[Canadian MSW Applicants 2021]

14 hours ago, AliceK said:

I am an international student with BSW, hoping to apply for MSW 2021 in canada. It appears that Laurier and Lakehead are two popular schools here, while UT and UBC seem to be mentioned less frequently (esp UBC). I wonder why Laurier and Lakehouse are with such high reputation among prospective students? 

Hi there,

I don't know enough about it, but I think U of T is actually one of the most popular and is known to be fiercely competitive! You'll see it mentioned a ton on previous years and forums. 

I think Lakehead is predominantly mentioned for the HBSW program for students without a BSW. 

I'm positive UBC is competitive too, but I think there is a greater proportion of the population that lives in Ontario and would like to stay in Ontario / are active on this forum (just a guess? I'm Manitoban, wouldn't know!) 

And some of their schools (Laurier, U of T, York, etc) have a lot of prestige attached to their name, and to what I understand, competitive advantages when it comes to practicums. 

[Canadian MSW Applicants 2021]

16 hours ago, m92 said:

Hey everyone! Just stopping by as I visited a few months ago prior to seeing if any schools were doing late intakes due to COVID19, thought I would sign up and ask a question since time is nearing for applications to be accepted at a lot of schools.

Two questions, one easy and one hard:

1) Nobody seems to mention UVic, is there any reason for this? Just curious.

2) My resume is by no means as impressive let alone in comparison to anyone else's, I've read most of last years thread, as well as this years and all of you have AMAZING CV's. My resume fits the requirements for most programs offering some sort of non-BSW entry but it's by no means competitive. I don't have too many hours of professional (paid/unpaid) human services experience, mostly from 6 years of coaching Special Olympics and volunteering on my university/college campuses, but that's it. It's a field I admittedly "stumbled upon" as I didn't have a ton of knowledge about the field until I started exploring more during the pandemic/current political climate. However, I have decent grades, have completed both stats and research methods, the latter with a high 70's. My GPA is a 3.3/4.0 and I definitely have some context to my grades being lower due to a newly diagnosed chronic illness during my undergrad but other than that it's a basic profile. Sadly, due to discovering the field late and with the pandemic, there aren't any ways to obtain work experience in my area except for through the Crisis Text Line which I will be looking to do regardless as it just seems like a great opportunity. I've reached out and due to the pandemic there just aren't ways to bring new hires in to volunteer, let alone work.

I think my potential is my upside, however, given the reality, is it even worth applying? I definitely got into the grove of things and reading everyones perspectives on various programs it seems as though a lot offer critical takes on the field as well as in other areas that social work is utilized (policy, healthcare etc.,) and for me that is as those are topics I readily engaged with in my undergrad (Political Science). The only saving-grace I have is that some schools mention two to three additional criteria that I hold which may give me preference in the application process. The first is that I'm a black person; the second being that I'm a POC, the two sometimes being stated separately or together; and finally I have a disability. I know they aren't earth-shattering circumstances, but if it's listed, I certainly want to capitalize on that, however, ultimately, I know that my CV/application itself is on the weaker side.

I know you can't sink a shot you don't take, but I don't know if it's even worth it? I'm kind of at a point where if I apply, 2021 would be the year, but the reality is applications are also costly, very costly, and I don't want to apply being potentially lowly qualified. I definitely have less than 1000 hours and there is no way I'll be getting to 3000 by the time applications roll around, that's about 8 hours per day over the next 52 weeks and sadly I've got to make money to live, let alone pay for apps. So what does everyone think? PS you can be honest, I don't mind.

I think you aren't giving yourself enough credit. You've demonstrated plenty of civic engagement throughout volunteering with Special Olympics and in student organized initiatives (which demonstrate both your commitment to improving the quality of life of folks with disabilities/the importance of accessibility, your interpersonal skills and how to communicate effectively with people of varying abilities), you can spin your experience so many ways!

 

Not to mention I think political science is a fantastic undergrad to complement social work, as any critical discourses around social work do intersect with politics and policy!

And, as you mentioned, you occupy underrepresented identities in the field. Your presence in the field matters so much. Not only to diversify the voices that occupy academic and professional spaces, but for the people/communities you will interact with and work with in the future.

To summarize my TedTalk: BELIEVE IN YOURSELF! YOU ARE WORTHY AND NEEDED IN THIS FIELD

[Canadian MSW Applicants 2021]

Hi all!

Wanted to chime in my experience... I flip flop every day on whether I need to go for an accelerated bsw or to apply to MSW programs!?! 

For education:

I did a 4 years bachelor's degree at University of Manitoba (my home province) in Recreation Management & Community Development (BRMCD) in april 2019.

My first couple years I didn't do well in Uni due to some family loss and mental health woes. Once I got into my faculty I turned it around. Cgpa is 3.6/4.5 and Agpa is 4.1/4.5. I was awarded the University Medal for graduating with the highest standing in my program which was such an honour considering how low I felt at one point!

Prior, I had been a mentor at BBBS (Big Brothers Big Sisters) since I was a teen, worked 3 summers planning programming for the youth, and have served 3 terms as a delegate on their National Youth Council. 

While studying, I worked as an adult mentor in an afterschool Indigenous mentorship program, and conducted a literature review of mentoring programs in Canada. I also worked briefly as a research assistant on a related project. 

I try to volunteer a lot. Since graduating, I underwent the in-depth 3 month training to become a volunteer Pregnancy and Birth Control Counsellor at my local feminist health clinic. 

My 1st year out of Uni, I worked as a Caseworker/Mentoring Coordinator for BBBS. Doing assessments, intake, screening, monitoring of matches, etc.

I was unfortunately laid off during COVID... but I recently became employed working in Therapeutic Recreation at a hospital in our regional health authority. I do assessments, charting, care plans and plan therapeutic interventions for marginalized folks in a transitional care unit. The programs aim to increase the patients social, mental, physical and community well-being.  

I don't know if my degree practicum is relevant too, or other random things I'm involved in. I'm paranoid that since I'm applying a few years after Uni that my professors will have forgotten me!!

I'm also paranoid that my undergraduate degree isn't related enough to social work, despite it being very rooted in non-profit and community work. 

For schools I'm interested in... ack... anywhere that will take me ? the dream being maybe Wilfred Laurier (which I know is basically impossible), so otherwise maybe U of Calgary, Western University, UBC-O, Dalhousie.... idk!!

 

[Canada MSW 2020]

On 9/22/2019 at 10:30 PM, Alyssa.O said:

Hi everyone! I am new to this so I apologize if this is a silly question, but this forum seems super supportive so I'm hoping someone might be able to help me out with this  I am in my fourth year of psychology at Ryerson, and am planning to graduate at Spring convocation, which is hopefully May! I was looking into masters programs which are geared towards those who do not have their undergrad in social work but have it in another social science (I believe that these schools are York, Laurier, U of T, King's College at Western, U of Windsor and Carleton if I'm not mistaken?) None in advanced standing, obviously ? However, for example, I went on Laurier's MSW website, and it stated that I needed to be graduated in order to apply. But, I thought for graduate school, you could apply in your last year of study so that there is a chance you will be accepted after graduation, so there is no gap. Is this the case for all the programs; will I have to wait until I have graduated in the Spring to apply? Or, do I apply as though I am technically graduated (trust me, I only have a few courses left so I'm pretty positive my name will be at that grad ceremony  Lol.) Or are some schools just strict as in, you cannot apply until you have received your Bachelors. I have four years of experience working in a community centre for underprivileged youths, and also teaching swimming to those with a disability, plus have experience as an elementary school volunteer. I also work in a developmental lab on campus. My current average is a B+, and I'm hoping it can be raised to an A-. I am also trying to gain more volunteer experience. I am wondering if this is enough to even apply or be considered. Please let me know, and good luck to everyone out there!  

Hey there!

While I've never applied, to me it seems that either a) they will issue you a conditional acceptance (conditions being you graduate and maintain x average or complete x course). but I've also noticed most schools that offer a MSW for those of us who don't have our BSW, they then expect you to be already "doing the work" so to speak, and have more experience out of school than our BSW counterparts. So for example, I graduated with a social science degree this past April 2019, and I plan to work for 2 years full-time in my positions as a caseworker (on top of my relevant experience while in school) just to make sure that my application is competitive. I think generally speaking it's more rare for them to admit students fresh out of a non-bsw degree into those msw programs. I think it's either UBC-O or U of T state at least 3000 hours of full-time experience. But I bet you there are programs that are flexible to it! Maybe an admissions person at schools you're interested in can provide you more information?

Good luck and stay positive!!

[Canada MSW 2020]

Hi Everyone!

Very excited to read everyone's posts regarding their profiles heading into application. I'm waiting until next year before I apply.

My current dilemma is evaluating whether I want to work on a micro level (more clinical) or macro (policy level)! I have an undergraduate degree in Community Development, and research/policy is what interests me the most, but as far as a job goes everyday, interacting with youth fulfills me. Hard to reconcile that! I currently am gathering 2 years of work experience as a caseworker for Big Brothers Big Sisters before I even think of applying to grad school, and my 1:1 interactions with youth totally drive my passion. 

However, I also have big research interests- particularly the intersection of social work and public health- I'm currently very interested in co-housing communities and their effect on inter-generational living situations between seniors and children, and the social and emotional health of their community members.

I feel like I find myself getting pulled each day in pursuing micro vs macro graduate studies (another good reason to avoid applying yet!) 

If anyone could share their stories in what informs their decision of what level of the community they plan to situate themselves within, or whether there are programs that it doesn't have to be a dichotomous decision, etc, or even a school you'd recommend to me, that would be fabulous! Would love to hear your stories!