inwhatway

That's a tough one, branches. Both are such excellent programs. Here's a comfort-you can't possibly make a bad decision either way.

Hi moda: I'm seriously considering Michigan and I plan to attend visit days. I lived in Ann Arbor from 2005 to 2009, so I'm happy to also answer questions about the city. Feel free to PM me!

I'm planning to attend recruitment events at UT-Austin (March 19-20) and Michigan (March 29-April 1). Super excited about the Detroit tour on March 30th!

That's HUGE! Congratulations!

I was accepted at Michigan! Wowza. This decision is getting ridiculous.

Yay! I got into BGSU. (I know it's not a top 20, but it has an impressive family demography program.)

I was admitted on Monday-mind blown. Still waiting to hear from Cornell's PAM program, BGSU and Michigan. I'm one of the few family demographers on the planet, so my application list was very targeted.

I received an invitation to the recruiting visit at UT-Austin this afternoon.

Generally speaking, Michigan State is on par with U of M in terms of prestige. MSW programs are very similar - when I attended U of M, one faculty member's favorite joke was "U of M is the top ranked MSW program...in Ann Arbor." You will not necessarily be a better trained MSW coming from MSU as opposed to the other schools on your list, so in this case I would advice going to the most prestigious school possible. Best of luck!

Thanks, NewGrad. Now that I received an admissions decision from UT-Austin, I can tell you guys that contacting faculty at prospective programs is a very smart move. I will share that one very big name at UT-Austin agreed to meet with me during a conference last fall. She offered wonderful advice on the admissions process and even urged me to apply to additional programs she felt might be an ideal fit for my interests. I also took a phone meeting with another very big name at UT-Austin (who echoed my POI's advice), reached out to one of his students who just joined the faculty at my current institution, and received insider advice from the graduate coordinator. I worked very hard to take control of the admissions process and it paid off in spades. I think that many of the students on this forum have solid application packets and should not require this additional step. So, don't kick yourself if you didn't do this. Since my GRE scores were very low (imagine your worst nightmare) and my academic trajectory was a bit wacky (sociology to justice policy to social work to demography), these meetings gave me the opportunity to quell any concerns the admissions committee might have. It also helped that I have one publication, stellar LORs, and presented my research at ASA, PAA and ISA.

Congrats, SocApp! I received a very similar email from Rob Crosnoe. Hope to see you at recruitment weekend.

I can claim one UT-Austin acceptance! Wooooot!

It doesn't seem that UT-Austin will notify this week. Next week will be very intense.

It's definitely still early, SocApp. Hang in there.

Hi pinoysoc: Did your financial aid status change as well? Mine was updated today, too. Not sure what to make of it.