Getting into good veterinary colleges is an extremely difficult feat. Many good veterinary colleges, such as Ontario veterinary college, are more competitive than medical schools in todays society, taking a smaller percentage of applicants.
The process of getting into good veterinary colleges must start as early as high school. Like preparation for any college program, you must learn good study habits and discipline early on if you want to get the grades to attend good veterinary colleges. You also want to focus on biology and other science courses, creating a good foundation in these subjects. Working in a veterinary office, or volunteering at a local animal shelter, are ideal ways to prepare the way for admission to good veterinary colleges.
You then want to obtain an undergraduate degree in some related science. Also take a look at what additional courses good veterinary colleges will require you to have taken. You may need additional coursework in biology, mathematics, and chemistry, outside of your major. Continued work or volunteering in the veterinary or medical field will be beneficial, as well as maintaining a high GPA, especially in those classes related to your field.
Next, you will need to find out what standardized test your desired veterinary college requires. Some accept the MCAT, some the GRE. In veterinary school, the first couple of years will be spent on acquiring basic knowledge of the topics studied, with the last two being spent on practical application of this information. After graduating from veterinary college, you will still have to take a licensing exam before you can practice veterinary medicine.
If you decide that veterinary college is not for you, that you do not want to spend that long in school, or simply that you do not want to be a veterinarian but still wish to work in the veterinary field, there are a couple of alternatives to veterinary college. Veterinary technology colleges or veterinary assistant colleges are good ways to become involved in veterinary medicine without completing the entire process of becoming a licensed veterinarian.