Most veterinary schools do not require the GRE and some institutions no longer consider scores during the decision process. However, a good GRE score may boost your veterinary school application for programs who still accept submissions.
The GRE should be completed at least two months prior to your VMCAS application cycle deadline. Test results take a few weeks to be returned, and submitting your scores to different schools may also take longer than expected, so it is best to take the GRE well in advance of your September deadline.
The CASPer test should be completed within your VMCAS application cycle as results are only valid for a single application cycle. The assessment is rated and the score is sent to selected veterinary schools 2-3 weeks after the test date, so tests should be completed before August—at least one month prior to the end of the application cycle. The CASPer test is required by some, but not all, veterinary schools.
GRE
The Graduate Record Examination (GRE) is a standardized test administered to students who intend to attend graduate school. The GRE General Test consists of three parts: Analytical Writing, Verbal Reasoning, and Quantitative Reasoning. The examination measures skills that have developed over a long period of time and which are important for all fields of study but not specifically related to any single one. For more information, visit gre.org.
The CASPer Situational Judgement Test
CASPer, the Computer-based Assessment for Sampling Personal Characteristics, is an open-response situational judgment test (SJT) administered to individuals pursuing client-centered professions. The test evaluates ten distinct behavioral tendencies—collaboration, communication, empathy, equity, ethics, motivation, problem solving, professionalism, resilience, and self awareness—to evaluate non-academic qualities that enhance the likelihood of professionally-successful applicants.
The CASPer test evaluates your responses to a collection of difficult scenarios and consists of two sections—the video response section and the typed response section. The 2023-2024 cycle included 14 scenarios divided in the following manner:
Video Response Section
- 2 word-based scenarios
- 4 video-based scenarios
- Open-ended questions (2) are presented one at a time
- One-minute limit to recorded responses
Typed Response Section
- 3 word-based scenarios
- 5 video-based scenarios
- Open-ended questions (3) are presented altogether
- Five minutes total to respond to all three
The test takes 90-110 minutes to complete and automatically progresses from one scenario to the next with optional breaks between the two sections and in the middle of the typed response section. For more information, visit Acuity Insights.