<p>I graduated last year with a BA in Sociology. I am now looking to apply to grad schools for my Masters of Social Work and am not really sure whether my grades and resume are good enough to get in to the top tier schools (I am thinking about applying to NYU, Columbia, BU, University of Chicago, University of Washington and UC Berkeley). There are other schools I'm also looking at which are not as prestigious and I know I can get into. I graduated with a 3.64 GPA but a 3.75 in my major. I have experience working in the health care field, which I know is a plus for social work, and I am currently teaching English in Asia for a year.</p>
<p>If anyone has applied to an MSW program or knows someone who has, your help would be greatly appreciated. I just want to know if I have a good chance of getting into these top programs, or whether I am wasting my time and should focus on other schools.</p>
<p>I should mention that I have not yet taken the GREs, most of the programs I am looking at do not require it if your GPA is above a certain level.</p>
<p>MSW programs, including the top ones, care more about your work experience in social work, essays, and recommendations from supervisors in the field than your grades or GRE scores (as long as you get at least 1000 you should have no problems in the few schools that require one). With your grades and experience, you have very strong odds of getting into the top MSW programs.</p>
<p>My only caution would be that you might consider applying to an affordable, in-state program as well as the name schools. The name on your degree matters very little to agencies post-graduation, as long as your program is accredited. In this economic climate you definitely don’t want to be carrying a huge debt load in addition to being in a low paying profession. I speak as someone who just got an MSW - I’m having a very hard time finding openings to apply for and have only had one interview since graduating mid-May. This is true for the majority of my newly graduated classmates as well.</p>
<p>I would also add that the name-brand schools have strong research-oriented programs. That’s why they are considered the top schools in social work. If you are not planning to become a researcher or policy analyst, then don’t go into a lot of debt for the degree.</p>
<p>With your GPA and work experience, you have an excellent chance at getting in. I was recently accepted to a MSW (LCMSW) program and License Professional Counselor (LPC) program with no background in the human service. However, I have work experience my essay referenced my career change with excellent recommendations from my Professors and Manager. VCU social work program is nationally ranked. My goal is to work with Veteran Affairs (excellent pay), which requires you to have a MSW, they do not quite recognize LPC’s. and the cost and time between the 2 programs was my deciding factor. Hope this helps!</p>
<p>Hi- I’m a current undergrad at a community college researching clinical MSW programs for my grad study. Can anyone shed light on the value of getting an MSW through distance learning? I know USC for example has a distance program and a few other traditional and for-profits. Thanks.</p>