"Put Yourself Out There": Brandon '18 on Finding Your Career and Community at UC Berkeley

The Pre-Vet Club at Berkeley was instrumental in shaping my experience and encouraging me to pursue veterinary medicine. It’s such a tight-knit community of people who are there to cheer each other on and help each other out.

Brandon Weiss '18

A newly engaged couple smile at camera: one man holds up his ring fingers to show engagement and the other man throws head back in laughter

Brandon returned to campus to propose to his fiancé, who he met during sophomore year at UC Berkeley.

October 29, 2025

L&S Alum Spotlight:
Brandon Weiss '18 (he/him)

Major: Integrative Biology: Ecology, Evolution & Organismal Biology

"College is just as much about figuring out who you are as a person as it is learning in the classroom," shares Brandon Weiss '18. From discovering a passion for veterinary medicine in the Pre-Vet Club at Berkeley, to meeting and proposing to his fiancé on campus, and now thriving in a meaningful career in emergency and critical care medicine for animals, Brandon has built a life full of joyful community and enduring connections.

L&S Communications: Please tell us about your current occupation or pursuit.

Brandon Weiss: I am a veterinarian, currently in residency in emergency & critical care medicine. I live on the east coast with my fiancé (we met in college at Berkeley 10 years ago!) and our 2 cats. When I’m not at work, you can find me staying active, exploring Philadelphia with friends, or cooking something up in the kitchen. Finding balance between residency and personal life is tough, but I try to keep up my hobbies. I love to go out birding (shout out to IB 104 for getting me into it), play board games, and host friends over.

How did your experience at UC Berkeley influence your journey?

I always joke that initially, the only reason I wanted to be a veterinarian was because my older brother wanted to be a vet and I wanted to be just like him. He ended up going into advertising, but he’s still one of my biggest role models both as a professional and as a person. The Pre-Vet Club at Berkeley was instrumental in shaping my experience and encouraging me to pursue veterinary medicine. It’s such a tight-knit community of people who are there to cheer each other on and help each other out. I discovered some really fantastic opportunities that solidified my love for the field and made some amazing friends along the way (who I still keep in touch with to this day)!

UC Berkeley as a whole provided me with a wealth of experiences that shaped me into the person, friend, and professional I am today. It taught me the power of hard work, teamwork, and engaging in your community. I fully believe I would not be where I am today without the wonderful experiences UC Berkeley afforded me.

What is a moment from your journey that stands out to you?

I’ll share both a personal and professional moment. For a personal moment, I recently got engaged to my partner of 10 years, who I met when I was a sophomore at UC Berkeley. I proposed to him on campus, right near the spot where we first met. It was a full circle, beautiful moment that I’ll cherish forever.

Professionally, I can’t share any specifics to protect patient confidentiality, but being in emergency & critical care can be emotionally exhausting. However, there have been lots of moments where a critically ill pet’s life is hanging in the balance. When you’re able to intervene and save a family’s dog or cat and you feel like you truly made a difference, all those long nights and hard days become worth it. Seeing that pet go home puts the biggest smile on my face (and oftentimes also puts tears in my eyes).

I recently got engaged to my partner of 10 years, who I met when I was a sophomore at UC Berkeley. I proposed to him on campus, right near the spot we first met. It was a full circle, beautiful moment that I’ll cherish forever.

Brandon Weiss '18

Do you keep in touch with friends or professors from L&S?

YES! I am still incredibly close with so many of my college friends. In fact, I'm officiating 2 of my college best friends' wedding in August, and I couldn't be more excited. I am lucky enough to have a very large group of college friends who I still talk to daily or weekly (and go on vacations with!). Despite the fact that we live on the east coast now, our friendships have not dimmed.

I do still talk to some of my professors, too, from time to time. The IB Department is a bit smaller, and I felt like I had a small academic home in this very large institution!

What is the biggest challenge you've navigated in your work, career, or life?

Giving myself grace and cutting myself some slack have been incredibly difficult. We want to do it all, right? We want to excel in our careers but also be amazing friends, thoughtful people, and engaged community members. Inevitably, something has to give every now and again. It’s really easy to beat yourself up over it, but we are all human and the people who truly know you will understand.

What is something that is sustaining or supporting you?

My incredible community (both here on the east coast and around the country). Community has always been a core value of mine, and it’s always essential I build one for myself wherever I go. I’m so fortunate to have met some really fantastic people in my life who fill me up and bring such joy to my life.

What is one piece of advice you want to leave students with, or something you wish you'd known as a college student?

College is just as much about figuring out who you are as a person as it is learning in the classroom. It can be scary to put yourself out there and go to that event, but it’s so worth it. You’ll never know what experience you’ll have or who you’ll meet.

My first week of freshman year, Unit 1 was hosting Cocoa in the Courtyard as a welcome/meet-and-greet event. I was pretty nervous, and I almost didn’t go. Boy, am I glad I did. I met 3 of my absolute best friends in the world that night. The second we started talking, it felt like we had known each other all our lives. They are truly my sisters, and if I hadn’t put myself out there, I may have never met them.

College is just as much about figuring out who you are as a person as it is learning in the classroom. It can be scary to put yourself out there and go to that event, but it’s so worth it. You’ll never know what experience you’ll have or who you’ll meet.

Brandon Weiss '18

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