Listen in as we talk with recent veterinary graduate Dr. Alexia Mazzarella, as she shares the pros and cons of starting veterinary school during COVID, and the benefits she has experienced from a non-typical veterinary path.
This episode covers how she managed to learn anatomy online, became fast friends with a roommate, and then finding out she didn’t have the necessary educational knowledge for the NAVLE. Alexia takes us inside her journey as a leader in her class, and finding her way to overcome struggles.
As always, we want to hear from YOU. Please share your thoughts by sending an email or joining the conversation.
GUEST BIO:
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM, cVMA
Alexia graduated from Michigan State University this past May in the Class of 2024. While at MSU, she served as the 2024 Class President all four years and was very involved with SAVMA, serving on the Executive Board for 2 years as the Veterinary Economics Officer. It was through these experiences that she developed a passion for organized veterinary medicine and serving her community. Her veterinary interests include soft tissue and orthopedic surgery, acupuncture, rehab, and palliative care, especially for geriatric patients. Her goals right now include a ABVP residency path and ultimately working in a high-volume General Practice setting. In her free time, Alexia loves checking out local gym classes, hiking, biking, kayaking, and visiting the local Farmer’s Markets. Alexia just moved to Apex, NC with her fiancé to start a rotating internship in July. She is excited to share her story with the VIN Foundation and hopes she can bring comfort to others who may have experienced similar circumstances!
LINKS AND INFORMATION:
- Student American Veterinary Medical Association (SAVMA)
- Veterinary Business Management Association (VBMA)
- NAVLE VIN/VIN Foundation course
- VIN Foundation Vets4Vets®
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TRANSCRIPT
VF_VeterinaryPulse_Episode_165_AlexiaMazzarella_mixdown (1)
Intro
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Having all that information that I was seeing for the first time, I felt like I never truly sat down and focused because I was just so nervous because it’s this huge thing, and everyone makes such a big deal about it. And even the schools, whether they mean to or not so pressuring on you about it. And they’re like, you need to pass, you need to pass, you need to pass. And then you never had time to take a breath and just be like, okay, it’s just an exam.
Meet Alexia Mozzarella, DVM
Jordan Benshea: That is veterinarian, Dr. Alexia Mozzarella, and this is the VIN Foundation’s Veterinary Pulse podcast. I’m Jordan Benshea, Executive Director of the VIN Foundation. Join me as I talk with veterinary colleagues about critical topics and share stories, stories that connect us as humans, as animals, as a veterinary community. This podcast is made possible by individuals like you who donate to the VIN Foundation. Thank you. Please check the episode notes for bios, links, and information mentioned. Welcome, Alexia.
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Thank you. Thank you for having me.
Jordan Benshea: Thank you for being willing to share your story with us. As I said when we first started talking, I feel like our stories are the most important thing that we have and sharing them is a way that we can connect. And now more than ever, the connection is so important. So thanks for being willing to come on here and share your story.
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Yeah, I’m super excited.
Alexia’s Journey to Veterinary Medicine
Jordan Benshea: Yay, so we like to kind of start off with just, like, was there an aha moment for you with veterinary medicine? Or if you’ll share your journey to veterinary medicine, were you a kid and always new? Or what brought you to this profession?
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Yeah, so I feel like I share the same kind of experiences as lot of them in the profession of being a child and wanting to become a veterinarian. For me, it was fourth grade actually. So there’s a picture of me in a Halloween costume dressed up as a vet with a stethoscope holding it to my stuffed yellow Labrador Retriever. I think it was ultimately my very first saga that I had growing up, as my childhood dog, we had to bring him to Cornell. I remember just walking into the veterinary hospital and just being completely mesmerized by everything that was there and all the doctors. I remember the doctor came out and talked to us about kind of the diagnosis, and this was a little strange. I don’t think they ever really found out what was wrong with him, and so then I was like, I’m going to be that vet that finds out what’s wrong with the animal that no one else can. So I think since then I kinda set my mind to it. Then since the Halloween costume, I just continued to go to summer camps at the local Penn State campuses to learn more about the vet med industry. Then started as a kennel assistant in a veterinary clinic and then kinda worked my way up to veterinary assistant. Then I went to Penn State for undergrad and did veterinary biomedical sciences as the major. I definitely had a couple life crises where I was like, I don’t know if I could do it, during then, but ultimately stuck it out and then applied to vet school right after undergrad.
Pre-Vet Experiences and Challenges
Jordan Benshea: Do you think, like, during those life crises, what was it that held you steadfast?
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Actually, I was lucky to be able to go to Penn State because we had a lot of, I think, opportunities and resources with our prevet club, and it kinda showed us all the different pathways. So I think the things that I had found that interest me were all very similar. It was, like, chemical engineering or biochemistry with the business side, and then I think through prevet club, I realized, oh, I can do all these things through vet med. There’s so much variety within this profession, and I think that’s kind of what grounded me is, you’re never stuck. There’s so many different pathways that you can take. So I was lucky to be able to have those speakers come and kinda show us the different pathways that you could take. For me too, it was actually always the people aspect. I really like networking with people and talking to people, and so I was like, I want to be in a place where I can have that connection with people and those, like, quizzes that you take, it would always say I should be a therapist or a teacher. So I think you could kinda be all of those things within vet med because you are kind of a therapist, connecting with people that the pets don’t have a voice. You’re speaking for the voiceless. You’re also speaking with people on a daily basis, and sometimes you’re the only person that they can talk to throughout the day if it’s like a older client. So I think you can kinda be a teacher as well to other people and mentor them. So I feel like there’s just so many different facets of the profession that it’s all gotten me excited and had me stay and put my head down and keep studying and get into vet school.
Jordan Benshea: Well and I think that that’s having a well-rounded approach, like that is very helpful not just, I mean, in all aspects of life. The fact that you were so interested in all the different aspects really makes it a more rounded career for you versus just I really loved bunnies or my stuffed Labrador in fourth grade.
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Yeah. Obviously, I love the animals, but…
Jordan Benshea: Obviously, you love the animals, but I think the love for the animals is the part that can get really hard because of all the different facets and the people and finances and everything. But having that other interest in humans is a really vital part of it as well.
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Yes.
Jordan Benshea: So you got that great experience at Penn State. I think definitely the prevet clubs we hear can be so helpful and it’s always fascinating to me. It’s almost like this underground network of prevet clubs because there’s APVMA, but it seems like there’s, in general, it’s so hard to reach all the prevets. There are so many prevet clubs, multiple different ones at so many different schools that it’s kind of hard to track them all down, but they can be really a great resource. I know that at UC Davis I’ve heard that they’re also very helpful there, and probably the schools that have vet schools then have stronger prevet programs. So after Penn State undergrad, where did you go to veterinary school?
Choosing a Veterinary School
Jordan Benshea: Did you go immediately? What was that like for you?
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Yeah, I did. I applied while I was at Penn State during my senior year. So I actually applied right before COVID hit. So I was actually able to do my interviews. I applied to 6 schools, I got into 2, Mississippi State and Michigan State. So it was, like, February that I…
Jordan Benshea: Of 2020?
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Of 2020 that I interviewed at Michigan State, and then Mississippi, I think, was January. So that was a really interesting experience because it was like, that hit, and then I remember the day I got my acceptance to vet school was the day that my graduation got canceled. So it was very bittersweet, I remember crying and then crying again for whatever reason. It was kind of a up and down experience, but I did go right after school. For me, I decided that because I feel like if I stopped I might not keep going, but I know a lot of people that took a year off and got very valuable experience by doing so. So there’s definitely different ways you can do it. I think a lot of it too was, I guess, going back to the prevet club, we held symposium at Penn State my junior year, which was super helpful for kinda getting to know the different vet schools and where to apply to and which programs I’d be more interested in. So, ultimately, after my big pro con list I decided to go to Michigan State University because of their flipped classroom setting. I’ll probably touch more on that in the later questions, but that ultimately is kinda what interests me because during my junior year, did a internship on a dairy farm, and I kinda learned that the way that I learned best was a hands-on way. So the flipped classroom really attracted me because they had said we would be doing labs and you would have less lecture time and more hands-on time. So that really kinda got me there, and it was a little bit closer to home than Mississippi State. So that was also nice, to be able to kinda come home in a day, but both were out-of-state, and so finances were kinda even comparing them.
Jordan Benshea: I was going to ask you if finances were a part of it as well.
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: It was, yeah. We actually got lucky because my year at Michigan State they had a reduction in the tuition for out-of-state students. So it ended up being almost even for Mississippi State versus Michigan State, and so that was not as big of a factor just because it was already equal. But out-of-state definitely is a big factor when thinking about schools.
Jordan Benshea: Absolutely, and what state were you in when you applied?
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: I was in Pennsylvania. So my in-state school was technically University of Pennsylvania, but you don’t really get…
Jordan Benshea: Which definitely would’ve cost you more.
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: So it is actually cheaper to go to both Michigan State and Mississippi State than it would have been to go to University of Pennsylvania.
Jordan Benshea: Yeah, absolutely. Okay, so you grew up in Pennsylvania as well?
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: I did, yeah. I’m from the Wilkes-Barre, Scranton area in a small town called Pittston, but I always say Scranton just because much more people know where that is than my town.
Impact of COVID-19 on Veterinary Education
Jordan Benshea: Okay, so you start school, you are a freshman at Michigan and it is COVID lockdown, how does that go?
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: I still remember the whole experience. So I finally moved into my apartment in Michigan. I moved away from family, it’s my first time living outside of Pennsylvania. My roommate who I literally met on Facebook, we moved in, and 3 days into our school they’re like, “okay, just kidding, we’re going completely online”. It was right before we we’re supposed to have our first hands-on physical exam lab, and we got the email that from this point on we’d be having online classes. It was, like, right after we paid tuition, right after everyone moved, so we were kinda just stuck, and so we’re like, okay. So, that was how I remember my first couple days going, and there wasn’t really certainty of if we were going to ever come back that year or not. So we didn’t know, like, should we go back home? Should we stay in Michigan? So I decided to stay, but we ended up not going in at all for the rest of that year.
Jordan Benshea: So you’re 3 days in, you’re about to go in for anatomy and get some hands on, and they’re like, just kidding, we’re just going to switch totally to Zoom. So were you and your roommate just in your apartment just learning on Zoom?
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Yeah. So we sometimes would share the computer, but most of the time we had to both be on there, and we were actually in different groups. So we would have some points where we would be able to go on together and other points would be separately, and you would hear the echo of one in the other side of the room. Then we also had exams completely in our rooms, and so that was hard because I always take the full amount of time and my roommate always takes the shortest amount of time, and so she would be done. So I’d hear banging around in the kitchen, and I’d be like, “hey, I’m not done”, but you can’t say anything because of the screen recording. So that was an experience too, of being able to take your exams in your bedroom and then having everything on a Zoom screen, essentially. We had, like, speed dating, I remember, to try and meet people because that was the only way to kinda.
Jordan Benshea: To meet your classmates. I mean, because you and your roommate probably, for better or worse, formed quite the bond.
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Oh, yeah. We said that it was really hard to move away because I’m like, wow, we’ve really been through the ringer together, and we got pretty close just because, and thank god we got along because that would have been awful if we didn’t because we didn’t have a choice in the matter.
Jordan Benshea: Yeah, oh my gosh.
Involvement in Veterinary Organizations
Jordan Benshea: So, how do you feel, I mean, I was going to say how do you feel COVID positively or negatively impacted your school experience, I guess there’s so much negative parts of that. Obviously, you’re away from home for the first time. You’re away from your family. You’re living with what was a stranger and then fastly was becoming your closest human, so were there any positives that you felt from that experience?
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Yeah, I had to really think about this one. I think that because there was the elimination of the travel time that you had to factor into your day, you did have a lot more time to do things. Well, you had a lot more time to study, so then you had a lot more time for other things because of that. So I think because of that, I was kinda able to balance my days a little bit better and get more involved in organizations that I don’t think I would have been able to have time to do had we been in person. So I remember my mom being like, how are you doing all these things? But I got involved in…
Jordan Benshea: You’re like because I’m not leaving my apartment.
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Yeah, and I’m so extroverted too. So I was like, I need human interaction, and so that was another reason driving my involvement. So I got heavily involved in the Student American Veterinary Medical Association and then the Veterinary Business Management Association. So those were my two main organizations, and then there was all the other smaller ones too. Like, I had come in wanting to do mixed animals, so I was part of the production animal club, and there was, like, another house system that we had, there was the Purina student rep. So I just threw myself into everything just because I was desperate to find human connection and try and form bonds with people and make friends, because it was just so isolating during that time, which was hard for me as someone who thrives off of human interaction. So those were the ways I think that were positive in the fact that it got me more involved right off the bat and it got me those connections, and then just was able to strengthen throughout the 4 years after that.
Jordan Benshea: So based on all the places where you sort of dove in, and a really hot tip to you because a lot of people might or some people might just be, like, so struggling. They’re like, I don’t even know if I want to. I mean, I know for a lot of people, they sort of got more introverted from it. I definitely did from COVID. But, which ones did you find were a good fit for you?
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: I really like the SAVMA, which is the Student American Veterinary Medical Association. For me, I was a delegate the first year, and as a delegate you go, and we didn’t in our first year, but then the second year, I was able to go serve in a house of delegates. To me, I really enjoyed that because you got to meet people from all different schools and kinda hear their experiences. That kinda made me realize that I wasn’t alone after feeling so alone for the whole year before that. So, one, it got me within my local school community, but then shortly after that, I realized how connected you were to all the rest of the vet school communities. And this profession is so small that I feel like once you go to one conference, you see the same faces. So that was kind of the beginning of me realizing how important it was to keep those connections with all the different vet schools. I did really like the Veterinary Business Management Association too because I thought that really taught me a lot of practical business skills. My dad is a business owner, so I kinda grew up with that, in the mindset of the business, and probably wanting to own a business in the future. So that was super helpful too with learning those practical skills and realizing that it is possible to own a business just because with how corporate BedMed has become, sometimes you get a little scared away. But I think those two organizations were kinda the two key ones in my experience of vet school.
Jordan Benshea: Yeah, VBMA does a great job with that business experience, and it is so important. Yes, definitely, if you want to consider being a practice owner, but also just when you’re dealing with clients, and I think having parents that own a business or are entrepreneurial, I had the same thing. It’s a different sort of approach, and it shows you a different viewpoint on things versus just working for somebody. That can be really helpful when you’re dealing with clients for sure, and in your veterinary journey.
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Yeah, it definitely taught me a lot of different perspectives being in that, and I’m thankful for that being, I think, more important in our education and in the club systems too.
Jordan Benshea: So, obviously, this was not the school experience you probably were expecting when you applied, and it sounds like that first year was fully online.
Reflections on the Flipped Classroom Curriculum
Jordan Benshea: What was the second year?
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Second year was kind of half and half. So we actually, I think we started back in person and that was like the first time we had ever seen each other as a class. So that was a little weird, you’re like, oh, I never saw her before, what’s your name? A lot of people were meeting each other for the first time, and, oh, I forgot to mention too, I was also the president of the class of 2024, and so I had made it a goal to try and reach out to people as much as I could. So for me, they were like, oh, this is what you look like. So, that was good to actually meet and put names to faces. Then we went back online for, I think, the other half or a quarter of the year, and then we came back in person. Then third year, since COVID, they kind of made it more of an online hybrid curriculum. So you would have surgery lab in person, but then you had these self driven modules that were online. So we were kind of online again in third year, and then fourth year, we had clinics. But majority of my vet school, honestly, I think was mostly spent online because it was all first year, half a second year, and, like, half a third year too. So it was kinda crazy
Jordan Benshea: Wow, so that’s a totally different experience than I’m sure that you envisioned since fourth grade. So do you think, I mean, I was going to say, are there ways that your cool school experience could have been improved, I’m sure could have been because it was online, which is not ideal. So what sort of ways do you think that it could have been improved within the parameters of COVID? Or is there communication, or what ways do you think looking back on it now, we should say you’ve just graduated. So you just graduated in 2024, so congratulations.
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Thank you.
Jordan Benshea: So looking back on it, where do you see room for improvement?
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Yeah, so we were actually the third class to experience this new type of curriculum. Michigan State had just transitioned from their legacy curriculum to their flipped classroom curriculum. So they were still kinda working out the kinks and then COVID hit, so it was kinda a double whammy of trying to work out the kinks while also transitioning to this online format. So the flipped classroom setting is supposed to be where you spend most of the night before prepping for your classes, and then you have like two hours of lecture where you kinda go over in a case based setting, what you learned the day before, and then it’s all systems courses. So everything is divided by, like, cardiology and radiology and musculoskeletal and then everything within those systems is taught in categories. So it’s like pathologies within that system, but only within the heart for cardiology, so that’s kinda how it was divided.
Curriculum Challenges in Pharmacology
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: I think with every school, like, there was always some definitely areas of improvement, and then, for ours namely, I would say the pharmacology is where we struggled with communication because I think in making of the new curriculum, we had a intro to pharmacology and the professors in the systems courses were under the impression that that would kinda cover more in-depth of the drugs. I think within my intro classes, we got the mechanism of action and kinda the basics, and then those professors were under the intention that the systems courses would then build on that, and I think that there was some communication that was lost in the making of the new curriculum. So we kinda lost on the pharmacology, and I don’t think we really realized that until we got to clinics. The more we talk with our professors and the more they kept asking us questions on how to treat the animals, and then the more we studied for NAVLE, we were like, oh, I think that there could be more that could be done. So, definitely as president of the class I tried to speak up, and I know MSU is trying to, they hired a curriculum consultant, and so they are trying to fill those gaps because I think they did realize that once we got to clinics, we were like, oh, shoot, we don’t know as much about drugs as we should. So I think they are really trying to put in efforts to try and fill those gaps that were realized. But I think a lot of schools, COVID kinda, just high end things that needed to be recognized and made aware. So, I guess in that aspect, it was a positive as well because it kinda brought light to the things that could be improved upon within the curriculum and kinda made us realize too as vet students where our weaknesses were. During clinics, I kinda brought light to that as well, and we had more conversations with people, and I think now it’ll be a little bit better for the incoming classes.
Jordan Benshea: So did you feel like you were able to catch up on that?
NAVLE Preparation and Realizations
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: I think that now I feel a little bit better, but for me, studying for NAVLE, there was a lot of things that I had seen for the first time, which was kind of discouraging, which I think, created a real challenge studying for the first time because I just felt so overwhelmed by the amount of information.So I actually decided kinda halfway through vet school to pursue a rotating internship just because I felt as though there was so much more to learn. Whether that was because of the education aspect or just studying for NAVLE and realizing the vast amount of information of every type of species in vet med, I think that I still have a ways to go, but I am more ahead of where I was after studying for the NAVLE two times. So I think that kind of brought me more, I would say a deepening knowledge of it. Then having the rotating internship, we have another rotation in anesthesia and another kind of rotation of, it’s almost like a repeat of clinics. So to me I was like, this is comforting knowing that I’ll have another time to learn more deeper because I think that whether it be COVID, whether it be different things, I think that that was, for me, a weakness.
Jordan Benshea: Yeah, and that’s completely understandable based on the situation. You mentioned NAVLE, and I know that for a lot of students that were in school around your time frame, it has been very challenging for them to pass.
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Yes.
Jordan Benshea: We’ve seen lower passing NAVLE rates than we’ve definitely seen in a long time. I don’t have the data to say if ever, but it’s definitely something that we’re hearing about through our Vets4Vets program. There’s definitely students who are reaching out and are dismayed. So what was, if you’re up for it, we’d love to hear sort of your NAVLE experience because I’m sure there’s many listeners who would connect with that.
Facing Failure and Overcoming Stigma
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Yeah, so I did not pass the first time, and it was very soul crushing for me because I think being in this profession we’re all perfectionists and people pleasers. And getting that failing score, it was like a punch in the gut. You start to question your intelligence. You start to question whether or not you’re worthy enough to be in this profession. So it definitely sent me down a tough road, and I think, ultimately I’m glad that that happened because I think it made me realize some things that I wouldn’t have had I not been knocked down. But it was really hard to get that, and it’s really hard too when you’re in clinic surrounded by other people that have passed. For me, I guess I was lucky because a lot of my classmates did not pass, so I didn’t feel as alone, which unfortunately is just the trend of there’s just increasingly amount of people that don’t pass. But I just feel like there’s this stigma still of you just feel so embarrassed when you don’t pass. I think it’s just important to acknowledge that there’s so many people that are in the same boat as the people that failed. And I think for me, it was just getting over that embarrassment of, like, I’m not alone. We all kinda teamed together as students that didn’t pass and ended up using it to study together. But it was really hard to come out, especially when even in within my friend group, like, half of us passed and half of us failed, so it kinda created this divide unmeaningfully, but it just happened. So that was really hard once January, we got it January 18th, I remember. It was my dad’s birthday, so I remember I waited until after dinner because I was like, I feel like I disappointed my parents. So it was just a very tough time, and like I said, I think taking it, I’m someone that struggles with anxiety, and so that was really hard just, like, feeling so overwhelmed. So having all that information that I was seeing for the first time, I felt like I never truly sat down and focused because I was just so nervous because it’s this huge thing, and everyone makes such a big deal about it. Even the schools, whether they mean to or not, are so pressuring on you about it. They’re like, you need to pass, you need to pass, you need to pass, and then you never had time to take a breath and just be like, okay, it’s just an exam even though it’s a really big exam, but It’s just another one of the exams. So I think not passing the first time kinda made me take a step back and, like, I went back to therapy and tried to get my mental health back under control. I met up with some professors about study tips, and then I started to eat better, sleep better, tried to exercise more, and just change my mindset overall of, it’s not the end of the world. Like, there’s an end to the tunnel and you’re not the only one that’s experiencing this, and I think that helped me get through it, but it was tough.
Jordan Benshea: Yeah, that must have been so tough. It’s interesting what you’re saying about friends and it sort of divided you unintentionally because half of you were like, great, we’re continuing on and the other half of you were like, oh my gosh, wait, this is something we still really need to focus on. I can imagine that was definitely very challenging.
Support Systems and Resources
Jordan Benshea: So you mentioned that you felt like you really focused on taking better care of yourself and sleeping and exercising, do you feel like there were helpful resources you needed while going through NAVLE, while in veterinary school, or are there ones that you feel like you wish you had but you didn’t?
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Yeah, I think that there are definitely a lot, which is good, but it’s all about how you utilize it. I think that that was a learning experience for me as well because I think going into it, the way that our curriculum was set up, we had not taken a cumulative exam in a really long time. So the approach to try and figure out how to study for a cumulative exam was really tough as well, and so there was different ways that, sitting down with my professor, she was like, okay, let’s budget out your time differently, let’s focus more on how you best study. I think that was really helpful for utilizing the professors that you have as a resource because I think we often forget, like for me, I’m always intimidated by authority. So I think that made me realize, like, oh, they’re here to help us. So the professors were definitely very willing to help and sit us down. Then VIN has a NAVLE course that kind of outlines different study guides and has you focus on the different species, and so that was super helpful, and then VetPrep and Zuku. But I think the first time I did that, I kind of tried to reach the 80% like it says that you’re supposed to, and I think by doing that I ended up hurting myself because I was so focused on just getting through the questions and not actually taking the time to learn. So, again, it just came down to the mental health, I think, overall and being able to reach out. Then, like, one of the resources is Vets4Vets, and so I reached out to them, and that was through the NAVLE course. They advertise it through there. So I think the more people that I talk to, I realize, like, oh, I’m not alone, and that was comforting. Then I went back to therapy as well, and that was offered through MSU CAP. So I set that up through there, so that was through the school to be able to have that as a resource. I do wish, as something that could be added, that there was kind of more of a prep course for, like, how to manage the anxiety of the exam, either through the school. I think that VIN does a really good job of, I’m not just saying that because I’m on the podcast, but I think VIN does a really good job providing resources for mental health and for the actual studying and how to portion your time and portion, like, which species. But I think vet schools can sometimes provide a little bit more resources when it comes to mental health of just, like, this exam is so big and so dependent on your just, like you feel like it’s the end of the world if you don’t pass it and you can’t move on with your wife. I feel like providing that just safe space of being able to be like, okay, if you feel, like, here’s what you can do, and not being like, you have to just so, like, pressure inducing, I feel like that just makes it more anxiety ridden. So having some sort of course of how do you manage anxiety going into the exam because it’s 7 hours long. There’s no exam where you’re going to be sitting there for 7 hours besides NAVLE, so nothing can prepare you for that. You just have to build up your stamina. But I think that we’re getting there in the vet profession of having more resources for mental health for sure, but there’s always room for more, I think.
Jordan Benshea: Always room for improvement.
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Yeah.
Lessons Learned in Veterinary School
Jordan Benshea: It sounds like your veterinary school experience had a lot of opportunity for learning. Obviously, you’re in school, so learning that way, but just life learning. So what was or what were a few of your top lessons you learned while in veterinary school?
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Yeah, I think the one that I kinda touched on was never be afraid to ask for help from your professors because they are there for you and they are there to help you. So asking them and picking their brain, even about their career path. Like, my one professor, she made me realize kinda that I wanted to do the rotating internship because she didn’t do it the typical way, and she didn’t apply for match. I didn’t even know that was possible without talking to her. So I learned that you don’t even have to do the match program, it opens up to the public, and that’s actually how I got into the rotating internship that I’m going to be doing is just by asking and waiting for a spot to open, basically. So, which I never would have known if I didn’t talk to her. Then the other thing too is just, you don’t have to have a 4.0 to specialize in anything because I think I went in thinking that you had to have a 4.0 and you had to be the top of your class. There’s so many different pathways that you can go, and so don’t sell yourself short. I think that’s a big thing too is just making sure that you’re never afraid to ask questions, but then also believe in yourself too because I think that that’s hard to do when you’re surrounded by all these smart people that are very much go-getters. Then the other thing too is that this profession is so small. So just talk, keep talking to people and it’ll eventually, if something’s not open that you want, it’ll eventually open up because there’s just so many of the same faces that you’ll see over and over again in different conferences. So I think that’s a big one is just keep networking and that’ll open doors for you for the future just because there’s so few people. Even though it is a big, there’s so many things you could do. There’s so few people that end up, you interact with that you never know when the door’s going to open and you never know who’s going to open it for you.
Navigating Non-Traditional Paths
Jordan Benshea: So you’re about to start a rotating internship. What was that experience for you getting that?
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: It was really interesting because it wasn’t like the typical pathway.
Jordan Benshea: Which is perfect, I mean, I think. People understanding that you don’t have to go the typical path, it’s important to understand that there’s other ways.
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Yeah, which I never knew. So I actually kind of just waited until it opened up to the public, and then I just emailed every single practice in the area I was going to be moving to. So I had just found out that my fiance was going to be working in North Carolina, and so I emailed all the clinics within North Carolina and was like, hey, I’m interested in doing this internship, do you have a spot open? So one of them did have a spot open, and so I went and I toured there, and it would actually, this one would have been in Charlotte. So it would have been an hour, no, two hours away from where I had just signed an apartment lease, so that would have been a little bit difficult. Then a couple weeks later I was in Italy, and I got an email saying that another position had opened up at one of the clinics I had emailed that was right down the street from my apartment. So I wrote my personal statement on the airplane there because I got it like the day before we left. So I wrote my personal statement on the airplane. It literally was like that Robert Frost quote about the pathless travel because I was like, this is very much not a path that I ever thought would happen or thought would be possible. Then ended up interviewing while I was in Italy and was able to get offered the position. And then another unique thing is I’m actually starting behind the rest of the intern class. So I’ll be starting July 5th, and everyone else started June 10th. So it is possible to start after, and some of them are flexible. So I’m in a private practice, so they were like, it’s okay for you to start later, which was also something I never thought would happen, but it did. So you never truly know what is open to you.
Jordan Benshea: Those are very good lessons.
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Yeah.
Jordan Benshea: You never know if you don’t ask, and those with different paths can always work out.
Advice for Future Veterinarians
Jordan Benshea: So as a recent grad, what is one piece of advice you would give a colleague starting veterinary school or something you had wished you had known when starting?
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: I think for me it was just don’t sell yourself short because I think even applying to vet school, there was places that I didn’t apply to because I was like, this is my GPA. Like, I don’t have a chance, and there were so many people that I ended up talking to after I got in, and I was like, oh, I definitely could have had a shot, and I just didn’t think I could. So I think what you might think would be a mundane fact could be really, really interesting to someone, and you never know until you put yourself out there. So just don’t be afraid to do that and don’t assume that the rest of the world views you the way that you view yourself because a lot of times, I think we’re our biggest critic and we’re a lot harder on ourselves than most people are. So I think being able to just send that email, like, you would never know. The worst they could say is no. So just putting yourself out there and not doubting your abilities is something that I wish I knew going into it sooner.
Jordan Benshea: I think that’s great. I think that’s very helpful for probably prevet students about to start and probably students that are in and also just a good lesson in general, in life. I mean because we all go through ebb and flows of doubting ourselves and unsure if we can do things. I am definitely older than you, so I wish I could tell you it goes away, it doesn’t. I think you learn how to recognize it and manage it, but we’re all always going to have those moments.
Personal Insights and Hobbies
Jordan Benshea: So is there anything else that you want to leave our audience with today, Alexia?
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: So there’s two books I just read recently that I thought had a really good lesson. The first one is “The Subtle Art Of Not Giving A F*ck”.
Jordan Benshea: Got it.
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Then the second one is “Grip” by Angela Duckworth. I had to look at that, and in both of them I think the messages are super similar. Basically, it’s that the people in this world that have become super successful did not get that way by not making any mistakes. They have all failed multiple times. They’ve all fallen on their face multiple times and that’s the only way that they learn to get better. So I think that the most important thing to take away from this and why I wanted to share my story about failing NAVLE is that it’s how we react to our failures. How we take those and make it into something better and kinda sit there and reflect on it, and instead of moping around you always have the option and you are in control of how you react to it. So there’s always something that you can do. So just leaving everyone with that about it’s not always about the smartest person in the room. Sometimes it’s just how much effort you want to put in there and how much you want to pick yourself up when you fall. I think that that’s the real value in things is just being able to get up after you get knocked out.
Jordan Benshea: Those are fantastic life lessons that we’re regularly learning over and over again, and I completely agree. We don’t learn when we get things right, we learn when we fail and we are regularly failing. As I told my husband on our first date, I am a work in progress. So that’s always trying to be a better human, but we’re failing and trying to improve. And that’s where I think we all have the opportunity to become better humans and regularly see things better in life. So I do like to ask people, do you have a secret talent or something you enjoy doing that others might not know about? I always find it interesting when I ask this question because I’m just always so surprised by the answers. So how about you?
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Yeah, I really had to think about this one. I think that, for me, I think my secret talent would be finding really good local food places.
Jordan Benshea: I love it.
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Like local events. One of the things that my roommate, my roommate was pretty introverted, and I was pretty extroverted. So the thing that we had the most fun with is I would be able to find all these local farmer’s markets or local vendor, like, crafts markets, and she would be like, I’m glad that we’re living together because you really pushed me out of my comfort zone and, like, get me outside. So I really like going to new places and finding their local breweries or local whatever, food vendors and different farmers markets and different things that they have. Also finding coupons for those things too because I’m a big barter person, and I would like to one day sort of blog about saving money on…
Jordan Benshea: You’re welcome to write a blog post for the foundation if you like.
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Yes, I’m like, when is your birthday? You can get all these things for free, and so I send that to all my friends.
Jordan Benshea: There you go. So are you also one of those people that will read the reviews and order based on what the reviews say of the local food places?
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Oh, yes, my fiance and I just went on a beach trip to Wilmington, and it was literally just by me going on TripAdvisor, cross referencing it with reels on Instagram and being like, okay, what food places? So a lot of the time he’s like, okay, what are we doing next? And I’m like, let me reference my list and my reviews.
Jordan Benshea: I love it.
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: People do read them if you do.
Jordan Benshea: They do. They totally do.
Outro
Jordan Benshea: Well, thank you so much, Alexia, for taking the time to talk with us and to share your story. I know that you are in the midst of a move and congratulations on getting engaged. This is a really exciting time in your life, and so wishing you all the best, and we, of course, always welcome you to come back and share more of your story. Thank you for being with us today. We really appreciate it.
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Thank you for having me. This was great.
Jordan Benshea: Thank you, and for everybody, all the things we’ve talked about as always, they will always be in the episode notes. So we’ll put links to the stuff that Alexia mentioned in the episode notes. Thanks, Alexia.
Alexia Mazzarella, DVM: Thank you.
Jordan Benshea: Thank you for joining us for this episode of the Veterinary Pulse. Please check the episode notes for additional information referenced in the podcast. If you enjoyed this podcast, please follow, subscribe, and share a review. We welcome feedback and hope you will tune in again. You can find out more about the VIN Foundation through our website, VINFoundation.org, and our social media channels. Thank you for being here. Be well.
