Fall 2017 PhD

[Emarouk]

I got this from UW this morning! I'm so glad to have heard something, but SO nervous about this interview. I have zero time to prepare....

Thank you for your interest in the University of Washington PhD in Social Welfare program.  I am writing to notify you that you have been selected for a phone interview with two faculty members from the PhD in Social Welfare Admissions Committee.   

 

In order to facilitate the scheduling of the interview, I would appreciate it if you could  please let me know if you would be available tomorrow, Thursday, February 16^th between 10-12 for a 20 minute phone interview.  Please let me know which 20 minute time slot works best for you within the 10-12 time frame.

 

We look forward to speaking with you this Thursday.  

[Tarney4]

30 minutes ago, Emarouk said:

I got this from UW this morning! I'm so glad to have heard something, but SO nervous about this interview. I have zero time to prepare....

Thank you for your interest in the University of Washington PhD in Social Welfare program.  I am writing to notify you that you have been selected for a phone interview with two faculty members from the PhD in Social Welfare Admissions Committee.   

 

In order to facilitate the scheduling of the interview, I would appreciate it if you could  please let me know if you would be available tomorrow, Thursday, February 16^th between 10-12 for a 20 minute phone interview.  Please let me know which 20 minute time slot works best for you within the 10-12 time frame.

 

We look forward to speaking with you this Thursday.  

 

Congrats on your interview!

 

And congratulations to everyone who has a spot for next fall. I've been rejected from Berkeley and have yet to hear from UCLA, USC, UW-Madison and University of Minnesota- Twin Cities. I also applied to EdD programs and got reject from USC's EdD program. Best of luck to everyone!

[flowerthor]

@Emaroukcongratulations on getting the interview! I didn't get an email but I'm glad to know where they are in the process now. Thank you for the update. 

[Emarouk]

19 minutes ago, Tarney4 said:

Congrats on your interview!

 

And congratulations to everyone who has a spot for next fall. I've been rejected from Berkeley and have yet to hear from UCLA, USC, UW-Madison and University of Minnesota- Twin Cities. I also applied to EdD programs and got reject from USC's EdD program. Best of luck to everyone!

Thank you! I hope you hear good news soon!

[Emarouk]

11 minutes ago, flowerthor said:

@Emaroukcongratulations on getting the interview! I didn't get an email but I'm glad to know where they are in the process now. Thank you for the update. 

Thank you! Honestly I'm not sure they always do interviews. I have friends in the program that didn't do one. This could just mean they are on the fence about me....or they've changed their policies. I have NO idea...

[Lois1955]

Hey, I have been looking  at gradcafe for years. Sorry I am posting late in the process, but I have seen some post I would like to respond to. Admissions to PhD programs are done in stages for some universities. People that received  notice in Jan most likely received a University wide fellowship. This is money that will fund students from the provost office or graduate school. This saves the SW programs money because they do not have to pay to fund these students. I know this because I have worked at a university and I spoke to a lot of faculty through this process. So if you have not heard back from a school and you see in the results others have does not mean you are not getting in. I see people have been accepted into a program I want to attend, but I know for a fact all the decisions have not been made. The director of the PhD programs will tell you the general date they will make decisions. I see people have gotten into a program I want to attend and the director looked me in the eyes and told me decisions will be made later this month. Not sure why they lie, I guess so they will not scare  off other students they may want but they did not nominate for university wide fellowships etc. Just sharing my thoughts about the topics that have been posted. 

[guanyinmiao]

11 hours ago, Tuck1 said:

Congrats on your acceptance! Are you the one that posted your acceptance to UCLA? I ask because I'm wondering if everyone received their acceptance yesterday or not. Anyway any tips or suggestions from your application for those of us that might have to apply again next year? Thanks! 

Thank you! And yes, I received the email on Wednesday morning (Singapore time). A call is scheduled for this Friday morning, so will follow up if more information is shared!

The main weakness of my application was the lack of formal work experience. I did my bachelor and master degrees concurrently, and applied to PhD programmes straight after. So I emphasised: my research and networks in Asia and Singapore in particular; the expertise in mixed-methods and the slight predilection for quantitative methods; and my involvement in the non-profit and philanthropy sector, through the letters.

[mkatherine]

On February 13, 2017 at 6:21 PM, yourruth said:

I just found out that UW extended the deadline. I didn't know as I submitted mine in Nov. Do you think this means that the number of applicants were not as many as other years? Just asking to hold little hope....

 

BTW, I applied UW, USC, Michigan, Maryland, and other two schools with public policy major (Chicago and Duke). I've already got a reject from Berkeley but never heard from any other schools....

Also applied to Maryland. I had an email exchange with someone from Maryland after-deadline about an application glitch and she said they will have decided by "late March or maybe sooner." So my guess is mid-March? Also applied to Buffalo and Case Western.

[Ggsk]

6 hours ago, Lois1955 said:

Hey, I have been looking  at gradcafe for years. Sorry I am posting late in the process, but I have seen some post I would like to respond to. Admissions to PhD programs are done in stages for some universities. People that received  notice in Jan most likely received a University wide fellowship. This is money that will fund students from the provost office or graduate school. This saves the SW programs money because they do not have to pay to fund these students. I know this because I have worked at a university and I spoke to a lot of faculty through this process. So if you have not heard back from a school and you see in the results others have does not mean you are not getting in. I see people have been accepted into a program I want to attend, but I know for a fact all the decisions have not been made. The director of the PhD programs will tell you the general date they will make decisions. I see people have gotten into a program I want to attend and the director looked me in the eyes and told me decisions will be made later this month. Not sure why they lie, I guess so they will not scare  off other students they may want but they did not nominate for university wide fellowships etc. Just sharing my thoughts about the topics that have been posted. 

 

Thanks @Lois1955

[Tuck1]

17 hours ago, Emarouk said:

I got this from UW this morning! I'm so glad to have heard something, but SO nervous about this interview. I have zero time to prepare....

Thank you for your interest in the University of Washington PhD in Social Welfare program.  I am writing to notify you that you have been selected for a phone interview with two faculty members from the PhD in Social Welfare Admissions Committee.   

 

In order to facilitate the scheduling of the interview, I would appreciate it if you could  please let me know if you would be available tomorrow, Thursday, February 16^th between 10-12 for a 20 minute phone interview.  Please let me know which 20 minute time slot works best for you within the 10-12 time frame.

 

We look forward to speaking with you this Thursday.  

Congrats on the interview! I received feedback from mine and was told to really emphasize why I believed the work I wanted to do connected with the school and the specific professors I wanted to work with. In 20 minutes you have so little time to do that but they said to try and fit it in more. Hopefully this helps with your interview! 

[Tuck1]

13 hours ago, guanyinmiao said:

Thank you! And yes, I received the email on Wednesday morning (Singapore time). A call is scheduled for this Friday morning, so will follow up if more information is shared!

The main weakness of my application was the lack of formal work experience. I did my bachelor and master degrees concurrently, and applied to PhD programmes straight after. So I emphasised: my research and networks in Asia and Singapore in particular; the expertise in mixed-methods and the slight predilection for quantitative methods; and my involvement in the non-profit and philanthropy sector, through the letters.

Thank you for the information! I'm thinking if I don't get in this year I will take extra classes on research methods to be more prepared since I've been out of school for a few years. Anyone else accepted this year have advice on how to build my resume this next year? I do not want to take the gre again, although my scores were not where I wanted them, as it was too expensive and time consuming. What are people's thoughts on that? 

[Uberwelt]

1 hour ago, Tuck1 said:

Thank you for the information! I'm thinking if I don't get in this year I will take extra classes on research methods to be more prepared since I've been out of school for a few years. Anyone else accepted this year have advice on how to build my resume this next year? I do not want to take the gre again, although my scores were not where I wanted them, as it was too expensive and time consuming. What are people's thoughts on that? 

Hey, Tuck. 

If you don't want to take the GRE again (I don't blame you! No, really, I don't), then you'll really have to shine in other parts of your application. One professor I spoke to from Northwestern said that I needed to take my GRE again while others said my GRE scores were fine (I scored above 80th %). In one particularly frustrating example, a Vanderbilt department recommended me for acceptance to the dean and the dean turned me down because of my GRE score. So, there's even debate about what is acceptable within school administrations. It's just so variable. Higher GRE scores certainly don't hurt your chances. You may want to think about taking it again. 

I do find that fit is the most important aspect of any competitive application. Of all the criteria, only fit will make you or break you (unless your GPA is 1.5 or your GRE is in the 140s). I have no idea what your stats are but I am willing to bet that they are competitive. So, I would focus more on really honing in your SOP for each school you apply to. I spoke to several chairs of SW PhD programs, and each and every one of them said the same thing: wholistic review of application materials but you have to show that you have really put thought into why a research degree in SW is rooted in both your personal history and career ambitions. Did your SOP describe exactly what you wanted to research, how that research could be supported by the faculty in the program based on their expertise, and how your research/career ambitions are deeply rooted in your SW worldview? 

Beyond the SOP, I don't see why some stats/research methods classes would hurt, especially if your GRE quant score is below the 60th-70th percentile. Do you have any publications? What was your writing sample like? The programs you applied to (If I remember correctly) get the most applicants. Applicants who have publications, above 80th percentile GRE scores, outstanding LORs, graduate school GPAs above 3.8, research experience in applied labs, and are racially/ethnically diverse.

• [Side note, both Upenn and Berekely professors asked me if I am a white male over the phone. When my answer was yes, they both followed up with, "well, what makes you diverse?". I explained that I am gay and they both (different phone calls) let out a collective sigh. This surely points to the pressure that these programs put on themselves to keep their student population "diverse", however they define diverse. It also points to the nature and status of the SW field. By the way, the professors were both white males. Oh, the irony.]

This is to say that there are somethings in your "application" that you cannot change. Applying again also means the applicant pool will be different. Perhaps measured up against different applicants will help you, aside from the fact that you will be showing grit/determination/loyalty by applying again. But again, I really think it's about fit. I've received interviews from Columbia, BC, UW-Mad and I have to say that the overarching theme is that they would be a great fit for me out of the 11 programs I applied to. 

I don't know. Just my 2 cents.

Edited February 16, 2017 by Uberwelt

[Sjane19]

Hi everyone! I was wondering if anyone has heard back from the University of Buffalo? I applied to their MSW/ PhD program. The suspense is killing me!

[Emarouk]

6 hours ago, Tuck1 said:

Congrats on the interview! I received feedback from mine and was told to really emphasize why I believed the work I wanted to do connected with the school and the specific professors I wanted to work with. In 20 minutes you have so little time to do that but they said to try and fit it in more. Hopefully this helps with your interview! 

Thank you! Was your interview with UW? Did you already hear back? I think I spoke WAY too fast and I was so nervous that I'm not actually sure that I made sense, but I guess it is at least over....

[Ggsk]

Hi 

I have just been "denied" admission to Wisoncin-Madison. There is no email sent and i found out about it when i checked the system. (i feel that they should use a better word than "denied" haha)

 

[Tiiiny]

7 hours ago, Ggsk said:

Hi 

I have just been "denied" admission to Wisoncin-Madison. There is no email sent and i found out about it when i checked the system. (i feel that they should use a better word than "denied" haha)

 

Hi,

I also was denied last night. Few days ago, I wrote a email to the office. They said they would send the official notification next week or so. By the way, have you applied the joint program of Michigan University?

 

[Tiiiny]

By the way, I have also contacted with Boston College, they said they were in the process of making final decisions and would notify candidate within the week.

 

 

[mkatherine]

21 hours ago, Sjane19 said:

Hi everyone! I was wondering if anyone has heard back from the University of Buffalo? I applied to their MSW/ PhD program. The suspense is killing me!

I am waiting to hear from Buffalo too. Please, please, please let me know when you hear something.

[maxwelmoon]

6 hours ago, Tiiiny said:

By the way, I have also contacted with Boston College, they said they were in the process of making final decisions and would notify candidate within the week.

 

 

I got the same thing from them. Did you have an interview or hear anything prior to this? Just trying to assess if I have a chance or not, as I haven't heard anything until I contacted them.

[ThinkVee]

For those waiting, I just received a call from Dr. Jackson accepting me into the combined MSW/Ph.D program. Welcome day is March 6th so they should be notifying everyone soon. Good luck everyone!

[Tuck1]

33 minutes ago, ThinkVee said:

For those waiting, I just received a call from Dr. Jackson accepting me into the combined MSW/Ph.D program. Welcome day is March 6th so they should be notifying everyone soon. Good luck everyone!

Which program? I just got a call from UCLA for acceptance but I can't remember who called me. I'm completely shocked though and very excited. I still haven't heard acceptance or denial from Chicago though. 

[ThinkVee]

7 minutes ago, Tuck1 said:

Which program? I just got a call from UCLA for acceptance but I can't remember who called me. I'm completely shocked though and very excited. I still haven't heard acceptance or denial from Chicago though. 

For the Social Welfare MSW/Ph.D program. I received a call from Dr. Jackson. I'm shocked too!! I haven't heard from any of the other schools I applied to. The anticipation was killing me. So I'm ecstatic right now.

[Emarouk]

1 hour ago, ThinkVee said:

For those waiting, I just received a call from Dr. Jackson accepting me into the combined MSW/Ph.D program. Welcome day is March 6th so they should be notifying everyone soon. Good luck everyone!

Congratuations! That's a highly competitive program--I hope you're dancing through your day!

[Dizzy]

I just received an email from Rutgers. I was accepted to their Social Work PhD program!  

[maxwelmoon]

Got my rejection letter from Boston College. It was my second choice, but I have a feeling my first choice is also going to reject me. At least I have an interview at UT Arlington next week, although it is my last choice because I don't see the future appointments being as desirable as I would have hoped.