Gator Vet Camp

The Gator Vet Camp recognizes talented high students and provides them with enriching academic and personal exposure to Veterinary Medicine profession and college life. The rigorous activities, shared experiences, and challenging exercises enable participants to identify courses important for college readiness and explore careers in Veterinary Medicine. Gator Vet Camp is a part of the College of Veterinary Medicine’s commitment to provide a diverse and inclusive learning environment through aggressive recruiting of underserved and historically underrepresented communities.

As a participant in the Gator Vet Camp you will get the opportunity to:

• Tour the College of Veterinary Medicine and their various facilities
• Practice clinical skills
• Work with current Vet Med faculty, staff, and students on independent projects
• Learn about little known specialties in veterinary medicine such as wildlife, large animal, fish, and more!

Applicants must create an account in our online application portal in order to apply for any student programs offered by UF CPET. The online application portal will open January 15, 2024.  All components are submitted using the online application process unless noted.  After all the below components of the application are completed, student must log into their account and SUBMIT their application.

A GVM Application consists of the following:

User Information: Provide applicant and parent/guardian contact information.

Application Form:  Additional information as well as answering writing prompts.  The three writing prompts are as follows (each is 300- 500 words):

• Prompt 1: Please describe an experience that made you excited or curious to learn more about Veterinary Medicine.
• Prompt 2: How would people closest to you describe your personality?
• Prompt 3: Please describe your involvement in extracurricular activities and any leadership positions have you held.

Endorsement Form:  One online Endorsement Form filled out and submitted by a high-school or college-level math, science, research, or computer science teacher or mentor is required. 

• We encourage you to ask a teacher or mentor who knows you well in a subject area you would like to pursue while you are here.
• Endorsers will receive an automated request from noreply@smapply.io once a student has requested an endorsement in their online application. However, we recommend that students contact their teacher prior to filling out the online request.
• If they do not receive an email from our system, please double-check that you have their correct email address before contacting us. This is the #1 reason why teachers do not receive the endorsement form.

Guidance Counselor Form: Online Guidance Counselor Form filled out and submitted by your current guidance counselor.  For anyone who does not have a guidance counselor, please contact our office directly at 352-392-2310.

• By providing your guidance counselor's information, you grant permission for us to ask your guidance counselor if you have a disciplinary record.
• Your guidance counselor will be sent an automated email with the Guidance Counselor Form. However, it is your responsibility to communicate with your Guidance Counselor regarding this request. Your guidance counselor will receive an automated request from noreply@smapply.io
• If they do not receive an email from our system, please double-check that you have entered their correct email address before contacting us. This is the #1 reason why guidance counselors do not receive the form.

High School Transcript (Offline Task*, see note below):  Submit your unofficial transcript with first semester (Fall 2023) grades to UF CPET via FAX.

• Our FAX is 352-392-2344 (Not sure how to FAX? Ask your guidance counselor for help.
• Our fax machine gets really busy during application season, especially as deadlines approach. Make sure your fax sends before walking away! 
• Students are required to have started their application before transcripts are received.  Transcripts received without an associated on-line application account will be destroyed.

Application Fee (Offline Task*, see note below):  The link to pay the $20 Application Fee is available from www.cpet.ufl.edu.  Students attending a Florida High School who qualify for free and reduced may request an Application Fee Waiver.  

*Offline Tasks: In the application portal, students are required to acknowledge the requirement of the each of these “offline” portions by clicking “submit for approval”. The CPET office will log receipt of the each requirement. Please note that our system may be automated, but our process isn’t!  When you send your transcript, we still need to look it over and make sure it has everything we need before a person goes into the system to let you know that we’ve received it. This can take up to three business days based on how many applications we are receiving simultaneously. After the requirement is logged, students will need to complete the section by clicking “complete” in the on-line portal.

The application deadline is Friday, March 1st at 5:00 PM EST. Once the first round of applications is received, they are reviewed by our Selection Committee.  This review process can take 3 or more weeks, so please be patient.  Each member of our committee carefully reads each application, transcript, and teacher endorsement we receive.  This process takes time.  Frequent calls can slow this process.  Once we have reached a decision, we will send out an email through our online application portal.  Notifications regarding your account and application progress will come from noreply@smapply.io. Please add this address to your email safe senders list, address book, or contact list.

Please note that applicants, not their parents, receive all correspondence from our office.  It is the student’s responsibility to provide a working email address and check that email address regularly for communication from UF CPET.  Failure to respond to email in a timely manner may result in the student being placed on the wait list. At any time applicants and parent “collaborators” may check on acceptance status in the online portal.

The three possible decisions are as follows:  invited to attend, waitlist, or not invited.

The Gator Vet Camp is very popular and therefore attracts student applicants from all over the state.  We understand that many students also are already exploring their passion for Veterinary Medicine already through pre-vet programs at schools and/or volunteering with local veterinary offices.  We encourage you to make note of this in your application, however please note that this program is designed to serve students both who have experience and do not have veterinary experience.   

Each applicant is reviewed and selections are made by the overall candidate profile submitted through the applications process.  

Due to high demand and the introductory nature of the program, any student who has participated already in Gator Vet Camp (including 10th and 11th graders, who will now be seniors) are not eligible to attend again.  

If you applied previously but were NOT accepted, you are eligible and encouraged to apply.