2017hoping

I'm glad we have this thread to share our experiences with the application process. I've applied to advanced standing, part time at York, and then three MSW distance programs: University of Victoria, Dalhousie University, and University of Calgary (LHS specialization). Hoping to hear something within the next couple of weeks, hang in there everybody!

I didn't realize the University of Calgary (LHS specialization) program starts in the summer (until recently when I've been checking my account status daily, lol) - does anyone have some insight into the time frames for this program as I"m sure for a summer start we would hear back earlier.

Hey, I think you are above the GPA requirement for U of Windsor, I was looking at that one as the advanced standing is geared towards professionals working in the field and their class times are a bit more flexible in that way. So I think it comes down to your work experiences, references and personal statement that will set you apart. Some programs the GPA may be a top requirement, but for other programs I think they look at work experience, how good of a fit you are for the program and then also if you have a financial plan to pay the fees (more in the practical sense). I hope you hear back soon! I think we will all start hearing back this coming week or the next either way!

Yes, I went to Ryerson and have my BSW and then started to work in the social work field, in mental health right after graduating (doing intake, personal support plans, assessments, goal plans with clients ect). During school I had some experience working in shelter as well so that may be an area you could look at, as well as residential support for group homes, as there's often a lot of postings for those jobs (although of course it would have to be something you see yourself doing too). Ah okay that is great - pretty awesome that you are volunteering as well! Sounds like you have a great plan, just wanted to be an encouragement to you in terms of applying to the jobs too even as you wait I applied to York, and then to three distance MSW programs, University of Victoria, Dalhousie and U of Calgary. Ideally I would want to stay in the city, but I figured doing it online distance was something I can accomplish too over a couple of years while working as well.

Vanessamarie - I read your post about looking at jobs in case and just wanted to also encourage you to send your resume and cover letter in for those jobs too - does not hurt at all! I have been working full-time 8 years, really should have moved on to another opportunity a few years ago, but just this past year been putting my resume out there and going to interviews as they come up. It has been great for me as it shows me what jobs I will be called in for, and answering if I have a shot at diversifying into other areas too. Doesn't mean you're committed to the agency (as of course hopefully you are attending the MSW program!!!) but it will give you a good sense of what jobs you would be called in for, also you can see the agencies yourself which helps a lot because not every agency or job will be a good fit for you too or something you want to do once you get there. Anyways, just my thoughts about that although I know it's not related to the application process Although I took a few months off after school too before "seriously" looking for a job so that can be good as well! Hope you don't mind this input and all the best with your applications - we will hear back soon!

Thanks! Yes, I called my parents and was yelling it in the phone, haha. Even though it's not the official letter yet. Of course it would be ideal to do it in Toronto, but this was the program I thought I could get into. I wanted to let others know on here as it has yesterday's date. Although like others have said, I am now thinking about the money aspect too as I also have financial obligations while working full time. Anyways things should fall into place and there may be other ways of funding.

Ah so I just checked my mail, and got a letter from Dalhousie. It says they (school of social work admissions committee) are pleased to notify me of recommendation of acceptance to the Dean. Final decision needs to still go through Faculty of Graduate studies, if approved, they will mail me an official letter of acceptance. Just FYI - here is the start!

For social workers or future social workers, this is a pretty stressed out board right now Good thing we all have our coping skills.....chocolate and more chocolate! (lol, jks) Anyways, most of the schools say mid-Feb to beginning of March to start letting student know so I am expecting to hear back, either rejection letters in the mail or online status's or acceptance emails in the next couple weeks. All the best to everyone, and chocolate on!

YWEANG - I was wondering about the York program (I applied to 1 year advanced standing part-time): do a lot of your classmates have work experience or did they go into it right after school? I assume the background of two year students may be a bit different than the 1 year program?

I'm sorry about your application. I am not expecting to get accepted there as well (I applied for advance standing, 1 year program, part-time) as my overall GPA is pretty close to their line (perhaps a better final two years though). I was actually going to ask others if their GPA was in the high 3's or low 3's - although I understand the other components will be ranked too. I wish you all the best with your other applications and social work goals! (and will check out my account now too....)

Yes, I agree with this as I chose to have dialogue but not acknowledge the statements that I may have been offended by as YWEANG is just trying to state an opinion. They made it clear that they wanted people on this forum to be able to express whatever opinion they had so people can agree or disagree. While I highly respect U of T as one of the top schools in Canada, I have my own reasons for not applying there BUT I do not wish to make light of those who applied there and those who will get in as it is an awesome accomplishment. I respect all of you who did apply (big props) and I congratulate those who will get in ahead of time because it is the top notch program to get into However, I accept a challenge against an institution for what is it, a challenge....as that is what we as social workers are encouraged to do, challenge and critique the system. YWEANG - your first points about tuition are valid, but the next point about other programs being too ethnic for an individual is one where you are making an assumption and that becomes personal, what people take issue with. If you would argue your points without criticizing the points of others or their own social position, it would be acceptable to say, I chose not to apply to that school because the tuition was too high or because it didn't talk about additional considerations for marginalized groups in the application process ect. So I want to publicly say I respect a challenge of a highly regarded, excellent institution - BUT not when it makes others feel anything less than 100% for applying and attending the program or for their own social position. I believe it is still important to have respect for the institution for what it does do well, and obviously U of T has become one of the top universities in the country for many, many reasons.

Thanks for passing along the information and thanks for the funding info. Yes, I was thinking it would be around 6,000 for the one year program. That's pretty much what I"m expecting to pay give or take a few more thousand if I go elsewhere too (U of Calgary, Dalhousie and U of Victoria) since I would need to travel once a year for those.

Oh okay, thank you for the information. Sorry to hear that about your application last year I applied to York and U of T around 5 years ago, 1 or two years after finishing my BSW and didn't get in. So I"m hoping the work experience will improve my application with the resume and also be reflected in the written statement. Did you re-apply this year or are attending another program? Thanks YWEANG! Yes, that makes sense. I do have a question about the funding package you mentioned - what do you mean about 9k or 15k? I thought it was a couple thousand each semester? Or does that mean applying for grant's or scholarships? I'm not counting on getting into York as I know so few get in so I did also apply to three others for their distance program - but thanks for the encouragement! At the time I figured I should apply to one program in the city as that would be convenient for me.

On my York application it still just says No Decision Yet - will that be changed to Under Review when they are going over it or just stay that way until they have a decision? Does anybody else applying to York have the same thing? All the other sites for me say Under Department Review or Reviewing your application.

Yes, I had to write four statements so going from the first one I did up to 8 pages was difficult. And then from that 8 pages I only had certain sections that were relevant for the other two and had to add other information in. So I basically started from scratch all the outlines like you did too because I realized all the flows were different but then plugged in certain paragraphs that worked that I already worked out. That's a good issue to discuss as there has been more information being shared on supports and needs of first nation communities. Yeah, I"m not sure how my issue will be read by the committee's but there's been a whole shift towards community inclusion for mental health and developmental needs, which of course is what we strive for, but the government isn't giving any guidance on how to transform current work training programs, with current funding, to meet the needs of our clients. Anyways, we shall see. Happy writing in the next few days for the 15th I"m sure it's great!

"As such, I would like to ask how people are doing with the WLU applications since the deadline is 4 days away! I've finally got my statement down to 1016 words (from 1500), so still a bit of tweaking necessary. I'm very interested to know about the social issue people have to talk about in their statement, as there is so limited space to fit in so much work that has been done in one area -- but I think we should wait until after the deadline to discuss this further. Best of luck to everyone applying, as well as to the many others who have deadlines approaching for their programs." I had this issue too as I did one statement that was required to be around 8 pages long and then had to cut it all the way down to two pages for York. It was hardly enough space for me to write what I wanted to but I figured talking about the research/social work issue and making sure I hit those points was the priority. So I ended up going through my introduction and cutting that down a lot, as well as some of the write-up about my social identity and how that impacts the work I do. For me since I work in the mental health field my issue was surrounding employment support; work training programs that have shown effective results as well as different barriers for securing and maintaining employment, and gaps in the research or areas of development.

It sounds like you would be a great fit for the LHS program at U of Calgary! It's great you are in a a management position as well. I am not sure I will get in as I've been working towards a supervision/management role so we will see. I think I expect to hear back by late February, but anytime in February or early march at the latest. Although I would think they would let you know this month if you applied for the summer. Hoping for you too I hope you can come back and update us. If someone is reading this who is already in the program it would be great to hear more about it. To everyone else I also wanted to say I've been reading this board every couple years too and I think it's a big thing for all of us to even be applying and putting yourself out there so all the best to everyone!

Just wanted to say I agree with some of these posts regarding clinical social work as I think getting a Master's is of course a way to move ahead in your career, but if you are looking for specific training in a counselling/clinical approach it's best to go to a training course or certificate. I am also looking to go to a specific training course once or twice a year so I can stay current and fresh with different approaches. I have been lucky in that this past year my work has sent me to some training so it's been good to have that awareness to think about what approach I would like to specialize in going forward. So, YWEANG you make some excellent points and thank you for letting us know your perspectives. I applied to York, however I don't mean anything against it but since I"m applying to the one year program, looking at their courses I don't think I will learn as much going there as I would in some other programs that offer more of a variety of courses. I also applied to others outside of the city as well since I figured schools in Toronto will be much more competitive to get in. I have a BSW from Ryerson so I'm looking to expand and learn different skills. I applied to U of Calgary for the specialization Leadership in Human Services which offers courses more tied to human resources and I think it will offer something different than other programs so I am hoping to get into that one. I also applied to distance programs at Dalhousie and University of Victoria so I can stay in the city and keep working. Anyways good luck to all those waiting it out for the next few months