So I am applying to two offshore schools- SGU and SMU, very attractive for a variety of reasons, largely financial.

I am just wondering if any of you know if attending either would be a barrier towards becoming a wildlife vet- I want to do field work in wildlife epidemiology. I have been concerned of late. yes, i realize the jobs are competitive. but is AVMA accreditation really the end all in such an international field? Would a phD in a wildlife field + my DVM from the offshore school be enough? I have seen that internships occasionally specify "accreditation" as a requirement. Any information would be of help, but please no negative, unfounded speculation.

thanks!

SGU has a masters in wilflife medicine I believe. It only has 3 people in it so far, but definitely call SGU and check it out. I don't think it is on the SGU website yet... I am not it the masters program - just am in the DVM, but I have heard of it recently.

There are lots of people from carib schools in all sorts of advanced vet positions in north america. Most of them are from Ross because it has been around so much longer. Increasingly, more and more will be from SGU and, in the future, SMU. So, to answer your question, no you can do anything you want even if you've gone to a carib school. Will it be harder, maybe, but if you have real good grades it won't be that hard.

I am in my clinical year now (from SGU) and we are just as good as the students from anywhere...weaker in some areas...stronger in others.

Do I understand you correctly in that you already have a ph.d.? Whether you do or not it shouldn't matter...I think that when they say accredited the carib schools kind of slip through the cracks because they are so closely modeled after the north american vet education system. This may be true because you will be licensable in north america after taking your board exams...ECFVG and NAVLE. Also both ross and SGU are seeking, and will eventually attain, AVMA accreditation status (that is if they keep trying for it). It won't matter then anyway. I would put this at about 2-4 years for SGU. I don't know about SMU but would guess it is further off.

I would look into the wildlife masters SGU is offering but be critical about the details. The concurrent DVM & MPH is much more established but I have heard "not-so-organized" things about the wildlife and marine program. Given your specific interest, I think a phd (again, if you don't already have one) is much more pertinant and valuable in this case than a M.S. would be.

Hope this helps

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thanks a lot sisyphus! your replies have always helped me out!

yeah i am leaning towards SMU actually because its less expensive- Its just more worthwhile to me to go to a cheaper school where I can graduate in around 4 years vs. an insanely expensive accredited school (the newly accredited UC Dublin) at like 40k a year for 5 years.

i don't already have a phD but i'll have to get one post dvm. If SMU wasn't around, SGU would def be my first choice. In fact I was very gungo ho SGU until I realized my boyfriend wouldn't be able to get a job on that island =/ anyways thanks for the reply! you're very helpful!

What areas do you feel weak in? Strong?

Just so you know, your boyfriend could get an online degree, such as an MBA, while living on the island with you. My husband came here to SGU with me and is doing that. =)

This can be somewhat relative, since the only reason that I am personally weak in some areas is because I didn't jibe well with a professor or I found a subject particularly boring. Pharmacology and toxicology is a general area where I feel weak, but not because the subjects weren't covered properly. Also, I haven't had rotations in every subject yet, so I can't fully assess all my education.

Weak: oncology. This is because we had no specific classes in this subject other than some in path and surgery. Some areas of radiology were lacking. I was very disappointed with small animal orthopedic surgery...few people in my class were happy with our professor in this subject and it was very disappointing.

Strong: Clinical Pathology, anesthesiology (was way more interesting than the general pharm even though there was overlap in material), some areas of radiology, apparently people I have spoken with felt well prepared for large animal medicine (especially equine). Small animal medicine I generally feel pretty good, some areas are patchy though...like cardiology.

Other than in a few areas (orthopedic sx) other people in my class would probably say differently. So this is all pretty subjective.

I try to ID my weaknesses and focus more on them to help with studying for board exams

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I have spoken with some from the SMU charter class...are you sure it is cheaper? I know the cost of living is definitely higher in cayman. I could be wrong.

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Thanks for your opinion and taking the time to respond. It's extremely helpful reading your posts! I have lurked these boards for over a year now- rarely post (obviously) but I've learned a lot. I'm sure I'm not the only one!

I believe the tuition was a little cheaper but yes, the cost of living was much higher.