Colorado Schools

[VetSW77]

I was hoping some people in here know about (applied to or are attending) either Colorado State University's MSW program or DU's MSW program. I currently live in Colorado, attending CSU for undergrad. Because of family obligations, I cannot move out of state for grad school. These are the only two schools I know of that have a MSW program. How difficult are they to get in? Are they good schools? It seems that CSU is more of a generalist program. DU you can specialize more in, plus they have an animal assisted therapy certificate, which I am very interested in. So even though it is farther away (and more expensive), I am more interested in DU. Any thoughts on either, or both, schools?

[amers]

I'm interested about this too! DU is my top choice, but I currently live in Chicago so it'll all be a bit new to me. I visited DU and did a little research on both schools on my own so here's the little I gathered. That said I would love to hear about DU from someone with more first hand knowledge and experience there!

 

It does seem like DU has more options in terms of certificates and specialization. DU's school of social work only offers graduate and Phd programs, no undergrad degrees, which I thought was interesting. Not sure if this has any effect on research/professors/ect, maybe someone else will have more insight there. Generally speaking, bigger cities also have a wider variety of field placement options so if you know you want to try out a specific area of social work Denver could be the right choice.

 

The thing that made the biggest difference to me (and the reason I applied to DU and not CSU) is that CSU has a requirement for the amount of direct social work experience you must have. From my meeting with an admission's counselor at DU, it seems that they are more open to students from different backgrounds (although social work experience is always a plus obviously!) as long as your interest in social work is serious and genuine. Since I'm coming from a communications/marketing background, this was important to me, not sure how much it affects you. 

 

Good luck on your apps! Maybe I'll see ya at DU

[Read_books]

There's also:

Metropolitan State University of Denver

Social Work Department, Campus Box 70 P.O. Box 173362

Denver CO 80217

Program Level: Masters

I think the program looks really awesome. Just a heads up, all the schools in CO are competive. Denver also offers a few different programs for the MSW like the four corners program, which I think is geared for CO locals.

Here is a directory of all CSWE accredited programs: http://cswe.org/default.aspx?id=17491

[VetSW77]

I'm definitely more interested in DU, but am going to CSU for my undergrad because I live in Fort Collins. Since I wanted to do a Master's in Social Work, and they had a BSW program, I figured it made sense to do that.

 

I didn't know about MSUD. I thought they only had a BSW program. I will have to look into that. I figured that DU at least was competitive. Think I just needed to hear it firsthand. Thanks.

[kurkz]

My admissions decison is in the mail from DU. Has anyone heard if it is true that all people who are accepted will have the two buttons of "accept admission" "deny admission" after their application status has been changed to "Application Decison: Not Available"?? I do not have these buttons so I am a little freaked out!! Does everyone get this change or does it happen for just some people? Thanks!

[SrirachaC]

I just checked mine for DU an hour ago and" ready to review" disappeared and the accept/decline buttons appeared.  It still says decision not available though. From what I have read on other forums, the accept/decline buttons are usually accurate at predicting an acceptance. However, nobody really knows, so try not to stress (although I know how hard that can be) Good Luck 

[WhatAmIDoingNow]

I was hoping some people in here know about (applied to or are attending) either Colorado State University's MSW program or DU's MSW program. I currently live in Colorado, attending CSU for undergrad. Because of family obligations, I cannot move out of state for grad school. These are the only two schools I know of that have a MSW program. How difficult are they to get in? Are they good schools? It seems that CSU is more of a generalist program. DU you can specialize more in, plus they have an animal assisted therapy certificate, which I am very interested in. So even though it is farther away (and more expensive), I am more interested in DU. Any thoughts on either, or both, schools?

 

There are 3 MSW programs in CO, as stated above.  One tip I have is talk to the programs about how students get their internships.  People I know that went to CSU had to find their own internships, which is ridiculous to expect students to know the system well enough to find the best internship for themselves.

 

There are also out of state programs that are not too far from Colorado. So depending on where you are located in Colorado, there may be more options.  If you are willing to go to Ft. Collins and Denver, you seem willing to commute quite a bit. there is the University of Wyoming in Laramie and New Mexico Highlands University in Albuquerque, NM.  Just ideas. 

[VetSW77]

Thanks, WhatAmIDoingNow. I will definitely contact the programs about how students get their internships. I never really thought about it. I guess I assumed the school at least assisted with it. As far as traveling for school, I don't mind traveling a little bit. I live in Fort Collins, so obviously that is the easiest program for me to get there. That is why I am doing my undergrad there. Closest school and they have a SW program. The two schools in Denver are about an hour away. Not fun, but not horrible. I will check out U of W, I didn't know they had a SW program. That again wouldn't be too far. NM is way to far for me to commute. I have young kids and am their sole provider, so traveling any great distance makes me nervous. Like Wyoming. Sometimes we get bad snow storms or even high winds and they close the highway from CO to WY. I can't be stranded somewhere else and not get home to my kids. But this is also why I can't apply to too many programs and am willing to commute some distance. I don't want to apply to only one school and limit my options.

[kurkz]

Thanks, WhatAmIDoingNow. I will definitely contact the programs about how students get their internships. I never really thought about it. I guess I assumed the school at least assisted with it. As far as traveling for school, I don't mind traveling a little bit. I live in Fort Collins, so obviously that is the easiest program for me to get there. That is why I am doing my undergrad there. Closest school and they have a SW program. The two schools in Denver are about an hour away. Not fun, but not horrible. I will check out U of W, I didn't know they had a SW program. That again wouldn't be too far. NM is way to far for me to commute. I have young kids and am their sole provider, so traveling any great distance makes me nervous. Like Wyoming. Sometimes we get bad snow storms or even high winds and they close the highway from CO to WY. I can't be stranded somewhere else and not get home to my kids. But this is also why I can't apply to too many programs and am willing to commute some distance. I don't want to apply to only one school and limit my options.

I think this should also depend on what type of program you are looking for. DU has a much more hands on based approach with a lot of opportunity for field work whereas, CSU is research based. After going to CSU, I found that this would not be a program fit for me because it was very narrow in opportunity and doing work within the field. I believe they require you to take four research classes. Consider what you are trying to do in the long run! A lot of research based schools prepare you for further education whereas, activist schools prepare you for work in the field and the realities you will face. BEST OF LUCK TO YOU!! It took me forever to find schools that would fit me best. After all of my applying, I wish I would have done a little more in-depth research due to looking for a very narrow field in my MSW. You will end up where you are suppose to be but think bigger picture and which programs YOU would best fit into! Hope this gives you some insight. 

[WhatAmIDoingNow]

I think this should also depend on what type of program you are looking for. DU has a much more hands on based approach with a lot of opportunity for field work whereas, CSU is research based. After going to CSU, I found that this would not be a program fit for me because it was very narrow in opportunity and doing work within the field. I believe they require you to take four research classes. Consider what you are trying to do in the long run! A lot of research based schools prepare you for further education whereas, activist schools prepare you for work in the field and the realities you will face. BEST OF LUCK TO YOU!! It took me forever to find schools that would fit me best. After all of my applying, I wish I would have done a little more in-depth research due to looking for a very narrow field in my MSW. You will end up where you are suppose to be but think bigger picture and which programs YOU would best fit into! Hope this gives you some insight. 

That is a great point.  If you want to do practice, quickly get your LCSW, CACIII (or whatever the new addictions letters are), and get a good practice job after graduating, then you need to go to a school that can give you those skills and connections to internships that will get you the job you want.  Ask recent graduates what their placements were and what job opportunities they had after graduating.  I say recent because asking someone 20 years after graduating from CSU or DU won't do you much use. 

 

To add to my earlier comment, internships influence where you get hired after graduation.  If you want to be a medical social worker, you should have a medical internship. If you want to be a counselor, get a counseling internship. If you want to be an administrator or activist, get a macro internship. 

[amers]

I just accepted my offer to attend DU in the fall! Let me know if I'll be seeing you there

[SrirachaC]

Hey @amers,

 

I'll see you there! I paid my deposit about 2 weeks ago.I will be visiting Denver next week to find housing, visit the campus and interview field placements. I'm so excited !! 

[amers]

Hey @amers,

 

I'll see you there! I paid my deposit about 2 weeks ago.I will be visiting Denver next week to find housing, visit the campus and interview field placements. I'm so excited !! 

 

Congrats Ciara!! I'm in the 2 year program, so the process might be a little different for me, but I'd still be very interested to hear how everything goes for you, especially the housing search. I've been thinking about that a lot lately too.  I visited campus back in September and really loved it, it's beautiful in Denver and the social work building is very nice. Enjoy your trip!