This fall, I am not going back to school, I have entered the
workforce as an official veterinary technician. However, now that I am done, it
is time for me to spread my wisdom to the new generation. Here are 5 tips for
new students who are staring vet or vet tech school.
Classmate friends are everything. I understand that there is a certain amount of competition that can happen in school amongst classmates. However, having some classmates who are good friends is going to be an amazing benefit in the long run. You can take notes for each other if one of you is sick. You can share notes in case one of you missed some information or did not understand it. You can study together when studying alone just won’t do it anymore. Friends are great, if you help and be generous to each other then these friends will last past your school years.
Cue cards are a savior. Write everything on cue cards. Powerpoint slides, class notes, little anatomical pictures, everything. They can easily be brought around anywhere and be pulled out at any moment. With cue cards, you can have a quick study session on the bus, or while at lunch with your classmate friends.
Be observant. You will be working with animals their health can be at stake. You need to take such tasks seriously and be observant with what you and other people are doing. This tip might be an obvious one, but if you are not observant, you will not be able to problem solve and these things are extremely important in the veterinary field.
Everything your teachers are trying to teach you is important. It might seem like you are required to learn topics that you will never need again in your career. This is wrong. All information is precious. In my life now, I have to pull up random facts that I learned in school that I never thought I would need. But, life is funny, and you never know when you will need these skills or facts.
OVERNIGHT OATS! Days are long in the schools of veterinary health. Breakfast might not always be possible due to early surgeries, and time is precious. Making overnight oats before you go to bed the night before takes two seconds. The next day just grab your jar or Tupperware and bring it to school. It is a quick nutritious meal that will get you through the day. It is something that I would often make for surgery mornings so that I could have some during short breaks.
School is rough, there are late nights and high stresses, but school is also fun. So try to enjoy it while you can.
