Advice and Ramblings of a vet student survivor

1) Remember, you're NOT PERFECT, if you were, you wouldn't need to go to school.  One of my mantras, "Good judgement comes from experience and experience comes from bad judgement."  Always learn from your mistakes.

2)You're going to make mistakes, and when you do, especially when it involves a patient's health and well being, tell the professor.  They are kind of like priests with confession.  There is probably nothing they haven't heard or seen before.  You are not the only vet that makes mistakes, and most likely, yours is not the worst one.  Ultimately, if you speak with a resident/professor/staff, you will benefit.  Some ways of benefiting are more obvious than others.   You will learn from your mistakes, and not repeat them, learn humility (always a good thing in a professional student, especially a medical student) and your patient will be better off.

3) Grades are not everything.  The more you worry about your grades, I guarantee you, the worse your grade is going to be.  Sure, worry about passing, but not more than that.  The only grade that matters in life is the respect you have for yourself and the respect that your clients and colleagues have for you.  Some people are just not going to like you.  All you have to worry about is working hard, trying your best and always being an advocate for those who can't speak, particularly, your patients.  The rule I've used is, I'd rather be thrown out of vet school with self-respect than to feel like I sacrificed my character to pass (and believe me, I've seen that).

4) People are going to have bad days.  The majority of the faculty and staff are great, and well-meaning.  Some people have bad days.  Some, more than others.  Some have things so stuck up their rear that only a tractor could remove it.  For the former, be understanding and remember you have bad days too.  For the latter, feel sorry for them, pray for them, or laugh; there's nothing you can do about it so move forward.

5) A smile burns 6 calories!  Every time you smile against your will, it burns 6 calories.  The more you smile, the more it becomes a habit, and eventually, when you smile, it rubs off on yourself and others.

6) Remember where you came from.  Remember when you were a child, or when you finally decided to be a vet.  Remember thinking that being a vet was the best thing in the whole world.  Remember when you thought, "All I have to do is get into vet school," and then it was, "All I have to do is get into clinics," and then it became, "All I have to do is graduate."  Sometimes, getting in touch with the reason you got here, will give you a smile, and sometimes it will help you remember how lucky you are, and how hard you worked.