ShaDiMSW2022

In search of advice: I got wait-listed to U of T for the second year in a row. This year I put everything I had into that application. My GPA is 4.0, my two academic references were amazing, I got a lot of people, including a paid professional, took a look at my application, and.. I was... pretty confident. My employment reference.. well.. the person who wrote it thinks that she wrote an incredibly strong reference, but my work is so weird, and I wasn't even able to read it. I've been working at a homeless shelter since April. My experience only really adds up to 2000 hours, which doesn't seem like a lot comparatively. I'm just... not really sure what else to do. Maybe I should just abandon U of T and apply more elsewhere. IDK what I can really do to make my application any better.

Damn that's brutal and worrying. Does that mean a lot more people applied then last year?

U of T regular track... Has anyone heard back? I'm only seeing things for Advanced Standing and I'm checking if I missed something.

Question: Did anyone get professional help on crafting their application(s)? Did everyone just workshop applications with social networks, or did anyone use something different? I know there are organizations that help you construct and polish applications for other competitive academic programs, but I know nothing about any related to social work. If you have any resources to share please respond to this post &/or private message me!

Last name "D". Got mine at 10:39am. No clue if it's alphabetical considering this year the acceptances don't seem to be alphabetical but GL ?I know that waiting game is tough . Try to be kind to yourself.

IDK about other people but for me UofT is going to remain my #1 effort for a few very specific reasons: TLDR: The way they evaluate transcripts, my comparative likelihood of getting accepted, the location, financial incentives, and prestige = why I'm personally most invested in applying to UofT. Now I'm going to write a specific numbered list breaking it down more: 1. UofT only looks at 1 year of marks vs. every other Ontario school except Laurier looks at 2 years of marks. As someone who reentered school with a messy past this makes my odds of getting in at UofT higher then it would be at be at most schools. 2. UofT vs. Laurier vs. most schools simply: I live Toronto. I'd rather not move to Waterloo, Western or Windsor. 3. Out of province schools are even more expensive soooooo.... also IDK how funding works outside Ontario but OSAP pretty extensively covers my finances... (seriously mature student + disabilities + multiple degrees = my finances are covered before I even start looking into scholarships and bursaries and I'm good at getting scholarships and bursaries soooo... I'm also writing this out because way too many people are unaware of these things and seriously everyone should look into it!) 4. UofT accepts more people then most programs do. It accepts about four times the amount of people that York does if I remember correctly. So: if I'm going to try to perfect one application UofT makes the most sense based on how many people are accepted. 5. It is ranked highest. 6. They ask for.. less formal work experience then...a lot of schools so... for people like me who have lived experience with a lot of volunteer and activist hours it's a better bet then Carlton or Kings +++ 7. I have never done a stats course and I don't intend to do a stats course. I'm bad with numbers. I'm worried a stats course will torpedo my GPA. I'm strategically avoiding schools that only accept people with stats courses at the moment.

?Where did you hear that the unranked waitlist is based on similar candidate profile? This might change my RNGesus prayers because I can get a lot more specific with them ?

Yeah IDK about this "unranked waitlist" story either. How is that even possible? Is our future up to random number generator programs? Should I adopt a religion and pray to RNG Jesus? ?

Waitlisted for the UofT. I got an email that an update at 10:39a, has been made and ruuuussshed to check knowing it probably meant waitlisted. Honestly I'm not that mad. I know my application needs work but it's not hopeless/ I can do the work and get accepted next year. My application does need a lot of work though... To other folks who are waitlisted: does anyone see this document they're asking us to upload? Is there a specific document I can't see right now?

Good to know. I keep refreshing both lol. I'm pretty sure people here have mentioned their status on SGS changing too but acorn happens faster.

Nothing for me either. My SGS still only says "submitted". I've lost hope for it and am now just planning for how to make next year's application more successful. (There are a lot of ways to make my application better... I'm no longer even very bitter about it.) I honestly just.. am a little.. anxious/desperate for closure on the process. I wish we knew when wait lists come out, when they stop coming out, and when rejections come out. It's been 6 days now since we started hearing domestic acceptances and that feels like a long time comparatively.

Congrats everyone who's getting in! GL everyone still playing the waiting game (like me lol)

People getting in to U of T 2 year if you're comfortable with it: Can you share your stats? Grades, volunteer hours &/or volunteer description & maybe how you feel about your references and personal statements? [My last name starts with D. U of T 2 year is really my only option. Now I'm feverously refreshing and.. I'm desperate for any info! lol]

For U of T this is early for their two year program. Here are the dates acceptances were sent out in previous years: 2021 - April 8th 2020 - March 30th 2019 - March 25th 2018 - March 27th There's no need to panic yet!

I'm sitting here combing last year's pages to see what exact date people heard stuff on. I'm focusing on U of T. On April 8th people started getting acceptances. April 9th people started hearing they were waitlisted. I doubt we'll hear anything before the second week of April. We can survive until then! Good luck!

This waiting game is brutal! I'm waiting on 2yr programs for U of T and Western. No change in the status of my applications. Congrats to everyone who has received an offer.

I second this. Remember: your application should tell a story and it's important to make sure your references are.. writing the same story? Communicating about what story you're writing will likely help. I'm not sure if I'm making sense but.. that^ Also it sounds like you have a really strong application!

Help: Where on the U of T Acorn website does it update to say accepted/denied/waitlisted!?

Questions about U of T updated transcripts.: Has anyone else mailed an updated transcript to U of T? Is there a way to email them or attach it to Acorn? Not knowing if they'll receive my updated transcript in time is making me so anxious! If they get my update.. I have a really good chance of getting in... but if they don't I will most certainly get rejected.

As long as you answered the questions they asked I'm sure you're good!

You need to press the down arrow there ^ ^, select "personal statement" or "CV" and then browse your documents. Hopefully that helps!

Nothing yet. I sent my statements in but it looks like I'm still waiting on one reference. Hopefully the system just hasn't updated. How are you doing? Good luck!

Question: due dates! U of T has the due date for December 10th. What tiiiime on that day do applications close? I know I should hand it in before then but I'm being a major perfectionist with my rewrites.. and my references are for some reason taking what feels like waaaayyy too long sooo... anyone know?

Each question asks some big personal things. Make sure your answer addresses the questions asked, while still obviously shaping the larger story of who you are, and why you want to get into that specific MSW program. The questions are really all: Tell us your life story, why you matter, what you can do to better the world through academia, while also keeping it to under [insert short word limit here]. No pressure! ?