NYU vs. Columbia

[shellyeah]

Does anyone have any light to shed on the subject? I've spoken to many NYU students who have nothing but glowing reviews, and a few Columbia students who say a lot of "You're just paying for the name" with very little to say about the program itself. So while I am obviously very drawn to Columbia's prestige, their students don't seem especially thrilled on the program, which seems to be the opposite for NYU.

They are comparable in price. I would like to do clinical social work in conjunction with community organizing for LGBTQ, HIV+ and at-risk women populations, if that helps.

[zachidacki]

Does anyone have any light to shed on the subject? I've spoken to many NYU students who have nothing but glowing reviews, and a few Columbia students who say a lot of "You're just paying for the name" with very little to say about the program itself. So while I am obviously very drawn to Columbia's prestige, their students don't seem especially thrilled on the program, which seems to be the opposite for NYU.

They are comparable in price. I would like to do clinical social work in conjunction with community organizing for LGBTQ, HIV+ and at-risk women populations, if that helps.

To begin: this is only my 2 cents, and I didn't even consider Columbia, and decided not to enroll at NYU. I will just tell you why I even applied to NYU and what about Columbia was unnattractive.

Similarly to you, I am interested in client-centered management and services, particularly in queer and HIV+ communities. NYU's program is fully centered on clinical skills (though it doesn't ignore policy issues), so that sounds like a good fit for you. (I actually, in the end, turned it down because of that fact.) Your clinical training would be fantastic, both in theory and in practice. NYU's Social Work department has amazing connections to inner-city clinical traineeships. The faculty also lines up well. Have you talked to James Martin? His research and area of practice is mainly in clinical intervention for at-risk or HIV+ queer men and adolescents. There are a couple other faculty with parallel interests, so take a look. Also, NYU gives scholarships - up to half-tuition, I believe. If you haven't been awarded one, I know I freed up a half-tuition scholarship, so just push for some more money.

Columbia's program seems (from talking to people and the website) highly concentrated on the macro experience - administration, policy, social theory. I can only remember one faculty member who works with HIV+ and queer communities, but they're very well may be more. Columbia's highest scholarship is $8,000 a year, and if you're lucky you'll get some sort of assistantship. The lack of integration between social work methods and the stingy nature of the School just turned me off.

I'm not sure if you're going into academia, but that, in my opinion, is the only reason to go into debt from Columbia. You can spend the two years after the program working and making a dent in your debt, then go back to graduate school where those loans will be deferred, and hopefully land a higher-paying job afterwards. If you want to go directly into clinical work, NYU is probably your better bet. The connections NYU has for clinical opportunities, from what I can tell, far surpasses those at Columbia. If you want to go into corporate responsibility, maybe HIV-awareness programming and administration, or something along those lines, Columbia might be your better bet. The prestige of Columbia will undoubtedly fade, and the prestige of NYU's clinical program (for which it is highly praised in clinical circles, along with Smith, Simmons, etc.) will come to the forefront.

[shellyeah]

To begin: this is only my 2 cents, and I didn't even consider Columbia, and decided not to enroll at NYU. I will just tell you why I even applied to NYU and what about Columbia was unnattractive.

Similarly to you, I am interested in client-centered management and services, particularly in queer and HIV+ communities. NYU's program is fully centered on clinical skills (though it doesn't ignore policy issues), so that sounds like a good fit for you. (I actually, in the end, turned it down because of that fact.) Your clinical training would be fantastic, both in theory and in practice. NYU's Social Work department has amazing connections to inner-city clinical traineeships. The faculty also lines up well. Have you talked to James Martin? His research and area of practice is mainly in clinical intervention for at-risk or HIV+ queer men and adolescents. There are a couple other faculty with parallel interests, so take a look. Also, NYU gives scholarships - up to half-tuition, I believe. If you haven't been awarded one, I know I freed up a half-tuition scholarship, so just push for some more money.

Columbia's program seems (from talking to people and the website) highly concentrated on the macro experience - administration, policy, social theory. I can only remember one faculty member who works with HIV+ and queer communities, but they're very well may be more. Columbia's highest scholarship is $8,000 a year, and if you're lucky you'll get some sort of assistantship. The lack of integration between social work methods and the stingy nature of the School just turned me off.

I'm not sure if you're going into academia, but that, in my opinion, is the only reason to go into debt from Columbia. You can spend the two years after the program working and making a dent in your debt, then go back to graduate school where those loans will be deferred, and hopefully land a higher-paying job afterwards. If you want to go directly into clinical work, NYU is probably your better bet. The connections NYU has for clinical opportunities, from what I can tell, far surpasses those at Columbia. If you want to go into corporate responsibility, maybe HIV-awareness programming and administration, or something along those lines, Columbia might be your better bet. The prestige of Columbia will undoubtedly fade, and the prestige of NYU's clinical program (for which it is highly praised in clinical circles, along with Smith, Simmons, etc.) will come to the forefront.

Thank you for this. This is possibly the most helpful insight I've heard so far. Basically, I'm just looking for support for what some figure (including my Columbia alumni brother) is a crazy decision to pick NYU over Columbia. I've all but paid the deposit down.

Can I ask how you went about pushing for more money? I received $12,000. I was thinking about stopping by and explaining that I am low-income (which they very well know) and hope for the best. What did you do?

[zachidacki]

Thank you for this. This is possibly the most helpful insight I've heard so far. Basically, I'm just looking for support for what some figure (including my Columbia alumni brother) is a crazy decision to pick NYU over Columbia. I've all but paid the deposit down.

Can I ask how you went about pushing for more money? I received $12,000. I was thinking about stopping by and explaining that I am low-income (which they very well know) and hope for the best. What did you do?

I'm not really sure how to go about pushing for money. I called when I received higher scholarships at other schools, and was told the half-tuition scholarship I received was the highest award possible, and that no more money is available on an individual student basis. I didn't think there was much pushing I could do. I would just call them up or go by if you live close, explain the situation and your appreciation, and ask if there is more money available for a low-income student. If NYU is your first choice, let them know that and express the financial strain. Propose research assistantships, student work-study, depends on what you're willing to do. My hunch is they have more scholarship money available. Good luck!

[socialgrad]

Shellyeah - I see that you were also accepted the Hunter?   I'm currently trying to decide between NYU and Hunter and was curious if you were considering Hunter?  and if not, why?  Hunter is really attractive to me economically speaking but that seems to be the only reason that people are telling me to go there over NYU.  I got some money to NYU but it would still be more expensive than Hunter's program.   If anyone has any thoughts or insight on the two programs i would greatly appreciate it!  

[regina]

Hi everyone! I have been accepted to several Advanced Standing MSW programs, but right now I'm torn between two: Fordham and NYU.  I like the combined clinical/macro track at Fordham; however as a lesbian woman, I have reservations about attending a traditionally Jesuit school. Anyone have any thoughts (preferably based on your own experience)?

[MaggieMayMSW24]

On March 19, 2013 at 11:44 PM, regina said:

Hi everyone! I have been accepted to several Advanced Standing MSW programs, but right now I'm torn between two: Fordham and NYU.  I like the combined clinical/macro track at Fordham; however as a lesbian woman, I have reservations about attending a traditionally Jesuit school. Anyone have any thoughts (preferably based on your own experience)?

Hi Regina,

As this post is fairly old, I'm not sure if you will respond to this...but I recently have been accepted by NYU & Fordham, and must now make a decision between the two programs. How did you make your final decision between the two schools? With a scholarship from NYU, the costs are now very similar, which makes my decision even more difficult. Thanks for any advice!