Application Advice, Pretty Pretty Please!

[lbb88]

Hi, everyone. I will be applying to MSW programs for the fall of 2016. My goal is to eventually become licensed as an LCSW. I'm coming from a totally unrelated background though... my bachelors degree is in political science. I will be applying to four public universities in the St Louis/Missouri region. (UMSL, University of Missouri at Columbia, Missouri State, and SIUE.) I am really nervous though... I feel like my application will be less competitive than others.

Points in my favor:

-confident I can write great application essays

-GPA for last 60 undergrad credit hours was about 3.8

- 2 solid references at my disposal

-will have some volunteer experience in the field- I will be training soon to be a crisis hotline counselor, and volunteer at a hospice.

- I have undergrad volunteer experience- unrelated field, but included some transferable skills, such as working with disadvantaged populations, etc.

-will be taking a course this fall at the community college in crisis intervention

-have been looking for other ways to gain skills, such as taking free online mental health webinars, and taking mental health first aid courses

 

Points against me:

-I won't have had extensive volunteer or work experience related to social work

-the GPA for my first 60 or so undergrad credits was horrible, because of serious family issues at the time (which may be a non issue if I address is properly, because I did return to school and excel.. just depends on their perspective)

-I need to find a third reference

 

Obviously nobody here can tell me if I will get in, but do you think I stand a chance at getting in somewhere? Any advice for ways to improve my application are very very appreciated.

[UMichHopeful93]

First off, it sounds like you're on a solid track. Some points I would make in your essay:

• Explain how your past experiences have influenced your choices to pursue social work, volunteer, and take this course at a community college.
• Explain the situation with your grades at the beginning of your undergrad degree. If anyone is going to understand, it's a school of social work. However, you may not have a ton of room for this in your essays (most are under 4 pages). In this case, most applications have a space for you to explain extenuating circumstances - do it here. 

Your nontraditional background shouldn't worry you. So many people with MSWs didn't study anything related in their undergrad. I'd say you have a least a fairly good chance of getting into those programs. I think it mainly depends on the acceptance rates of the schools you're looking at, as well as the applicant pool you're up against.  

Best of luck to you! 

Edited October 2, 2015 by UMichHopeful93