Illinois Vet School Interview: Format, Interview Day and Scoring
What happens at the University of Illinois vet school interview, how you get one, and how it decides your offer.
Illinois offers a behavior-based interview to about 400 applicants (about 150 Illinois residents and 250 non-residents). Everyone interviews on one day in February with a team of a faculty member, an alumni veterinarian and a third- or fourth-year student. The interview is 25% of the final ranking and the non-academic file review is 75%. GPA is not counted in the final ranking.
Key facts (2027 entry)
- Format
- A behavior-based interview with a team of three: a college faculty member, a veterinarian alum and a third- or fourth-year veterinary student.
- When
- One single day in February. Invitations usually go out by the middle of January.
- Status updates
- Sent by email rather than a status portal, with interview invitations mailed to the highest-ranking applicants by the middle of January.
- Who is interviewed
- About 400 of the highest-ranking applicants: about 150 Illinois residents and 250 non-residents.
- How the interview counts
- 25% of the final ranking. The non-academic file review (Phase Two) is the other 75%.
- Does GPA count at the end?
- No. The Phase One GPA score helps decide who moves on but is not considered in the final ranking.
- Class size
- About 160 students a year, about 80 Illinois residents and 80 non-residents.
What happens on the day
Illinois holds its interviews on a single day in February. You talk with a team of three people, each from a different part of the profession.
- Three interviewers. A college faculty member, a veterinarian alum and a third- or fourth-year veterinary student.
- Behavior-based. Questions ask about things you have actually done, to assess skills, knowledge, attitudes and aptitudes.
- Two targets. The interview looks for what you need to finish the curriculum and to succeed as a practicing veterinarian.
- Core qualities. Successful applicants demonstrate problem-solving skills, decision-making skills, interpersonal communication skills and teamwork ability.
Talk to all three. A faculty member, a practicing vet and a student listen for different things, so make eye contact with each and keep answers concrete.
How you get an interview
Illinois ranks applicants in two phases before the interview. Readers in the second phase do not see your Phase One scores.
Phase One: academics
- A composite score. Ranks all qualified applicants (over 2000 in 2021-2022) using your cumulative and VMCAS science GPAs, plus your GRE percentile if you choose to take it and share it.
- Minimums. A 3.00 cumulative GPA and a 3.00 VMCAS science GPA. Falling below 3.00 after fall grades means denial.
- Competitive. Recent competitive applicants averaged a 3.74 cumulative GPA, a 3.68 science GPA and a 66% GRE composite percentile.
Phase Two: your file
Members of the Admissions Advisory Committee read your VMCAS application and Illinois's own questions in it.
- Experience. Veterinary, animal and other experience, such as research, international study, business, agribusiness or an earlier career.
- Recognition and service. Academic, personal or professional recognition, and community service or citizenship.
- Letters. At least three, with one from a practicing veterinarian and one from a professor or instructor. None from relatives.
No hour minimum. Illinois sets no minimum hours. It wants to see you explain what you learned from your experiences.
How offers are decided
Your final rank uses only your file review and your interview. Grades get you to the interview but do not count at the end.
- 75% file review. The Phase Two non-academic score.
- 25% interview. The Phase Three interview score.
- Late February. All applicants hear their status by late February.
- April 15. Accept with a signed form and a non-refundable deposit by this national date, or the offer is withdrawn. Alternates hear after April 15 as seats open, and your position on the alternate list will not be disclosed. Applicants who are not accepted may make an appointment with the DVM Admissions Officer for individual counseling beginning in April.
Requirements and dates
You apply through VMCAS and pay a $60 Illinois processing fee ($75 for international applicants).
Key requirements
- GRE optional. Scores are used in the academic calculation only if they arrive by September 1, 2026.
- Prerequisites. C- or better, finished by the end of spring. No more than two may be in progress that spring, and none can be taken that summer.
The 2026-27 timeline
- September 8, 2026. Last day for letters of reference in VMCAS.
- September 15, 2026. VMCAS and Illinois processing fee deadline, 11:59 pm Eastern.
- October 1, 2026. Last day for transcripts to reach VMCAS.
- January 15, 2027. Fall transcripts due to the college.
- Mid-January 2027. Interview invitations usually go out. They do not include fall grades.
- February 2027. The interview day.
How to prepare
Behavior-based questions reward real stories told clearly, and the interview is a quarter of your final rank.
- Build a story bank. Pick five or six real moments from your clinic, farm, lab or job that show teamwork, leadership, a mistake and a hard conversation.
- Use a simple structure. Say the situation, what you did and what you learned. Keep the setup short.
- Show what you learned. Illinois cares about the learning from your experiences, so end each story with what changed in how you think or work.
- Cover large and small animals. Competitive applicants have wide experience with both and with several veterinarians, so have a story from more than one setting.
Your file matters most. Phase Two is 75% of the final rank, so the interview should match the person in your application, not replace it.
Practice questions
Questions in the style of a Behavior-based panel interview station, written for applicants to University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign College of Veterinary Medicine. They are practice questions, not the school's own. Open one for what a strong answer does.
Tell me about a time an animal's unpredictable behavior caught you off guard. How did you regain control of the situation?
Describe the moment briefly, focus on the calm, safe steps you took, and say what you now do differently.
Thinking back on your veterinary observation hours, what was the most surprising or unglamorous part of a veterinarian's day-to-day work?
Pick one specific, real moment and show it made you more committed, not less.
During an internship, you are asked to help comfort a grieving client after a euthanasia, but you find yourself holding back tears. How much emotion is appropriate for a veterinarian to show in front of a client?
Show that real feeling is fine, then explain how you stay steady enough to support the client.
A dairy farmer's herd has a severe mastitis outbreak. The approved treatment means discarding milk for two weeks, which could bankrupt the farm, and the farmer begs you for an off-label treatment that breaks the withdrawal rules. What do you do?
Hold the line on food safety and the law, show real empathy for the farmer, and look for legal ways to ease the cost.
You discover that a highly respected senior partner at your practice has been under-dosing pain medication during routine surgeries to save the clinic money. How would you address this?
Put the animals' welfare first, raise it directly and privately, and know when to escalate.
Walk us through how you decided to pursue veterinary medicine, from your first interest to today.
Tell a short, honest story with two or three turning points and end on what you want to do next.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Illinois vet school interview like?
It is a behavior-based interview with a team of three: a faculty member, an alumni veterinarian and a third- or fourth-year veterinary student.
When is the Illinois vet school interview?
Interviews are held in February, with all applicants interviewing on one single day. Invitations usually go out by the middle of January.
How much does the interview count at Illinois?
25% of the final ranking. The non-academic file review counts 75%, and the GPA-based Phase One score is not used in the final ranking.
How many applicants does Illinois interview?
About 400: about 150 Illinois residents and 250 non-residents. About 160 students are accepted each year.
Does Illinois vet school require the GRE?
No. The GRE is optional, but scores sent by September 1, 2026 are used in the academic calculation.
Sources
Official pages only, read on the date shown. Schools change their process every year, so check the school's own page before you apply.
- University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine: Admissions · read October 24, 2026
- University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine: Admissions FAQ · read October 24, 2026
- University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine: How to Apply · read October 24, 2026
- University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine: Standards for Admission · read October 24, 2026
- University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine: When Will I Hear? · read October 24, 2026