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| SPOTLIGHT ON STUDENT LIFE :: Vet Aide Club |
Vet Aide Club"Being a member of the Vet Aide Club has allowed me to discover the different types of veterinary occupations there are," says Stephan Armfield. "It also has allowed me the opportunity to intern at the Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital and gain valuable experience." Armfield says that along with the valuable experience he's gained, he's been able to add the time spent interning onto his transcript by Transcript Notation through the Internship and Career Center. "The most surprising thing I have learned about becoming a veterinarian is how many different types of veterinary occupations there are," he adds. When asked about internships at the VMTH, Armfield says that although students aren't permitted to perform veterinary procedures, interns can watch and learn, which allows them to decide whether they can handle veterinary medicine before they get to hands on. "Internships also allow undergraduates to step back and observe how procedures are conducted between multiple personnel," says Armfield. According to Armfield, the internship application process is very competitive. He qualifies that by mentioning that the application procedures allow as many people as possible to get internships. "It is our goal to get people as many internships as possible to increase their awareness of veterinary medicine and increase their ability to get internship or jobs at other clinics to gain as much experience as possible," says Armfield. Armfield's advice to new UC Davis students? "To new UC Davis students who are pre-vet or considering joining the club, the Vet Aide Club is a great opportunity to find experience and receive excellent information about the veterinary career," he says. "We are closely tied to the Internship and Career Center and the pre-vet advising center. It is highly recommended that pre-vet studwents join and get on the listserv to receive information about events such as the Solano Feral clinic and Mercer clinic which also provide excellent veterinary experience. However, members should not rely on the Vet Aide Club to provide them with all their experience. They should look at other opportunities and use the club as a source for information and additional experience," concludes Armfield. The Vet Aide Club has several special events planned, including one called "Dinner with a Vet Student.," scheduled for the end of the academic year. "This is where vet students from the UC Davis vet school come and talk about their undergraduate experiences and how they got into vet school, as well as their future plans after vet school. This is all conducted during a dinner hosted by the club officers," says Armfield. For more information, students can visit the Vet Aide Club Web site. |