Long Time No Post . . . . .

And I sincerely apologize for that. These past few months have been extremely distracting for me. I have been trying to move to Chicago for years and finally made the move a few weeks ago. Needless to say, I have been up to my neck in trying to find a new job and new place to live while severing ties with my previous job and apartment and everything that goes along with relocating - bills, transportation, saying goodbye to friends and family, etc.

But I'm back! And I've been procrastinating on my schoolwork, but since I'm neatly tucked into my life here now, I will commence. I would like this blog to be fully functioning and will do my best to keep up with any and all information that other Penn Foster hopefuls would like to know, as well as any other bits of insight concerning animals.

So . . . where did I leave off? Ah, yes. I have completed Orientation to Veterinary Technology and Introduction to Veterinary Technology, and I see where my impatience is going to get me in trouble. You see, I have a lot of practical experience - veterinary clinic, humane society, PetSmart, and work on my farm growing up - and I've read every animal book I can get my hands on. So reading the course materials, which are supposedly written for any average Joe without much animal experience at all, is a tad frustrating. But this is something I absolutely want to accomplish, so I must temper my desire to fly through the coursework I'm familiar with and be diligent and look over everything I'm doing. As it is, my grade average has dropped to 94% because I am being hasty and not reading every single thing they provide me with. Really, how silly! There are 3 sections to Intro to Vet Technology, and I scored an 85% on one of them. Completely unacceptable. I don't imagine I'll be valedictorian of the class or anything like that, but I'd certainly like to keep my grade level up in the 90 percentile if I can. Especially since this is the easy stuff and it will only get more difficult.

I am currently hemming and hawing over my next assignment, which is Computer Literacy. Ugh. Not that I computer illiterate - I AM writing a blog and use computers in my daily life - but I want to use every one of my brain cells for something animal related, and if I'm learning about coding and syntex and systems, I feel it's a waste of my space! Not to mention I simply cannot get into and comprehend things I don't care about. Oh well. There are only 2 courses I'm dreading, this Computer Literacy and Medical Mathematics. Aside from Survey of Mathematics in the second semester, everything else is animal centered.

I neglected to send Penn Foster a copy of my high school transcripts until 2 weeks ago - that made me a bit nervous because I had thought I read somewhere about them needing that information within the first 90 days, and this was definitely pushing 90 days! But I've sent it and I've had no word from the school, and I can still log in and participate, so I suppose they haven't dropped me, then. : ) I've also befriended Penn Foster on Facebook. Not much going on there, but perhaps I'm just not searching properly.

My next post will hopefully be after I complete my Computer Literacy, and I promise it will not be 3 months down the road!

Lookin' good . . .

So I received my materials Saturday - yay! It is the first lesson, Orientation to Veterinary Technology, which includes the booklets Strategies for the Independent Learner and Introduction to Animal Care. I'm happy to report that I'm pleased with what I have so far. The material in the Strategies booklet, in particular, is easy to understand and reads rather like a conversation, instead of a textbook. Animal Care definitely leans more towards a textbook style and I found myself re-reading a few sentences to make sure I understood their meaning. As a matter of fact, I think they should re-write it to make it a bit more user friendly - the sentence phrasing seems odd to me. But it is comprehensive and throughout the booklet (what they call a 'study unit') there are Self-Checks that ask you a handful of questions pertaining to what you just read. A mini-exam, if you will, but considering the questions and answers appear to be similar if not the same as what you'll find on the real exam, it is more than helpful. I'm having absolutely no problem at all, and at this point think that 6 months to complete a semester is completely realistic. But time will tell. : )

I still have lingering doubts about the validity of the Penn Foster program. I mean, why is it that Purdue's distance education program is $20,650, Bel-Rea in Colorado is not far off, and St. Petersburg (which is also highly recommended) is $16,099.89, and all programs require additional purchase of books, which can easily run you another $1,000 if you bought every good veterinary book out there? I'm going to receive my Associate of Science in Veterinary Technology for just under $7,000 through this program (plus another few hundred on books to round out my knowledge and to use in future practice). But that is still nearly $10K cheaper than other programs. The Penn Foster program is provisionally accredited with the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA), otherwise I wouldn't have given it a second thought.

But like all people who work hard for their pennies, I guess I just want to make sure I can apply to jobs in the future with confidence, that I won't be laughed out of interviews. I don't want to be looked down upon for pursuing my degree in this manner, or have people think I simply couldn't "cut it" at a standard school. My reality is that I'm married and need a full-time job - how am I supposed to live on campus or attend school full-time? I can't, and so Penn Foster seems to have met all of my requirements - doing school on my time, at a great price, and being accredited with the association that matters in veterinary science.

Taking the Plunge

Signing up for a Penn Foster program, I found, is quite simple. Their website (http://www.pennfoster.edu/) encourages you to call them, do it through the website, or even mail in your down payment and application. While looking at your chosen degree, there are both an "Enroll Now" and a "Request Information" button on the left-hand side ( underneath the Program Overview, Program Outline, etc. buttons). I requested an information packet through their website about their Associate of Science in Veterinary Technology degree, and I received it in the mail just about a week later. It had all of the information I needed, and spelled out on the back of the application itself were the payment and financing terms. Pretty simplified.

I was, however, caught off guard by the fact that the $1,300 for the first semester was a discounted price - the remaining three semesters are going to be more. For some reason I didn't catch that. It's not a big deal, but you should be aware of everything monetary when entering into a contract.

I had my check for the first semester filled out last Sunday, after talking things over with husband, and decided to give them a call, just to make sure I wasn't missing anything. A nice gentleman whose name I neglected to catch answered all of my questions, and he wasn't merely polite; he was quite engaging. I ended up giving Mr. Nice my information over the phone so the check would clear sooner and he could mail my course materials. He gave me my student ID number, and not two minutes later I was logged in to the Penn Foster website as a bonafide student! I had access to pdf files from the course director, Margi Sirois, as well as course catalogue information and a bunch more.

The only thing I was worried about is Penn Foster's Basic Skills Assessment. It's a quiz of about 40 questions, divided for reading skills and math skills. I'm atrocious at math (another reason I'm not going to be a full-fledged veterinarian) but my reading skills are good, so for the math section I hiked over to my sister-in-law's house and had her go through the test with me. It's actually great how they have it set up - you can elect to mail in your answers, or just do it over the internet with no time limit. With my rusty longhand skills and my sister-in-law's smarts, I happily passed the math portion with a B. It covered things I'll be facing in my homework in the future, like fractions, but I'll be able to learn my formulas before doing the work. I finished the reading on my own and passed with a B as well.

So now I'm playing the waiting game. I see that Penn Foster has e-mailed me, saying they've sent a shipment recently. I actually elected to have my first semester mailed to me all at once, instead of staggered, while I was on the phone with Mr. Nice. Who cares about a windfall - I'd rather see all of the work that I have to do and study accordingly. Speaking of work, here are the four semesters of the program, and the courses within:


Semester One

Basic Skills Assessment
Orientation to Veterinary Technology
Introduction to Veterinary Technology
Computer Literacy
Introduction to Biology
Animal Anatomy & Physiology
Medical Mathematics
Information Literacy
Proctored Examination


Semester Two

Veterinary Office Management
English Composition
Survey of Mathematics
Animal Anatomy and Physiology
Diagnostic Imaging
Veterinary Pharmacology
Proctored Examination
1st 9-week Practicum


Semester Three

Clinical Pathology
Animal Parasitology
Animal Diseases, Pathology, and Immunology
Essentials of Phsychology
Surgical Procedures
Anesthesiology
Proctored Examination


Semester Four

Animal Care & Management
Business & Technical Writing
Clinical Pathology
Animal Nutrition, Reproduction, Genetics & Aging
Laboratory Animal Science
Veterinary Technician Examination Review
Proctored Examination
2nd 9-week Practicum


By the way, a proctored examination is an exam overseen by an impartial qualified individual - in this case a veterinarian or licensed veterinary technician - who makes sure that I take my test honestly and in accordance with testing guidelines. When the time comes, I'll contact Penn Foster to see if they can help me find a proctor - I don't know how difficult it will be, but this area is loaded with vets, so hopefully I won't find it difficult!

The 9-week practicum is to be completed under the supervision of a veterinarian. I have time to find employment with a veterinarian before the end of my 2nd semester, so I'm not too worried about it. I've seen posts from other students saying they couldn't find a vet to work with, but apparently these students had no practical experience and the vets were leery to have them perform procedures without any experience. The only thing I lack is proper schooling, so hopefully it's just a matter of finding a vet practice that I'm compatible with.

I'm optimistically hoping to complete a semester every 6 months. I think it's doable. I'm definitely in a better frame of mind for learning, compared to when I was in high school. I'm going to buy some veterinary technician texts that other courses like Purdue require, to round out my knowledge.

So far things seem to be going well. I'm nowhere near my final analysis, but my sign-up came off without a hitch. Just make sure you understand the financing and what exactly is required of you as far as fees, and make sure you know your responsibilities - like finding your proctor, taking your tests, etc.

Next post - my materials have arrived!

Okay, so about Penn Foster . . . .

People either hate it or are pathetically lukewarm. Comments run from "OH GOD, WHY DID I SIGN UP?!?! THEY TOOK MY MONEY, WON'T RETURN MY CALLS, CAN'T CANCEL, AAAGGHHH!!!" to "I'm enrolled and it seems fine, I'd recommend it." Oooooookay - but that doesn't tell me anything! I want to know what you're studying, what the curriculum is like, if you're struggling, if it's easy for you, how available are the staff, and everything in between. How soon is the coursework graded? How difficult was it to do your 9-week practicum? And instead of finding answers, I've found my questions staring back at me, over and over.

Hence this blog. Of course I love everything furry, fuzzy and occasionally covered with feathers or blubber, but I will create what I wish I could have found - a comprehensive, detailed account of my schoolwork. Not "I sharpened my No. 2 pencil and sat at my desk" - no, no, this will expound upon my first-hand experience. And of course I love to write, so this will be quite a pleasure.

I have no delusions, by the way, of more than a handful of people reading this, as it's rather specialized. But if even one prospective Penn Foster student types "Penn Foster vet tech" into Google and sees my blog, and it gives them the knowledge they're seeking - well, then, it's all been worth it, hasn't it?

Next post - actual Penn Foster information! The sign-up process and questions to ask . . . . .

The Alpha

Wow! I have now joined the multitude of 21st century bloggers. I have created this blog mostly because I have recently enrolled in Penn Foster's Veterinary Technician program, and am interested in not only recounting my educational beeline, but discussing the remarkable and profound impact that animals have had on my life.