A common question for all college students to get is what their major is. As a freshman, people automatically assume that your major will change a few times while you're in college.I personally have been asked countless times what my backup plan is but the truth is most people, like me, in the Pre-Veterinary major have a passion that makes them not have or want a backup plan. Instead of explaining this, I will usually say I'd be happy studying to be an animal defense lawyer or an animal science teacher. But the truth I don't see myself being happy in any other field of study. I'm a pre-veterinary major because animals are my passion.

The veterinary field is one that is highly competitive. I get told how hard it will be to get into a doctorate program every time I tell someone new about my major. But the thing is I'm up for the challenge. I, like most pre-vet majors, have been dedicating my life to animals ever since I first discovered my passion for the veterinary field. I have over four years of hands-on experience learning about all sorts of animal careers, and I've always been able to point out my passion for veterinary medicine.

When a person works with animals they go through their fair share of miracles and heartbreaks. I watched so many animals find forever homes, dogs recover from surgery, and animals being taken into who needed immediate veterinary care. I distinctly remember going to the veterinarian with one of my supervisors at an animal shelter that I volunteered at and listening to the options for the future of a cat that was extremely ill. I barely knew that specific animal, but I wanted nothing more than to be able to help. My favorite dog from the shelter, who had been there as long as I had been, was discovered to have cancer and went home with another volunteer to live out the rest of his life in a home. I learned that the reward of helping animals survive and live long and happy lives is far more prominent than the heartbreak that comes with losing an animal.

The years of experience I have taught me that if I have any doubts about what I want to do, I probably shouldn't be considering the veterinary field. DVM programs are difficult enough to get into when a person has shown dedication and passion for the field. In order to be accepted to a DVM program, a student needs to dedicate their life to becoming the best applicant possible. Great grades, field experience, leadership roles, standardized tests, and doing everything possible to be well rounded are just a few of the things that make a person a good candidate for vet school. The veterinary field is not one that anyone goes into thinking that it's going to be easy, so why would I put myself through all that work if I was unsure?

I am in a pre-veterinary bachelor's program at the moment that is well known and respected in New England. At my school, there are multiple animal majors but the major that seems to have the most presence on campus is Pre-Veterinary. Most people in the major seem to agree with me. Nobody who truly knows what it will take to be a veterinarian would choose the field if they weren't sure. I'm a pre-veterinary major because I have a passion. I will not adopt a backup plan and I will not settle for a different career.