1. University of Michigan MSW/PhD Information Session
Welcome to the
University of Michigan
School of Social Work
MSW/PhD Information Session

2. Assistant Director for Student Services
Session Housekeeping
Erin Zimmer, LMSW
Assistant Director for Student Services

3. Send Us Questions Simply type your question into the “question box”
“Raise your hand” if on telephone

4. Joining Today’s Session
Lauren Davis, LLMSW
Student Services Specialist

5. Today’s Agenda MSW Program Information The MSW Student Experience
Erin Zimmer, Assistant Director for Student Services
The MSW Student Experience
Brittany Sandefur, Current MSW Student
MSW Application Process
Doctoral Program Information
Berit Ingersoll-Dayton, Director of Doctoral Program

6. Assistant Director for Student Services
MSW Program
Erin Zimmer, LMSW
Assistant Director for Student Services

7. MSW Concentration Options
Practice Methods:
Community Organization
Interpersonal Practice
Management of Human Services
Social Policy and Evaluation
Practice Areas:
Aging in Families and Society
Children and Youth in Families and Society
Community and Social Systems
Health
Mental Health

8. Specialization & Certification Programs
Child Welfare Scholarship Program
Geriatric Scholarship Program
Global Activities Scholarship Program
Jewish Communal Leadership Program
Community-Based Initiative
National Community Scholars Program
Peace Corps Master’s International
Social Work in School Settings
Social Work in the Workplace
Specialist in Aging Certificate

9. Curriculum Schedules Advanced Standing 16-month 20-month
Extended Degree
Fifth Term Option

10. Field Placement Over 475 field sites in southeastern
Michigan, nationally, and internationally.
Students participate in field placement selection
Specialized field placements
View field sites at:

11. Dual Degree Programs Social Work and Business Administration
Social Work and Information
Social Work and Law
Social Work and Public Health
Social Work and Public Policy
Social Work and Urban Planning

12. The Current Student Experience
Brittany Sandefur
Management of Human Services/Community & Social Systems

13. MSW Application Process

14. How? Paper vs. Online When? Date to Apply
Online application preferred
When should you apply?
December 1
January 31
March 1

15. Criteria for Admission
Personal Characteristics
Recommendations
Supplementary Statement
Human Services/SW Experience
Academics

16. Personal Characteristics
Bi-lingual skills in relevant language
Commitment to social action/advocacy
Geographic location
Success in another field
Strong commitment to social work values
Work as an undergraduate

17. Personal Characteristics (part 2)
Personal qualifications:
sensitivity
responsiveness in relationships
concern for the needs of others
adaptability
good judgment
integrity

18. Personal Characteristics (part 3)
Life experiences which are good preparation for social work practice
Interest in an area with a shortage in social work (macro, aging, child welfare, work with developmentally disabled populations, etc.)
Strong interest in multicultural social work practice/issues

19. Recommendations Overall recommendation Individual category evaluations
Relationship of recommender to applicant
Length of time of the relationship
Status of recommender
Content of the narrative
Forms online (application or download)

20. Statement Grammatical quality of the statement Quality of the content
Success in addressing all four questions
Critical thinking skills
Extent to which social problem/program strategy interests are related to concentrations/specializations

21. Experience Amount/quality of paid social work-related experience
Amount/quality of volunteer social work- related experience
Amount/quality of internship social work- related experience
Participation in CSWE accredited field placement(s)
Extent to which experience is relevant to future goals within the field
Average experience: (one year paid with some volunteer work experience)

22. Education Undergrad GPA Grad GPA
Average over last credit hours: 3.5
Grad GPA
Course content/major/institution attended
Significant research experience
Quality of academic recommendations
Undergraduate performance in first 2 years
Trainings/continuing education, workshops, professional enrichment activities

23. Financial Aid
Approximately 90% of MSW students receive some form of grant and/or scholarship assistance from the School of Social Work.
SSW Financial Aid Form
Special Program Applications
(due Dec. 1 or Feb. 1)
Child Welfare Scholarship, Geriatric Scholarship, Jewish Communal Leadership Program, Community-Based Initiative, National Community Scholars, Global Activities Scholars
Graduate Student Services Assistant
FAFSA

24. Questions? Be sure to watch the SSW Blogs:
Office of Student Services:

25. The Joint Doctoral Program in Social Work and Social Science
Berit Ingersoll-Dayton, PhD
Director of the Joint Doctoral Program

26. What is the Joint Doctoral Program?
The Program began over 50 years ago and today students work with internationally recognized scholars across disciplines.
The Joint Doctoral Program offers interdisciplinary study and leads to a PhD in social work and one of five social sciences:

27. Why the Joint Doctoral Program?
Interdisciplinary degree in social work and social science
Opportunities to become involved in a broad range of research projects
Active student participation
Faculty with international reputations
Wide range of job opportunities

28. Research Opportunities within the Joint Program
Health and mental health disparities
Gerontology and aging
Interpersonal violence
Evaluation research
Prevention and action research
Child welfare and child resiliency
Family structure and relations
Gender and sexuality
Race and ethnicity
Cross-cultural differences

29. Doctoral Student Groups within Social Work
The School of Social Work has a number of active student groups including
Conversations Across Social Disciplines
”Lifespan and Cross-cultural Perspectives on Social Relations”
”Integrating Activism and Politics in Academia”
Interdisciplinary Group on Poverty and Inequality
”Poverty and Natural Disasters in the Developing World: Haiti and Beyond”
”’The Other America’ Today: Poverty in the Midst of the Economic Downturn”

30. Where Joint Doctoral Graduates Work
US universities
Columbia University
University of California
University of Washington
International universities
Tel Aviv University
University of Guam
University of Melbourne
Applied settings
Center for AIDS Prevention Studies
Henry Ford Health System
Singapore Department of Statistics
The Urban Institute

31. Key Elements of the Joint Program
A Master’s in Social Work (MSW)
Social work courses
Social science courses
Research internship
Teaching experience
Preliminary exams in social work and social science
PhD dissertation combining social work and social science

32. Length of Time toward Degree
Coursework and preliminary exams:
four years for pre-MSW students
three years for post-MSW students
Dissertation: one to two years
Total program length is four to six years

33. Applying for Admission
All applicants must designate their desired joint social science and demonstrate their potential for PhD study by providing the following materials to the Joint Doctoral Program:
Personal statement
Statement of purpose
Curriculum vitae
Three letters of reference
Transcripts from colleges and universities attended
Results from the Graduate Record Exam (GRE)
Results from the TOEFL/METLAB exam if country of origin’s native language is not English and prior education was not earned in an English-speaking country

34. Key Admissions Materials
Personal statement
Discuss your personal background, relevant life experiences
Discuss gaps or issues in your application
How have you been led to this decision?
Statement of purpose
What research questions interest you?
What social science are you interested and why?
How do these interests mesh with those of faculty in each area?
What are your career objectives?
Letters of reference
Academic potential and scholarship
Research experience and background

35. Application Deadlines
Applications for the fall term are due
December 1
Applicants are notified of decisions by early March
Admit 10–15 per year

36. Financial Support
All students receive four- to six-year funding packages through fellowships or program-related
employment.
A limited number of Rackham Merit Fellowships for students of underrepresented backgrounds.
The Program also features an NIA training program in aging and gerontology which allocates fellowships for periods of one to three years.
Students are also eligible for other graduate school awards, and awards administered through their social science department.
Most financial aid awards are made at the time of the offer of admission.

37. 1080 South University Ave., Room 3704
Questions?
Doctoral Office
(734)
1080 South University Ave., Room 3704
Ann Arbor, MI 48109

38. Thank you for joining our virtual information session
We look forward to seeing you soon
In Ann Arbor!