On this page, you will find some recommendations on what to watch, read, listen and do to engage with your subject. As well as feeding your intellectual curiosity, these links may provide useful material for your UCAS statement. Once you have engaged with the links, make sure that you practise putting your thoughts into words with the writing activity at the end.
Watch
Studying Veterinary Medicine at Cambridge University
Opportunities within Veterinary studies
Veterinary Medicine: Human, animal and environmental health
Depressed dogs, cats with OCD — what animal madness means for us humans
Read
Even the gorillas and bears in our zoos are hooked on prozac
‘This is a calamity’: the surgeons keeping pugs and bulldogs alive
British Veterinary Association, Newsroom
Listen
‘Zoobiquity’: What Humans Can Learn From Animal Illness
Royal Veterinary College, Clinical Podcast
Do
- Spend time with animals – As a vet student, animal handling is an essential skill and one of the very first things that you will practise in your first year of study. It’s worth getting ahead of the game by spending some time getting used to handling animals. Spending time at a farm or veterinary practice, visiting a laboratory or volunteering at a local animal charity are all great ways of increasing your exposure to animals.
- Sharpen your scientific skills – First and foremost, vets are scientists and being a good problem solver is vital to a successful career in the veterinary field. Why not brush up on basic science concepts to get a feel for dealing with and understanding a lot of new concepts? The Faculty of Biology at The University of Cambridge have published an online list of questions for prospective medicine and veterinary studies students.
- Enroll in a free online course from a leading university. Try Introduction to Animal Behaviour or One Health: Connecting Humans, Animals and the Environment.
Write
- To apply to university, you need to demonstrate that you are well informed about the subject and have a strong interest in studying it at greater depth. To get started, practice writing about your subject interests by composing short responses to the following questions:
- What have you watched, read or listened to that has inspired you?
- Why was it interesting?
- What new issues did you learn about?
- What do you want to find out next?
- What excites you about the subject?
- Why do you think studying the subject is important?