MSW13

York has a very poor record of actually doing what they say. I wouldn't hold my breath on that one.

I think you may be right on this one. For the advanced standing, I think someone had quoted Angela as saying that letters would be sent out on March 7th but based on responses here, people received their letters as early as March 6th (I may be off on the dates, but you get the idea). I think the date she gives is the date you can expect to receive your letter by, not necessarily the date they are mailed out.

Congrats on getting into Laurier! I absolutely agree with your perceptions of males in social work. It certainly is difficult for males to enter an arena like child protection services without an exceptional amount of scrutiny. What triggered your interest in this area? Good luck with U of T! Which is your preference, U of T or Laurier??

If your friend was rejected a while back for the 2 year, that likely means that she was rejected by the general graduate admissions dept because her application was either missing something or her grades were below the posted minimum. Everyone else who at least meets the minimum requirements moves on to the Social Work dept and goes through the rigorous selection process.

Awesome stats, JO_O! Congratulations!!!!

My husband just brought in the mail and with a big grin handed me this big fat envelope from U of T. I had tears streaming down my cheeks as I read the acceptance letter out loud to my husband. My young son sitting on the couch was not nearly as thrilled as he asked me to stop blocking the tv.

Thank you so much Goobah, we have all worked hard to gain admission to our programs. As I have learned, it is no small feat so yes, YAY US!! and I'll throw a woot in there too for good measure

No, not at all, pick away But please take whatever I say with a grain of salt. Obviously these are my opinions and they may not reflect the experiences of everyone. Yes, having an MSW improves your employment chances enormously. I've been working with my BSW for some time and I am constantly frustrated with the lack of upward mobility. You really need your MSW if you want to climb the employment ladder. Of course you still have plenty of opportunities with a BSW, the only problem is that you are also limited with where you can work. If it is your interest to work in a school, government, or hospital setting, you will more likely than not require an MSW. As well, there is also the bonus of being paid better. Anecdotally, I've seen an average of at least 10k difference in pay. For instance, in one of my previous places of employment, I was getting around 52K while my MSW counterpart was earning 60-65K. This was in a small not-for-profit. Your average hospital or government salary I believe is much better. So basically, the benefits of an MSW include: 1. upward mobility 2. increased job versatility 3. better pay It would be nice to hear more perspectives from others who are reading this. Again, this is my general understanding...there are always exceptions However, I should add that having an MSW doesn't guarantee employment. You still need to build your resume...I think this might be a surprise to some who are expecting to get hired right after graduation.

No problem The good thing about living in Newmarket is that you are well away from the big city but have a straight route downtown via train! It sort of like having the best of both worlds, downtown excitement and the peacefulness of a small town. Although York U is geographically closer to Newmarket, getting there is a bit more challenging than getting to Ryerson. But since you've already bought a house, you must know all of this anyway! lol, sorry if I am repeating the obvious Wow, I didn't realize that you have to get your degree recognized by CASW! What a pain. I hope you enjoy the social work program at Ryerson! It is an excellent school for social work. Like I said, that was my alma mater and I did really enjoy it a lot when I was there (many, many years ago). Oh, I should mention that the panhandlers downtown aren't really aggressive so it isn't a safety issue for you as much as it is a reflection of how the different systems (social, mental health, etc) fail the most vulnerable people in society..

I'll be going to UofT. Ryerson is actually my alma mater. I can understand why you are concerned about getting lost in Toronto but honestly, you will do fine. The biggest adjustment for people (based on friends experiences who have moved here from small towns) is the 'noise'. Lots of traffic, people, hustle and bustle etc. But if you can handle a place like say London England, you can handle Toronto. York is at the north end of the city. It is pretty isolated since it is surrounded by industrial areas/residential areas. If you go to York, you will rely heavily on public transit since walking anywhere is pretty much impossible. Personally, I don't really care for that campus because I find it so isolating. But if you do prefer a quieter setting, it is a good choice. The other thing about Ryerson is that you are located right in the heart of downtown. It is great if you love that (which I did) but you do also get all of the 'flavours' of downtown (homelessness, panhandling, but also shopping, entertainment) which may or may not appeal to you. As far as placements go, you will likely have no problem getting there via public transit. Most big places are fairly accessible by subway/bus and our transit system is super simplistic. As I said, I have no doubt that you will do fine

I think we all wonder if they monitor how often we check! If they did do that, they would likely learn that the vast majority of applicants suffer from temporary obsessive-compulsive disorder that spontaneously resolves once the program posts their freakin' decision!

So happy for you Goobah!! (I tried to up-vote but apparently I've reached my daily quota of positive clicks!). Congratulations, my fellow social worker!

That's fantastic, congratulations!! Why so nervous?

Good luck on the waitlist! It sounds like you are positioned pretty well, especially at Mac. Hopefully you will hear something positive soon. If Dalhousie becomes your only option, is it possible to do your practicum at your current workplace?

Congratulations Hopeful111!! Starting in May?! Wow, that is soon! Enjoy!!!

Hi Nalor, This is the Social Work thread and I don't believe that Guelph has an MSW program. You might have better luck using the "Canadian School Applicants" thread in the 'Waiting it Out forum". Good luck!

Good luck Serina001! Although I believe that most decisions are mailed out, as you can see, Selecttext was notified via email which kind of blows my theory out of the water. Either way, because your status is 'decision made', you can expect to be notified shortly. All the best for positive results!

lol, well actually you said, "that is specific to a department, as was my experience" which may be clear to you but not necessarily to the reader (me). Will you also be receiving an admissions package in the mail or is all information noted in the letter?

I recall reading a few places that decisions are mailed out. Were you advised by email?

My guess is that he did check the email but because other more pressing things are going on (you never know what kind of deadlines he is under in his position, especially with spring break coming up) he decided to delay a response. Alternately, he may not have any new information to give you. Also, your email may be one of many regarding the same thing. I know it is hard (believe me!) but just hang tight.

The good news is that U of T doesn't advise you of your status by email, you will receive a decision in the mail (or possibly by phone if it is a PhD program).

Or maybe he is just out of the office/in meetings? It happens

You are very welcome!

Welcome! I was not waitlisted but anecdotally I can say that *usually* there is some movement... but it really depends on the school. You may want to find out if the school has a ranked waitlist. This way you will know how realistic it would be for your individual situation (obviously ranked 4th is a lot more promising than 63rd). Do you have a preferred school? Is there a reason why you would want to wait rather than accept your admission to Dalhousie?

pbaid, Gohankami is correct. When you go to the Student Web Service link (www.rosi.utoronto.ca), the first time you log in you will enter the student number you received and your DOB as your pin. You will immediately be able to change it to something more secure. After this step you have to get your student card made and then get a university email address etc. I haven't done that yet but I hope to before the summer.