San Juan College

I loved attending the distant learning vet tech program. I felt extremely well prepared to take the VTNE once I graduated and did pass the VTNE on my first attempt. I loved that this school had teachers available to answer questions. I also appreciated the semester based schedule and the deadlines on assignments and exams. I felt that was nice to help keep me on track with the program. The video portion of the program was difficult, but it is extremely doable. I am an extremely motivated person and... Read More I had an extremely supportive group of coworkers that helped get me through. Against advisement, I took two video courses at a time and passed all of the video courses on the first attempt (did not need to repeat any.) I felt the rubrics were well written out and I made sure to reach out to my instructors daily and weekly with questions. They were more than happy to help answer those questions and even provided some checks on my tasks to make sure something was done correctly. Were things stressful-yes, they were! But I made sure to put in the time and effort to follow the rubrics and reach out for assistance when I needed it.

I loved this program for the first year I was taking it doing online courses. But after the first year I began video courses. These are unbearable. They use the excuse that students have to retake these classes in order to pass. Which is something that is ridiculous to even say. It has caused so much conflict at my current clinic I don’t even want to be there anymore. But that’s not an option because my graduation date has gotten pushed back another semester for a 3rd time. I could understand if... Read More I was actually failing the video task because i really didn’t know what I was doing. But it’s failing for things that aren’t on the rubric or you walk out of frame once and they claim that they now can’t prove it was you in the video. Or even turning off the camera after a sterile task their expectations are completely unrealistic. Do yourself a favor and DO NOT ATTEND. Future vet tech students, please save yourself the headache and the stress. My mental health is only continuing to plummet. These course will continuously Make you question your worth and your ability to be in this field. I have been told by so many people I work with that my skills and knowledge are up to par. I’m so tired of this school dragging me down. I just want to be done.

I attended this program for over 5 years and don’t have anything to show for it. I finally decided to leave the veterinary profession and pursue another career. I recommend this program when I was first started but once I got into the video section I could never move forward. I finally gave up. The expectations are so unrealistic and it causes so much conflict for my OCCI. All the doctors and the techs I worked with couldn’t imagine I wasn’t passing. I actually had a mental breakdown last year and... Read More needed to stop the program thinking I was going back but when I tried to reapply I had so many panic attacks trying to get started again I just decided I it wasn’t worth it.

There are plenty of one star reviews on this program, but I would really like to urge future students to really take these into consideration before thinking about attending this school. Many of the reviews state the program is easy enough until you get to video courses and I could not agree more! I have been working as an assistant/technician for 5 years and the requirements for these videos is absolutely ridiculous, it truly seems they WANT you to fail. They aren't realistic at all. It has caused... Read More so much stress, disagreements, fights, and tears from not only myself but my coworkers and bosses. Do yourself a favor and find a different veterinary technology program, PLEASE. I could go on for hours about all the snarky comments from my instructor, all the failed videos for NO reason..etc.

Please, please, please. Do your future self a favor and DO NOT sign up for this program. The first few tiers are manageable and relatively well organized, but the video courses are designed for failure. The expectations they put upon their students are not realistic and do not test them on their veterinary technician skills, they test on your ability to follow instructions and making sure that everything goes perfectly, which is an extremely impractical expectation for real life. If you don't do... Read More one thing correctly, you fail. If someone in the background of your video does something incorrectly/improperly (according to San Juan), you fail. There are some things I failed for that were not listed in the rubric, I was just supposed to "remember and utilize the knowledge we have gained up to this point". Don't even get me started on videos where sterility is involved. Please, please, please preserve your sanity and find a different program. Please. You will regret it.

Avoid this school at all costs, the first few tiers are great however once you get to the video's you basically have to just stage each one to mimic the school requirements. The video classes are there to set the students up for failure. If my credits transferred anywhere I would have already tried. This school is dedicated to ensuring that you do not pass the video classes they are too critical and honestly put the patient at risk due to the amount of explaining the student is required to do while... Read More the patients are out for a surgical procedure. You will regret ever going to this school, do yourself, career and life a favor and choose a different institution. I hope this post reached at least one person and points them in the correct direction, this industry is already very hard to make a living in and San Juan is only doing a disservice to students, patients and the Vet community by their unrealistic expectations.

I decided to write because I was tired of the strange reviews on this site. I did not start my AAS here. I started with another distance learning program. It can be difficult to find an online program that has a high VTNE pass rate. Needless to say, I had a difficult time communicating with the instructors at the old school and felt that I was a number. I really wanted more help than I was getting there and my coworker was taking classes at SJC. I transferred after my second semester and many long... Read More conversations with Sherry in advising (I do not know why someone said she is the director, a Google search will tell you otherwise) I found her to be very helpful, as were the majority of my instructors. I spent 1 semester where I do not even think I spoke to the instructor (it was not that they were rude, just quiet). I do agree with the other person who did not care for the financial aid office because they seemed slow to react at times, but nothing that affected my schooling. I spent 3 years with the school (taking time off) and found that they were helpful, and caring, and actually took the time to know me. My one instructor reminded me when I almost missed a major exam deadline. I found that the work was very easy in the intro classes and then worked its way up so I could easily keep up and learn new things without panicking. I learned so many things and was able to improve my clinic based on what I had learned. I know some students do not like that you have to complete videos to complete the program, but you have to for any 100% distance learning program and, although filming took time, I did not find it difficult. I found the instructions were clear and I did not have any issues with them. I passed without failing any class in the program despite being worried I would fail something. Each instructor answered the many questions I had in a timely manner and did so thoroughly (my online BS program instructors only reply with a question to my question) In any case, I think you will honestly like the support at this school. I am proud to be a 2017 graduate!

I would love to review San Juan College as I read extraordinary things about their vet tech program and was very excited to get accepted and start the process but unfortunately I won't be able to because I can't be a degree seeking student here. Apparently if you were homeschooled in a state that doesn't issue official diplomas, it doesn't matter if you got accepted to two universities, already have a bachelors degree, took extra classes on your own, and have clear evidence of "academic progress."... Read More No, you have to have some sort of official high school diploma or a GED, because a piece of paper explaining that I took Algebra 1 and 2 almost a decade ago is what shows I'm an adequate student. Honestly, the most annoying part was getting the same answer from admissions over and over again. I asked questions and tried to clarify things and all they would say is "we need an official transcript showing classes, grades, GPA, and signature of a school official." Is homeschooling really that hard to understand? Short version: they're way too rigid with their requirements and I refuse to pay $150 to get a GED just to prove I know basic concepts.

This school ranks as one of the best online vet tech degrees, but because of this, I believe they must have far too many students and they cannot handle it, leaving you without much help. Sherry the director of this program takes weeks to email you back, wont return your phone call after the initial one to get you enrolled. You have to schedule phone appointments weeks ahead of time because there is virtually none to help you figure out there very confusing enrollment process or answer any questions... Read More in a timely manner. The online classroom, and virtual campus in general is confusing to navigate. Nobody responded to the messages (note plural) I left with the bookstore in ample time to return my books, and when I finally got a hold of someone, they were extremely rude telling me that they did not receive any messages and sorry it was now too late to refund. I withdrew before I attended because they seem very disorganized and to no help at all. It was a waste of like eight months of my time plus $295 for the books that I will never get back, and I'm sure they do not care at all. I wonder how many others there are? Thanks S.!!!