Admission Policies

Massachusetts Residency Requirements
The Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine has a commitment to fill a minimum of 50% of each entering class with residents of Massachusetts. The following information may assist you in determining whether you qualify for Massachusetts residency.

1. You must live in Massachusetts, in property you own or lease, for the 12 consecutive months immediately prior to enrolling at the Cummings School. During this time, you must be less than a half-time college student. Massachusetts residency is NOT acquired by physical presence in Massachusetts while carrying on a half-time or more course of study at a Massachusetts college or university.

2. You must pay taxes in Massachusetts. Employment outside of Massachusetts must show that Massachusetts taxes were paid in order to satisfy this requirement.

3. You must have a Massachusetts driver’s license.

4. Additional documentation such as a Massachusetts voter registration card, driver's license, and automobile registration must be acquired at least within the 12 months immediately prior to enrolling at the Cummings School.

5. If you grew up in Massachusetts and are currently enrolled full-time at an accredited college or university outside of the state and are paying out-of-state tuition, you are considered a resident of Massachusetts.

6. Applicants who are applying to other veterinary schools in the United States in addition to Tufts, must claim the same state residency on all applications for admission. Applicants are prohibited from claiming more than one state of residency for purposes of admission and tuition eligibility.

The Office of Admissions reserves the right to request documentation for any of the above.

Reapplication Policy
Applicants who were not offered admission may reapply at any time. Every year, some individuals previously denied admission are successful in the reapplication process. The Office of Admissions retains previously submitted applications for a period of three years. Official transcripts, letters of evaluation and GRE scores can be used from a previous application. Please refer to the list below for exceptions to this and for other items required to be submitted.

• Online application form
• Application fee
• Additional letters of evaluation (optional)
• Official transcripts for any new coursework completed since your last application
• Responses to all essays

If your previous application was submitted more than three years ago, you must submit all new official documents, including official transcripts, test scores, and letters of evalution.

Transfer Policy
Students may be admitted with advanced standing to the second-year class if vacancies exist in student enrollment. Applicants must meet the admissions requirements established by the Admissions Committee. Evaluation is based on several considerations, including the candidate's performance in undergraduate school, Graduate Record Examination test scores, performance in veterinary school, and the compatibility of the previous D.V.M. program with the Tufts curriculum. The deadline for these applications is June 1. Admission of advanced-standing students is completed during the summer months.

Educational Opportunity
The Cummings School is committed to identifying and recruiting qualified applicants from generally recognized culturally, socially, and economically disadvantaged backgrounds. The purpose of such recruitment is to encourage applications from students from a broad spectrum of society who traditionally have not applied to schools of veterinary medicine. All individuals who have applied for admission are eligible to submit additional information for consideration by the admissions committee. Applications of students from disadvantaged backgrounds will be eligible for special review during the admission process.