Meet Dr. Sara, a vet from Spain living in NZ - Email #11

Helping you through the AVE journey - Australasian Veterinary Examination

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Today I am sharing an incredible story of resilience by Dr Sara Salamo, a Veterinarian from Spain that move to New Zealand.

Sara passed the MCQ on the second attempt, I met Sara when I enrolled into the MCQ, she studied for the first MCQ whilst she had her little girl and on the second attempt she had her beautiful boy, a recently born baby. She was working part time whilst being a mom and styling for the AVE exam.

My AVE Journey ✨
by Dr Sara Salamo

My name is Sara, I'm a Spanish vet who graduated in Spain in 2010. During these 14 years I’ve worked mainly with small animals which was always my passion as a little girl.  I started my formation as a vet in Spain working in a busy SM hospital. Three years after this, I had enough confidence to jump into my next step, and I decided to move to the UK to work as a vet and improve my English.

During my 5 years in the UK, I met my special person and dad of my children who is originally from NZ. We both love NZ!  Not just because it is a beautiful place, but also because it provides us with all the things that we love: nature, surf, sun, and adventure. We thought this was the ideal place to grow our family and start over.

When we first move to NZ, I was desperate to work as a vet, as a result, I enrolled into the MCQ straight away and studied for 6 months.

Starting the preparation for the AVE was not easy for me, I did not know anything about it or anyone that has done this exam before. So, without any precedence or guidance, I did take my vet notes and some other notes from my UK colleges and…  I started preparing for the MCQ

Unfortunately, I did not pass on my first attempt.

At first I wanted to give up, I had been working as a vet nurse for a few months already, and I thought: working as a vet nurse is not too bad, I do not think I can go through all of this again.

After a few months off studying I decided I was going to attempt the exam again, BUT this time, I will have more time to study.

Starting the preparation AGAIN for the AVE was not easy for me, but back then I learned and understood better how to be more effective about my study. I used a software called ZUKU review, and I did support this with my notes, NAVLE book and Mosby test booklets. I was working part time as a vet nurse in NZ, I was being a mom and a wife, life was busy. 

Later, I intensified the study hours during the last 6 weeks closer to the date.

After passing my MCQ, I worked as a vet under limited registration at SPCA Auckland (as I always love shelter medicine). It was a great experience and the SPCA’s team supported me all the way. On my day off, I found some placement experiences with large animals to improve my skills for the practical exam.

For both exams, I had study groups. This is possibly one of the most important parts of the process because you not only share vet material with your group. You will get emotional support, help, counselling about your fears and insecurities; and you will make the most beautiful connections and friendships. Remember, AVE is not just an exam, it is a journey and you better walk with a companion by your side.

The day of the second MCQ exam, I was more relaxed than expected as I thought “all the hard work is done, then go and do your best". It is ESSENTIAL to get a good rest during the month before the exam, as well as the night before the exam… go to bed as soon as possible to be fresh in the morning!! Exam is long and you need to be awake.

The practical exam is another story, this one was a marathon, and you may feel anxious and stressed during that week. In the end, it was a wonderful experience for me, and I learned a lot, not only about vet medicine but about myself. I did not know I was capable of all this. My resilience, my consistency and perseverance of my study did finally pay off for all the time taking away from other important things.

 A very special moment that I did remember was all the candidates at the  end of the practical exam hugging each other and celebrating with tears in our eyes that it was all done, and WE DID IT!!! 

Nowadays, I am still working on my dream job in charity with the SPCA NZ. Loving every moment and helping other overseas vets around me go through this process. Also, I am still in contact with candidates that I met during the AVE and some of them became close friends with me in NZ.

My only advice for you is to believe in yourself, because hard work always has great rewards.

Be kind to your soul and find the time to study but also to exercise, sleep and eat well. Allow yourself to have rest and don’t study if you feel exhausted. Find support from friends and family and always follow your dream… Because it will soon be real.

 Good luck everyone.

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MCQ practice - Australian Veterinary exam preparation

1.  Which of the following is an example of hypersensitivity type 2?

   1. Immune mediated haemolytic anemia

   2. Anaphylaxis

   3. Systemic lupus erythematosus

   4. Glomerulonephritis

   5. Contact dermatitis