Having endured the wait for results, I can officially say I’ve passed my second year at vet school, and reflect on another crazy twelve months of life as a Glasgow vet student.
A vet is a unique type of student – despite having a crammed uni timetable we all manage to fill our “spare” time with a mountain of other activities. Not only that, but the close-knit circle of vet students at each individual school and the wider community across the schools in the UK and Ireland is something that is particularly characteristic to vet students.
In November, Glasgow descended on Liverpool as zombies for an alcohol-fuelled weekend of “sport”. Shortly after, however, the Glasgow vet sports teams focused their attention on the far more serious matter of “Dick Day”, the sports day against Edinburgh.
January brought my first experience of Association of Veterinary Students’ Congress, which was a great weekend of helpful practicals and talks. Here, the AVS elections opened, in which I was running for the editor position of JAVS (the vet student magazine).
In March, I jumped on a plane to Germany to undertake foaling EMS at a thoroughbred stud yard, which was incredible and well worth the travel. Along with having an enthusiastic vet and yard manager (who were both keen for me to learn) I was also given the opportunity to return in the summer for yearling preparation.
After a year of meetings, emails and phone calls, the group of friends that had formed the Rodeo Committee finally pulled off a fantastic charity event for the public, despite battling the typical Scottish weather. It was a marathon effort for everyone involved, but worth it to see families having fun on the day, and succeeding in raising £16,000 for our chosen animal charities.
During the Rodeo aftermath, our exams hit, and the entire vet school population turned into library hermits. But after two weeks of red bull, little sleep and aching writing hands, we were free.
Shortly after, I ventured abroad once again, this time to Naples, Italy, as part of an IVSA (International Veterinary Student Association) trip. In addition to the interesting and unusual practicals and lectures, I met a variety of vet students from various countries and learned far more about veterinary in different cultures.
Having competed with the university riding team all year, I then found myself at the BUCS (British University and College Sport) Riding Championships with my teammates.
After three days of dressage and style jumping, our team was placed second in our league – a fantastic result for our club!
It’s been a busy year, and although exam results may suggest it’s now over, my summer has other ideas.
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