doctormelody

If you have a problem with me, state it. Otherwise, I have more important things to do with my time than get in a flame war with a stranger who has no experience with social work on Grad Café, of all places. As for this sarcastic and unhelpful comment, suffice it to say that these concerns have been raised with the administration many times and that the response has been less than ideal. I do not feel comfortable saying more here, but if folks who are thinking of applying to Pitt have questions, please feel free to private message me. I’m also fine with continuing this discussion here, just not with you as you have contributed nothing of value thus far.

I can’t speak to this as I am a master’s student. With respect, I don’t know what your point is. Is my opinion less valid because I have been uncertain about my career path in the past? I definitely think that people should do their own research and I can acknowledge that I was quite upset when I wrote this. However, I can support each of the claims that I made here if folks are interested. My only aim in writing this was to help other students. I never would have considered Pitt if not for grad cafe, so it was important to me to reach other potential out-of-state students who might not have anyone they can talk to who has firsthand experience of the program. If you had done a little more digging in my post history, you would have seen that I was accepted to Columbia’s MSW program in 2018. I have a friend who attended that program, and while I don’t think they would say it was perfect, these broad systemic issues were simply not present. Am I, on some level, bitter that I turned down an Ivy League school to attend an overpriced store-brand institution? Sure. If an adult reads my post and decides not to apply to Pitt solely based on the words of a stranger from the Internet, I’m sorry, but that’s not my problem. I simply wanted to provide another perspective so that students can make an informed decision. Judging by your post history you are neither studying social work nor working in the field, so again, with respect - maybe just stay in your lane.

Yes. Honestly, I don't even know where to begin but I'll try and sum up my main grievances below: 1)The financial aid is horrible 2) The administrative staff are actively cruel towards students for no reason 3) The quality of instruction is consistently appalling 4) The field opportunities and field advising are also appalling 5) The price of tuition combined with the lack of adequate financial aid and zero name recognition outside of this region make it a terrible investment if you are ever planning to live anywhere besides western PA If you have more questions about any of these or want specifics, feel free to respond here or DM me. I can't say that I regret coming to Pitt because I have made some great friends throughout my time in the program, but if not for that, I absolutely would.

I'm a current student and open to any and all questions. But seriously, if you're thinking of applying to Pitt, I would recommend that you not waste your time.

Does anyone know if any Canadian programs accept transfer applicants from the US? Any advice would be very much appreciated!

Hi all. So, I had asked this question in a couple other threads but it doesn't look like it's going to get a response there, and maybe it was the wrong place to put it, anyway. My situation is this: I am a second year MSW student in the US. Frankly, this year has been a shitshow thus far with everything being online (not saying it's the wrong choice, just that it's hard) and I'm very scared of what's happening with the political situation in the US right now. Therefore, I was thinking about trying to transfer to a program in Canada to finish out my degree. I know that this probably sounds crazy considering that I am so close to the end of my program, but things are not going well at my field placement and part of me wants a way out. I cannot rely on my school's admin to help me as they are extremely slow in responding to concerns. Is there anyone here that has transferred from an American social work program to a Canadian one? Is it even feasible at this late stage of my degree? After this semester I will have 45 credits, but I assumed that I would have to take extra classes if I transfer to a program in another country, anyway. The other thought I was kicking around was the idea of applying to this program https://www.h-brs.de/en/sv/study/master/analysis-and-design-social-protection-systems or something similar. I know that there are scholarships for American students to study in Germany but Idk if I would be competitive for any of them. I know this all sounds insane, but I am somewhat desperate to leave the US and this school, if possible. Please help if you can.

I have no advice to give, but you seem like a great applicant. Why not go for the joint PhD? I am not trying to be dismissive, but I think you will figure this out. If you aren't certain, you could apply to PhD programs in Social Work and in Psychology and see what your offers are/what schools best suit your interests.

Does anyone know if DSW programs are easier to get into, generally speaking? I assume they would be, but I don't know for sure. I do know there's no way I would get into a PhD program as I haven't done any independent research. Any answers that anyone could provide would be tremendously helpful.

Hey, I’m sorry to bother you all, but has anyone successfully transferred from an American program to a Canadian one or know someone who has? I’d be so grateful to have any kind of answer.

Does anyone have any thoughts or advice on transferring to a Canadian program as an American? I’m extremely serious and would be grateful for any advice anyone can provide.

Hey, sorry for the late response, but this is so interesting! We got a survey from the university but not from the SSW specifically. Have there been any updates since then? I know a lot of schools are changing their strategies now that things are looking so bleak. ?

How much debt are you considering taking out for this degree? I don't know much about medical social work but if you're already working in the field and don't want to do something specific like therapy which absolutely requires another degree and professional licensure, I would question the wisdom of attending, for sure. I'm sorry to hear about the local program screwing you over.

Hi all! Sorry, I didn't see this thread before posting mine. I'm in the second year of my MSW program at Pitt and we haven't heard anything from the school of social work regarding fall in two months. I'm gearing up to send an email to the program director today but I wanted to get a sense of what other schools of social work are doing/how people are feeling about the situation before I do so, if possible.`

Hi all. I'm just wondering how other schools of social work are handling the coronavirus situation. I am currently a second year student in Pitt's MSW program. I gave them a lot of grace in the spring because the situation was so unprecedented but at this point I haven't heard anything directly from the SSW in TWO MONTHS and according to the general Pitt schedule our classes are supposed to begin August 19th. More importantly, no one knows what is going on with internships. I still don't have a placement which is partially my own fault but it seems like Pitt is just leaving it up to individual field sites to be remote or not which feels kind of... insane? I personally am VERY skeptical that I will be able to get useful experience out of a remote field placement, especially seeing as it's my concentration year and I will be interning at this site for 720 hours. I don't want to pay $30,000 for a sub-par experience so I am thinking about taking a year off and trying to get a job working from home. I'm really curious to hear from other second year students but also those who are just starting their first year. If I take a year off and Covid is still a thing I feel like I might apply to transfer, too? If my degree is gonna be all online anyway, I might as well get it for much cheaper. Any thoughts?

Thank you so much for your reply. I'm sorry it took me so long to respond; life has been crazy lately. If you don't mind me asking, what were your doubts and what did your professor say to change your mind, if you can recall it with any specificity? I don't really have anyone I can talk to about this besides my friends and my partner. My one professor that I really like and trust sits on the committee for a fellowship that I am applying to, so I can't really let her know how unsure I feel about everything. I haven't even told my friends in the program how I'm feeling because I'm too ashamed. If I don't get the fellowship, though (which at this point seems likely), maybe I'll see if she has time to meet with me. Your point about there being many other avenues in this field that I could pursue besides therapy is a good one. I guess I am scared that if I go the macro route I will be less employable because I feel there is nothing inherently special about me that would make me stand out to an employer, whereas it seems that more traditional social work jobs are usually pretty high in demand. I also hear your point about how having finished a degree looks better than dropping out halfway through in our elitist society. At this point I am really just doing a cost-benefit analysis as to whether having those three letters after my name is worth an additional 20,000 to 35,000 in debt, especially if I don't plan on following a career path where it would be required (for instance, if I was planning on getting my LCSW). It's a lot to consider but as I said before I really appreciate you taking the time out of your day to leave such a thoughtful and helpful response to a somewhat incoherent post made in the throes of desperation. Thank you. Oh, also, for what it's worth, no one is making me feel shitty about my life choices but me, but I appreciate the encouragement! Perhaps I should dump negative me.