cat_not_kitty

ARGH. I'm clinging to the idea that it is something Angela might have said just so that we don't expect anything until then. Support for my (delusional?) hope: They seem to be dead on track with last year's timeline, in which 1-year acceptances began February 21 and then 2-years began a month later, but she had told an applicant (see first quote, below) that people would know by the end of April. In 2016, she gave a similar response to a forum member 2.5 weeks after a couple of 2-year applicants had already been accepted. The year before, there was quite a bit of conflicting information from her in that she said in early March that the admissions committee hadn't even begun going through (the 800+) applications and then a few people were accepted that very week. (Highly relevant aside: I clearly need to get a life.) Did she specifically say that we would have NO NEWS at all until April or that decisions would be sent out BY mid-April?

Who else in the 2-year U of T applicant pool is a) experiencing a tremendous amount of vicarious excitement watching all of our Advanced Standing peers receive invitations (congratulations, all!!), and b) secretly hoping/willing that this year's results announcements follow the 2015 and 2016 timelines, when us folk started hearing back in early March?

Thank you for buoying our spirits! From one mature student to another, I completely understand the desire to get started (and finished ) as quickly as possible – while recognising that it's a self-imposed urgency/anxiety. We're here at this point in our life, with all the wisdom we've gained over the (many) years, to make a real change...what's one more year, right? If you were waitlisted at U of T last year, I'm sure you'll get into the post-degree BSW program this year – and then you'll have access to so many more MSW programs, all with higher acceptant rates than the 2-year programs. I, too, have heard good things about the SSW program, but the MSW will open a lot more doors, career-wise. Anyway, whatever your decision – I wish you the very best of luck!!

Haha re the Grad Cafe whisperer comment…there are quite a few of us on here . This forum has been an invaluable resource to me as I’ve geared up to applying for grad school – it’s about time that I gave back. And that’s excellent that Angela confirmed the relevance of your degree! Makes total sense to me (as someone who spent many years working in HR myself – I’m actually a CHRL, though I moved on from working directly in HR quite some time ago). Of course I don’t mind you asking! I was going to write out a post with a bit about my background experience anyway, just to contribute fully to the dialogue. This is my first time applying for graduate school. My personal/professional/academic history is long and circuitous (read: I’m old and have fought tooth and nail to make it this far), but I’m officially coming in with a BA in psychology from Ryerson, with a 4.33/4.33 GPA in my senior courses (I assume you’re at Ryerson too, given the 4.33 scale?). I realised quite early on in my degree that there was a fundamental incompatibility between the paradigm of mainstream psych and my own values and worldview, so I worked from the get-go to mould my undergrad experiences to meet my commitment to politically accountable research and practice, with the understanding that I would likely shift fields to social work. I was incredibly lucky to have the help of a deeply generous mentor in this capacity, who recognised my lived experience and opened a number of doors that would otherwise be firmly closed to me as an undergraduate student. So, while I have a lot of diverse experience, both paid and volunteer (as an HR Manager, Personal Support Worker, Program Coordinator for an agency that works with families affected by incarceration, Volunteer Mentor for the same agency, Volunteer Hospice Worker, etc.), I’m hoping that my research experience, in particular, will help set my application apart for U of T – which is the only school I’ve applied to (for very specific reasons that I won’t go into just now, due to time limitations ). I’ve worked as the Research Coordinator of a critical, feminist lab that studies issues related to gender and sexuality for the past three years (and was with the lab as an RA for a year prior to that), which has allowed me direct experience leading administration, qualitative data collection, and analysis on several studies – and has resulted in a number of co-authored peer-reviewed publications and conference presentations. I think I’ll leave it there for now – but excited to learn more about all of you, and to share more about myself, as we take on the next few weeks of waiting together!

I totally get it – all the applicants (especially us keeners on this site ) sound just incredible...but, trust me, your experience is excellent and will definitely help mitigate the admission committees' doubts (if any) about the relevance of your undergrad degree (which is, really, the only concern you should have). Sounds like you spent loads of time – and had tons of feedback – on your statement, which is great! If memory serves, lots of prior applicants have submitted their research mark later in the game, with no fallout (I'd guess that U of T is only just beginning to do a deep-dive into 2-year applications, now that the initial round of advanced standing offers have gone out). Getting that A+ will be another major plus for your application (U of T in particular seems to put a lot of emphasis on the research mark requirement). If I were you, I would contact Angela with your grade the moment your final grade has been released i.e., don't wait for your final transcript to be released – contact her via email with a screenshot as soon as you have any confirmation that you secured that A+, saying that you wanted to provide your grade ASAP and that you will forward your official transcript as soon as it is made available.

Just piping in to say: this is absolutely fantastic experience, both in terms of quantity and scope – don't doubt that for a millisecond. Seriously. Plus, your GPA is terrific and you have those incredible language skills to set you apart. If you connected the dots between your HR core competencies/specialised interests, the fundamental values of social work, and your research/practice interests in your statement (the way you have here), I'd say your application is top-notch for U of T's 2-year MSW and the post-degree BSWs.

From what I know – which, of course, is only based on my own understanding of the information they've provided online and at the info session (and my obsessive reading of all prior Grad Cafe Canadian MSW forums in their entirety ) – I think you can safely presume that they'll include your summer courses as long as they are senior-level...so sounds like your GPA will be 3.7!

Hi all, Thought I would finally come out of lurkville to contribute to this conversation . I'm really surprised to hear that Angela said this – it seems to contradict both anecdotal and official information, including the FAQ on the FIFSW website, which states: "I did not complete a full course load in my final year. How will my GPA be calculated? As an example, if you are only taking three courses from Sept – April, we will count back and include any summer courses you may have taken, and/or the previous Winter. In terms of how many credits – it must be the equivalent of a full-course load – minimum of four full credits at the senior level." Moreover, they allow upgrading of one's GPA (for example, through Athabasca University), which would mean that applicants were supplementing low-GPA senior-level courses taken while they completed their degree with those taken part-time at a later date.