Meet Peter Breimhurst
Peter Breimhurst was the 2022 recipient of the MVMF Past Presidents Scholarship (Awarded to a 3rd or 4th year DVM student at the University of Minnesota who demonstrates academic and community leadership and are actively involved in organized veterinary medicine at both state and national levels.)
We caught up with Peter for the first of our new series introducing you to MVMF Scholarship recipients. He talked about what inspired him to pursue a career in veterinary medicine and gave insight on how the scholarship will help achieve his goals.
What inspired you to pursue a career in veterinary medicine?
I participated in 4-H growing up, where I found that I loved working with animals and educating people about them. I have always enjoyed learning about science. These experiences, in addition to my love for agriculture, led me to veterinary medicine.
What have you learned the most about the profession so far?
I have learned how many great opportunities the profession has to offer. There are so many career possibilities in the profession, it is hard to choose just one. Veterinarians make a huge difference in public health, agriculture, and improving the human animal bond every day. I have also had the opportunity to get to know some amazing people in this profession.
What are your career goals?
My goal is to eventually own a practice in outstate Minnesota. I enjoy working with both companion animals and livestock, so I hope that I am able to continue to practice on both in the future. There is such a need in that area for veterinary services, and I hope I can help bring some much needed care. I enjoy learning about business and all that business ownership has to offer.
What is the best piece of advice you ever received?
The best piece of advice I have received was to be thankful for each day of veterinary school. It is a huge gift to have the opportunity to go to school each day. It is something that many of us have been working toward our entire life. When things get challenging, I remind myself of this. We have the amazing opportunity to learn from the experts of veterinary medicine.
What advice would you give to somebody who is considering going to college to pursue a career in veterinary medicine?
I would tell them to keep an open mind and explore all the areas of veterinary medicine. Not only will exploring all the different directions you can go as a veterinarian help with a vet school application, it allows you to find out all the profession has to offer to you. The profession has so many directions and many of my classmates have found themselves going a different direction than they expected. Having an open mind allows you to absorb more from school and enjoy every class.
What does winning an MVMF Scholarship mean to you?
This MVMF Scholarship makes a huge difference in my life. It helps me get a head start on paying down my debt from school and allows me to focus on getting my career started. I will have a lot of expenses as I transition into this new chapter of my life, and this scholarship will allow me to make this transition a lot less stressful. I can focus on increasing my veterinary knowledge and investing in my career instead of larger debt payments.