Canada MSW 2020

[Celly]

Anyone made their decisions about the 2-year MSW at U of T?

[MSWapplicant2020]

8 hours ago, andy123 said:

Hey all, 

This might not be the right place to ask this question but... I'm curious to know people's reasons for wanting to get an MSW. I'm assuming it's the idea of professional development / advantage? I'm interested in working in SW / mental health and would like to get some insight from people who are either already in the field or trying to get in. What does an MSW provide that other options like post-grad addiction or SSW certificates don't? Are people with MSWs better practitioners or just better paid? Would love any insights, suggestions, etc on the topic. Thanks! 

I have my BSW and SSW and my experience with it is that it's a lot more challenging to get a job / the job that you want with a SSW or BSW, for me at least. Most clinical jobs including working at the hospital require an MSW and when certain jobs don't, you may still be competing against MSW grads. Having an MSW is also higher pay than SSW or BSW. Although I learned some direct practice skills with my SSW and BSW, I believe MSW can provide you with more direct practice skills and teach you more in depth about different interventions.  I have been searching for jobs on indeed and it has been clear that a lot of jobs require an MSW particularly for the one's I want (preferably at the hospital). I also found that a lot of SSW and BSW jobs offer many part-time or overnight positions where MSW does not.  Although you do not need your MSW to work at places like CMHA since you mentioned you wanted to work in mental health,  - however, one of the postings I found for a BSW job/undergraduate job was asking for overnight counsellors. I hope this helps!! Let me know if you have any questions.  

Edited April 13, 2020 by MSWapplicant2020

[Meg_gray11]

On 4/6/2020 at 4:10 PM, Alyssa.O said:

Anyone hear from Lakehead? It was exactly a year ago yesterday that people started hearing back. I know that they said they were going to be behind two weeks ago, but I haven't heard anything since!

I haven't heard either! I emailed Madge a month ago and she said she would send all applicants updates when they happen, but I have recieved nothing. I'm hoping we hear something soon.

Do you think the program's start date will be pushed back or put online if the pandemic continues into the summer?

[HopefulandCurious]

17 hours ago, andy123 said:

Hey all, 

This might not be the right place to ask this question but... I'm curious to know people's reasons for wanting to get an MSW. I'm assuming it's the idea of professional development / advantage? I'm interested in working in SW / mental health and would like to get some insight from people who are either already in the field or trying to get in. What does an MSW provide that other options like post-grad addiction or SSW certificates don't? Are people with MSWs better practitioners or just better paid? Would love any insights, suggestions, etc on the topic. Thanks! 

I have many of the same thoughts as MSWapplicant2020 above. You don't necessarily need an MSW to practice in the field, however it is more challenging to get jobs without an MSW, and more challenging to move up/find leadership positions/etc as well. You can practice in many areas with a BSW, it is less limited than with an SSW. They are all valuable in different ways, but the way that I have seen this field shifting in the last few years is that SSW jobs are becoming BSW jobs, and BSW jobs are increasingly becoming MSW jobs. I believe that without this qualification it will be increasingly difficult to get employment (or at least, in my opinion, employment that is worth the wage). 

I also know this may not apply to every person and every workplace, but personally I have seen that those with a BSW + MSW have a wider scope/understanding of social work practice than those who have completed a 2 year MSW. Perhaps it depends on where the degree was completed, but I found that the "foundational" knowledge is different (at least in my experience at my organization). The end result is largely the same, but I would recommend completing a 1 year BSW and then a 1 year MSW if that is a possibility (especially since you can be a practitioner with a BSW alone, and can't just drop out halfway through a 2-yr program). The bottom line is that professional and educational development will always be valuable, but you will certainly have more options available to you with an MSW. If a BSW and an MSW were applying for the same job, the MSW would win out.  

[Juli3270]

18 hours ago, jberma01 said:

Rejected from Laurier via email on April 9th! Also updated on LORIS 

I'm sorry to hear about your rejection from Laurier! I had my rejection from UofT already and I am expecting one from Laurier at this point but haven't heard back...was this rejection for the online 2 year MSW starting in September? 

[Cafe-queen]

Does anyone have updates from UBCO advanced standing?

[Christinavas86]

On 4/9/2020 at 7:32 PM, mswbell said:

Got accepted to Windsor's 2 year MSW program today! Didn't get into Laurier (May 2020) or Western though. Anyone know if there is a Facebook group yet?  

Hey there! Did you get into the windsor peel location or actual windsor location??

[Coolcat2019]

Hello all, first time poster here. I applied to the part time online MSW @ Laurier for a September start. (The one for applicants without a BSW). Haven’t heard anything at all yet. Has anyone here applied to that program? Anyone heard back? 

[janemsw2020]

I got waitlisted at Western back in March but they offered me admission a few days ago. Although I will be accepting my UofT offer, it makes more sense for me with my living situation. So hopefully whoever is waitlisted at Western gets the next offer when I decline mine!

[janemsw2020]

1 hour ago, Coolcat2019 said:

Hello all, first time poster here. I applied to the part time online MSW @ Laurier for a September start. (The one for applicants without a BSW). Haven’t heard anything at all yet. Has anyone here applied to that program? Anyone heard back? 

I also applied, I haven't heard back anything yet either.

[asingh25]

8 minutes ago, janemsw2020 said:

I got waitlisted at Western back in March but they offered me admission a few days ago. Although I will be accepting my UofT offer, it makes more sense for me with my living situation. So hopefully whoever is waitlisted at Western gets the next offer when I decline mine!

congrats!!  did they let you know via email?

[mswbell]

2 hours ago, Christinavas86 said:

Hey there! Did you get into the windsor peel location or actual windsor location??

The Windsor location. I didn't realize they had a location in Peel.

[jberma01]

6 hours ago, Juli3270 said:

I'm sorry to hear about your rejection from Laurier! I had my rejection from UofT already and I am expecting one from Laurier at this point but haven't heard back...was this rejection for the online 2 year MSW starting in September? 

no it was for the on campus 2 year MSW!

[mswmsw2020]

Hi friends - I received an acceptance to Laurier's 2-year on campus MSW today (around 4:30) but will be attending UofT instead so a spot will open up! Congratulations to everyone that heard!

Edited April 13, 2020 by mswmsw2020

[Rehbekuh]

On 4/12/2020 at 5:30 PM, andy123 said:

Hey all, 

This might not be the right place to ask this question but... I'm curious to know people's reasons for wanting to get an MSW. I'm assuming it's the idea of professional development / advantage? I'm interested in working in SW / mental health and would like to get some insight from people who are either already in the field or trying to get in. What does an MSW provide that other options like post-grad addiction or SSW certificates don't? Are people with MSWs better practitioners or just better paid? Would love any insights, suggestions, etc on the topic. Thanks! 

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. 

[Basketdub]

Just got my acceptance to Laurier 2 year MSW as an email. And I was put onto UofT waitlist for the 2 year MSW. Still waiting on York for their decision.

[olivolia]

2 hours ago, Basketdub said:

Just got my acceptance to Laurier 2 year MSW as an email. And I was put onto UofT waitlist for the 2 year MSW. Still waiting on York for their decision.

What is your first an last initial if you don’t mind? I’m just curious if they are sending out alphabetically or no! 

[Basketdub]

7 hours ago, olivolia said:

What is your first an last initial if you don’t mind? I’m just curious if they are sending out alphabetically or no! 

R.D.  The email came yesterday evening at around 5 p. m.

[Christinavas86]

17 hours ago, mswbell said:

The Windsor location. I didn't realize they had a location in Peel.

Yeah they have an MSW for working professionals that's on Fridays and Saturdays only! 

[janemsw2020]

19 hours ago, asingh25 said:

congrats!!  did they let you know via email?

Yes they emailed me and changed the status on student services!

[andy123]

On 4/13/2020 at 2:19 AM, MSWapplicant2020 said:

I have my BSW and SSW and my experience with it is that it's a lot more challenging to get a job / the job that you want with a SSW or BSW, for me at least. Most clinical jobs including working at the hospital require an MSW and when certain jobs don't, you may still be competing against MSW grads. Having an MSW is also higher pay than SSW or BSW. Although I learned some direct practice skills with my SSW and BSW, I believe MSW can provide you with more direct practice skills and teach you more in depth about different interventions.  I have been searching for jobs on indeed and it has been clear that a lot of jobs require an MSW particularly for the one's I want (preferably at the hospital). I also found that a lot of SSW and BSW jobs offer many part-time or overnight positions where MSW does not.  Although you do not need your MSW to work at places like CMHA since you mentioned you wanted to work in mental health,  - however, one of the postings I found for a BSW job/undergraduate job was asking for overnight counsellors. I hope this helps!! Let me know if you have any questions.  

 

23 hours ago, HopefulandCurious said:

I have many of the same thoughts as MSWapplicant2020 above. You don't necessarily need an MSW to practice in the field, however it is more challenging to get jobs without an MSW, and more challenging to move up/find leadership positions/etc as well. You can practice in many areas with a BSW, it is less limited than with an SSW. They are all valuable in different ways, but the way that I have seen this field shifting in the last few years is that SSW jobs are becoming BSW jobs, and BSW jobs are increasingly becoming MSW jobs. I believe that without this qualification it will be increasingly difficult to get employment (or at least, in my opinion, employment that is worth the wage). 

I also know this may not apply to every person and every workplace, but personally I have seen that those with a BSW + MSW have a wider scope/understanding of social work practice than those who have completed a 2 year MSW. Perhaps it depends on where the degree was completed, but I found that the "foundational" knowledge is different (at least in my experience at my organization). The end result is largely the same, but I would recommend completing a 1 year BSW and then a 1 year MSW if that is a possibility (especially since you can be a practitioner with a BSW alone, and can't just drop out halfway through a 2-yr program). The bottom line is that professional and educational development will always be valuable, but you will certainly have more options available to you with an MSW. If a BSW and an MSW were applying for the same job, the MSW would win out.  

 

15 hours ago, Rehbekuh said:

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. 

Thank you very much to all three of you for your insight and experiences. I really appreciate it! It seems like an MSW (or something comparable like an MA in counselling) will be inevitably necessary if I want to be competitive in the job market. 

I have a follow-up question to anyone who might know... Are all MSWs considered equally valuable by employers or would it be fair to say that an online MSW is viewed differently than an in-class one? Is an MSW from a higher-ranked university looked upon more favorably? 

Good luck to everyone who's still waiting to hear back about their applications and all the best to everyone else! 

[olivolia]

39 minutes ago, andy123 said:

 

 

Thank you very much to all three of you for your insight and experiences. I really appreciate it! It seems like an MSW (or something comparable like an MA in counselling) will be inevitably necessary if I want to be competitive in the job market. 

I have a follow-up question to anyone who might know... Are all MSWs considered equally valuable by employers or would it be fair to say that an online MSW is viewed differently than an in-class one? Is an MSW from a higher-ranked university looked upon more favorably? 

Good luck to everyone who's still waiting to hear back about their applications and all the best to everyone else! 

The options for online MSW programs are very limited. Laurier and UWaterloo I think may be the only ones that have online MSW, in Ontario at least (correct me if I'm wrong). When you graduate you are graduating with a Masters from either Laurier or UWaterloo.. both reputable schools, and your diploma paper will not say online.

If you do Counselling Psychology through lets say Yorkville, the case may be different because this isn't a well known school. Although it is becoming more recognized now by employers, obviously its not in the list of top schools known around here. With that being said, many employers usually care more about you actually having the masters and extensive experience!

But if you are just looking at lets say the online MSW through Laurier, the courses are the same as you would do in person! The only difference is they made it more accessible to working professionals (hence why it's so difficult to get in), you still complete placement at the end of the learning component.

[waitingsux]

23 hours ago, Cafe-queen said:

Does anyone have updates from UBCO advanced standing?

Nope no news 

[Cafe-queen]

23 minutes ago, waitingsux said:

Nope no news 

I emailed last week to ask (I won’t lie, I felt guilty asking), their response was

”All final decisions will be sent to the College of Graduate Studies by this Friday from our school.  It may then take about a week for them to move through the final decision processing. We are all currently working remotely so it has been a bit of a challenge to work with our systems.”

So, I guess end of next week?

[waitingsux]

19 minutes ago, Cafe-queen said:

I emailed last week to ask (I won’t lie, I felt guilty asking), their response was

”All final decisions will be sent to the College of Graduate Studies by this Friday from our school.  It may then take about a week for them to move through the final decision processing. We are all currently working remotely so it has been a bit of a challenge to work with our systems.”

So, I guess end of next week?

With everything going on I understand, but it is still frustrating especially because I know some admission offers were sent out within the first month of the application closing date..