In veterinary school, students unofficially think of the summer between your second and third year as your “last free summer.” Meaning that, once fourth-year clinical rotations start (and subsequently your career), you won’t have any more summer breaks! This designation, of course, slightly overexaggerates, but I kept this in the back of my mind in planning my summer activities.
I decided to focus my summer mostly on recharging for my third year of vet school, with a few weeks of externships and working. While relaxing at home, most of my time spent was going to garage sales, swimming at the pool, or training for a marathon. I had a fair amount of travel as well, attending weddings, crossing state borders to see family, and vacationing to Belize for a week. It was a much-needed break from studying and great to relight some hobbies of mine.
Summer Part 1: Leading and Learning
The first half of the summer, I was a pod leader for the Summer Bridge Program; this program is open to incoming first-year students who want to build some clinical critical thinking skills in preparation for vet school. This six-week program went through several clinical cases based around body systems. I led students through important questions to ask when uncovering a case. Overall, this was a great learning experience for me in leadership and my own system of going through cases!
I also spent time externing at a general practice clinic about an hour from school, where I learned some new skills and refreshed my memory on some old ones. I followed doctors into rooms and learned what questions are important to ask to owners and assisted techs in the treatment area with blood draws, catheter placements, and ultrasounds.
My favorite part was performing my first few spay surgeries on some kittens! It was a tricky process at first and I had some assistance, but in the end, I did the full surgery on my own and I feel very confident in my abilities!
Summer Part 2: Integrative Approaches
Lastly, I shadowed at an integrative medicine general practice clinic in Indiana. This is something that I wanted to gain more experience in as it likely will be a part of my future career. I learned a lot of new ways to approach medicine, such as acupuncture, herbal medicine, ozone therapy, and nutrition. My favorite part here was the focus on preventive medicine and making sure clients and patients are set up for success with diet, weight management, and routine bloodwork.
Overall, my “last free summer” was a success and the perfect mix of relaxation and productivity. I look forward to what my third year of vet school has to offer, and I feel even more prepared to tackle a year of surgery and medicine!
By Annie Marlowe, Class of 2026
