From Coast Guard to clinics: class president forges a nontraditional path to veterinary medicine

Unlike many veterinary students, when Heather Skowron was a child growing up in Rhode Island, she didn’t know she wanted to be a veterinarian. In fact, she wasn’t sure what she wanted to be. 

After two years of community college, she earned her bachelor’s in liberal arts from Rivier University in New Hampshire and began an office job — but at the age of 23, she decided she needed to change direction. 

"I just decided one day that I was going to do something different. So I joined the Coast Guard." 

She went into the Coast Guard thinking she would be a reservist, but she ended up on active duty for over 20 years as an enlisted petty officer and then a commissioned officer.. 

She was trained as an engineer, learning how to use a cutting torch and work with plumbing, and she served on several ships, where she was often responsible for ship repair and oversight. She also served as support staff to an admiral and was selected to attend the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California, graduating with a master’s degree in systems engineering. 

While living in Monterey, Skowron’s life changed again when she decided to volunteer at the SPCA. There, she had the opportunity to volunteer at the wildlife center. One of the rehabilitation technicians allowed her to help with some procedures on wildlife such as raptors and sea birds, and Skowron was hooked.

After 14 years in the Coast Guard, Skowron started to think about what would come next and was concerned that she did not have the right background and experience for veterinary medicine. Prerequisite classes would be a barrier, as it had been too long since she had taken undergraduate courses, but Skowron was determined to pursue her new goal. 

"I just felt drawn to doing it; I couldn't stop myself. When you take any path, you get the pros and cons and the cautions, and I was like, 'I hear you, but I'm just going to go for it and see where this path takes me!'" 

While working full time, Skowron spent five years completing her prerequisite classes at night and on weekends while also volunteering at City Wildlife in Washington, D.C. With prerequisites complete and a plan to retire from the Coast Guard, it was time to apply to veterinary school. 

Skowron doubted her ability to get into veterinary school on the first try. Her plan was to apply to the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine, be rejected, and use the year between her retirement and “real” applications to use the college’s feedback and get more experience in small animal clinical medicine for the next time around. 

Much to her surprise, she got in on the first try. 

Four weeks after her retirement from the Coast Guard, Skowron moved to Blacksburg for veterinary school. She had to adjust to a different culture — the Coast Guard was predominantly men, and most of her veterinary school peers were younger than her — and was honored when she was nominated to be class president. 

"When you leave the service, you leave something bigger than you. You're not part of that effort, that mission once you retire and decide to take a different career path. Being class president was really good for me because I felt like I had something to serve,” said Skowron. 

In their very first year, the class of 2023 was hit with a massive challenge: the pandemic. Skowron says it felt like her class went through four different versions of veterinary school: before the pandemic, during lockdown, in-person with masks and other precautions, and finally doing clinics. 

"Being class president took on a different role then. Facilitating between the class and the school online was difficult because the world had not had to lock down before, and it was hard to facilitate making everyone feel connected," Skowron said. 

The responsibility of being class president grounded Skowron and helped her focus as she navigated veterinary school.

Skowron entered veterinary school interested in epidemiology, but she decided to be a mixed animal tracker so she could experience all the field had to offer. Through the college’s mentorship program, she connected with Dianna Thornton of Caring Hands Animal Hospital in Arlington, Va., and completed a rotation there. Upon graduation, she will join Caring Hands as a small animal veterinarian. 

"I'm ready to have my own cases, apply what I've learned in classes and in clinics, and I'm ready to work with my team and be a contributing member," Skowron said. 

Skowron said that on graduation day, her focus will be on her peers. 

"I've seen them grow, become themselves, and figure out their new profession. Seeing them graduate means more to me than just graduating myself.”

Skowron was the recipient of several scholarships in her fourth year due to her leadership and dedication to the profession, most notably the Peter Eyre Student Leadership Award and the Sundance Second Time Around Award. Established by the VMCVM alumni society, the Virginia Veterinary Medical Association, and the Maryland Veterinary Association, the Peter Eyre Leadership Award benefits fourth year DVM students at the college with characteristics similar to former Dean Peter Eyre. These students often have a focus on the wellbeing of the profession, as well as the College and its members, who have had a vision of service and a history of involvement in organized veterinary medicine, and who have a good sense of humor. Skowron’s second scholarship, the Sundance Second Time Around Scholarship, was generously established by VMCVM alumni Nina and Thomas Templeton ’98 and its goal is to benefit students who, like themselves, are attending veterinary school as a second career.