JointPhD-Social Work Guy

@Kiren Thanks, I will be going to Wayne. Hopefully they get back with you soon, and yes they were speedy. I'm not sure what my plans are, currently it is only a half hour drive for me so I may stay in Ypsilanti for a while. However I will be needing to make friends and all that noise , so I am down to hang out in the D. As one of my advisors said, fingers and toes crossed. Also I am sure there is hope, they took 2 weeks and I also believe the SWAN program had fewer applicants than straight up SW.

@MCinephile and @wisdomspeaks I too have joined that party! Actually I was quite relieved not to have to make a decision between heart and money. Good luck you lot! I know yo will all make this planet we live on a better place, one way or another ?

@wisdomspeaks & @MCinephile thanks!! I enjoy that this thread is so supportive and most people have been accepted into awesome programs!

@MCinephile So happy for you !!! That is amazing !!!! @MAnthroAA I can confirm tgat I have also heard nothing. But I am sure soon. I think I will add to the good news, maybe collective good news will help everybody get in to a school they end up really enjoying. Yesterday I received my acceptance letter from Wayne State University!!! Funding will be unclear for a week or two, they have to apply for their students to receive funding after acceptance. I think they will push hard since they are a newer program and so far have onky admitted 1-3 per year. So very excited! Stress has all but gone. Sincerest good luck to all of you!! You are all amazing!

That sounds awesome!! I think everybody has different interview time lengths. I definitely understand the need to know. Here's to waiting !

@wisdomspeaks Women are the ultimate nemesis of the patriarchy and the power of white heteronormative patriarchy depends on suppressing everyone who is different. We know that this is the only power they really have, if indigenous beliefs, customs, cultures etc... were allowed to survive and ethnocide never happened, colonizers would not have the same control that they have today. They wouldn't be able to create policies that allow social services to take away children based on perceived differences. They wouldn't be able to minimize the importance of indigenous culture and ultimately lives, but the way that our society has evolved, that is exactly what they do. The problems will only continue to grow, in the USA, the population of the first Nations People is one of the fastest growing. That leaves huge gaps in mental health care and if left unchecked, the issue of illegal adoptions. which I imagine plague all of North America, will continue to grow. In regards to the MSW program, I would settle, I would get my MSW and reapply to the Ph.D. programs. Honestly, I spent a solid four months under the guidance of a grad school admissions board professor and a lot of editors to get these applications ready. I, however, should have spent more than two weeks on the GRE prep, while my score was better than the Wayne average, it probably wasn't the best for UMICH. I think I started to overanalyze the perception of fitting into the program. I have aspirations of doing Macro work in the Ph.D. program, creating new therapeutics models based on ethnographic community work done. and someday applying that work on a micro level. Of course, I told them this. They are a Macro program, which is great and focused on my current goals but it is worrisome that they might perceive me as not fitting for that reason. I did explain that I had a million goals and that I would worry about the Micro education component later. Really I am fairly intuitive, Initially, I felt that the interview went well, but the more I overthought, the more the intuitive feeling of good turned into that terrifying feeling of anxiety and dread. The director of the social work program has since forwarded me a lecture happening on campus and said "You might not want to make the trip, however, you might want to. This is happening in the same building as your interview." To that, I replied "Wild snowflakes couldn't keep me from attending, this looks like a great opportunity for me. Thank you" and she replied with "you are welcome." As I try to overanalyze this, I feel like she wouldn't bother with inviting me if they weren't considering me. I think this is the killer because there are only two Universities in the nation offering this and I don't see another way that I would be happy with. Social Work is amazingly versatile, but I cannot see my world without that Anthropology component, it is the vehicle that will help me research the storytelling aspect, the vehicle that allows me to see the world even more empathetically and the vehicle that really brought me to the point of pursuing a Ph.D. I feel like I can, of course, try to integrate it myself but it won't be the same. I feel like I need them both in my life as equal partners. Both disciplines are why I chose to spend my own money doing research to begin with and so I guess I won't go out without and anxiety ridden fight! Okay, that being said. Any more news from your side of the application table? @MCinephile How did your interview go??!??!?

@wisdomspeaksI am definitely not surprised by the disappearance of indigenous women, especially when it comes to the creation of "adoptions" so that some colonizer can have a child. It breaks my heart to even think that people would harm somebody so that they could have a child, yet that is the premise of colonization. You move in, take what you want and forget about the wake of tragedy, death and destruction in your path, Now, please forgive me, I have to just get this anxiety off my chest and facebook is not the place to do it. It has only been day two since I interviewed 4/6 committee members at Wayne State U for the Social Work Anthropology program (SWAN.) I don't really know what my expectations were, but the anxiety has become even worse now that I have interviewed. As I mentioned before, they were looking for fit, and I felt pretty good about the interview but the more time the more self-doubt the more fear sets in. I think the fear that arises in my chest, like an air bubble rising to the top of the surface, is there because I only applied to two joint programs, WSU and UMICH and I don't have too much faith that I will make the cut into UMICH. It is fairly important to me, clearly, that I make it in, my backups were MSW only programs, but Anthropology has become a new lens alongside my SW lens and no longer do I see things from that one perspective. I know whatever happens will happen, Que Serra Serra, right? The fact remains, had I never received that interview email, I feel like if I do receive a rejection it would hurt less. Plus WSU is where I feel like I belong and have a much better chance of getting into, so I think that anxiety rises and sits there. And since the SWAN program is so new, there is no historical data to figure out decision timeframes. Anyway, sorry for the long rant...that fear and anxiety make a terrible brew yet I concocted it when I signed the application and sent it through.

Also...I have no idea how long after the interview it takes to get an answer...sigh

@MCinephile, First of all, good luck!! I don't know who you will be interviewing with but from what I experienced you will want to be relaxed and confident with your knowledge of what you want to do in the Ph.D. program. It seemed to me that they wanted to know that I was a good fit for the program and that I would be able to handle the education load. Make sure you know why you applied and why you want to Wayne. Make sure you ask questions, including what they are looking for, ask questions that show that you are interested. If you know who you are interviewing with, take a look at their bios and know a little about them. My committee made me feel really welcome, try to have fun with this interview. They are looking for a fit, show em who you really are. The way I look at it is, it was an experience, I wanted to make it a fun and educational moment so no matter what happens with the decision I still feel like I gained from the experience. Good Luck!

@wisdomspeaks, your research interests sound great! There are so man social welfare policies in Canada that further colonize indigenous populations and child welfare is one of those issues. I think that it is great that you would step in and work toward fairer policies. ones that include cultural lifestyles from the already oppressed populations. I think you are going to accomplish amazing things in helping regulate unethical adoption practices! I am definitely with you on values versus prestige. Obviously, I am still waiting for UMICH but I did have my interview and I felt a subtle sense of joy and exuberance when I left. Needless to say, I think the interview went really well and they said that it was a first that they had run out of questions to ask. I am really excited at this potential prospect and since Wayne has shown me more humanity and kindness than other programs, it is my inclination to lean toward that. So have you fully committed to Buffalo? If so, Congratulations!!! It has been good having the support on this thread! Go Shatter those unethical placements!

Omigosh! Thank you @MAnthroAA!!! It is not too late, this is extraordinarily helpful. My interview is Monday, so I am using this weekend to finish up figuring out what I should be doing. Thank you so much!!

I guess I should say hello and join this community too! I applied for two joint Ph.D. and MSW programs in SW and Anthropology (BSW), I found out the hard way that there are only two programs in the nation offering this combo. I think that this is the best way for me to apply Social Work, the use of stories and data collecting through ethnographic research. I am really interested in how I can take the stories of those who are oppressed and create new methods of therapy that are not vessels for colonization for people of color. My application speaks specifically to trans-generational trauma within Native American communities and how I could use stories and storytelling in creating these new models. I want to be able to work on a macro level to help on the micro level, you know, stop the falling into the river so that you don't need to pull them out anymore. Sooooo....As many people and @wisdomspeaks, I am waiting for UMICH to get back to me. I do have an interview Monday at 2 pm with Wayne State U. and I feel utterly unprepared. I have never had a formal interview, my last graduate program was so informal, you didn't even know you were being interviewed. Now I have a whole panel/committee to impress. It hasn't even hit me yet, the real anxiety and I am afraid that it will soon. On a less selfish note, I am hoping that everybody gets into a program and more importantly, it is one that makes you happy, challenges you in the right ways and one that values all of the amazing potential you have to give. ~C

Aye, two in one day Thanks for the info about Wolverine Access, that would be nice to know that it won't be updated. The U of M worries me with their unapproachable attitude and makes me wonder if I get accepted into multiple schools, would their program make me happy? @wisdomspeaksI am glad that you have been accepted into one school already!! Hopefully, it helps reduce the anxiety of rejection! Also hopefully, they contact us soon. I have, to say the deadline for Wayne was 1/10/16 and I was asked to interview on the 21st. U of Mich was due (as you know) was due 12/1/15 and it has been almost 2 months. I guess when you're the top, you can take your time, even if it means minimizing the analysis of potential acceptance letters and funding packages due to less comparison time. You really do have to choose who will do your research for dirt cheap very carefully...

Allison/ @wisdomspeaks I am sorry to hear that. I know that it must hurt a lot, rejection is rejection. Hopefully, it was because they felt the same way and places like UMICH, Chicago etc... will be more in line with your interests so you can do the best! Stay strong, you have a lot of good qualities about your application and I have faith you will get into the right program for you. I can empathize with the rejection, but I also know getting into a program that doesn't fit you, never goes well either. Good Luck! Chris