Despite popular understanding, MSU’s status as a public university does not mandate us to accept a certain number of in-state students. Michigan students may choose to go to any veterinary school they are accepted to, and many students accept out-of-state offers.

The MSU College of Veterinary Medicine runs two separate applicant pools for in-state and out-of-state applicants respectively. The out-of-state applicant pool is much larger and includes increasingly competitive candidates. The in-state applicant pool is significantly smaller enabling those students to compete with fewer candidates for the in-state spaces available.

This allows us to be equitable in our offerings, giving in-state students the ability to take a place without being dwarfed by the large out-of-state pool. This is balanced by shifting our acceptance ratio based on the qualifications of candidates and our tuition requirements. The current class make-up allows us to address rising tuition costs and student debt, thereby attracting a stronger and more diverse applicant pool.

Our admissions system relies on differential tuition. By accepting more out-of-state students we can decrease out-of-state tuition, while in-state tuition is locked by MSU. This maintains the total tuition earned and keeps the number of students in the program the same.

An added benefit of decreased out-of-state tuition is that it increases our offer acceptance rate. Before differential tuition was implemented, we received one acceptance per seven offers. Now we receive an acceptance for every four to five offers. This frees time and resources to dedicate to the students who are in our program.

Further, our out-of-state students tend to remain in Michigan after graduating, giving back to the Michigan community. This is crucial to address personnel shortages in veterinary medicine in our state.

Veterinary programs across the country, whether public or private are in the same position. These programs accept students from our state pool as we accept students from other states. Each program selects candidates that will increase their competitiveness as an institution, while they maintain the funding necessary to give those students the best education possible.