MSW Applications Fall 2020

[Holygiant]

14 minutes ago, The Finance Girl said:

I actually did not apply to any advance standing programs - I am a career changer and am a financial analyst. Thank you much!  Yes, I am overwhelmed with excitement, I was a bit concerned I may be overlooked with my professional experience, being quite different. However it has been great to hear so much positive feedback from admissions. I put ALOT of effort into all my applications and I think it really showed.

 

Are you familiar with Rutgers or the NJ area? Could you provide any information on what living there would be like? I'm in the Midwest and I hear it is a completely different feel than the east coast. 

 

My top choices are : University of Chicago, Rutgers, University of Illinois (Chicago), and University of Maryland. So it really worked out well that those are the first programs I heard back from! Basically these schools have programs that are more catered to what I want to study and have a city where I could see myself living. UC and UIC being better options, because I already live in Chicago.

I also really liked Boston College and UT - Austin. However, these locations would be a little tougher to move to for me.

 

 

Where is the Rutgers MSW campus?   My partner goes to school at Rutgers in New Brunswick so I know a lot about that campus, but not much about the others.   

[IvySWCu]

18 hours ago, HarmReducer said:

For anyone who is curious, I just heard from LSU that once the application is complete, unless there are any missing pre-reqs, they usually process them and notify within two weeks. So that is good—and speedy!

Isn't that the best? I wish a lot more schools had rolling admissions!

[IvySWCu]

On 12/10/2019 at 10:42 AM, Holygiant said:

Hi!

I am applying to UC Berkeley which I am extremely interested in and USC which I am less interested in.

Does anyone know how long UC Berkeley usually takes to respond to apps?

Also I've done a ton of research (or tried to) and what I can see is that Berkeleys acceptance rate is around 20% and Columbias is around 60%.   Given that they are similarly ranked, this seems crazy to me...am I missing something?   =

Thanks!

Good luck! I really hope you get in, I am not sure when they send out decisions, but here is a thread from last year. It may be helpful to skim through. I think Columbia can have a greater acceptance rate because it may have more resources dedicated to this program, and not everyone accepts their enrollment that applied once they weigh out the costs of the program. $100k just for tuition in NY, isn't very attracting for a MSW lol. I think a lot of students bank of scholarships of some sort.

 

 

[IvySWCu]

11 hours ago, Carolina310 said:

Hi everyone! I’m also applying to MSW programs for fall 2020. I have been out of school for about 3 years. Here is my list. If anyone is from the area/applying to these schools lmk the worst part is waiting!! I probably won’t know until late March/early April 

Stony Brook University- submitted 10/26 this is my top choice in state (NY)

SUNY Albany- submitted early November 

SUNY Buffalo- working on the application 

Portland State University- working on the essay 

MSU Denver- working on the essay (top choice out of state) 

UTSA- have not started the application since their deadline is in April 

Good luck everyone! 

Good luck! I think its also great that you're applying to a ton of schools not mentioned on too many threads here on gradcafe. I imagine you will not have issues being accepted. Most programs are very understanding and just want to see why you are interested in an MSW.

 

I feel like most of the "popular" MSW programs - are the same exact ones we all apply for, so you will have competitive advantage for sure!

[IvySWCu]

On 12/9/2019 at 6:00 PM, HarmReducer said:

Hi there,

I'm just about finished with my MSW applications for Fall 2020. Just waiting on my last (slow!) recommender to make time to write the last two letters.

• Ohio State (online) - last piece submitted 12/2
• LSU (online) - waiting on last recommender
• UMD Baltimore (in person) - waiting on last recommender

I know that on Ohio's website it says that admissions are rolling, with an average notification time of 3–5 weeks. The UMD website doesn't give a time frame—it just says basically "keep checking back every week after completion." And I have no idea at all about LSU.

A bit about me:

• 38-year-old career changer (from publishing—last degree in 2012)
• Areas of interest: substance abuse; harm reduction; family systems; trauma; psychedelic therapy; marginalized communities
• 3.67 undergrad GPA (B.A. Communication / B.A. English)
• 3.74 graduate GPA (M.A. Linguistics)
• 4.0 GPA during my recent return to community college the past 3 semesters to gain relevant coursework
• GRE: 170 V / 155 Q / 4.5 AW
• Crisis line and harm reduction volunteer work

Ohio is my first choice because they have a substance misuse specialization and there's a professor there whose work I admire. Plus,  I'd rather do online than in-person. UMD is second because I am hoping to move back to my hometown of Baltimore at some point in the next little while anyway, plus it has proximity to the research at Johns Hopkins (for which I have vague hopes for some kind of externship or volunteer research assistant position there eventually). LSU is third because they are affordable and fulfill my basic criteria of being asynchronously online, with enough of a generalist bent that I could hopefully kind of make it what I want it to be.

Right now I am mostly focusing on mentally willing my professor to finish my recommendations, plus obsessively checking my Ohio portal because it says "in review."

From experience I heard back on the 6 week mark from UMD. They are pretty on time with the applications! Some stats the admissions team told me are that they accept about 450 students a year and have spots for about 300-350 to accept. I never received a status update on my application. It never even went to " under review". I just got an email 6 weeks later saying a decision was made and to check to portal.

 

Your background is very diverse and I love that! You seem to be a great candidate for MSW programs and to eventually get into research. Your publishing experience will tie in well with that. Good luck and send a friendly reminder to your reference when you have a chance!

[Nai23]

54 minutes ago, The Finance Girl said:

Some random bits of info.  If you applied by the Dec 1 deadline, Columbia will be releasing decisions Mid Jan - Early Feb. Boston College will start releasing Jan 1, 2020. Boston University - End of Feb.

Hey! Did you talk to the schools for this info? 

[DesertRat]

Hi everyone!

I only applied to the program at UT Austin. I currently live in AZ but would love to return to my home state to create understanding and change in polarized communities in the southwest.

Has anyone else applied to UT after the priority deadline? I applied on Nov. 25 and missed it by 10 days—shoot! I feel good about my application but am nervous about missing the priority deadline. I have a 4.0 GPA, two years of international teaching experience and three years of social service and behavioral health professional work. I am also bilingual and bicultural. 

From my understanding of the review cycle, I will be in the second wave of applications, right? Does anyone know how funding is dealt? Do they wait until they receive your confirmation of acceptance or do they deal the green along with admission?

Yesterday, I received an invitation to a recruitment event in February with a potential travel award. I’m hoping this is a good sign? I also saw that my application passed general admissions and is now with the social work committee. 

Would love to hear from anyone who also missed a priority deadline and/or applied to UT!

Gracias ?

 

 

 

 

[Holygiant]

3 hours ago, The Finance Girl said:

Good luck! I really hope you get in, I am not sure when they send out decisions, but here is a thread from last year. It may be helpful to skim through. I think Columbia can have a greater acceptance rate because it may have more resources dedicated to this program, and not everyone accepts their enrollment that applied once they weigh out the costs of the program. $100k just for tuition in NY, isn't very attracting for a MSW lol. I think a lot of students bank of scholarships of some sort.

 

 

 

Ah ok.   Cool thanks so much for that.   And yeah Columbia is way more expensive than UC Berkeley.   If anyone has any questions about Columbia I know a bit about it (as well as NYU and Hunter).   

Where in NJ is the Rutgers MSW program?   You had questions about NJ I may be able to answer.   My partner is currently going to school at their New Brunswick campus.   

[mrigney]

5 hours ago, The Finance Girl said:

Some random bits of info.  If you applied by the Dec 1 deadline, Columbia will be releasing decisions Mid Jan - Early Feb. Boston College will start releasing Jan 1, 2020. Boston University - End of Feb.

Have you heard anything about those who applied by Dec. 1 deadline for any Chicago schools? Specifically UIC and UC

[IvySWCu]

7 hours ago, Nai23 said:

Hey! Did you talk to the schools for this info? 

Yep, this is the communication they personally provided me based on when I applied.

[IvySWCu]

4 hours ago, Holygiant said:

 

Ah ok.   Cool thanks so much for that.   And yeah Columbia is way more expensive than UC Berkeley.   If anyone has any questions about Columbia I know a bit about it (as well as NYU and Hunter).   

Where in NJ is the Rutgers MSW program?   You had questions about NJ I may be able to answer.   My partner is currently going to school at their New Brunswick campus.   

Yes I’m going to be in that campus as well! How is it there? I know nothing of NJ or New Brunswick, but the school has a great program so I’m highly considering it. Does your partner like living there, how do they like the school?

[IvySWCu]

3 hours ago, mrigney said:

Have you heard anything about those who applied by Dec. 1 deadline for any Chicago schools? Specifically UIC and UC

UC said they will release decisions mid Jan to early Feb for applicants who applied Dec 1. I wish we could know sooner, because that’s the last school that is holding up my decision on where to go! ( I got this information today from an admissions contact at UC.)

 

UIC has already been reviewing applications and sent their first batch of acceptances on Dec 2nd. I believe they will either start to send them as they accept students or send a final wave in Jan. However, I do know they review applications every Friday and are about 3-4 weeks behind. So if you wait at least 3 weeks and call to ask the status, they will give you the decision over the phone, assuming they reviewed your app. But will not notify you via email until the second wave. I happened to call back in Early Nov and found out I was accepted before the email a month later!

Edited December 12, 2019 by The Finance Girl

[IvySWCu]

6 hours ago, DesertRat said:

Hi everyone!

I only applied to the program at UT Austin. I currently live in AZ but would love to return to my home state to create understanding and change in polarized communities in the southwest.

Has anyone else applied to UT after the priority deadline? I applied on Nov. 25 and missed it by 10 days—shoot! I feel good about my application but am nervous about missing the priority deadline. I have a 4.0 GPA, two years of international teaching experience and three years of social service and behavioral health professional work. I am also bilingual and bicultural. 

From my understanding of the review cycle, I will be in the second wave of applications, right? Does anyone know how funding is dealt? Do they wait until they receive your confirmation of acceptance or do they deal the green along with admission?

Yesterday, I received an invitation to a recruitment event in February with a potential travel award. I’m hoping this is a good sign? I also saw that my application passed general admissions and is now with the social work committee. 

Would love to hear from anyone who also missed a priority deadline and/or applied to UT!

Gracias ?

 

 

 

 

Aweeeee snap! You have nothing to worry about, bilingual candidates and international social work and a multicultural background? You’re already a very diverse candidate!! I have 0 doubts in you getting in, as long as your LORs and SOP are spot in. But you already seem to have a clear understanding of what you want to do :).

 

I also got the same email! I signed up for the event ad well and requested travel funds - as I’m in chicago. Fingers crossed. However, I know they are looking for more black and Hispanic candidates to fly in based on the flyer. (Which I’m neither). 

 

From my experience and feedback so far - FASFA awards do not disburse until feb and schools do not award school scholarships (merit or need) until feb/March. Good luck! as far as missing priority deadline - I’m unsure if when you’ll hear back. I applied 11/7 and my app still says under review by committee.

 

Also - I haven’t received any green with my letters, but the schools i heard back from stated they do not send awards until March, after they get the majority of the acceptances back. But I’ve read for other  schools such as UC and NYU , BU and BC they offer funding in the offer letter. Which makes sense as most of the schools are private and also make their offers closer to Jan/Feb. 

Edited December 12, 2019 by The Finance Girl

[Holygiant]

12 hours ago, The Finance Girl said:

Yes I’m going to be in that campus as well! How is it there? I know nothing of NJ or New Brunswick, but the school has a great program so I’m highly considering it. Does your partner like living there, how do they like the school?

New Brunswick is good....for jersey.   I've lived in NYC for almost 15 years and before then California so NJ is sometimes weird as hell.  A few things to know about NJ and New Brunswick:

1.   Honor culture is a thing.   Its not super intense like the south, but NJ has random southern tendencies.   Not so much in New Brunswick, altho if you go 40 minutes south you will see tons of trucks with confederate flags and such.  

2.  Housing is expensive, and terrible.   Most of the houses in New Brunswick are owned by a few groups who have basically bought them all up and then control the rental market to students.   Housing is generally done on a per room basis so a lot of times you don't know your housemates until you move in.   They are also, from what I can tell, super slummy.   There are a couple of nice apartment buildings in town, and a couple of super expensive ones.   I'd recommend Raritan Gardens for a nice in between of semi-reasonable prices, as well as decent living spaces.  

3.   Its not that safe, but seemingly randomly so.   There are reports of muggings of college students with some frequency.   There is also the occasional gang related happening.  

4.   Its walkability sucks.   There is a downtown and there are some decent places there, but its a little bit far from where downtown housing tends to be.   You will have to drive most places.   

5.  Food is pretty decent.   Some places which are quite good actually.   

6.   The downtown area is pretty cute.   A number of restaurants and bars along the main area.   

7.  There are some actual gorgeous parts of it.   The city goes over a river basically and has some parks on the river and it just very picturesque.   

Also...just FYI I'm pretty biased because I lived in Brooklyn while shes been in school, so while I'm trying to give New Brunswick a fair shake, I'm sure i'm not.   NJ as a whole I despise...New Brunswick I don't like, but its way better than most of NJ.   

 

[MCSW23]

Hey friends! 

I have/am applying to 4 MSW programs:

1. UDenver - submitted / Dual w/ Korbel Int. Human Rights MA
2. NYU
3. Columbia - submitted
4. UWashington

I also applied to ASU's Social Justice & Human Rights MA and got accepted 4 days after completion of materials. No Financial Aid talk yet, though they said it could be a few weeks. 

Can't wait to see what else happens

[IvySWCu]

2 hours ago, Holygiant said:

New Brunswick is good....for jersey.   I've lived in NYC for almost 15 years and before then California so NJ is sometimes weird as hell.  A few things to know about NJ and New Brunswick:

1.   Honor culture is a thing.   Its not super intense like the south, but NJ has random southern tendencies.   Not so much in New Brunswick, altho if you go 40 minutes south you will see tons of trucks with confederate flags and such.  

2.  Housing is expensive, and terrible.   Most of the houses in New Brunswick are owned by a few groups who have basically bought them all up and then control the rental market to students.   Housing is generally done on a per room basis so a lot of times you don't know your housemates until you move in.   They are also, from what I can tell, super slummy.   There are a couple of nice apartment buildings in town, and a couple of super expensive ones.   I'd recommend Raritan Gardens for a nice in between of semi-reasonable prices, as well as decent living spaces.  

3.   Its not that safe, but seemingly randomly so.   There are reports of muggings of college students with some frequency.   There is also the occasional gang related happening.  

4.   Its walkability sucks.   There is a downtown and there are some decent places there, but its a little bit far from where downtown housing tends to be.   You will have to drive most places.   

5.  Food is pretty decent.   Some places which are quite good actually.   

6.   The downtown area is pretty cute.   A number of restaurants and bars along the main area.   

7.  There are some actual gorgeous parts of it.   The city goes over a river basically and has some parks on the river and it just very picturesque.   

Also...just FYI I'm pretty biased because I lived in Brooklyn while shes been in school, so while I'm trying to give New Brunswick a fair shake, I'm sure i'm not.   NJ as a whole I despise...New Brunswick I don't like, but its way better than most of NJ.   

 

YIKES on part 1.... 

 

Haha I like the honesty in this post. It almost seems unattractive based on some of the points you mention. However, do you think living in NY city and commuting to school twice a week is doable or would bring a better living experience? My husband and I are even considering live there as well for school. I am planning a visit in Feb/Mar to check out campus. Overall thank you for the very honest feedback. 

 

I hate comparing other cities to Chicago, because It makes it tough to consider them as I love Chicago. It just sucks when other schools have better programs in different areas ? gah.

[IvySWCu]

50 minutes ago, madisonc7 said:

Hey friends! 

I have/am applying to 4 MSW programs:

1. UDenver - submitted / Dual w/ Korbel Int. Human Rights MA
2. NYU
3. Columbia - submitted
4. UWashington

I also applied to ASU's Social Justice & Human Rights MA and got accepted 4 days after completion of materials. No Financial Aid talk yet, though they said it could be a few weeks. 

Can't wait to see what else happens

Good luck! That's awesome you already got into one program.

[Holygiant]

32 minutes ago, The Finance Girl said:

YIKES on part 1.... 

 

Haha I like the honesty in this post. It almost seems unattractive based on some of the points you mention. However, do you think living in NY city and commuting to school twice a week is doable or would bring a better living experience? My husband and I are even considering live there as well for school. I am planning a visit in Feb/Mar to check out campus. Overall thank you for the very honest feedback. 

 

I hate comparing other cities to Chicago, because It makes it tough to consider them as I love Chicago. It just sucks when other schools have better programs in different areas ? gah.

Yeah of course.   I would definitely recommend going to visit and don't just take my word for it.  Again I am somewhat biased because I despise NJ as a whole.   That being said....

 

Living in NYC and commuting is gonna be rough.   The train from Penn Station is 40-60 minutes depending on whether its an express or not and its...not the most reliable.   Plenty of people depend on it for a daily commute, but I don't think I'd be able to.   You could drive also but traffic is a thing.   Oftentimes its just as quick to drive as to take the train....except that it really depends on where in NYC you live.   I live super close to Manhattan, so its only 30 minutes to Penn Station from where I live, but that then makes the commute over an hour even if you take the express train to NB.   So its kind of a journey.   

NYC is also expensive.   Like...theres just not cheap housing here.   To give a couple of rough approximations.   A room in a shitty random house in NB is prolly $600-800 a month.   A small 600 ft 1 bedroom at Raritan is approx $1000 a month.   A 2 bedroom at the luxury buildings in New Brunswick is $2500 a month.   A room in a shitty random house in Manhattan is prolly $1200 a month.   A 1 bedroom in Manhattan is probably closer to $2000-2500 a month.   My luxury 2 bedroom in a trendy part of Brooklyn is $4750 a month.   And my place is like....950 square feet.   So its nice, but not huge (for NYC standards it is).   You can get cheaper housing by going to an outer borough like deeper in brooklyn or queens, but then your travel time increases substantially, and some of the neighborhoods are not super safe.   NYC is an amazing wonderful place to live, but its hard.   Just everything in this city is hard and its crowded.   People are amazing and NYC is a place I do think everyone should live in their life, but it will make the whole experience for you somewhat more difficult.  =

You can also consider  Hoboken or Jersey City, since you could drive to NB more easily/its cheaper/you can take t he PATH into the city   

 

[IvySWCu]

26 minutes ago, Holygiant said:

Yeah of course.   I would definitely recommend going to visit and don't just take my word for it.  Again I am somewhat biased because I despise NJ as a whole.   That being said....

 

Living in NYC and commuting is gonna be rough.   The train from Penn Station is 40-60 minutes depending on whether its an express or not and its...not the most reliable.   Plenty of people depend on it for a daily commute, but I don't think I'd be able to.   You could drive also but traffic is a thing.   Oftentimes its just as quick to drive as to take the train....except that it really depends on where in NYC you live.   I live super close to Manhattan, so its only 30 minutes to Penn Station from where I live, but that then makes the commute over an hour even if you take the express train to NB.   So its kind of a journey.   

NYC is also expensive.   Like...theres just not cheap housing here.   To give a couple of rough approximations.   A room in a shitty random house in NB is prolly $600-800 a month.   A small 600 ft 1 bedroom at Raritan is approx $1000 a month.   A 2 bedroom at the luxury buildings in New Brunswick is $2500 a month.   A room in a shitty random house in Manhattan is prolly $1200 a month.   A 1 bedroom in Manhattan is probably closer to $2000-2500 a month.   My luxury 2 bedroom in a trendy part of Brooklyn is $4750 a month.   And my place is like....950 square feet.   So its nice, but not huge (for NYC standards it is).   You can get cheaper housing by going to an outer borough like deeper in brooklyn or queens, but then your travel time increases substantially, and some of the neighborhoods are not super safe.   NYC is an amazing wonderful place to live, but its hard.   Just everything in this city is hard and its crowded.   People are amazing and NYC is a place I do think everyone should live in their life, but it will make the whole experience for you somewhat more difficult.  =

You can also consider  Hoboken or Jersey City, since you could drive to NB more easily/its cheaper/you can take t he PATH into the city   

 

Yeah, so what the commute being twice I week, I don't think it would be horrible based on what you described, but would definitely be tough. And then field placement would be a whole other thing to consider. I used to commute prior and would take the train for 60 minutes everyday. It was tiresome after months of doing that 5 days a week I'll say. But I don't mind it much if it meant trading off to live in the city.

 

So definitely not moving into a random house, because my husband and I are a little more settled in and need our own privacy haha. So we were thinking of renting a one bedroom. The prices for a one bedroom in Manhattan are a little more reasonable for NY (which we expected). Because I only plan to live in the area for the two years of my program, we thought it would be fun to experience living in NY if we are going to be in that area anyway. I can't believe you pay almost $5k for a 2 bedroom, NY is CRAZY expensive but that is spacious compared to what I have heard others live in. Does your partner commute from Manhattan as well to New Brunswick? Or are they living on campus?

 

What makes you want to move from NYC to Berkeley? Which looks like a dream - Hope you get in!!!!!

[Holygiant]

21 minutes ago, The Finance Girl said:

Yeah, so what the commute being twice I week, I don't think it would be horrible based on what you described, but would definitely be tough. And then field placement would be a whole other thing to consider. I used to commute prior and would take the train for 60 minutes everyday. It was tiresome after months of doing that 5 days a week I'll say. But I don't mind it much if it meant trading off to live in the city.

 

So definitely not moving into a random house, because my husband and I are a little more settled in and need our own privacy haha. So we were thinking of renting a one bedroom. The prices for a one bedroom in Manhattan are a little more reasonable for NY (which we expected). Because I only plan to live in the area for the two years of my program, we thought it would be fun to experience living in NY if we are going to be in that area anyway. I can't believe you pay almost $5k for a 2 bedroom, NY is CRAZY expensive but that is spacious compared to what I have heard others live in. Does your partner commute from Manhattan as well to New Brunswick? Or are they living on campus?

 

What makes you want to move from NYC to Berkeley? Which looks like a dream - Hope you get in!!!!!

One thing to also consider is how much you want the social aspect of grad school.   If you are a commuter student, you won't really have a chance to interact with your peers outside of class.   I wouldn't commute for that reason alone, but thats just me.   Also my partner commutes about twice a week.   She spends weekends in Brooklyn and the week in NB at school.   She has come to really despise the commute, but you may feel differently.   She has her own place in NB

Also I'm assuming field placement in NYC is way better and way more interesting than NB.   I would be super surprised if Rutgers couldn't place you in NYC.   

Yeah if you want to live in NYC for the experience of it as well, and you have experience with big cities I'd say go for it.   As long as you can swing the cost.   

Its actually hard to find a 2 BR as large as mine is.   But its more expensive because of that.  It also has like...14 feet ceilings, so its a pretty nice apartment.   

I'm moving because I really love the outdoors and although there are amazing woods only 90 min outside of NYC, Lyme disease is becoming an epidemic here.   I got lyme a few years ago and it kinda wrecked my health in a bunch of ways, so I want to move to a place where its way less of a problem.   Also I absolutely adore Berkeley.   We are moving there in a few months anyway, so I may just not go back to school this year if I don't get into Berkeleys program.   

[DesertRat]

18 hours ago, The Finance Girl said:

Aweeeee snap! You have nothing to worry about, bilingual candidates and international social work and a multicultural background? You’re already a very diverse candidate!! I have 0 doubts in you getting in, as long as your LORs and SOP are spot in. But you already seem to have a clear understanding of what you want to do :).

 

I also got the same email! I signed up for the event ad well and requested travel funds - as I’m in chicago. Fingers crossed. However, I know they are looking for more black and Hispanic candidates to fly in based on the flyer. (Which I’m neither). 

 

From my experience and feedback so far - FASFA awards do not disburse until feb and schools do not award school scholarships (merit or need) until feb/March. Good luck! as far as missing priority deadline - I’m unsure if when you’ll hear back. I applied 11/7 and my app still says under review by committee.

 

Also - I haven’t received any green with my letters, but the schools i heard back from stated they do not send awards until March, after they get the majority of the acceptances back. But I’ve read for other  schools such as UC and NYU , BU and BC they offer funding in the offer letter. Which makes sense as most of the schools are private and also make their offers closer to Jan/Feb. 

Thank you so much for sharing your experience and information! If you get an update from UT, I’d love to hear! I’ll be sure to do the same ?

[IvySWCu]

1 hour ago, DesertRat said:

Thank you so much for sharing your experience and information! If you get an update from UT, I’d love to hear! I’ll be sure to do the same ?

feel free to PM me if you ever have more or specific questions.

Edited December 12, 2019 by The Finance Girl
PM

[IvySWCu]

10 hours ago, Holygiant said:

One thing to also consider is how much you want the social aspect of grad school.   If you are a commuter student, you won't really have a chance to interact with your peers outside of class.   I wouldn't commute for that reason alone, but thats just me.   Also my partner commutes about twice a week.   She spends weekends in Brooklyn and the week in NB at school.   She has come to really despise the commute, but you may feel differently.   She has her own place in NB

Also I'm assuming field placement in NYC is way better and way more interesting than NB.   I would be super surprised if Rutgers couldn't place you in NYC.   

Yeah if you want to live in NYC for the experience of it as well, and you have experience with big cities I'd say go for it.   As long as you can swing the cost.   

Its actually hard to find a 2 BR as large as mine is.   But its more expensive because of that.  It also has like...14 feet ceilings, so its a pretty nice apartment.   

I'm moving because I really love the outdoors and although there are amazing woods only 90 min outside of NYC, Lyme disease is becoming an epidemic here.   I got lyme a few years ago and it kinda wrecked my health in a bunch of ways, so I want to move to a place where its way less of a problem.   Also I absolutely adore Berkeley.   We are moving there in a few months anyway, so I may just not go back to school this year if I don't get into Berkeleys program.   

Thanks for sharing all that insight, I have on going pro/cons list about all the schools I’ve applied to that I’m highly considering and jotted some of your points that. Sigh, if I get into UC - I think I’ll be set on staying in chicago, I just am worried about picking UIC because it’s the “responsible” thing to do. Tuition would be so cheap ($31k) for the entire program, and they do have a great one! It’s just sadly not clinically focused, which worries me.

Are you only set on UC Berkeley? Also you may have already mentioned but is your previous experience in social work or a related field? 

[fooliejulie]

On 12/10/2019 at 8:42 AM, Holygiant said:

Hi!

I am applying to UC Berkeley which I am extremely interested in and USC which I am less interested in.

Does anyone know how long UC Berkeley usually takes to respond to apps?

Also I've done a ton of research (or tried to) and what I can see is that Berkeleys acceptance rate is around 20% and Columbias is around 60%.   Given that they are similarly ranked, this seems crazy to me...am I missing something?   =

Thanks!

When I applied to UC Berkeley School of Social Welfare MSW program in 2017, I was notified of my admission status on March 7, 2018. (Spoiler alert: I was rejected.)

[fooliejulie]

I am applying to 4 MSW programs:

- Columbia Online MSW - submitted 11/30

- UC Berkeley - submitted 12/1 - I was rejected by UC Berkeley in 2018 but I've done a ton of volunteer work since then to be a more appealing candidate.

- California State University East Bay - due 12/16 - waiting for my last letter of recommendation - eek. They don't have online application submission. You have to actually send the materials in hard copy. So strange.

- San Francisco State University - due 12/31 - waiting for my last letter of recommendation - c'mon recommender!

I'm so relieved to be done with all the essay writing and resume work...

Let's see what happens!