I mostly am a research assistant at the hospital, but I do have direct contact with mental health patients and I've often facilitated recreational groups, which I know one of my references did highlight, and that reference is a registered social worker. So no, it definitely isn't directly related to social work, but I think they consider it pretty close since it is in a therapeutic capacity. It's really tough I know, cause it's hard to find direct clinical expeirence without a masters, and you can't seem to get a masters without direct clinical experience!!!
Grades was my concern as well, and i spent the last year upgrading a few courses through athabasca online courses. I remember them saying that you need at least a B to be considered, but it isn't competitive unless you have an A-... so I spent the last year slowly upgrading my gpa by taking 3 courses through athabasca online.