nugget

One of my profs does not provide a LOR for grad school to students who earn less that a B+ in her classes. I would not be surprised if others have similar policies, unless you have proven that your interests, skills, strengths and abilities warrant you a spot in a grad school program through outside projects or research. While you may have done well in other courses, she only has a snapshot image of your performance based on what you have demonstrated in her classes. If you are looking for an above average LOR, it does not seem wise to select a professor who has only seen average performance from you in her class. Fortunately you already have enough LORs so this experience won't hold you back in the application process. I would focus on getting all of your apps in and move on.

Well maybe you could get that kind of job and get your grad students to write the research proposals... I've heard that happen before (although your students probably won't be to happy about it).

It's good that the D+ isn't in your major area of study. One of my profs got a D in a music appreciation course in undergrad. Since that wasn't her area of study it didn't hold her back and she was still able to pursue a PhD in a completely different field of study. If your overall GPA is high, I think you will be fine.

I'm not sure if I have 4 but I'll see what I can come up with, in no particular order.... 1. Published author of books (projects must have a strong creative component). 2. Teach at a community college. 3. Service dog breeder and trainer and provider of animal-assisted therapy services using dogs. 4. Social worker in a psychiatric hospital. 5. Flipping houses and doing installations and home repairs, kind of like Mike Holmes. 6. Spanish translator and teacher. So I've got 6. Hopefully I'll be able to get around to doing at least 3 of those things at some point in time.

It may be helpful for us to know whether or not the position is contractual and what the employee turnover rate is like for this employer, if you know anything about this. Simply based on the brief description you provided on your situation, it seems like a 2 year commitment to your employer may be fairly reasonable before moving on to pursue new opportunities. You are a new graduate and often times young people haven't completely figured out their career goals until they've entered the job market and developed a clearer picture of where they would like to go next. I think a reference letter from your superior would be much better to use than a letter from a colleague, as it may look like you are trying to hide something unfavourable about your work performance by not asking her. If you think you are a strong candidate for the programs you are looking at, I would seriously consider asking your supervisor.

Have you tried looking on the McGill classified ads for housing? The McGill area (informally known as the McGill ghetto) is expensive, especially for a student on a budget. For rooms in the $400 price range try places close to Concordia University (main campus listings, not at the Loyola campus). You could try looking at Concordia classified ads for cheap housing. Concordia is a 15 minute walk to McGill and you could use public transportation during the winter months if you wish from November to February (which will take you the same amount of time to get there). If you live walking distance of a metro station then you won't be waiting around in the cold, as opposed to living near a bus route. (If you go this route, you'd be looking at places near Guy-Concordia metro or Peel, not Atwater as the walk from Atwater would take about half an hour). For super cheap housing, you can't get much cheaper than Verdun. But expect a 20 minute commute (providing you live near a metro station or 30+ minutes if you don't) and you'll need to factor in transportation costs. Mile End is also cheap and will either be a long walk or a bus ride away. Personally, for a good balance between cost, amenities in the neighbourhood (night life, restaurants, cafes, grocery stores), neighbourhood ambiance and convenient access to public transportation, I'd definitely go for places near Concordia (close to the Guy-Concordia metro station) if rent in the McGill area is too steep for you to manage. Be prepared to have 3 or 4 roommates though for that price range and you'll be getting the small room in the apartment (assuming that $400 means all inclusive - heating, hot water and electricity. If it doesn't then forget what I just said). I don't think it's too common for grad students to begin their programs at this time of year and be in need of a new roommate, but you might get lucky. Best of luck on your move!

You have mentioned that the situation described below would be the perfect scenario. Perhaps it would be perfect for yourself. But have to you stopped to consider what this instability might mean for the growth, development and wellbeing of the young children? How might it put them at a disadvantage in life? ex: limited access to healthcare, poor nutrition, limited contact with parents (because of working multiple jobs to pay the bills), etc. I am not suggesting that anyone who has children young in life is an incapable or irresponsible parent, by any means, nor that such children are destined for hardship and poverty. But I think it's important to think about the extent to which it would be important to have children under any circumstance - even if it benefits you and not the children themselves. I get the impression that the life you want to have is based on superficial images and impressions you have of other people's lives (perhaps from movies, tv, or what you have seen with friends) rather than through actual life experience. While your life experience might be limited, it's great that you want to move to a new city. By meeting new people and leaving your home town, you will gain more life experience, personal growth and independence. The curriculum in the MSW program will challenge you to consider values, beliefs and perspectives that are different from your own. To be an effective social worker, you need to understand the midset of your clients and help them make decisions that are compatible with their values, priorities and goals, which can be quite different from your own. If you are judgemental or dislike their choices, clients will sense that and it will be difficult to develop a trusting relationship, which is essential for therapy to be effective. ex: working with career-oriented women who do not want children, homosexual clients, etc. Relocating, having a roommate for the first time, and making new friends is likely to lead to personal growth over time. You will quickly discover that things rarely work out exactly as planned, especially where romance is concerned. It may be a lot to take in for the first time when you hear firsthand accounts of your clients' struggling with problems related to marriage, divorce, children, poverty, illness, suicide, death, etc. But it should be quite eye opening at the same time and can greatly impact the way that you view the world over time. For instance, for a cancer patient or a patient with schizophrenia, acquiring stable health would likely be more important than finding a husband. I think that over time, through many internships, lots of supervision and discussions in class, you will slowly gain in a better understanding of yourself, how others think, and the way that relationships work. Through your internships, you will also learn about some of the challenges/realities involved with marriage and parenthood which will eventually prepare you for serious dating, marriage and parenting.

MSW programs have internships. It's not just course work. Our internships are 4 days a week, plus coursework on the side, and no one coasts through the program.

Glad it worked out. I sent all my documents by FedEx. It's more expensive that way but I thought it was worth the money for something so important.

LMAO!! Did not expect that at all.

Congrats on your admission offer, Pinkster. I guess it's official now. You are going to grad school!

I have no background in finance, but for what it's worth, have you considered becoming a financial analyst?

I applied to Lakehead least year and was accepted. There are no prerequisite courses (or at least nothing you wouldn't have already if you are applying to 2 yr MSW programs). The program is 12 months long and it begins right after Canada Day. There is also St.Thomas University in NB. I have head their BSW program takes 15 months to complete and, if I remember correctly, there are no additional prerequisites you'd need to take. Best of luck.

Are you interested in assessment? There are long wait lists for certain kinds of assessments and some people are willing to pay to get them done privately to get a quicker diagnosis. You can charge about $1,500 for an assessment that takes about 1.5 days of work to conduct an interview, calculate scores and write up a report (time will vary a bit depending on the type of assessment you do, of course). This sort of work could tide you over after you complete your studies, until you get your first big break in the job market, if it's of interest to you. Even if you do one assessment a week, you'd still have a liveable salary. I'd also consider whether or not you are willing to move after completing your studies, as this could change your situation and job prospects substantially. Perhaps there is more work available in rural areas, as is the case with MD's. This might be something worth looking into.

It sounds like U of T would be your best bet. They're flexible about the number of work hours you have if you have the right profile they are looking for. But York, Laurier and Carleton definitely want more hours. Have you looked into Windor, Waterloo, Victoria and UBC - Okanagan? I can't remember the hours needed for these programs as I looked into them last year but you might be eligible to apply to their programs.

Spoken by a friend who recently graduated from such a program and now lives in Ontario.... The full time, permanent, well-paying job with benefits for recently graduated clinical psychologists at hospitals is rare. Most of that kind of work for new people in the field is contractual now (often renewable once a year, pending availability of funding). Get into the field if you love it. But when you consider the number of years of schooling required (at least 7 years of grad school), plus an extra year of post doc training in Ontario, the fact that you may possibly need to take a few extra courses after the PhD (it's important to choose courses wisely as a PhD student to avoid this - I know someone who needs to take 5 extra courses for licencing), followed by three comprehensive exams for licencing.... you need to consider the time, money and effort involved to complete the process and if it is still worth it to you. Do you have a back up plan in case you aren't able to find your dream job right away after graduation, such as private practice or something else? Those are a lot of things to consider when you make this big decision. I wish you the best of luck!

I don't think it's wise to rank them number one because if they accept you they will be expecting you to take their offer. Number 2, on the other hand... that's your decision to make.

Get some counselling. After 12 weeks of cognitive behavioural therapy you WILL see an improvement. Social anxiety is one of the most treatment disorders around with very high success rates.

Have you heard of Randy Pausch, a man who died of pancreatic cancer and wrote a book called The Last Lecture? It's a great little book that's very moving and inspirational. His daughter Chloe was a baby when he died and he left her a piece of advice for when she gets older and starts dating. I'm posting it here as I thought you might find it helpful in your search for a good man who will treat you right. “When it comes to men who are romantically interested in you, it’s really simple. Just ignore everything they say and only pay attention to what they do.” Randy Pausch

If you are in a relationship with someone who is with you because he truly loves you for who you are and you truly love him for who he is, when and if you are both ready for marriage and decide to spend your lives together, odds are that you will be able to work out some sort of solution if you get job offers in different cities or states. ex: you turn down your offer, he turns his down, commuting, long distance relationship, etc.... If you and your partner are more in love with the idea of being in a relationship and the benefits that go along with having a relationship (ex: commitment, financial stability, no more loneliness, regular sex, etc) more so than your actual love for each other, I have doubts this sort of sacrifice would happen. In this scenario, either one of you could be easily replaced and if someone finds a job in a different state it would make more sense to break up, move and find someone else. This is why I think it's important to have standards for a partner. Commit to someone you truly cherish and (eventually) couldn't imagine not spending the rest of your life with that one person, and marry someone who feels the same way about you. It takes time to figure all this stuff out and shouldn't be rushed. If you want to be happy for the long term, I wouldn't advise being with someone you like who's a decent match and would make a decent husband. All relationships have their ups and downs and if you both aren't with the one person you truly love and cherish, odds are that your relationship won't survive the challenges and obstacles that come your way.

Does it specifically ask you to rank them? If not, just list the 4 and state that they are listed in no particular order. If you want to elaborate or offer an explanation, you can state that they will be ordered after you find out more details (like funding, TA or RA opportunities, etc).

If you are applying to programs that require a thesis, I think you really need to have some research experience. Did you complete an undergraduate-level thesis in an honours program? If you did, perhaps that will be sufficient. You would need to find out from others in the field if it would be necessary or highly recommended in your case to have additional research experience. One weak point on your application might be overlooked if other components are strong such as LORs, previous course work, volunteer work, professional work experience and your personal statements. But if many of these areas are lacking, including GPA and GRE scores, I think it would be wise to take some time off and figure out ways to become a stronger candidate in the future, particularly if paying for applications fees is an issue for you.

Are you bilingual? If you plan to conduct interviews locally as part of your research, I would find out if this will create any obstacles or barriers for you. Additionally, I would consider whether or not you want to establish networks in a city where you might not be able to work after graduating if you aren't bilingual. According to Quebec law, businesses with 25 employees or more cannot hire staff who do not speak French and are fined if caught.

MsDarjeeling: That may have been the best answer to a question I've ever read on this forum. Well done.

If you are a social worker or social work student, I was wondering which type of feminism you would refer to when working with victims of domestic violence (immigrant women being abused by their husbands)? What about if you were working with the perpetrators, their husbands? Just wanted to hear some different opinions as there is more than one answer in these situations. thanks!