U Washington vs. NYU - Social Work (help?)

[Dr.EJM]

Hi everyone,

I'm trying to decide between NYU and University of Washington for my masters of social work. I'm in state for Washington making it cheaper, but I had my hart set on New York when I started all this and I have family there in the field who want to help with whatever they can. I'm hoping that someone out there can help me with pros and cons for the schools, areas (I know NYC is expensive) and anything else that might be helpful.

Thanks!

[jbriar]

UW is one of the best schools in the country for social work.

Also, having a partner in the field of social work (and being a longterm social worker myself), I can tell you that you'll want to keep your expenses as low as possible. The first job you'll get out of grad school will pay 30-40 grand a year. That isn't much when you have massive student loans to pay off, even with the new payment reduction options.

However, if you want to stay in NYC long term, I'd go to school there. The most important thing you'll do in grad school is network within the field, and no amount of family connections can make a better impression than you in person during your practicum hours.

Good luck. NYU and UW are both great programs!

[Dr.EJM]

Thank you! I'm still not sure what program but another view and opinion helps. At some point I want to live in NYC, but to pay to live there, and pay for school is making me nervous seeing as how I'm not sure if I will mesh with the city long term. If I knew for sure that I would love it there, I would go in a hart beat.

How do you think the schools stack up if I was to move to LA, or Austin or somewhere unrelated to the schools in the country? Do you think the name of NYU or the ranking of UW will hold more weight long term?

[juilletmercredi]

As far as I know, social work salaries don't range into the low six figures, which is what you'll have to borrow to attend NYU. I think the tuition is about $40K alone, and then you're going to have to borrow at least $20K for living expenses. That's $120K over two years. How are you going to pay that back?

The University of Washington is a great school, and although your university ties do have some bearing on location of job, they don't tie you to a specific location. You can always move to NYC after finishing your MSW, and you'll be a lot happier if you don't have a huge dragon of debt on your shoulder.

Long term, your experiences will matter more than where your graduate degree comes from. If you go to UW, and you start working at - let's say - Seattle's child services department, and you establish a 5-year history there - your next placement is likely going to hire you mostly on the strength of your experiences at that child services department. Your prior degree will be a factor - but like I said, UW is a great school and you don't have to worry about it being some unknown MSW program. I also think that in most fields, people are aware of the strengths of certain schools not in their area. Social work may be a more localized field, but I think the need for social workers is so great that if you are properly licensed and come from a decent school, you can find work. Coming from a great school? I don't think you have to worry.

I'd go to UW. I would not go $120,000 into debt for an MSW from NYU.