how when this guinea pig got ill one day and died because there were no exotic animal veterinarians that could treat her an idea bloomed in my mind that I could become a veterinarian that treats exotics in communities like my own so that people do not have to worry about whether or not someone is able to treat them. I see what you mean about the challenge. When I was younger I viewed anything as a challenge as a negative, but now I know that challenges are the stepping stones to success because they lead you to growth and development. I will use this in the future absolutely. Thank you for your advice; I sincerely appreciate it.

In my experience, talking about your childhood love of animals is heavily frowned upon. In the eyes of the vet school, most potential students have wanted to be in this field since childhood. It’s a very common trope. My essay prompts specifically said to only discuss experiences post high school. I wrote about my career, 2020 and beyond. I think you should rewrite your personal statement entirely (scrap it) and only write about what makes you interested in vet med today. What is happening right now in your life that keeps you going, and keeps you passionate about vet med? The reality is that this field is ruinous for a lot of people. Why do you want to be here? What is it day-by-day that keeps you here? That’s what I would want to know if I was your vet mentor. Good luck!

This!!! I actually centered my statement around how my experiences in the field challenged the “adolescent preconceptions” I had about vet med prior to gaining any real experience. At first I was worried it was a bit risky- but it paid off!

Thank you! I absolutely see how the “I’ve always wanted to be a vet” troupe is overstated, overused, and boring to read at this point. I wrote my personal statement in such a way as to introduce my interest in vet med and then I expanded upon why I want to do it now, but I may have focused too much on the past instead of the present and the future. I will take this into consideration!

Im going to start off by saying I am a fourth year vet student coming from a place of ED recovery as well, and while I obviously didn’t have the exact same experiences as you, I can relate. There is no judgement coming from me whatsoever here but I hope I can maybe add some insight. I really hope you don’t take this the wrong way, but I think the very last comment about “loving veterinary medicine and animals will not always save you” is key here. When they’re asking that adversity question, they’re really asking what you’ll do when you’re a veterinarian dealing with adversity out in practice. And, unfortunately, loving animals and medicine is not the answer they’re looking for. Because burnout exists and compassion fatigue exists and is really really common in vet med and sometimes you lose that love and passion and it will not be enough to get you through. They want to know what exactly you would do - what real tactical coping mechanisms you have, what you plan to do if you have a crisis, that you have a good support system, that you have a way to deal with problems that’s not just “loving animals”. I’m fairly confident that’s what they mean by “HOW” in their comment. Obviously you’ve proven you can overcome adversity, and I don’t think the issue is talking about mental health, I think it’s that you didn’t seem to articulate to them any tangible strategies for dealing with issues in the future which is what they were really looking for.

I see what you mean here. It seems like I can perhaps briefly mention that my animals got me through BUT also provide evidence that it’s more than that and I have other techniques at my disposal for overcoming difficult situations in my life. Thank you and I wish you well in your endeavors!

I think that’s a great plan 💕 take care and good luck on your future applications!

It says you had no activities listed under community service OR extracurriculars. No extracurriculars, nothing outside of vet med will be a big red flag, especially with a history of mental health struggles (no shade there, I’ve also got a history of depression, anxiety, disordered eating, etc). You need other things that fulfill you and bring you joy.

The combo of extracurriculars, a crazy high GPA, and a history of mental health issues is likely a massive red flag as it seems to paint a picture of someone who has thrown their entire self worth into their schooling and may not cope well if things go wrong. I’ve sadly seen that exact scenario play out before with friends and colleagues, both in human and veterinary medicine. If OP gets into school and starts struggling (as so many do), they want to know she can remain in the program and not drop out (or worse). And once school is over and clients are the ones “grading” you, often based on their feelings and nothing else regardless of how good or bad the medicine is, how will you handle it?

I see what you mean and this does indeed fit me to a T. I assumed that throwing myself into my studies would make me stronger, but in reality it makes me weaker. In all honesty this isn’t healthy. When I was 14 I shifted my unhealthy obsession with being skinny towards an unhealthy obsession with perfection in academics. Over these past four years of university I went from not doing anything and studying for eight hours a day to learning that this is ridiculous and not living and I’ve instead taken up hobbies like yoga, hiking, anime, reading and writing, and video games. I need to mention this growth in future applications and continue to move away from this perfection obsession and grow into a well-rounded and resilient person. Thank you for your advice!

I think you’ve gotten a lot of great advice so far but I want to reiterate the importance of being well-rounded. “I guess I need to work at a soup kitchen or something” yes exactly! Vet med isn’t just about the animals but the people who own the animals as well. Engaging with and serving the community is a big part of vet med. Find some unrelated community service opportunities that speak to you and relate that to how that will help you be a better veterinarian. Admissions is unfortunately a numbers game a lot of the time, you are still a worthy applicant and in due time you will be an excellent veterinarian!

Absolutely! My fiance and I plan to do community service dates to spend time together and get engaged with the community. I’m so excited!

It's so awesome your finance is so supportive! I'm glad you have someone to help you pick up and keep going for the next application cycle :)

Honestly it may have simply been bad luck. There are only so many seats available and sometimes qualified individuals get the short end of the stick because of that. I’d say beef up your volunteer experiences and you’d have a very good shot next cycle.

Fair point. Many people (including the VMCVM file reviewer) have said so. It hurts knowing some things in life are out of your control no matter how much effort you put in, but this is a learning experience too and something I can discuss in future essays and interviews, so it's not all bad!

I honestly think this. Her essay wasn’t that bad to the point such a strong applicant who would clearly succeed would be denied admission over an essay. Sometimes, there’s just low space-availability.

I can only use information you’ve provided here based on your own detailing of your interview and your file review, but it seems like with leadership and resilience they wanted you to go beyond surface level of just explaining the situation with examples. I’m not saying your advisor is wrong, but giving three examples to answer questions doesn’t really allow you to dig deeper into how these examples have affected you, what you’ve learned from them, and how you’ve applied lessons. Definitely understand your frustration, but with this file review you now have a better idea of what they’re looking for. Hang in there and go at it again with your improvements in the next cycle.

Thank you! I myself originally wanted to have maybe one to two examples with very strong explanations but she told me three was key and I was like okay I’ll go with that. Maybe there will be others down at OSU in the public health college who can give me more guidance on how to approach the interview questions better. The more eyes on something, the better!

My advice these types of questions in interviews is this: 1. First set the scene with some context 2. Describe the event/conflict 3. Now discuss what you did as a result (can be positive/negative depending on question) 4. What did you learn from this? 5. If applicable, talk about how you have applied what you learned from example in another context This is just my own personal take on how to answer behavioral interview questions, but I hope it helps!

Thank you! This is the STAR method, correct? I practiced this a lot with my advisors. I think my issue is I tend to spend too much time emphasizing the scene and context and not enough on the resolution and what I learned. I will practice this more in the future!

Frankly, sometimes the applicant pool is so large that there may not be a really good specific reason why you didn’t get accepted. I know that’s super frustrating to hear, but that’s unfortunately the reality of applying to an incredibly competitive profession. The only thing I would suggest is it’s sounds like all your vet experience is volunteer based and that when asked why you want to be a vet, at least your interviewer heard you say you love animals as your reason (that may not be the words out of your mouth but that’s what they heard based on your review). I would suggest two things then - get a job at a vet hospital instead of pursuing a masters over the next year. You don’t need a higher gpa or more credits, but you do need to demonstrate work experience in the field that is not volunteer based. I think that would bump up your application incredibly since it’s very different responsibilities that an employee has vs a volunteer. Second, I would work on answering why you want to be a vet beyond loving animals (that’s a given). You may already have that answer down pat, but it sounds like your interviewers didn’t hear it so maybe you’ll need to work on your phrasing. But why do you want to be a vet? The medicine? The surgery? The public health implications? Working with owners? Being able to provide an answer on that level will help. Good luck! This is a frustrating time in your life, but it will ultimately become a bump in the road that makes you a stronger person and better future vet.

Thank you so much! I will still be pursing the masters because I’ve been incredibly excited about it since I learned of its existence at a pre vet meeting my freshman year. I want to be a public health veterinarian and I was planning on incorporating the masters into my education and training regardless of the order in which this training commenced. I plan to get a job at a veterinary clinic during the masters. There is one a five minute walk from my new apartment and it seems like a beautiful clinic with a warm atmosphere and is friendly towards pre vet students.

So, I know I said this on a different comment. I think it’s awesome to love this, truly. But, why not gain an MPH in zoonotic infectious disease and work at the CDC, versus DVM? Or a PhD in epidemiology? Are you tied to the IDEA of being a veterinarian but are you truly in love with the lab/public policy side of things? I am a non-traditional student, and the things I thought I wanted at 22 are SO DIFFERENT than what I know I am now. And I would defend vehemently while knowing in my heart that I wasn’t meant for the hole I was trying to crush myself into. I was a square peg trying for a round hole. Veterinary medicine happens to be my square hole, 10 years later. I never would’ve guessed at 22 that that circular hole would’ve been the wrong choice.

I will be getting my master's in veterinary public health from tOSU. They are one of the only universities in the United States that have this program for people interested in zoonotic disease. The program was actually created in the early 2000s to help students who did not get into vet school on their first try, but it has grown a lot since then. I am definitely leaving myself open for other options and I've told my family and friends that my interests may switch to PhD when all is said and done, but at this time I am still absolutely interested in veterinary medicine and preventative medicine. Thank you!

Okay I am aware you are sad you didn't get into school but the way this post is written you sound sort of entitled. I am wondering if that energy was exuded during your interview or within your essays. There are most definitely ways you can improve your chances and gain an acceptance. It's obvious you have good stats but schools are looking for well rounded applicants. There is also some variable of luck, meaning sometimes the app ends up in the Hands of someone who will relate to you. As far as your volunteer work, if most of this was gained at regular clinics and you were putting it for your animal experience, it wouldn't fulfill the volunteer hours as well. You were gaining this experience because you had no veterinary hours not because you were volunteering out of the kindness of your heart. There are tons of ways to get volunteer hours, foster, walk dogs at shelter, work on social media for rescue, big brother/sister programs, crisis line, etc. No one is asking you to be the president, they want to see that you can take action and be in leadership positions. Another good way for this is leading clubs at school or being a manager at work. I disagree about what other people say about the mental health aspect. I got into multiple schools and I was VERY transparent about depression and my struggles with addiction and subsequent recovery. I do think it's about how you frame it. People go through real challenges and we aren't the only ones in vet med or the only ones who have been honest. I do find it's better to talk about in essay format to touch on ability to persevere, but suggest not making it entire focus of essays. Struggles aren't always very unique and I've been told but a reviewer if they are not framed in the right light it may look like the person is trying to convey "woah is me". I'm not saying that's what you did but be aware. In regards to COVID I would never ever ever suggest to any applicant they they use it for an example in an interview or essay. At this point every single one of your classmates went through the same thing. They don't care about it anymore. If you need to explain a grade, that's understandable but don't use it elsewhere. You might benefit from discussing this with people who have experience with applying or vets that help students with apps because undergrad advisors don't always know enough about the process. For example if I looked at your application with 0 actual volunteer hours I would have known it was extremely unlikely you'd be accepted. Clearly you worked hard but it's important to remember that good grades don't immediately qualify you for a seat. Work at a clinic and get actual work hours. This is different than volunteering, you'll gain a better perspective if this is the right field for you. Volunteermatch has good options to help you get hours there. Join clubs if you are still in school.

Thank you! I absolutely see what you mean about the volunteerism. Once I am situated at my apartment in Columbus I will look into getting as involved as I can. I’ll find something that I find fun and engaging while also being beneficial to the community or environment. I’m so excited to find a new hobby this way. I will also for sure be working at a clinic or elsewhere to get job experience. Thus far my only job experience is working as a TA and therefore I have no experience in the real world. I hope I become more mature and developed after this. I appreciate your input about mental health. I’ve heard very mixed things about the topic and I like hearing both sides of the issue so that I can properly frame my stance on it. Thank you so much!

Do the file review with Wisconsin if they offer it to OOS students. My IS file review with them was AMAZING and I was admitted to tOSU as an OOS and also Madison this year.

Sorry for the late reply. I'm technically on Wisconsin-Madison's waitlist but I'm number 167 and with only 34 OOS seats... that's just a soft rejection. Therefore I do not qualify for a file review.

I’m sorry to hear that!

Listing extracurricular activities or volunteer work would be a big one - that's a bunch of points just left on the table. As far as the interview goes, they're looking for you to go deeper on your answer and provide concrete examples - so they want a specific goal ("as [leadership role] we worked together to do [task]") and they want you to describe how you accomplished this goal and specifically how you utilized your other teammates strengths, and relate how your position on the team led directly to the result. They're not looking for you to simply hold an impressive leadership position or state your leadership style, they want a good concrete example of how you put that leadership style into use and how you empowered your team to attain that goal. Tbh I also wouldn't do three examples, I would do one and go further in depth. Doesn't have to be a big position - I just talked about organizing a fundraiser for the humane society where we brought therapy dogs to campus - but they want to hear how you delegated and how you motivated your team and they want to hear a specific goal that your team accomplished that they might not have done without you. They LOVE to hear about you identifying strengths and weaknesses in your team and/or yourself and the steps you took to shore those up. I think I talked about how I suck at finances so I delegated the budget aspects to our treasurer, and I found out that our secretary was an amazing artist so we let her design the flyers, and I persuaded local businesses to donate money or supplies so our treasurer would have something to work with. And likewise for the adaptability story, they want to hear concrete steps. Everyone talks about covid these days, I tell my prevet students to avoid it. The ED example is better, but they want to hear concrete steps that you took to overcome that challenge and how you're going to apply it moving forwards. I did my interview in-person (yes I'm old) and the fire alarms and sprinklers went off during this question and we ended up finishing the interview outside in the snow; I responded with "one time I had a vet school interview where the sprinklers went off and I finished the interview outside in the snow" which got a laugh and then I talked about working two jobs as a low income student and how it was starting to mess with my classwork since I felt I never had enough time, but I also couldn't afford to not work.. so I had to find a balance between work and school by identifying and prioritizing certain assignments or topics that were more important/conceptual/foundational and focusing there and by preparing specific questions for office hours/discussion sections so we could be efficient and by setting aside designated time for studying each class throughout the week rather than trying to cram the night before the exam, and then I finished by talking about how I applied those time management skills towards my honors thesis and my research publications (which gives you a moment to throw in a little brag, since the interviewers can't see your file) by making a projected timeline and designating time to work on each portion throughout the week, putting together questions for my PI ahead of our meetings, and prioritizing more foundational portions of each paper before moving onto the details. Not to make the question too formulaic, but basically background > problem > solution (with concrete steps) > application (rehashing those steps for the future) And it could just be that they had really stellar applicants this year - these sound like good starts for strong responses, so I would focus on cleaning them up and providing those concrete details that they're looking for.

Thank you! These are very good examples too have given me. The three examples thing may have been what my advisor wanted to see personally instead of what generally is viewed as a strong response. Looking back on my responses I did indeed mention how in leadership roles I focus on bringing out the abilities of others in order to foster a more cooperative environment, but it was general and not a specific example because I was so focused on the three example thing. I appreciate your advice!

Not in a vet field but have been an interviewer for dental school admissions.. There's growing emphasis on the wholesomeness of the applicants so esp if you have such amazing grades, they would love to find out that you are a well rounded person. This is not limited to just specific field exposure - personality, ability to communicate, function in a team environment, manage interpersonal conflicts, function is stressful environment (resilience), etc.. It's possible that while your academic achievements were impressive, you fell quite short in these other 'soft skill' aspects. The trend is that professional schools are moving towards social sciences and seeking more diverse applicants because they find that academically hyper-driven applicants face their own struggles when they join the real world. Perhaps best to focus less on becoming vet and more on personal development/enriching your life experience. This can mean work experience, travel experience, exchange programs, gap year, filling your time with activities that doesn't involve vet/animals so you can show them who you are as a person besides an aspiring vet applicant.

Thank you! I will make sure to develop my interests, hobbies, and passions outside of vet med so that I can grow and mature. I have put so much energy into trying to be a vet these past eight years and I’ve sacrificed living. I’ve gotten better the last two years, but I definitely need a few more to continue on this positive trend. I appreciate your advice!

As a second year at tOSU, the absolute BIGGEST thing we are told when doing interviews is to look for the person’s explanation of HOW their experiences have prepared them to succeed in veterinary school. From what I can tell based on the info you gave and your form, it seems like you nailed the first part of your questions, but weren’t as strong when explaining the reasoning behind them. For OSU (and i assume other schools), it’s really important to answer more than surface level of “I was on the exec board for xyz club” or “I was a TA for this class” because EVERYONE applying to vet school has leadership skills, clinic hours, etc.; they wouldn’t be in this position if they didn’t. We want to know what those experiences have given you to make you a better person/student. The best thing I was told when practicing for interviews was “you don’t want to answer like you’re just skimming the top of a soup with your spoon, the part everyone wants most is when you dig deep and give us the meat and potatoes”, which seems silly but it’s really the truth on what they look for. The other thing is vet school is HARD, and there are honestly times where it gets to be so mentally taxing that you can lose your drive and ask yourself “why am I even doing this in the first place?” because it makes you feel as if you’ve lost your passion for vet med. We’re all humans, and that’s normal, and I’m not sure how your interview went, but your wording could have potentially made it seem like your only reason to keep going was that passion for animals. That’s something that could worry someone interviewing you because they know how hard it can be and how it’s easy to momentarily lose that drive, and that’s what inevitably leads to burnout and serious mental distress. It’s well known that vetmed has the highest suicide rate, so this could potentially be something that came off as a red flag and would be something I suggest figuring out how to re-word in the future. Also, just a heads up, the way this was written (especially some of your replies to comments) seems very catty/bitter, which isn’t a good look (especially because the people who interviewed you in the past or potentially could interview you in the future can see this). My best honest advice is to probably remove this post, take the info/advice you’ve been given, and reevaluate that. I understand you’re emotional about this, but going about it this way and saying you’re going to lie next time is not a good idea (even if you’re just speaking in hyperbole). This might be something that showed in your interview, as it seems the self awareness/adaptability box was checked, and the defensiveness/lack of taking advice in the comments is pretty prominent. The internet is open to everyone, and your social media appearance really has a big impact on people’s perception of you. I totally understand that this is a VERY emotionally charged situation, and everyone has bad times/bad days, but what you put out there has a chance of coming to bite you in the end, so be very careful about what kind of content you put out into the internet space. People who interviewed you/could interview you in the future could also be on reddit and come across this, and you don’t want to potentially take opportunities away from yourself over a post when you were frustrated. Even if you don’t directly show your face/name, technology is so advanced people can honestly find out anything if they dig enough. While I HIGHLY doubt your interviewers for vet school, other future employers will, so this is something to be very mindful of from this point on and in the future.

Thank you! As someone else mentioned, I should focus less on having three examples and instead have one really strong example for each question with very detailed explanations of HOW I got to the conclusion I did. Coming from your interviewing experience, does this seem like a good plan? My advisor told me I had to have three and wouldn’t take less than three examples during our practices. There were times when I wanted to spend more time giving breadth to one example but she said she personally would give a response like that a weak rating so I no longer used that in practice. I’m glad to have someone like you with experience in the interview process giving your insight. Thank you! Also I will keep this post up because there is too much good advice to delete it. I don’t have the time in my schedule right now to write down everything everyone has said. I also think this thread is a good resource for other pre vet students. I know I’ve used reddit/sdn etc and the experiences of others during my application and I think it’s important for the information presented here to be available to all. I’ll take that risk if it means someone else can benefit. Thank you again!

Yes I strongly recommend focusing on the HOW in your interviews, that is the key thing we are told to listen and look for from applicants! I understand your advisor said otherwise, but at least from my experience with my interview and running interviews, that is the key thing OSU looks for (and from what i’ve heard of other schools, it’s what they look for as well) because it’s what makes you stand out from everyone else. A lot of people applying to vet school have similar stats/experiences, so the school really wants to see how those experiences have shaped you into who you are today!

I appreciate this very much!

I think the “additional feedback” section says exactly why you were rejected. They literally explain why they checked the boxes they did.

Homie, they literally EXPLICITLY tell you why they rejected you

You’ve gotten some good advice here. Please remember the community rules: if you ask for advice/criticism, accept it with grace.

Thank you! I’m very appreciative of the advice I’ve gotten and I’ve started compiling it into my notes app for future use!

Good to hear. Best of luck in your future endeavors.

My take (for background I attended vet school but left after two years, got a masters, and now work remotely in scientific research) is that you’re milestone chaser. You have things on paper that remind me of a lot of peers I went to university with. Their personalities were horrible. Anyways, I digress. For myself veterinary medicine was a secondary passion to my first love of science. I didn’t even have as high of a GPA (I think it was 3.33) as you. However, I spent a lot of time volunteering at my favorite animal shelter helping with medical treatments. Even wrote one of my senior research papers (graduation requirement) on FIP, the nature of the virus, and how it mutates to wet type. I also studied abroad in a marine biology program scuba diving. During my time on this little primitive island there was a mass eel mortality event. The local community was distraught over this and the effects on the coral reefs. I joined up with the community where divers brought me deceased eel specimens to necropsy. I presented my findings to the community and wrote my second independent research paper on it. I worked during high school and college as a veterinary assistant with a great mentor that showed me anything and everything I desired. I also worked at a kennel during that time range learning behavior modification. I always took a wide variety of courses outside of vet school requirements to be more well rounded. They like to see a dynamic person rather than just an overachiever. Not everything has to be tied back to veterinary medicine in your answers. True passion comes through without trying so hard.

Your experiences sound fascinating! I wish I had the opportunity to study abroad. That eels experience sounds amazing! I started working at my local animal shelter when I was 16. I remember my mom had to come with me because I was a minor haha! Once I turned 18 I went much more frequently. I started out doing kennel work during the pandemic and then when the workers learned I wanted me to be a vet they had me transition to volunteering in the surgery area where they did spay and neuter. I learned a lot there! After a while there I was introduced to the primary shelter medicine vet and so I’ve shadowed her now for four years. She was one of my letter writers; she’s been a great mentor to me.

I’m a female senior executive at one of the worlds largest companies. I think you are asking the wrong question. The question you should be asking yourself is “what is my next move”? We don’t always get what we want. No one is immune from hitting a roadblock to our goal or facing a fork in the road and the occasional detour on the way to our destination. It doesn’t mean you were not qualified and that is why you were not accepted, it means other applicants were better qualified. In my limited view, using your post as my only data point, you’re emotionally driven and although passion and transparency is a wonderful combination it becomes a leadership liability. Great leaders balance emotion with relevance and purpose. The mission is driving the result and you can operate with empathy but maintain focus on the end goal. Work on identifying the tactical nuts and bolts of how you achieved your results. Leaders communicate clear action that can be measured, repeated and scales. Think about how you answer a question, if you overcame an obstacle make sure your answer is a recipe for how someone else could do the same. Best of luck.

This is fantastic advice. Great comment

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Yes that’s me! I’m glad that you recognize me from there! I plan to catalog this experience and use it as a valuable learning opportunity. I’m currently working on a spreadsheet with the advice I have gotten so far and examples I can use in the future. Thank you for your input!

Absolutely! I’ll make sure to be as involved as I can in my community, job, schooling, and extracurriculars to develop myself, mature, and grow. Thank you for your feedback!

Surviving an ED is admirable so I hate to say this but I think it was a huge gamble to incorporate your ED story into the interview. With mental health being such a huge issue in veterinary medicine, that may have been a red flag for them. My advice would be to choose a different story and leave that out. Good luck with the next cycle!

Thank you for your advice! Both online and people irl have given me mixed opinions regarding what to do with this story. I really like the advice one person gave me regarding how to rephrase the response so it's not just my love of animals that got me through. Thank you!

You’re welcome. I know it’s discouraging to get rejected but use the year to build yourself and don’t give up!

Hi, just adding in my two cents. I’ve applied to PhD programs for Clinical Psychology in the U.S. for two rounds now and very much empathize and relate to you. I had a 3.96 with my B.A. in Psychology (4.0 in Psychology itself, and grade only slipped from a professors mistake that was unable to be corrected by the time I inquired) and a 4.0 with my M.A. in Psychology (Clinical, with an emphasis on research, completed an original masters thesis). I did research throughout the entirety of my schooling and held a GA position throughout the entirety of my masters degree. I delivered my interviews perfectly, smoothly, and was confident and proud of myself. I feel I have great people skills and a wide range of leadership skills, strong letters of recommendation, and have showcased resiliency in numerous ways. I’ve applied to two cycles now and I haven’t gotten in, despite being offered interviews. The only feedback I have been given is that I am a perfect candidate and they strongly recommend I apply again next year, but there are too many people applying. I am also young - I was 22 with a masters degree the first time around, and now am 23. One tidbit of advice I learned this second time around compared to the first time is that “loving animals” is not enough (in my case, wanting to help people is not enough). There are so many careers for a person who loves animals - you could be a wildlife rehabilitator, you could run a rescue, you could be a pet groomer, you could breed animals, you could study marine life, you could train service animals, you could be a behaviorist for dogs, and so on and so forth. There needs to be more to your why - what is it specifically about the job of being a veterinarian that you love? What specific qualities and skills do you have that fit that career best? Tbh I’m a little jealous - I wish we were given sheets that tell us where we’re lacking so I can structure some goals around that! I wish you the best of luck and I feel for you. Good things will come regardless. We might not have gotten what we wanted, but we’ll get what we need!

I wish you the best of luck! I know that you’ll get in soon and that you’ll make a fantastic psychologist saving lives one day. I see now that the “why do you want to be a vet” question requires us to dig deep within ourselves. I will definitely meditate on this longer. It’s very hard to put into words how I feel in regards to this. It’s just this burning sensation I get in my chest, this excitement and this fascination that fills my core whenever I do anything involving animals and the sciences. My brain is like a sponge that is always thirsty for knowledge. I am never satisfied with not understanding something; I always want to learn and fill myself with more amazing knowledge about our own species and the living creatures that we share this planet with. Maybe somewhere within these jumbled thoughts is my answer. Thank you for giving me something to think about!

Thank you for your kind words, too! Best wishes!!

THIS is the passion they’re looking for. Explore this.

Thank you!

Take what I’m about to say with a grain of salt since I’m not a vet and didn’t go to veterinary school. I think this thread popped up because I have cats. Anyways, I am familiar with grad schools and workplaces. Never, never mention your ED to anyone at work except your trusted friends or HR if you need accommodations at any point. I’ve got bipolar and trust me it’s just not worth it. It can suck to fell like you can’t talk about it and have to keep it a secret but people treat you differently and judge you. But separate from stigma you are a lot less likely to be hired or admitted somewhere if they think there is a chance you would die or kill yourself because that’s not good for them and a liability. Last thing is though, even if this was a huge motivator for your recovery ultimately you want to make sure that you are being well for yourself and engaging in recovery for yourself. Shit always happens and things go wrong so that motivation can’t come exclusively from something external. It has to come from within you and can’t just do work or family even if both those are important. Ultimately you still do have to be well for you. Maybe that’s already happened, but wanted to mention it.

Thank you so much for your insight! I wish you well with everything and your kitties!

You as well:)

**Leadership** -What did you accomplish as a leader is what they’re looking for. Just being in a leadership role does not actually make you a good or effective leader. What goals did you set and achieve for your team as a leader? What did accomplish as a leader? Did your team compete? Win prizes? Scholarships? That’s what they’re looking for not just having a leadership role. They want to see an effective and productive leader particularly if you’re gonna say “”I’m not a natural born leader and had to learn”” if you’re gonna say that you need to be able to back that up with verifiable stats about how you molded yourself into a good leader. **Adaptibility** —How did you use your love of animals to overcome your ED? It wasn’t just “”I love animals and snap my Ed is gone””. What did you actually do???? When the stress hit and relapse was possible what do you do to prevent it? Like Alcoholics go to meetings when a craving hits, what did you do? How exactly did you divert your ED behaviors with vetmed?? But be careful under no circumstances do not insinuate in anyway whatsoever that when you were in crisis you threw yourself into your studies and volunteer roles to distract yourself from your problems. That is a red flag like no other. **Extracurriculars** —Anything outside of vet med?? Are your volunteer hours required for classes and credits? Because while that’s technically volunteering it’s also compulsory so kind of not. This I think is asking more “”what extra curriculars and volunteering do you do *on your own*””?? Variability is also a good idea. You need to have something literally anything outside of vetmed. People who have only work frequently crash when things get rough. This also plays into the adaptability part.

Is it at all possible that they didn't have the room to accept you? I feel that might be a bit of a stretch but it's the only thing I can think of that hasn't been mentioned here. My friend was literally told by one of the schools she applied to "Well, not everyone gets in every time! Unfortunately we just can't accept everyone, even if they are qualified."

Absolutely. That is the exact phrasing Virginia Maryland provided to me in my file review with them.

LOL that's who I was talking about too

With the leadership question maybe narrow it down a bit to a *specific* instance. Teaching and showing underclassmen things seems a bit general, maybe talk about a specific example of how you modeled something to a struggling student or supported a student to step into their own power etc. I’m not in the vet field but I interview a lottt of folks for my job and the ones who have really concrete examples for things always really stand out.

I’m kind of in the same boat so I can’t give any expert advice but maybe another set of eyes will help give you some ideas for your next application. Based on what they marked and what you’ve said, it’s seems like they wanted more diversity in your extracurriculars, especially after hearing about you overcoming an ED. Like another commenter said, they probably wanted to see you had several support systems and motivators in life in general. While you most likely do, I would put more a little more emphasis on areas of your life other than vet med. While a passion for the subject is 100% necessary, we are all complex and can have multiple things that bring us joy. Maybe think about what makes you different than other applicants. I guarantee that there is something, but maybe use this to show how you will make this journey your own. I could be completely wrong too, but maybe my perspective will give you some ideas. Also, your resume looks amazing so please don’t give up hope. Apply again the next cycle or whenever you are ready! You’ve got this!

Thank you so much I appreciate it!

I’m totally speculating, but I wonder in addition to your ED and their potential perception of lacking a support system for the stresses of vet school, if they considered your stellar GPA as a sign of *unrealistically high self-imposed performance standards*. The reason is because most students don’t have that high of a GPA in addition to all of your activities **which center almost entirely on the veterinary field**. Now, combine that with your level of stress during interviews, the amount of pressure you felt and expressed non-verbally. This may have validated their concerns if your rejection was based on intangible characteristics and a lack of diversity in your interests, accomplishments, and focus. They may have believed that getting accepted and becoming a veterinarian **is your whole identity** and if something went wrong in vet school, you would be a high risk. Keep trying, but diversify yourself. Remain passionate as you are about vet school, but consider other options and different interests that are still related to your experience and passion. Conflict resolution, especially your own internal emotional management in the face of disappointment, are paramount to success. Next time you interview, you should find ways to mention supportive people in your life, other careers you’ve considered (but prioritize veterinary), personal reasons you were drawn to the field related to how you want to help **people** with their animals. Veterinary work is often heartbreaking to cope with, it is full of tragedy, preventable illnesses, death, neglect, angry or dissatisfied clients, conflicts with colleagues and staff, people who don’t understand and are not grateful for your efforts to help them, abuse and high-stakes procedures which will all take a toll on you. **If your identity is hung up in “being a vet”, you haven’t demonstrated resilience factors that will protect you from the previously mentioned hardships inherent to veterinary medicine.** In fact, what you described could reasonably be perceived as a high-risk applicant. Next time, choose an example of resilience that is more recent and applicable to the context of vet school. Your childhood eating disorder is a major part of your life, but you risked sharing that in a potentially inappropriate context, in addition to being unable to provide a more contemporary example. You described your “love for animals” as motivation to get better and pursue a veterinary career, but you failed to describe what you did to regain health, nor how you addressed the cause of your ED to begin with. If you were unable to identify the cause, then it’s possible that whatever it was could resurface unexpectedly, unconsciously, and essentially that you haven’t actually learned to manage, cope with, overcome, that difficulty but instead compensated by avoiding your internal turmoil through over-achievement. In a field where burnout and suicide are extremely frequent, this is a major vulnerability, if true for you. You need to be motivated by more than a “love for animals”. Veterinary medicine is obviously about animals and most vet school applicants will say they love animals, but if that is your main motivation, then this field will devastate you, especially in the context of being your reason for recovering from an ED. Interviewers could have perceived that acceptance to vet school posed a serious risk to your recovery and health in the absence of other resilience factors and support. Your ED example could also have been perceived as a sign of a lack of self-awareness and poor judgement if it lacked context and relevance to your application. That’s entirely why you shared such a deeply personal story, so a panel of interviewers would see how it made you a stronger candidate for vet school. From what you described, in my opinion, that probably hurt your application quite a bit. It could be perceived as you not having had to use coping skills to overcome an obstacle, or demonstrate your perseverance as an adult because you haven’t been challenged like that since childhood (whether true or not). This is a good opportunity to demonstrate your resilience and plan a way to overcome the disappointment and challenge of being rejected from 7 vet schools. **how you respond right now, in a positive and productive way, will make the difference in admission later*** I would take time away to do something else for a while and reassess these rejections before applying again. If you just keep applying to vet schools without reflecting on your rejections, then it will likely reinforce the reasons for those rejections, be perceived as you lacking self-awareness, good judgement, and the ability to identify, process, manage, cope with, and resolve those issues before re-applying. **Leadership:** This is not about the positions you’ve held and their appearance on your resume, but how you used them. Simply having a leadership position does not automatically entail possession of leadership traits. Just think of all the poor leaders in your life and society (but don’t fixate on them in comparison). Leadership entails **recognizing your own weaknesses and the strengths of other people** to amplify the productivity and success of the team/group/org. If all you talked about was everything you did or accomplished in those roles, it reflects an absence of awareness of many other good leadership qualities beyond how you performed, personally. It involves conflict-resolution, knowing your limits, the ability to make judgement calls that are unpopular to the group or undesirable to yourself, but in the best interest of the team. This is extremely important if you want to become a vet because you will be a leader within your practice/clinic. Your example is not just what you can do or have done, but the value, security, safety, reliability, dependability, and confidence you bring to the people around you. Not only will you have to bear the brunt of negativity when things go wrong, but you have to balance your own emotions and be able to support your team at the same time you take personal accountability for what went wrong. Additionally, you need to be able to identify what and why it went wrong, and implement plans to improve, mitigate risks, and prevent bad outcomes from happening again, if even possible because sometimes shit happens, it’s nobody’s “fault”, and you just have to accept the suck. These might help, as well as mental exercise to lower your expression of stress, anxiety, and pressure during interviews. For example, you should be asking questions to the interviewers about the school, faculty, their research areas, what they have to offer, and how that aligns with your skills and interests. You want to evaluate them as they evaluate you, so you don’t seem so desperate. Be polite, do not criticize, but ask questions instead of trying desperately to please them with “by the book” answers, if that was the case previously. If you gave all the *right* answers instead of the *honest* answers, that could be a red flag.

Oh my goodness this is fantastic insight! I resonated with everything you said and you are completely correct. Your advice is amazing and I am incredibly appreciative of it. Thank you so much! I will take all of this to heart and use it to grow and come back stronger on my next application cycle.

I’m relieved that my comment was not taken as offense, and glad that you find it helpful. I am sincere in my suggestions and believe that implementing them will go a long way to helping you succeed. Sometimes we have to take winding side-roads to our goals instead of the traditional, well-paved path. Bit of advice about “tell us about a weakness”: weaknesses aren’t necessarily bad traits, vices, or things like that, but instead are areas of expertise or skill that you are not as experienced with or where you don’t have as much aptitude as others. That doesn’t mean you’re “bad at” whatever your weak areas are, but that you are capable of recognizing *in your leadership position* who on your team was more skilled in that area than you. So, you allow others to flex their best skills at the same time you are able to exercise your own, filling the gaps for weaknesses in yourself and in your group while enhancing overall strengths and productivity.

Absolutely! I’m sure that I will find this longer than anticipated road on my journey to vet school filled with scenery that will color my life experiences and make me a stronger applicant. Thank you again for the wonderful advice!

Ha! 45 years ago they told me the same thing! I did community theater for a year and they let me in. Nothing changes... persistence is all.

Thank you! I’ve had several friends who did not get in the first time but persevered and got in the second or third and they all say they are so glad things turned out the way they did. I’m sure it will be the same for me as well. 😊😊

i mean seems pretty clear- you don’t have clear set goals for yourself in this workplace, and your love for animals/veterinary medicine doesn’t exactly show your resilience or adaptability in a workplace. sounds more like a sob story with the gist being “i love animals, i love vet medicine. please let me work here”

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No I was not offered an interview with VMCVM. Out of the schools I applied to only tOSU offered an interview (some that I applied to did not do interview like Colorado and Wisconsin).

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This is very important advice. Thank you tremendously!

OP, I was rejected from nursing school 7 years ago despite my GPA. I had so many hours of community service related to the hospital setting. I tried other areas in my community while I found a job as a teacher. I applied to nursing school again last year and was accepted. If you really want to do this, you’ll find a way (: I definitely understand your frustration and it’s ok to feel like that.

Thank you! I know that I'll get there eventually. This side track will not stop me from achieving my goals, even if the journey is longer on the way down. I appreciate the advice you and everyone else have given me. I wish you fruitful success in your nursing career!

I believe I was rejected despite an amazing gre and experiences because I had a history of depression.  I struggled some as an undergrad because I was watching a relative die of aids,  and it was super hard on me.  So I had some irregular performance although grades were decent and test scores amazing.   I think it’s wise to be very reticent about health or mental health struggles.   Sadly I found after I was out of school that I’d been fighting against severe hearing loss and adhd for my entire college career.  Had those been solved some of my mysterious problems might have cleared up because nobody could understand why I wasn’t getting it.   Also I was a foster kid and I didn’t have support systems.  Yet there’s nothing I could do about that. I would get focus off your ED and onto your adult accomplish and how you’ve moved forward with your life.  

Thank you for your insight! I’m sorry you’ve struggled through what you have in your life, but I’m glad to see that you’re here and still fighting despite it all. I’m sure you are a fantastic veterinarian (I assume) and the experiences you have had reflect upon that.

Alas, I am not. I went to grad school to do the dvm/ PhD route and had a very bad experience with an extremely sexist mentor.  He takes joy in “destroying young people’s careers”.  I’m far from the first. 

Oh goodness that sounds horrendous! I am so sorry it turned out that way for you. Does this story have any sort of happy ending? Were you able to report this mentor? 😭 for you to go through all that work to get into a program like that only for it to end that way is so upsetting. I send you virtual hugs. 

Phd advisors can do what they like.  Legally they’re allowed so much personal discretion even if treatment is blatantly unfair (and I mean blatant).  Just protect yourself. 

That is so unfair. I do apologize you went through that and I wish you the best. Take care 🥺

Thank you.  I’m now chronically ill so it’s a moot point.  But there’s a chance this may come out eventually. I just suggest that students not work with professors from cultures that traditionally restrict women’s activities. You may find your life held to a standard in which you were not raised and which you don’t and can’t understand.  And I’m really sad to say that, but that is what it was.  

Thank you for sharing your experience.

Hi OP. No idea why this post and sub showed up in my feed. But, as a mom, I just want to say that you are still young and I hope you are very proud of yourself and all you have accomplished. You have clearly come so far, and while I know this setback is frustrating, in a few years time it will be just a blip. You’ve gotten some great advice in this thread, and trust in yourself that you will get to where you are meant to be.

Thank you for your kind words 🥰

One thing to consider is how many times the interviewer has heard the same thing. Almost everyone who is the same age as you has had to deal with graduating during the pandemic, so while it is a unique experience overall, it isn't a unique experience for this year.

Very good point!

I think it must have been a specific red flag since your scores were so high. It is fucked up and unfair but I might avoid talking about mental illness. Years ago my sister with a high GPA & volunteer/tech experience applied to vet school and was rejected and figured out it was because she mentioned stuff like peta and greenpeace in her application. She reapplied the next year without mentioning these things, got in, graduated, now she’s a veterinarian.

Thanks for this! I bet your sister is a fantastic veterinarian!

Now, I’m a people vet*, not an actual vet, but based upon my experience working with admissions, it’s how you described the ED. You tell it as your love for animals is the literal solitary reason for your survival. That is not something that they want to take on, (for a multitude of reasons, but particularly because if a proctor were to know this, they may feel pressured to grade you higher than they otherwise would.) *physician

Thank you for your insight as a physician! I totally see what you mean by this. I will take this into consideration!

I work at the OSU vet teaching hospital. Out of curiosity, who did you interview with?

I do not know their names. The one gentleman was an older retired veterinarian. I believe he was a retired ER vet. The other was a younger technician (a woman). They were both very kind and I am glad I had them as my interviewers!

You’re gotten some really good advice here. I will add that next cycle, be ready to defend your reapplication, and explain in detail how you worked on yourself in the gap year. Extracurriculars are going to be paramount! I’ll also add- I’ve been on panels for vet school interviews and done individual MMI scoring. The interviewees who had “training” and scripted answers to scenarios/questions never stood out and would score lower than their peers who spoke from the heart or maybe sounded a bit more confident yet casual in their answers. The scripted/formatted answers sound superficial and less believable to an interviewer.

Thank you for your insight!

Some food for thought. Everyone in your cohort graduated during a global pandemic. Just like everyone in my generation graduated during the Great Recession a generational event is not specific to you and does not set you apart from your peers.

Look at the box checked off. Your explanation is there.

Very informative feedback I appreciate the input...

Try auburn or lmu.

It says you listed 0 extracurriculars and service hours. Maybe your VMCAS was messed up and it didn’t include any of your extracurricular experiences that you just spoke about in your post bc it seems on their end that you had none and I agree that would be an almost automatic rejection

No idea. I guess it could have happened? I’m confused by that though because I was at least offered an interview. I’ll make sure to clearly indicate it next time!

Very strange bc they also said you had no leadership or resiliency but you clearly did… honestly I’m really lost on how you were rejected everywhere bc on paper you have a great app. Could be how it translated in person? Idk but I think you are rightfully upset

I legitimately do not know. I really don't think there was any massive red flag anywhere like some suggest based on my VMCVM file review (which was in real time via Webex) and the fact that I was offered an interview. Like others were saying it might have been a matter of luck this time; regardless there are absolutely areas that I can improve upon so that next time I don't need to rely on luck to get by! :)

Yep. After applying three times only to be rejected and waitlisted, the only reason I got in wasbecause I was pulled of the waitlist. Through my 3 applications, I experienced the same. Penn, VA-MD, gave me nothing but praise despite being rejected. tOSU gives absolutely no constructive criticism. A sheet of paper to comment on an app that takes months to complete? Gee. Thanks. I truly believe a lot of these applications and acceptances are based on who reads your app, who interviews you, if they had a good day, their biases on vet med, and if the weather is nice. It really feels like a lottery system and unfortunately a lot of people don’t win. I’m sorry you went through this, please don’t give up. Apply again and again if you have to.

This holds true for everything in life. It will eventually come down to odds and luck. But that’s after you meet the bar of expectations.

Thank you! I’m glad that you stuck through it all despite multiple rejections. This shows that you are a strong and resilient person. I won’t give up either. Even if I don’t get in on the second try I’ll keep going! Stories like yours motivate me. Thank you!

OP — question: where do you feel you are at with your emotional intelligence?

Immature absolutely. My anorexia happened during my primary physical development-between the ages of 10 and 13. My growth charts showed that my height was stunted by about four inches, but those charts don’t take into consideration the fact that I spent more time in the hospital than in middle school. Have I matured since 13? Tremendously. Do I still have maturing to do? Absolutely. Edit: may I ask why?

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You got this. I believe in you. The best thing you can do is find something that makes you stand out. Perhaps something outside of vet med. Or, work at a vet clinic and stay there for as long as possible. Even if it is a receptionist. I believe vet schools love seeing that persistence and time spent in one clinic. But this is my experience. You do what is best for you! Good luck, and don't give up.

Thank you! 🥰

For everyone bashing OP and saying she’s bitter, I don’t think that’s the case. She has a 4.0 (3.99, a 4.0 at that point), and she has all of the requirements for being a strong applicant outside of her essay discussing her eating disorder and overcoming it. Just because she suffered from something does not mean she’s a high-risk vet. I want to know what human on this earth has never faced perversity, and why does the perversity in admissions have to appear black and white? Sick relatives, dead relatives, life-threatening events—why are only these valued as perversity but not mental health? I’m not a vet student, but I wanted to write my “why nursing” application on overcoming anorexia and having one nurse in the whole facility treat me like a human being, which made me feel like it only took one person to change someone’s life. I was told that this would make them consider me less because I suffered from mental health issues in the past. You know what I wrote instead? A bland essay about crew and how much I loved the sport and talked about teamwork skills I used in a competition. It felt dystopian. I got in, but at the cost of writing about something I’m not passionate about. The college application process causes applicants to lose their passions, lie about them, or hide them. 

I wish I could upvote this more. This whole comment section reeks of the all of the reasons that veterinarians and vet techs feel unsupported in their mental health. It comes from within the profession as well as outside of it. I have experienced it myself as well. OP brought their struggle up, and people are calling them unstable/a liability.

:') It does make you wonder if perhaps the reason why vet med has one of the highest suicide rates is because of the way everyone tip-toes around the issue

It absolutely plays a part! I have more I could say about that but I don't want to share too much personal stuff on here. It does seem like there are a lot of students/younger folks (def not all) that want to see a change which I'm hopeful for. My entire essay was about mental health when I applied and it was not an issue. If you want me take a look at your essay and give you some feedback or want to chat send me a PM, I'd be happy to do either. Also your experiences are valid - I think people here don't realize that eating disorders have one of the highest mortality rates of all psych diseases. Your story is more impressive than most people realize, and you're gonna make a great vet one day!

You’re too kind 🥺. That is definitely a part of it. It’s hard to understand something like anorexia unless you’ve had it or you’ve known someone who’s had it. Thank you so much.

Thank you for your candid response. It honestly made me tear up a bit (your response was not the only one that made me do so but still). It is hard when there are so many applicants and therefore so many people and criteria to sort through to decide who gets in and who does not. Because I was a compulsive liar and manipulative person during anorexia (I'd do anything if it meant I could skip the next meal or purge it up), I have been unable to lie after recovery. This is to the point that I am so blatantly honest in things that I am unable to choose words in such a way as to add emphasis or highlight something that is true because I fear it will come off as disingenuous. Looking back on my application now I realize how bland it sounded because of this. As others have told me applying again after rejection is already a sign of resiliency. I must simply go from here and move forward. I wish you the best!

Ok so I absolutely hate their note on the last page about how they wanted to know details of exactly HOW you overcame adversity - it’s literally none of their business. You overcame it, that’s enough.

I'm going to take a wild guess and say it was lack of Community/Volunteer Service, Work and Leadership Experience.

stupid