Rehbekuh

I‘m an addiction counsellor with a BSW, where a lot of my coworkers have SSWs or Addiction Counselling post-grads. All of the SSWs have either been with our agency for many years or were hired with extensive experience in the field. All the Addiction Counselling post-grads are feeling anxious about job security/prospects because they are not registered with any regulatory body, which is the direction the field is going, so a lot of them are looking at getting their MSWs or MAs in counselling psychology. I know a lot of working professionals in the Yorkville online MA, Athabasca online MA, or the Windsor MSW working professionals program - not sure about the quality of the programs.

Hi all, I am not very familiar with the GTA. What are some well known placement opportunities in Toronto for the health and mental health stream at U of T? Specifically working in addictions?

https://www.utsc.utoronto.ca/registrar/u-t-grading-scheme I am sure they will translate it for you! It's frustrating that the schools use different grading schemes, hopefully they take into account your transcript more!

I got into the Advanced Standing, full time programs for U of T (MH & H), Laurier, and Western! All September 2020 starts. I will be attending U of T. Career trajectory: Completed BA, took the summer off to volunteer as an intake worker in a social service, then got first job in social services (skills development). Worked there for 2 years then decided to go back to school and complete a 2 year BSW (84% avg, spiced up by participating in student council and applying to awards/bursaries). Worked full time as an addiction counsellor, part time with LGBTQ youth and respite, for 2 more years, then applied to my MSW and got in! On the side, I also completed a lot of professional development (just like lunch and learns and agency trainings - about 1 a month) and took on different volunteer opportunities for the agencies I worked for organizing festivals/fundraisers. Based on my experience, I would recommend that if you can, do your BSW first. Really focus on your statement of interest, keep it passionate about the social work field and career experiences with only a sprinkle of the personal. Look up YouTube videos on what social work is, or advice videos on writing grad school statement of interests. If you can, attend MSW information sessions. I know how crushing a no can be (applied and rejected to an MA program right out of my BA), but giving yourself time to grow and hone in on what will make you stand out as a candidate is by no means a failing.

Hey everyone, this waiting is so hard but I have to say checking this forum and seeing that we are all in the same boat really helps!! I am curious - for anyone that would like to share, why did you decide to apply to the MSW programs that you did? What stood out to you for those schools?

Anyone applying to UWO? On the application's resume form, there is a section called "Leadership Experience" - does anyone know if that is paid and volunteer, or just paid?

In their information session webinar on their website, they say "on or before the application deadline date".

U of T highlights the ranking in their program guide and at their information session, not sure where it’s from. You could try emailing the school and see if they would provide this information.

All 3 schools have a good reputation. U of T has the capacity to be front line focused, they do have an emphasis on research as well and are rated the #1 best school of social work in Canada and #2 in the world. Western is very front line clinical focused. York is policy focused. Part of the MSW experience is being able to network, so one consideration might be which school is closest to the community you would like to settle down in and grow your career.

Hi all, I am currently working on my applications for Laurier and U of T - both full-time Advanced Standing. Question to those that have been offered acceptance or wait-listed for these programs - what kind of unique experiences and reflections did you focus on in your personal statements? Thank you!!