smpalesh

What I hate about the email notifications is that around the time acceptances should be going out I freak out every time my phone dings. And then I'm like, "I don't give a shit that there's a sale at Old Navy!!!!!!"

Oh, I just realized you are in the 2 year! Well I will leave the info up in case anyone else is interested. I am assuming it will be different for the 2 year program.

They had an info day at the beginning of April and I found out who the practicum co-ordinator was and I connected with her. She then set me up with another woman who would be my contact throughout the process. Basically be really proactive about it. I sent her a list of my top 5 places I would like to do practicum in my area and who the contact person would be for each of those places. Usually UofT placements are done through computer through a system called PAS. You have to officially opt-out of PAS to arrange your own placement, which is kind of scary, but there is no way I could commute to Toronto that many days a week. So if I don't get into Laurier I'll be doing this whole process again. Yay. Oh, you aren't allowed to contact potential placements yourself, they really, really frown on that. You have to let UofT make the contact.

I applied to 2 last year. I was accepted by 1, and waitlisted by 1. I had to defer for a year so this year I applied to 1 (I am already accepted to the 1 I deferred and I am reapplying to the one I was waitlisted at). I have geographical limitations - my husband has a good job and my 3 children are settled in this area - so I focused on the ones around my area that I knew fit my area of interest. I can't imagine applying to tons of schools, how do you find the time to tailor each application to the school?

LP3 - Last year people got acceptance emails on February 21, rejection snail mail letters on February 23-24 and I got a wait list offer on February 26. I am hoping this time I am in the acceptance group! I am anxious about the wait but at the same time I have 3 kids so life is pretty busy.

blh22 - You can arrange to have your practicum in your own community. They say that technically you can't but I know of 4 people last year who had it set up. I had mine all set up before I had to defer. As for classes I personally had it set up that I only had to go to Toronto one day a week for classes. If I end up at UofT this fall (still hoping for Laurier but I know UofT is guaranteed) I am hoping I can get it the same way. I'm planning on taking the GO train because the drive would be insane with rush hour.

The ROSI acceptance thing didn't shop up 2 weeks in advance, it was less than a week. Mine changed to status invited about 5 days before I got the big acceptance letter in the mail.

lee22 - Under Review just means they have all of your materials. Someone mentioned when they have decided it will change to Decision Made but that isn't necessarily true. They often don't update the online system. I already had my acceptance letter and continued to check back for over 2 weeks just to see and it NEVER changed to Decision Made. I know many other people for whom that was true as well.

wishingonuoft - If it's an acceptance it will be a big brown envelope, a rejected is a small white envelope. I was not a UofT student when I got accepted either but I was able to log onto ROSI a few days before the letter came using the student ID# that is listed on your online application and it said status: Invited which meant I was in. For the 2 year program the results will go out in mid-April

soapaddict - it depends on which school. Laurier looks at the last 10 courses (although I'm sure they give weight to the overall GPA as well). UofT only counts 3rd or 4th year courses in the 10 they look at so if you have an 2nd year courses in your final year they will look back further to make sure you have 10 3rd or 4th year and then calculate you GPA from that.

soapaddict - it depends on which school. Laurier looks at the last 10 courses (although I'm sure they give weight to the overall GPA as well). UofT only counts 3rd or 4th year courses in the 10 they look at so if you have an 2nd year courses in your final year they will look back further to make sure you have 10 3rd or 4th year and then calculate you GPA from that.

lee22 - I am in the Social Justice and Diversity stream as well. Are you advanced standing or 2-year? For Laurier I am applying for IFG.

Definitely don't review stuff after it's submitted, you'll just drive yourself crazy! Once it's submitted there is nothing you can do so you'll have to trust that you did the best you could and hope for the best.

wishingonuoft - That's right, I only sent the physical copy, not an emailed copy. I emailed the admissions person (Angela Umbrello) to confirm they had received it about 10 days later. Good luck with your application!

Wow. I really hope my children do not grow up to be as self-centered and entitled as you are coming off here. Your mother only has a high school education? Your family doesn't have university educations? So CLEARLY they have absolutely no idea what you are going through, or what stress means, or how to plan for the future, or any those things. Your mother has devoted her life to raising you but obviously she has no possible insight into your situation because she's just an uneducated hick from Wyoming. I sincerely hope your mother and other family members never become aware of your derision for them and their accomplishments. And FYI, a university education can't teach class, which you've clear demonstrated here.

I would wager that everyone applying to grad school has worked their butt off for many years. I know I have. There are no guarantees in life and you are not owed anything. If you don't get in it is because someone else was more qualified than you. So work harder, beef up your application, and try again.

I made the request through the school I was with at the time (UWaterloo) and marked that I wanted it sent to the Admission office of Factor Inwentash School of Social Work. An email copy of the transcript is asked for when applying but they also want an official copy as well. So for me they got two official copies.

wishingonuoft - I did that last year when I was applying to the Advanced Standing MSW and I really do believe that it helped (I was accepted).

rachelmsw - It is best to not look at the questions as 3 separate questions but rather to blend them together into one essay. Yes, I did find it hard to fit everything I wanted to say in that short of space but they are very strict with the word count. It actually shows them something about the applicants ability to handle graduate level studies as being able to be succinct while writing essays is an important skill.

soapaddict - there is a huge difference between a social service worker and a social worker. A social service worker has 2-3 years of college and can not call themselves a social worker. There are many jobs that they will not be qualified for. A social worker has a minimum 4 years of university, more if they go to graduate level studies, which many do. They can legally call themselves a social worker and they register through regulatory bodies to become a registered social worker. The job options are much wider. A registered social worker can also go into private practice as a therapist/counsellor.

The practicum section for Laurier is only for practicum done during a BSW.

It's 2015! This is the year our lives will change, hopefully for the better. Less than 2 months until I find out about Laurier's Advanced Standing MSW. I hope time will go fast!

lee22 - Personally I feel it's a waste, but that's just my opinion. The grades and coursework will not matter at all when applying for a BSW or MSW. It would be better to volunteer or work to get more experience. A social service worker program and a social work program are two very different things.

LP3 - Laurier is competitive but if you have a lot of experience you have a good shot. My problem isn't my grades (just graduated from Renison's BSW program on the Dean's Honours list) but my lack of experience. I have no paid experience. I have 5 years of part-time experience on a sexual assault crisis line and then my 720-hour practicum through my BSW. Even with that lack of experience I was waitlisted last year so if you have more (and varied) experience than that I am sure you have a chance.

purplegrey - I can't see that being the mean age for the MSW program, that seems low to me. Considering that it is a graduate program people will have to at least be mid-20s and many people are older than that. I am 35 years old, was waitlisted last year and hoping to get accepted this year.