Bristol Offer!

So I got a Bristol offer just three days after my interview!!!!! I was jumping and screaming!!! I couldn't post before this because preboards and then my birthday and Christmas. :P

Anyway, I'm sooo excited and so thankful for the Bristol offer. It's 85% in top four subjects and 85% in biology and chemistry!!!

I'm also going for an Edinburgh interview to Singapore on the 19th of January so wish me luck there! Eeeeehh, I really hope I get into Edinburgh too.

Post Bristol Interview

So you want my advice do you?

I'd say these few things:
1) Be yourself.
2) Try to relax and not get nervous.
3) Be sure of everything you've written about in your personal statement.
4) Make sure you're able to speak for 1-2 minutes about each of your placements.

I think my interview didn't start as well as I hoped but ended on a much better note. Bristol have said I should hear back in about 2 weeks on UCAS one way or the other so I guess there isn't too much torture for that.

I've heard Nottingham has started sending out interviews now so fingers crossed I get one soon!

Short I know but just wanted to give an update. My pre-board practicals are going on in school so it's a busy time.

Oh, Indian people, there is this amazing site called mycbseguide.com. Amazing site and very helpful for previous year board papers.

Good luck to you and me!

Preparing for an Interview.

So I'm equally excited and nervous for my Bristol interview which is actually today! Since I did originally start this blog so that more people have an idea of what it's like to be a vet and go through the journey I think it's only fair for me to hi light some of the ways I'm preparing.

First of all and most important, I went through my personal statement so many times, I probably have it memorized. Any little thing mentioned there, I've done further research on and have at least a minute's worth to talk about.

I've searched veterinary interview questions and drafted some answers which I'm going to print and go over now. I have a basic list of answers for the tricky questions and I've thought about the ethical bits as well.

Bristol judges on the following (taken from their site):

• Depth of knowledge gained from work experience: I've brushed up on common animal diseases, decided a few cases that I've observed which are interesting, read about the vaccination scedule for dogs and cats and generally thought about my placements and what I leant from them.
• Informed about career / awareness of current topics: I've made sure I know all the careers one can get into after doing veterinary medicine, I've searched recent developments and have a few stories and articles that I've read, I've thought about the disadvantages of being a veterinarian and I've read up on things going on in science.
• Enthusiasm, commitment and determination to study: I'm hoping this will shine through on its own but I have searched Bristol's site and jotted down some of their best facilities which I can talk.
• Communication skills: I speak quite often in English at home so I'm not worried about that part, however I am a little concerned that I might not understand some terms in their accent and they could have a problem with mine but I'm sure I can work past that. 
• Self-confidence / interpersonal skills: While I'm not the most self confident person, I've recently improved a lot and I'm doing some mock interviews with friends and fimily which I'll then record and listen to. My strategy is to sit straight, have my hands on my lap or on the table in from and look right into the screen all the time. 

Goodluck to everybody preparing and here's to hoping my interview goes well! 

Edinburgh Interview and Imperial Offer!

I got the Edinburgh interview first and I seriously screech like a banashee when I opened the email!



I'm so happy about that but there are specific centres where we can take the interview and the closest one is Singapore.



Then I got an Imperial interview. When I opened my UCAS track I literally sat like this for a whole 5 minutes:



I was so not expecting that at all. I had just applied to Imperial on a whim, never really thinking I would get in. It was a great feeling.

Basically, I've been busy studyi- oh who am I kidding. I've gotten addicted to books again. Help me dear god, I finished 6 books in the last 7 days and I'm in the middle of my practice tests.



Damn authors and the huge amounts of books.

I should really study though and I've promised myself I won't read a book till the 8th now, which is my last practice test. I'm struggling with organic chemistry at the moment and can't seem to learn a thing.



Still, so excited for Edinburgh and Bristol and really hoping for a Nottingham interview next. Wish me luck!



Love,
JoAT

Update and some brooding...

Another day, another post, another update. Nothing much going on except I'm pretty brooding at the moment. A little catchup first though. 

Bristol sent another email on preparation for the interview, work experience form and some other general information. 

Glasgow finally finally acknowledged my application and I can rest in peace with the thought that all my applications have reached.

Nottingham has a representative in India who will be attending some fairs and I'll be going to one of them to ask questions and stuff. 

Now, my brooding. 

I have a question. An eternal question. Why do people feel the need to be recognized or awarded by others? Okay I understand wanting your close friends or family to be proud of you but I'm pretty sure if you're a great person they'll know anyway. 

It puzzles me how much people fight for awards or certificates in school. So what if you're popular in school? So what if people know you? That doesn't mean they like you or respect you. Everybody knew who Bin Laden was but was he respected? He thought what he was doing was right I'm pretty sure. 

This being said of course I understand that if you do something you love and you're rewarded for it its a great feeling also, I admit I would never turn down an award even if I thought I didn't deserve it. But WHY do I feel this way? Is it society? Is it me? Is it the need to stand out amongst so many? 

Then of course the fact that everybody thinks their work is the most important. Teachers expect you to stay in school doing extra curricular till the night and then expect you to get good marks in the test the next day too. There are so many people doing better and better that to stand out you need to do even better than better. In today's world you need to be perfect. 

Is perfect possible? I don't think it is. I count myself as an optimist but there are moments like this where I feel more like a realist. Then I redefine my meaning of an optimist. I believe an optimist is a person who has moments like this. They have completely dark moments too. Optimists however are those people who despite it all, are able to truly laugh sincerely after such moments. 

Then again hope remains huh? We're all a bunch of chemicals anyway that have somehow developed a conscience. How is that possible? It's crazy how bits of chemicals make us all act and feel a particular thing. It's one of the reasons I love biology and one of the reasons I love animals. 

Humans are flawed. Greatly flawed. It's in their genes. Most people look down on animals because they don't seems as intelligent or clever or have the same capabilities we do but I envy them. I believe they are genetically better than us. After all, they're not the ones destroying themselves and all those around them. They have problems too of course but I think we have more. 

Maybe we would have been better off as a monkey. Maybe we should have stuck with trees. But then science says our bodies seem to be getting better. But what is science really? Something molecules in our head made up. But it's fascinating. These molecules think they're fascinating. This is crazy. It's philosophy. 

The bottom line is its all in our genes and environment. Genetics is the reason I believe in fate and destiny. It's all preceded in these molecules. The world can be explained through science. I think philosophy will be explained someday too. I can't wait.  

And nothing...

Posts almost everyday and then nothing. Ooh, kind of like my application to UK process. So much to do and now just waiting. It's crazy! I got all excited about the Bristol interview and submitting this and that and now this waiting is agony. More so because NOTHING happens over the weekend.



The Indian exam registrations are also opening up and I've already applied to Manipal for medical and I'm thinking of applying for biotechnology as well. Not that I'm thinking of doing human medicine at all but just as a practice for the aipvt. It'll be useful because I know I will study and revise 4-5 times this way before sitting for the pvt.

Honestly, I don't have much to say. I could just keep typing what I'm thinking like my best friend told me to I guess.



Parents don't really know how to help their children deal with the boards pressure in India do they? They say 'I know you can do it' or '96% se bhi kuch nahi hota' (you can't get anywhere even with a 96%) or even 'siraf X days bache hai beta' (only x days left) but what they don't seem to realize is rather than spurring us to study this just makes us feel the pressure even more. Personally, I've never had a day where my mother hasn't asked 'how much did you study today?'

It's my job mom, I know what I have to do. You don't need to remind me EVERYDAY that I have to study. Yeah I know what I'm doing is hard. Yes, you need amazing marks in India. Yes, I know it's competivtive. No, you reminding me again and again does not help. Yes, I know there are lacks of people giving the same exams I am. Yes, I know there are people who study 14 hours a day. Yes, I've seen how much the topper in my class studies. No, I haven't studied as much as they did.



Don't get me wrong, I know they're doing this for my good and I rarely (okay quite a bit) snap at my mother for asking the same things over and over but there has to be a point where they understand that they're not helping.

I really hope someday when I have kids I'll figure out a way to do things in a much better way. I know I'll never make my parent's mistakes. I love my parents of course but sometimes they're a bit too much. In India especially, children are expected to turn into robots for at least 6 months during their boards and get good grades as their output in the end.

I'm sorry I can't do that. I'm sorry I have to read books to keep sane. I'm sorry I can't stop going on 9gag. I'm sorry for wanting to watch a movie sometimes. I'm sorry for wanting to follow ONE series on TV. Most of all, I'm sorry for not being sorry at all.

Edinburgh WES Submitted

So last night I finished and submitted my Edinburgh WES. I hope the stuff I wrote in the additional comments is not irrelevant. It was also my mother's birthday yesterday so yay!



I'm currently sitting in my biology class and typing this. I'm pretty comfortable with biology, english and biotechnology but my physics and chemistry is weak. I really hope I can step up my marks because I really really want to get into Hisar. It would be a dream come true.



How about a little personal background?

So, I go to school and then an institution in the evening thrice a week. The institute helps me train for the entrance exams as well as helps me for my boards. In India, all competitive exams are crazy so special prep is definitely needed.

My best friend in the world is in school and is prepping for engineering.



I have some more close friends both in school and my institute. I'm close with both my parents but I'm more like my father in the way I think and behave. I have a younger brother who is pretty cool as far as younger brothers go. My two dogs are also an integral part of my family and I adore them. They're approaching 12 now and still quite healthy so I'm pretty happy.



The worst thing about my life is the crazy pressure the boards and entrance exams put on me. My worst fear is that I will not get into veterinary medicine anywhere and will have to do something else. My mom will probably never agree to me taking a gap year. People keep saying that college is bad but for somebody who is already used to working hard I don't think it'll be too bad.

Above all, I'm really really impatient to get the next leg of my life started even though I will really miss my school.

Bristol Interview!

So amazing news!!! I just got invited for a Bristol interview! This is amazing news, especially after my disappointing day yesterday. I'm SO EXCITED!!! It's the best feeling EVER.



Okay I should calm down though...

In this post I was supposed to tell you about where all I applied and I'm sure you gathered from the first few lines, the University of Bristol is one of them.

Let's start from my own country though.

India has two main ways you can get into a government veterinary college. I'm not even considering any private colleges because their degree will probably not be recognized. Anyway, one is through the AIPVT or All India Pre-Veterinary Test and the other is through your state's veterinary exam which you are eligible for only if you have a domicile for the state.



Basically I'm going to be applying for both and my top choices based on a lot of research are-
1) Lala Lajpat Rai University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Hisar
2) Bombay Veterinary College
3) Madras Veterinary College

4) College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Pantnagar

5) Kerala Veterinary and Animal Sciences University
6) Rajasthan University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Bikaner

Then, as a second option I've applied to the United Kingdom but I would prefer to remain in India since it's closer, better for UG and doesn't put as much of a strain on the pocket.

However I've applied to the following Universities in UK-
1) University of Nottingham
2) University of Edinburgh
3) University of Bristol
4) University of Glasgow

and as a 5th choice (UCAS only allows 4 veterinary medicine choices)

5) Imperial College, London (Biology) 

While I would absolutely love to go abroad for undergrad, one year's fee there is more than all the living expenses I'd have to pay for my five years in India.



If I could get a full scholarship to UK I would go in a heartbeat but I'm not disappointed with being in India either.

It's pretty much a win-win situation if I get into any of these colleges by this time next year. I'll be on my way to my dream!

Hopefully more good news to come,

JoAT 

Why today?

Honestly, I had been delaying this first post simply because I couldn't think of any good way to start. Introductions and back stories sound so weird when I doubt anybody will be reading this anyway (except maybe the select few close friends I've told about this blog *waves at friends*). Anyway, for some strange reason I had a gut feeling to start today.



Maybe it's because my day's been pretty disappointing and I want to start something positive to keep my morale up. To tell you about my bad day though, I will have to go into some back story.

So, once upon a time there was a little girl. She loved animals as much as all little girls do, laughing and jumping with the doggies. Both her parents believed in being well rounded. She was signed up for swimming, skating , tennis, dance, instruments and all kinds of activities. Above all though, this little girl loved to read and she loved fantasy, fairytale and fiction. Her mother had started reading alphabet books to her even before she could speak. She begged for pets when she was six and her parents relented, getting two little dalmation puppies. She loved them with all her heart, played with them, walked them, taught them little tricks.



Yet, that was not when being a veterinarian clicked.

As she grew up more, so did her book choices. She went through the usual customary Enid Blyton phase but strangely, got stuck there. She was set in her schedule. She'd tried out practically all the sports and her favorites were swimming and tennis. She swam in the morning, played tennis thrice a week, went for dance class the other two days, played with her dogs in the grass, and read the same Enid Blyton books again and again.



She studied hard and was at the top of her class. She absolutely adored maths. She had been ranked second in her entire school in the subject. She had been made sports captain in fifth grade. She dreamed of being an architect. She would design homes and make beautiful structures and arches and measure it all with her amazing math skills.

Then senior school happened. It wasn't so bad, just a dip in her marks but it did bring about a huge change. She started disliking math. Drawing wasn't intersting, designing wasn't fun. She did finally moved past her Enid Blyton stage and took up other books. She started swimming competitively and her water polo improved.



It was also around this time that she discovered Animal Ark. Sure, it was quite late and she was a bit old for them but they were cute and she had missed the phase because of her obcession.  The moment she picked up the first book, there was no turning back. Mandy reached out, grabbed her hand and dragged her into the world of animals. Animals jumped, they pranced, they slithered, they glided, they were everywhere! Oh but they weren't always safe. James and Mandy helped the animals, they kept them safe. She wanted to do it too. Mandy wanted to be a vet and so did she. She wanted to help animals and she wowed she would never watch an animal suffer and not do something about it.



It was after this that she started noticing the strays around her. So many animals but she was still so young. She made do with sneaking out bits of roti, bread and milk. She started noting her own dogs more, she studied their behavior. If you tried turning off the television in the middle of Meercat Manor or any big cats show, she would turn into a big cat herself snd yowl your head off. This ambition gave her determination. She knew it was a hard career and she knew from all her research on the net that she would have to pick up her marks.



She did manage to get them up and got a perfect score in science in 10th grade. 11th came around and she struggled but preserved. 12th grade came and so did the pressure.

And here the girl is now, not so young any more, volunteering at an animal shelter and interning at a veterinary clinic. She feels the pressure, she knows what she has to do. She knows how hard she has to work. She just needs to keep her motivation.



My bad day? Oh yeah.

So I mentioned I swam and played water polo competitively right? In 12th grade we have captains and vice captians of our team and I found out today that I'm being made vice captian of Waterpolo even though I play better than the girl who's going to be made captian. It's not completely unfair though, she has been to more nationals than me but that's the work of circumstance rather than skill.



Then, right after that, I found out we (my friends and I) lost this research project award we had taken part in. Two months of hard work went into that project and yet we lost. It was quite disappointing.

I suppose there are better notes to start a blog on but I like to be well balanced in my day's emotions and this does help me accept my disappointments quite a bit.

My next post will have details about all the places I've applied to/ will apply to and my order of choices and why.



Hopefully, I'll start typing the next post in a better mood than I started this one on.

Later,
JoAT