I spent a year preparing my Veterinary Technician Specialist (VTS) application. I collected cases, logged advanced skills, wrote detailed case reports, and made sure every single \u201ci\u201d was dotted and every \u201ct\u201d was crossed. I triple-checked every requirement, every form, every signature. I gave it everything I had.<\/p>\n
It wasn\u2019t just about credentials. It was about validation. The VTS in emergency and critical care (ECC) credential felt like the natural next step after years of throwing my heart into the field. I wanted to prove\u2014to myself and others\u2014that I was ready. That I was good enough. That I had earned my place. That I was the best of the best veterinary nurses in ECC. Because honestly, ECC was my love language, and I felt like I was good enough to be a VTS in ECC.<\/p>\n
Two months later, I opened my inbox to find a rejection notice.<\/p>\n
I was stunned. Then angry. Then devastated.<\/p>\n
The AVECCTN (Academy of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care Technicians and Nurses) did provide feedback\u2014everything from using a brand name instead of a generic drug to not demonstrating advanced enough skill progression in one of my case reports. And while I could rationalize some of it, in the moment, it felt deeply unfair.<\/p>\n
I went quiet. I felt embarrassed. I questioned everything: Was I not smart enough? Was I missing something everyone else could see? I didn\u2019t want to talk about it. I didn\u2019t want to explain it. I wanted to hide. I honestly had to think about how I was going to tell people at work, including my managers, who were all rooting for me. Who all spent time editing and reviewing my cases. Who called me for cases they thought I would like.<\/p>\n
I didn\u2019t just feel rejected; I felt erased. Unworthy. Like the last 10-plus years I had poured into emergency medicine suddenly didn\u2019t count.<\/p>\n
Originally, I told myself I\u2019d reapply. But the truth? I had too much emotional trauma from the process to face going through it all again.<\/p>\n
The whole experience had become tangled in imposter syndrome. I worried I\u2019d be seen as \u201cless than\u201d\u2014especially after just being promoted to training and education coordinator at my hospital. I thought, How can I lead training if I didn\u2019t even make the cut myself?<\/em><\/p>\n So, I paused. I sat down with my operations manager and told her how I felt\u2014like I had failed, like I wasn’t smart enough for the role I had just been promoted into. I worried that without those 3 little letters after my name, I wouldn’t be taken seriously.<\/p>\n And that\u2019s when she said something I\u2019ll never forget: \u201cCan\u2019t you do everything you\u2019re already doing without those letters?\u201d<\/p>\n I sat with that.<\/p>\n And the answer was clear: Yes. I could do all of it. I was<\/em> doing all of it. I was already in the right place. I was working at a hospital that valued my voice, trusted my leadership, and gave me space to grow. At Dogs and Cats Emergency and Specialty in Bowie, Maryland, I was surrounded by colleagues and mentors who didn\u2019t let one rejection define me. And that made all the difference.<\/p>\n That conversation changed everything. Instead of seeing myself as someone who didn\u2019t make the cut, I started to ask: What do I really want to do? What lights me up? Where do I make the biggest difference?<\/p>\n The answer wasn\u2019t just ECC\u2014it was teaching. It was presenting. It was building systems that made other veterinary nurses feel empowered.<\/p>\n That voice in my head\u2014the one that said, No one will care what you have to say if you\u2019re not a VTS<\/em>. That voice was dead wrong.<\/p>\n This year alone, I\u2019m presenting at 2 major conferences. I\u2019m being published in a journal. I\u2019m working toward my bachelor’s degree in veterinary medical technology and plan to pursue a master’s degree in veterinary education. I teach every single day at my hospital. And I still get to do all the ECC procedures I love while doing it.<\/p>\n And maybe most importantly\u2014I found my passion for building. Building training systems. Building programs. Building people. Watching them grow. Watching them succeed. That<\/em> is where I shine.<\/p>\n So, no, I didn\u2019t get my VTS. And I might never apply again. But that rejection led me to exactly where I was meant to be.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re in that same space\u2014wondering if you\u2019re \u201cenough\u201d without the letters\u2014let me be the one to tell you: You already are. And maybe your greatest impact is waiting on the other<\/em> side of the plan you thought you needed.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t get me wrong\u2014I still deeply respect the VTS credentialing process. I know how rigorous it is, and I still look up to the many VTSs I know. But I also think we need to have honest conversations about how narrow our definitions of success can be in this profession.<\/p>\n What about those of us who want to lead through teaching, not titles? What about the veterinary nurses who are brilliant educators, program builders, or culture shapers\u2014but never feel \u201cqualified\u201d because they didn\u2019t get the letters?<\/p>\n The truth is, veterinary medicine needs all kinds of leaders. Yes, we need specialists. But we also need mentors. We need educators. We need people who can create the systems that help other veterinary nurses thrive.<\/p>\n To anyone else who\u2019s been rejected: You are not alone.<\/p>\n That email doesn\u2019t define you. That decision doesn\u2019t take away your knowledge, your experience, or your impact. And it absolutely doesn\u2019t take away your potential.<\/p>\n Give yourself time to grieve, but don\u2019t let it shrink your confidence. You\u2019re still allowed to grow. Still allowed to lead. Still allowed to make a difference. And if your path is different from what you thought? That doesn\u2019t mean it\u2019s a detour. It might just be the exact direction you were meant to go.<\/p>\n So no, I didn\u2019t get my VTS. And maybe I never will. But what I\u2019ve gained instead is purpose. I\u2019ve learned that success isn\u2019t about what letters follow your name. It\u2019s about what legacy you leave behind\u2014for your patients, your team, and the future veterinary nurses watching you.<\/p>\n If I can share one message, it\u2019s this: You don\u2019t need permission to lead. And you don\u2019t need a title to teach. You just need to believe that your voice\u2014and your path\u2014matters.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" For many, those extra letters at the end of your name lend to your credence and confidence.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":236,"featured_media":127924,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"iawp_total_views":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[211],"tags":[814],"class_list":["post-127920","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-digital-exclusive","tag-commentary","column-viewpoints","clinical_topics-personal-professional-development"],"acf":{"hide_sidebar":false,"hide_sidebar_ad":false,"hide_all_ads":false},"yoast_head":"\nThe Bigger Picture<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Redefining Success<\/strong><\/h2>\n