MSW 2018 Applicants

[JonoDuncan]

2 hours ago, KristaG said:

Got accepted into NYU today with a $12,000 scholarship! Not my first choice school, but definitely a good backup! Hopefully I hear back from Columbia or Hunter soon!

Congrats! I submitted my application for NYU last week but my last reference didn't submit their letter until today. She emailed it in because of some weird error in the portal. So hopefully my application gets completed this week! I just submitted my Columbia application today. I've been following their process and I wouldn't expect any answer until mid-January at the earliest. Unfortunately they don't do rolling applications. 

[KristaG]

7 minutes ago, JonoDuncan said:

Congrats! I submitted my application for NYU last week but my last reference didn't submit their letter until today. She emailed it in because of some weird error in the portal. So hopefully my application gets completed this week! I just submitted my Columbia application today. I've been following their process and I wouldn't expect any answer until mid-January at the earliest. Unfortunately they don't do rolling applications. 

Well good luck! I'm sure you'll get it! But darn I truly hate all this agonizing waiting LOL

[JonoDuncan]

Just now, KristaG said:

Well good luck! I'm sure you'll get it! But darn I truly hate all this agonizing waiting LOL

I know right? Columbia is my top choice but I think I'll feel a lot better if I at least make it into one of my programs lol. 

NYU is #2 so I'd be happy either way!

[TooExcited&Nervous]

4 hours ago, KristaG said:

Got accepted into NYU today with a $12,000 scholarship! Not my first choice school, but definitely a good backup! Hopefully I hear back from Columbia or Hunter soon!

Congrats!!! NYU is super fast! And yes, I won't know about funding for Pitt until Feb or Mar., but NYU is definitely in my top 3. How do you all plan to make your move across the states? I am thinking of plans now, so I am not struggling later. lol

[KristaG]

14 hours ago, TooExcited&Nervous said:

Congrats!!! NYU is super fast! And yes, I won't know about funding for Pitt until Feb or Mar., but NYU is definitely in my top 3. How do you all plan to make your move across the states? I am thinking of plans now, so I am not struggling later. lol

I actually live in New York currently, I just live about 4 hours upstate though. So my move won't be too hectic. I plan to figure out living situations once I know where i'm officially going. I know most schools give you information about finding apartments and stuff like that. 

[abswk]

I just submitted my Columbia application and feeling nervous! I am graduating with my BSW this year; applied for the Advanced Standing MSW, with clinical focus. Feeling anxious about it!!! I have a decent amount of volunteer experience and currently at my 3rd internship placement which will be an advantage. 4.0 GPA. Still very nervous!

Does anyone know if Columbia has a good reputation for giving aid?

Also, did anyone  submit their application essay(s) with cover pages and/or work cited page? I chose to do one large essay that answered all 3 questions and it was difficult get all the information within the 8 page limit! I decided not to do a title page and put work cited directly under the end of the paper. Thoughts?

Congrats to everyone! 

[JonoDuncan]

3 hours ago, abswk said:

I just submitted my Columbia application and feeling nervous! I am graduating with my BSW this year; applied for the Advanced Standing MSW, with clinical focus. Feeling anxious about it!!! I have a decent amount of volunteer experience and currently at my 3rd internship placement which will be an advantage. 4.0 GPA. Still very nervous!

Does anyone know if Columbia has a good reputation for giving aid?

Also, did anyone  submit their application essay(s) with cover pages and/or work cited page? I chose to do one large essay that answered all 3 questions and it was difficult get all the information within the 8 page limit! I decided not to do a title page and put work cited directly under the end of the paper. Thoughts?

Congrats to everyone! 

Hey there! I applied for Columbia's advanced standing program this week as well, among other NYC programs. I graduated with my BSW in 2016 and have three years of professional experience in mental health with homelessness as well as inpatient, and a few other committees and projects I've been apart of. I graduated with a 3.75GPA. 

I looked into the forums from last year and it looked like a lot of people were getting a pretty standard 10k scholarship. At least if I remember correctly. I also contracted my essay into one large essay but I did not include a title page or a works cited. I saw that they said to reference the relevant literature in one of the questions but I didn't really know what I would cite. Maybe the definitions of perspectives and theoretical frameworks? I'd be curious to know what you cited. 

I am anxious about getting in as Columbia is my #1 choice but I know I won't hear back until late January into February. So it hasn't been weighing on me too much! I know it will as the acceptance period gets closer! 

Did you apply to other schools? 

[HopefulforMSW]

i everyone, I just turned in my application for Columbia (just before the priority deadline, hehe) and am a little concerned because when the final page popped up with my application number, there was a red X next to "personal statement" with the word "awaiting" on it.  I wrote three essays but don't remember a place for a separate personal statement.  If the personal statement means the essays, I'm confused -- the preview of the application proof shows my three essays, plus my resume, was properly submitted, so why do I have an X there?  

Did anyone else get this or know what it might mean?  

 

Good luck, everyone!

[abswk]

2 hours ago, HopefulforMSW said:

i everyone, I just turned in my application for Columbia (just before the priority deadline, hehe) and am a little concerned because when the final page popped up with my application number, there was a red X next to "personal statement" with the word "awaiting" on it.  I wrote three essays but don't remember a place for a separate personal statement.  If the personal statement means the essays, I'm confused -- the preview of the application proof shows my three essays, plus my resume, was properly submitted, so why do I have an X there?  

Did anyone else get this or know what it might mean?  

 

Good luck, everyone!

Yes I had the same red x I called admissions and they manually changed it for me! They were very helpful. They said it was just a glitch in the system that happens often. 

[abswk]

19 hours ago, JonoDuncan said:

Hey there! I applied for Columbia's advanced standing program this week as well, among other NYC programs. I graduated with my BSW in 2016 and have three years of professional experience in mental health with homelessness as well as inpatient, and a few other committees and projects I've been apart of. I graduated with a 3.75GPA. 

I looked into the forums from last year and it looked like a lot of people were getting a pretty standard 10k scholarship. At least if I remember correctly. I also contracted my essay into one large essay but I did not include a title page or a works cited. I saw that they said to reference the relevant literature in one of the questions but I didn't really know what I would cite. Maybe the definitions of perspectives and theoretical frameworks? I'd be curious to know what you cited. 

I am anxious about getting in as Columbia is my #1 choice but I know I won't hear back until late January into February. So it hasn't been weighing on me too much! I know it will as the acceptance period gets closer! 

Did you apply to other schools? 

Thanks for the info! I cited the code of ethics and compared them to my ethics to highlight my skills etc. nothing crazy. I don’t think having or not having a work cited will make a difference. I haven’t applied to any other schools yet because I want to hear back from Columbia first. But I am feeling torn after hearing so many good things about hunter! I might have to apply to hunter.... 

[HopefulforMSW]

Hi everyone,

Thanks abswk for your response -- I checked in again 5 hours later and the X has disappeared, yay!   I'm not sure if it's because I had emailed someone in the department about it or if it just took a little time for my application to register.  By the way, I too only applied to Columbia because I heard that there is good financial aid for the online program .  (Not sure if that's actually true though, a friend told me that her friend had heard about it.)  Does anyone else know of programs that have a history of giving good financial aid, especially online programs?   I don't want to go back into heavy debt for school, so I'm basing my decision on whether I go at all on how much I'd get.    

 

 

 

[laurene2014]

Hi everybody! I am currently in the process of applying to grad schools. I have only applied to Bowling Green State University (where I'm finishing my undergrad) and OSU's online advanced standing program. I'm hoping to get into OSU so I can do the online program. I'm still waiting on my letters of rec but besides that my apps are all finished. I thought I wouldn't be able to get into some of the bigger schools but now I'm wishing I had applied to some other places.

Cumulative GPA: 3.5

I've worked in a domestic violence shelter for over a year and will be starting my field experience in January at the local committee on aging. Tons of community service and volunteer hours.

No clue what I want to do in the social work field. What does everyone want to specialize in/what population are you hoping to work with?

[abswk]

On 12/2/2017 at 10:56 PM, laurene2014 said:

Hi everybody! I am currently in the process of applying to grad schools. I have only applied to Bowling Green State University (where I'm finishing my undergrad) and OSU's online advanced standing program. I'm hoping to get into OSU so I can do the online program. I'm still waiting on my letters of rec but besides that my apps are all finished. I thought I wouldn't be able to get into some of the bigger schools but now I'm wishing I had applied to some other places.

Cumulative GPA: 3.5

I've worked in a domestic violence shelter for over a year and will be starting my field experience in January at the local committee on aging. Tons of community service and volunteer hours.

No clue what I want to do in the social work field. What does everyone want to specialize in/what population are you hoping to work with?

I am hoping to intern my graduate year at a Veterans Affairs Medical Center, I am most interested in severe mental illness, trauma, and homelessness. My goal is to become LCSW-R and practice psychotherapy on individual and group basis with veterans post-deployment facing trauma and moral injury. Later in my career would love to establish a private practice.

Who knows! Maybe that will change! I also love the idea of going into policy change! One of the many reasons why I love social work....so much opportunity on so many levels! 

It's not too late to apply to other schools that you might be interested in   Best of luck! 

[JonoDuncan]

On 12/2/2017 at 8:56 PM, laurene2014 said:

Hi everybody! I am currently in the process of applying to grad schools. I have only applied to Bowling Green State University (where I'm finishing my undergrad) and OSU's online advanced standing program. I'm hoping to get into OSU so I can do the online program. I'm still waiting on my letters of rec but besides that my apps are all finished. I thought I wouldn't be able to get into some of the bigger schools but now I'm wishing I had applied to some other places.

Cumulative GPA: 3.5

I've worked in a domestic violence shelter for over a year and will be starting my field experience in January at the local committee on aging. Tons of community service and volunteer hours.

No clue what I want to do in the social work field. What does everyone want to specialize in/what population are you hoping to work with?

My professional background has been with mental health. I spent two years in a nonprofit doing outreach and case management for individuals experiencing homelessness and severe mental illness/substance abuse. This past year I transitioned to an inpatient adult psychiatric unit as a behavioral health tech. 

I've become more interested in macro social work - public policy, programming, community development, advocacy - maybe on an international level? That is why I'm most interested in Columbia's MSW program. I'm from Arizona but hoping to transition out to NYC. I live a small mountain town but want to be in a bigger city with more diversity and more opportunities for growth and connections. 

[MSW-MD]

Wayne State University actually has a great MSW program . It offers both  clinical and non-clinical perspective of social work. I am currently providing casual clinical supervision to some of the MSW students here , and in my subjective opinion,  they are much more open minded and socially sophisticated than their Canadian MSW peers.

[Tricia Pearson]

Hey guys! HELP! After I graduated college, I took a year off to gain some experience in human services. I currently work at a non-profit organization as a residence counselor working with the mentally ill and trying to help them transition into independent housing and learning independent skills while coping with their diagnosis. I love my job and it has made me want to go into social work even more. I also volunteer every week at another agency preparing lunch and serving it to those in need. My problem is that I graduated with a 2.8 gpa in English because I worked a part time job pretty much working 30-35 hours a week, being extremely involved on campus, and shortly after being diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis. I had trouble with work life balance until my senior year I pretty much figured out that work life balance is possible with all that I do and I even wrote about it all in my personal statement. I also took a few Social work courses my last year and received an A in all of them. I am applying to Ualbany, Cuny Hunter, Cuny Lehman, Fordham online, and NYU. I just am nervous I won't get in anywhere. Do you think there's a possibilty I will get into any one of these schools?

[abswk]

3 hours ago, Tricia Pearson said:

Hey guys! HELP! After I graduated college, I took a year off to gain some experience in human services. I currently work at a non-profit organization as a residence counselor working with the mentally ill and trying to help them transition into independent housing and learning independent skills while coping with their diagnosis. I love my job and it has made me want to go into social work even more. I also volunteer every week at another agency preparing lunch and serving it to those in need. My problem is that I graduated with a 2.8 gpa in English because I worked a part time job pretty much working 30-35 hours a week, being extremely involved on campus, and shortly after being diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis. I had trouble with work life balance until my senior year I pretty much figured out that work life balance is possible with all that I do and I even wrote about it all in my personal statement. I also took a few Social work courses my last year and received an A in all of them. I am applying to Ualbany, Cuny Hunter, Cuny Lehman, Fordham online, and NYU. I just am nervous I won't get in anywhere. Do you think there's a possibilty I will get into any one of these schools?

Hi!  If you had a strong personal statement that illustrated your skills and knowledge of the profession, I'm sure they might focus less on GPA... I'm really not too sure what the requirements are for those schools are though. Best of luck!! 

[JonoDuncan]

5 hours ago, Tricia Pearson said:

Hey guys! HELP! After I graduated college, I took a year off to gain some experience in human services. I currently work at a non-profit organization as a residence counselor working with the mentally ill and trying to help them transition into independent housing and learning independent skills while coping with their diagnosis. I love my job and it has made me want to go into social work even more. I also volunteer every week at another agency preparing lunch and serving it to those in need. My problem is that I graduated with a 2.8 gpa in English because I worked a part time job pretty much working 30-35 hours a week, being extremely involved on campus, and shortly after being diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis. I had trouble with work life balance until my senior year I pretty much figured out that work life balance is possible with all that I do and I even wrote about it all in my personal statement. I also took a few Social work courses my last year and received an A in all of them. I am applying to Ualbany, Cuny Hunter, Cuny Lehman, Fordham online, and NYU. I just am nervous I won't get in anywhere. Do you think there's a possibilty I will get into any one of these schools?

I've seen a fair amount of people talk about getting accepted to MSW programs with a fairly low GPA. I think the key is highlighting the reason you had a low GPA and how you've changed and grown, or will change. It sounds like you have some good professional experience to go off of. Something that will help your application is looking at the mission statement of each school, getting a feel for the emphasis and values of each program, and tying it into your statement of purpose. Obviously most social work programs will have very similar focuses (NASW core values) but the programs I applied to talked about some different things in their mission statements. Use that to your advantage and show how you will be a good addition to their program culture!  

I know CUNY Hunter is very competitive but Fordham and NYU have fairly high acceptance rates from what I've found. I was recently accepted to NYU. Good luck and keep us updated! 

[JonoDuncan]

Also I totally thought I posted this in here earlier but I guess no! A bit delayed, but I was accepted to NYU's Advanced Standing MSW program for Fall 2018 with a $17,000 scholarship. I was notified about the scholarship in my acceptance letter. I'm still waiting to see what Columbia says before I make a final decision.

Good luck to other NYU applicants! I heard back four days after receiving an email from admissions saying my application was officially complete. 

[meowison]

Hey Guys! I've been lurking on this forum for a while now, so I figured I'd join in. I graduated in 2015 with a BA in Psychology and a minor in Social Work. I hadn't planned to go to graduate school until late last year so my GPA for undergrad is not great, 2.79. However, since graduation I've spent time working jobs to gain SW experience. I worked as a visitation monitor for a non profit Foster Youth agency. I hope to pursue a career in Child Welfare. Im currently serving in the Americorps in New Orleans, LA. Schools I've applied to: Tulane (awaiting decision), SocialWork@Simmons (awaiting decision), NYU (this is my number one choice right now, my last recommender is laaaagggging though so i cant get my decision until she does), Boston College (waiting on recs to finish), and Baylor University (waiting on one rec). I can't wait until they're all squared away and decisions start rolling in... 

[Tricia Pearson]

On 12/11/2017 at 8:54 PM, Tricia Pearson said:

Hey guys! HELP! After I graduated college, I took a year off to gain some experience in human services. I currently work at a non-profit organization as a residence counselor working with the mentally ill and trying to help them transition into independent housing and learning independent skills while coping with their diagnosis. I love my job and it has made me want to go into social work even more. I also volunteer every week at another agency preparing lunch and serving it to those in need. My problem is that I graduated with a 2.8 gpa in English because I worked a part time job pretty much working 30-35 hours a week, being extremely involved on campus, and shortly after being diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis. I had trouble with work life balance until my senior year I pretty much figured out that work life balance is possible with all that I do and I even wrote about it all in my personal statement. I also took a few Social work courses my last year and received an A in all of them. I am applying to Ualbany, Cuny Hunter, Cuny Lehman, Fordham online, and NYU. I just am nervous I won't get in anywhere. Do you think there's a possibilty I will get into any one of these schools?

Update guys! I got into NYU for the fall! I didn’t submit any of my other applications yet. I will accept NYU since it was my number 2, instead of spending hundreds on the other schools I was going to apply to! Also they surprisingly gave me a scholarship! Good luck everyone 

[Tricia Pearson]

On 12/14/2017 at 1:15 PM, meowison said:

Hey Guys! I've been lurking on this forum for a while now, so I figured I'd join in. I graduated in 2015 with a BA in Psychology and a minor in Social Work. I hadn't planned to go to graduate school until late last year so my GPA for undergrad is not great, 2.79. However, since graduation I've spent time working jobs to gain SW experience. I worked as a visitation monitor for a non profit Foster Youth agency. I hope to pursue a career in Child Welfare. Im currently serving in the Americorps in New Orleans, LA. Schools I've applied to: Tulane (awaiting decision), SocialWork@Simmons (awaiting decision), NYU (this is my number one choice right now, my last recommender is laaaagggging though so i cant get my decision until she does), Boston College (waiting on recs to finish), and Baylor University (waiting on one rec). I can't wait until they're all squared away and decisions start rolling in... 

My gpa was a 2.8 and I took a year off for experience in the field. I just got into NYU! If you have a kick ass essay and recommendations, you’ll be fine! Your gpa isn’t everything.

[Kat_MSW2018]

On 1/28/2018 at 6:17 PM, Tricia Pearson said:

Update guys! I got into NYU for the fall! I didn’t submit any of my other applications yet. I will accept NYU since it was my number 2, instead of spending hundreds on the other schools I was going to apply to! Also they surprisingly gave me a scholarship! Good luck everyone 

Congratulations!!! That is AMAZINGGGGG. When did you apply/hear back? Are you happy with the financial aid? 

I'm waiting for my acceptances. :/ Very anxious. I hope to say we'll cross paths this fall!

[meowison]

On 1/28/2018 at 8:19 PM, Tricia Pearson said:

My gpa was a 2.8 and I took a year off for experience in the field. I just got into NYU! If you have a kick ass essay and recommendations, you’ll be fine! Your gpa isn’t everything.

I got into NYU, Tulane, and Simmons online since I posted this! I wil be attending NYU

[Tricia Pearson]

On 1/29/2018 at 11:49 PM, Kat_MSW2018 said:

Congratulations!!! That is AMAZINGGGGG. When did you apply/hear back? Are you happy with the financial aid? 

I'm waiting for my acceptances. :/ Very anxious. I hope to say we'll cross paths this fall!

I applied a few days before Christmas and heard back January 26th. I am going part time. I haven’t heard anything about my financial aid yet. I asked and they said that I would receive my package mid March which kind of sucks because then what if I was leaning towards a different school. Either way I accepted NYU and moving back to the city in the next few months and super excited. My next. Steps are trying to find a job similar to what I do up here in the mental health field. Good luck!! Hope to see you in the fall!