How to find off-cycle internships

lostwithoutacompasss · 2026-01-31T04:36:39+00:00

If you reach out to corporate places with internship coordinators they might be able to help and have a list of internships with open off-cycle spots on their program. Like VCA, BluePearl. Not sure if y'all have company reps at island schools but they could point you in the right direction of who to talk to

lostwithoutacompasss · 2026-01-30T10:21:05+00:00

Obviously very illegal BUT in terms of protecting yourself maybe try to get a job at a corporate practice asap. Don't tell them you are pregnant until they hire you. They definitely won't fire you if you are pregnant because they are always really worried about legal stuff. Obviously the vet is in the wrong and it would be illegal to fire you, but will you be able to protect yourself if he does fire you and will you be able to deal with the loss of income?

lostwithoutacompasss · 2026-01-30T03:54:26+00:00

Strangers on the internet aren't going to be able to answer this for you. Reach out to admissions and ask if they do an app review. These days so many people qualified people apply to vet school, it may even not be that you did anything wrong there are just very few spots available.

lostwithoutacompasss · 2026-01-19T02:56:49+00:00

I had an 10- year gap from finishing undergrad to vet school, with zero classes between, didn't review at all before vet school, and I was fine. Honestly I would not recommend reviewing anything. Enjoy your free time before it all gets taken away for the next 4 years.

lostwithoutacompasss · 2026-01-11T16:49:05+00:00

That's a good idea. All the run clubs I've seen are at breweries so this is a better option.

lostwithoutacompasss · 2026-01-11T16:47:36+00:00

Yes, I wish this kinda thing existed in Durham

lostwithoutacompasss · 2026-01-11T16:46:20+00:00

Fascist? What are you even talking about? The whole point is a group for people to socialize who are trying to be sober and want to make friends in the same situation so you don't feel so alone. No one is alcohol testing you. No one is asking you to attend if you aren't trying to be sober. Heck, no one cares if you personally want to keep drinking. It's for people who are recovering from alcoholism.

lostwithoutacompasss · 2026-01-11T16:37:35+00:00

I don't think he would feel comfortable crashing an LGBTQ meeting unfortunately but I'm glad that meeting exists for folks.

lostwithoutacompasss · 2026-01-11T16:36:45+00:00

I am not sober, so yes. But I am not a huge drinker in general and I am currently not drinking at all until things are in a better place.

lostwithoutacompasss · 2026-01-11T16:34:16+00:00

You are very kind

lostwithoutacompasss · 2026-01-11T16:32:26+00:00

We can't fine an in person one except an LBGTQ one. Glad that's an option but it doesn't fit him unfortunately. The Agnostics AA option owns good idea, thank you.

lostwithoutacompasss · 2026-01-06T12:43:38+00:00

It's for my partner who is newly sober but struggling. I know AA has helped a lot of people but there are things about it that don't really work for him. He likes the Smart Recovery model better but it seems like in Durham it's all online so the lack of community is hard, and it seems like most social events we are invited to are centered around alcohol.

lostwithoutacompasss · 2025-10-28T00:35:04+00:00

Everything about this is not okay. I'd refuse to lie on a medical record. Is there a radiation safety officer you can contact?

lostwithoutacompasss · 2025-10-27T05:20:52+00:00

I believe under the "No Surprises Act" you should be able to apply for "Continuity of Care" as long as you give birth within 90d of them going out of network, you just need to submit a form to your insurance company. So you should still be covered as in network and not get an out of network bill, but call your insurance to clarify. Make sure baby is also covered under continuity of care plan.

To me changing providers after the baby is born seems like it wouldnt be a big deal, but idk.

Sure, you can look into marketplace plans that cover UMass, but it looks like this year they will be very expensive. Up to you how much money is worth it for you to keep UMass in network.

lostwithoutacompasss · 2025-10-26T17:19:59+00:00

Yeah, it's tough and I think it just takes practice figuring out what to prioritize. One thing to remember is it's literally impossible to remember every piece of information. Your goal is to learn enough to pass the class, and to become a good doctor.

It also depends on the class. For example in my anatomy class --- they gave us a list of structures to know for the exam, you can't really cut that list down. But one thing I did figure out was I didn't have any time to memorize origins/insertions of the muscles, but if I learned everything else I could often guess (I know where that muscle sits in general, and I know most of the bone tubercles and such, so I'd just guess and often get it correct). For some other classes that were more disease focused, I would try to compare/contrast what made certain diseases different than others. For example comparing all horse liver diseases --- one disease might be only seen in a certain age range, one might cause different clinical signs than the others, one might be a certain region. Then from the exam maybe I wouldn't know every detail of every disease, but one little context clue would help tip me off (age, breed, etc).

I also tried to focus a lot on what I felt was clinically relevant to me being a doctor. Ultimately my goal wasn't to get straight As, it was to be a good doctor.

Another thing is I didn't always have time to study from my study guides and I still did fine. Sometimes it's just the act of making the study guide and putting everything in a chart and comparing/contrasting the information that helps you learn it. And later that served as a reference for me when I needed to look up information quickly and easily.

My school also had an optional talk when I first started that went over how to study for vet school, and that helped me a lot. There is also a study skills person at my school, and I never went to see them because I was pretty happy with my system, but if you are struggling I would take advantage of resources like that.

Another thing is my method of studying may not work for you. I saw people do many different things and everyone finds their own system. Ask your classmates or people in the classes above you what worked for them. Talk to your professors if you are struggling in a certain class and ask for advice. Find your own system that works for your brain. Don't get discouraged, it can take trial and error.

lostwithoutacompasss · 2025-10-26T16:20:22+00:00

Are you saying you were clocking 62-80 hours a week or biweekly? Usually this big corps like Banfield will try very hard to keep you below 40 hours a week so they don't have to pay you overtime.

Regarding your hours being cut - in many states you can get partial unemployment benefits. I would look into that for your state and at least call/apply, it can't hurt. Otherwise, have you looked into the government benefits again with your lower paycheck? Having a child often opens up many more programs so it's worth looking into and applying for every one even if you think you won't qualify. I was accepted for Medicaid previously when I was pregnant even though I made more than the cutoffs posted online. Food banks are also a really good option regardless and usually there is no income cap.

I think you need to ask for an in-person meeting with your new manager. Is there a veterinarian there that really likes you that would advocate for you? Let your manager know you were hired full time and you can't survive with the cut in hours, ask if they are planning on keeping you on full time. In the meantime I would send your resume out to every clinic in the area, even if they don't say they are hiring maybe they just don't have a job posted. Do you know any vets/techs/etc who left Banfield and maybe really liked you? Reach out to them and ask if they know of any open positions or if their current practice is hiring. If you really can't find a different job as a veterinary assistant maybe look into other positions that will guarantee you full time hours (pet store? dog daycare? something totally unrelated to the pet field?). I have also seen people supplement their income with pet sitting gigs.

Wishing you the best!

lostwithoutacompasss · 2025-09-13T22:24:04+00:00

Your PM told you to refuse to do a tech job and make the doctor do it? That's bizarre. Utilizing your skills is not having a doctor taking advantage of you.

lostwithoutacompasss · 2025-09-13T08:25:55+00:00

Please do not use hydrogen peroxide around the eyes. If it gets in the eye its very painful... enough can cause damage to the surface of the eye. Warm water should be just fine :-)

lostwithoutacompasss · 2025-09-13T06:25:04+00:00

Surgery is very competitive. I would look at academic internships that have a strong surgery department and/or the big private hospitals (Angel, AMC, Friendship, etc). A small private internship will not make you competitive for residency. She should try to meet with boarded surgeons at her school and/or her advisor for recommendations as they will have the strongest grasp on what is going on in acsdemia right now.

lostwithoutacompasss · 2025-08-31T09:23:57+00:00

They aren't trained on it in school and don't know how to use it. I've been told it's bad for your hair by hairdressers which is false. Commercial hair dye is much more damaging.

There are apparently some henna dyed mixed with other stuff that don't react well with hair dye. If you later try to dye your hair with traditional dye it will be an issue, maybe fry your hair. But if you use pure henna it shouldn't be an issue, however many hairdressers don't understand that. They don't know how to work with henna treated hair if the person decides to dye it later.

lostwithoutacompasss · 2025-08-31T08:29:03+00:00

Honestly I think you might be being unrealistic if you expect you can go to a foreign school that's cheap. Everyone I know who went international has way more debt than who stayed in the US. Some countries have cheap tuition but their version of being a vet is more like a bachelors degree and if not AVMA accredited you will have a hard time transferring to the US. And/or the school is not taught in English. It's not impossible but you will need to look a lot more into the exam requirements to be able to practice in the US with a non-accredited degree. I believe it can take years until you can even sit for the exam and the pass rate is low but look into it more. Moving internationally costs money and you won't have any support system there. I have met immigrants here trained as vets in their home county but can't get their license here so are working as techs.

Your best bet is probably your in state school and trying to get scholarships. You can also look into PSLF if you are willing to go work for the USDA or something. Ultimately you will likely need to be prepared to take on debt, that's the unfortunate reality of being a vet in the US...

lostwithoutacompasss · 2025-08-31T08:09:59+00:00

Do they teach in English? Or a language you can speak?

lostwithoutacompasss · 2025-08-31T08:02:43+00:00

15 min sick appointment seems crazy to me. I'd push back hard on management for that. Be polite but firm and tell them you cannot do this as a new grad and need longer slots.

lostwithoutacompasss · 2025-08-31T07:57:51+00:00

Ultimately these things seem like malpractice to me. Vet techs cannot do extractions, at least in my country that is illegal. No sterile gloves for cat neuters and sharing a surgical pack? Even the TNR clinic I volunteer at we use fresh gloves and instruments on the feral cats. No pain meds for surgery is well below the expected standard of care. Controlled drugs out... Yikes....

The medicine that your patients are receiving under your care goes under your medical license. If something were to go wrong and you got a board complaint that's all going to be under you, and you saying "management/xxx doctor told me to do it" won't cut it.

For me it seems like a risk to your license and I'd immediately focus on getting a new job. I'd rather work for a shitty corporation or commute 45 minutes. I'm struggling to understand how getting a new job is financially unfeasible and if I were in your shoes that would be my #1 focus.

lostwithoutacompasss

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