Out-of-State and Foreign MSW Applicants to US Schools

[nugget]

I am considering an MSW in the US and I don't even know how to begin to navigate the great number of universities to choose from. So I thought I would start a new thread geared specifically toward foreign and out-of-state applicants.

 

I am trying to find MSW programs that have more reasonable fees for foreigners (under $20,000 tuition/yr, but I'm really hoping for under $15,000 if it's even available). So far I've just been looking up schools recommended by people on various forums and checking out their tuition rates. Is there a more effective way of doing this?  Once I find some schools, how would you recommend that I find out if they are good schools with a good reputation? The last thing I would want to do is waste lots of time and money on getting a degree that won't help me advance my career.

[StenderB]

I am considering an MSW in the US and I don't even know how to begin to navigate the great number of universities to choose from. So I thought I would start a new thread geared specifically toward foreign and out-of-state applicants.

 

I am trying to find MSW programs that have more reasonable fees for foreigners (under $20,000 tuition/yr, but I'm really hoping for under $15,000 if it's even available). So far I've just been looking up schools recommended by people on various forums and checking out their tuition rates. Is there a more effective way of doing this?  Once I find some schools, how would you recommend that I find out if they are good schools with a good reputation? The last thing I would want to do is waste lots of time and money on getting a degree that won't help me advance my career.

This is difficult and I'm not sure that there's a more effective and less time-consuming way to "weed out" those that are automatically off the list due to keeping within your budget, but I have a few suggestions.

Expensive states have expensive schools.  For example, California state school tuition at the school I'm applying to (as an out-of-state resident) is around $18,500 so just barely under your budget.  Others, like USC (well-known and good reputation) are even higher at around $20-$30,000/year from what I've read on forums for those already accepted and discussing financials.

Another thing I've read often is that it's not necessarily the prestige of the school that matters when it comes to a practical, professional degree like an MSW, but things like :

• What are you interested in focusing on?
• Does that school have the interest or concentration I want to work with/in/focus on?
• Is it in a place/city I would enjoy networking in
• Is the school accredited? (I would say this is very important for a MSW)

  I am applying to San Jose State because I was born and raised in San Jose and am only an out-of-state resident because, for my undergrad, I went to the University of Utah.  I'm comfortable with San Jose, it's a place I want to have a career and a place I could see myself living and networking during my program and using that for after when I do start working professionally.  There are a ton of MSW programs and I had to just take some time to sit and do some research and I started with cities I like, have been to, or seem to have a good vibe.  I even did one of those questionnaires online about "Where Should You Live?" just to see what my answers would generate and I'd take a look at those cities, too.  Growing up in the Bay Area, I'm especially attracted to large cities, laid-back vibes and diversity.  I looked into cities like Seattle, Portland, San Diego and Austin.  If I was going to make another out-of-state move, I wanted it to be in a place I'd also like living.

  I don't know if this is true for Canadian programs, but lots of U.S. programs have stipends.  This means usually that they can help you with up-to a certain amount of $$ as long as you concentrate on a certain population and then give back your time by working for a state department.  For example, I'm applying to a stipend at SJSU that would have me concentrating on Children, Youth and Families (which I wanted to anyways) and I would do field placements in agencies that serve Title IV-E populations like Department of Child and Family Services and then when I'm done, I commit to 1 year of service with the State of California for each year I had been awarded a stipend.

  This option may open some doors for you if you end up really liking a place/program and it's over your tuition budget.

  Continue just browsing forums, pick out schools or places that interest you, do online research, and I'm sure programs will stand out for you.

 

[StenderB]

Just as an aside: I recently checked out the Portland State MSW program again and noticed that not only do they have VERY reasonable out-of-state tuition (around $15,000/year) but they have a stipend that will help with up to $6,000.... wishing now I had applied to more U.S. schools but after my beast of an application to SJSU I just don't even know if I woulda had the steam to write out more apps and SoPs lol

[nugget]

Thanks for the suggestions, StenderB. After finding out if a school is affordable for me, I always check to see if it's a good fit for my career interests. But I don't know much about location as I haven't travelled much to the US, apart from Florida and NYC.

 

It would be easier to visit home if I lived in New York State, but I love Spanish so I'd be up to living somewhere with lots of Spanish, and Florida or Hawaii would be great (I'm tired of long and cold winters). So I guess I'm a bit all over the place right now, but money is definitely a deciding factor. The cheaper the better. 

 

I just found out Bridgewater has tuition for under $10,000/yr which is fantastic!!! But first I need to check if my educational background meets their criteria. Salem State looks good too at about $12,000/yr.

 

I am not sure if I am eligible for funding since I don't have dual citizenship. But that would be my next step, after coming up with a short list of potential schools.

[StenderB]

Thanks for the suggestions, StenderB. After finding out if a school is affordable for me, I always check to see if it's a good fit for my career interests. But I don't know much about location as I haven't travelled much to the US, apart from Florida and NYC.

 

It would be easier to visit home if I lived in New York State, but I love Spanish so I'd be up to living somewhere with lots of Spanish, and Florida or Hawaii would be great (I'm tired of long and cold winters). So I guess I'm a bit all over the place right now, but money is definitely a deciding factor. The cheaper the better. 

 

I just found out Bridgewater has tuition for under $10,000/yr which is fantastic!!! But first I need to check if my educational background meets their criteria. Salem State looks good too at about $12,000/yr.

 

I am not sure if I am eligible for funding since I don't have dual citizenship. But that would be my next step, after coming up with a short list of potential schools.

I don't know much about upstate New York, but I know that the buroughs of NYC (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, Staten Island) are incredibly diverse and you would do well there if you wanted to use or obtain Spanish-speaking skills.  Florida would be an excellent place for this, too.  If you're on the eastern seaboard of Canada then even living in Florida should only be a relatively quick plane ride home

When I think of "lots of Spanish" I also think Texas and California (both places without long, cold winters).  I love Austin, my brother lives there now.  I've been to San Antonio as well and it was a cool city but I liked the friendliness and easy-going feel of Austin better.  I'm from California and am partial to Northern California (the Bay Area) but San Diego is quickly becoming an absolute favorite city of mine to be since I have friends living down there now.

[StenderB]

Oh maybe another fun way to just browse potential cities and their programs is to check out the forum entitled "City Guide" under "The Cafe".  It might be hard to muddle through all the cities without knowing them, but at the least perhaps there's some cities you know a little about and some advice from actual grad students might give you better insight into certain places.

[louise86]

I am considering an MSW in the US and I don't even know how to begin to navigate the great number of universities to choose from. So I thought I would start a new thread geared specifically toward foreign and out-of-state applicants.

 

I am trying to find MSW programs that have more reasonable fees for foreigners (under $20,000 tuition/yr, but I'm really hoping for under $15,000 if it's even available). So far I've just been looking up schools recommended by people on various forums and checking out their tuition rates. Is there a more effective way of doing this?  Once I find some schools, how would you recommend that I find out if they are good schools with a good reputation? The last thing I would want to do is waste lots of time and money on getting a degree that won't help me advance my career.

 

If you're thinking of sticking around after getting your MSW, I think the most effective way would be to decide what regions in the U.S. you would want to live in. Then make a list of the states in those areas and research them. See how much a fit they would be with the lifestyle that you want like in terms of weather, if you like outdoor activities or more city life, how diverse a population you want, etc. Next step would be to eliminate states you don't think fit you and with the states you have left make a giant list of all the accredited schools. Research all the schools and just slowly eliminate those that are out of your price range, whose programs aren't a great fit, and if the city it is located in meets your criteria. 

 

I think it'll just have to become a slow elimination process.

 

Here is a list of all the accredited schools in the U.S. and it allows you to search by state: http://www.cswe.org/Accreditation/Accredited-Programs.aspx

 

Wikipedia is a great place to get information about states and cities along with checking out city's official websites. Citi-Data would be another great place to check out to get a good feel for the population, weather, etc and they have forums where you can ask locals questions about anything.

 

In terms of knowing if the school has a good reputation or not, you can ask here about specific schools, email those currently in the program or those that have finished, and you could check out the rankings at U.S. News. Right off I would say the top 33 for sure have very good reputations nationally, but that doesn't mean the rest aren't very well-known regionally. For instance, I'm in Tennessee and the University of Tennessee Knoxville is very well respected in the region although I think there's better programs in surrounding states.

 

I'm still a couple of years out from applying, but this slow elimination process is what I used to decide on which schools in Canada I want to apply to. Of course, Canada has far less schools so it wasn't so overwhelming. 

 

Hope that helps!

[nugget]

Thanks Louise86. I will check out those links. I plan to return to Canada afterwards. I just want to increase my odds of getting into a good program by applying to some US schools as well. I heard it's a bit easier to get into an MSW program in the US because there are more schools to meet the demand for interested applicants. A lot of MSW programs in Canada only take 1/5 applicants or slightly less.