How to Make Your Columbia MSSW Essays Stand Out
Introduction to the Columbia MSSW Essay Questions
Columbia University is a popular choice for social work master’s applicants.
As part of the application process, Columbia University requires applicants to complete several essays. These essays serve as an opportunity to share with the admissions committee your interests in social work and the experiences that drive your motivation to pursue an MSSW degree.
These essays are an important part of the process, and writing them can be intimidating! In this post, I hope to offer some guidance for completing the essays.
Something to keep in mind: I am not affiliated with Columbia University and everything in this post is my own opinion. Please use discretion when using this information to apply to programs and check with the school for the most up-to-date information about the application process.
Advanced Standing Vs. Regular Track MSSW Programs
The Columbia essay requirements are different for Advanced Standing vs. Regular Track MSSW applicants. We’ll cover both in this article, so please scroll to your program of choice.
Advanced Standing – Columbia MSSW Essay Questions
Columbia Essay 1 Instructions: Direct Practice Example
“Please choose a direct practice example with an individual, group, family and/or community and describe it, disguising names. Your description headings should include:
Agency Description: Precede the example with a brief paragraph describing the agency, its function, and its purpose. In addition, cite the relevant literature.
Assessment: A summary of the essential case data (e.g., age, ethnicity, race, presenting problems, history of problem, coping abilities) presenting your understanding of the client(s) functioning in the situation.
Case Plan: Describe the plan and how it relates to the assessment.
Interventions: Describe and analyze your practice interventions and how they are related to the case plan and/or assessment formulation. An excerpt that demonstrates the process of your work is helpful, since we are most interested in assessing practice skills. For example: skills in interviewing, clarifying, strengthening coping responses, interpreting behavior, brokering, advocating, and developing insight.
Evaluation: Critically analyze the strengths and limitations of your efforts. In hindsight, how might you have intervened differently and why?
Your response to this essay prompt may be longer than 500 words.”
Some schools ask for a practice example to assess your social work skills. As an advanced standing student, you should have direct practice experience from your internship, volunteer, or work experiences. Schools want to assess your understanding of fundamental social work values and interventions, and having you complete a direct practice example is a great way to do so!
Here are some tips for breaking down the prompt:
Agency description: Provide context about the work you were doing. What population does the agency serve? What services do they offer? What is your role? What is the agency's approach?
Assessment: Describe the client(s) needs in a professional manner. What did they need from you? What was their goal? What challenges did they face? What strengths and resources did they have? What relevant information did they provide? What professional insights did you have about the situation?
Case plan: Explain the intervention and goals you and the client came up with. What were your short- and long-term goals? How did you measure progress with the client? Did you face any ethical challenges or systemic barriers to helping the client meet their goal?
Interventions: What specific techniques did you use and why? What theories informed your approach? Why did you choose these interventions and why were they relevant to the case plan?
Evaluation: Did the client meet their goals? Did you face any challenges or limitations in supporting this client? What did you learn from the situation, and how has this informed your practice as a future social worker?
When writing a case plan please be sure to maintain confidentiality – don’t use names or include any identifying details. I would also reflect on the social work Code of Ethics and common social work theories.
Columbia Essay 2: Anti-Racism Statement
This question is covered in the regular track MSW questions -check it out below!
Columbia Essay 3: Motivation for Pursuing Social Work
“Reflecting upon your decision and motivation to pursue the MSW, describe how attending CSSW will enable you to meet your goals as a social worker. What are your immediate and long-term social work goals? (500 words max)”
Admissions committees look for applicants with strong critical thinking skills who can make a meaningful contribution to the social work program. Columbia University, in particular, wants to see that you have thoughtfully chosen their program, and they want to understand how their unique features align with your career goals.
To start, I would get clear about your goal as a social worker. Social work is a broad field, and one mistake I often see is applicants simply saying that they want to “help people”. The problem with this answer is that it doesn’t tell the reader anything compelling, and it doesn’t stand out. Instead, think about the following: What contribution do you want to make? What population do you wish to support? How will you support them? What kind of role do you wish to have?
Next, make it clear how Columbia University’s MSSW fits with your goals. Think about the program's mission, specializations, faculty, and courses that resonate with your goals. Why are you choosing Columbia University out of all of the other social work programs available to you?
Regular Track Essays: Columbia MSSW Essay Questions
Columbia Essay 1: Social Problem
“Describe a social problem of significance to you. Discuss the problem in regard to societal contributions to the origin of the problem, experiences (personal or otherwise) that have contributed to your identification and understanding of the problem, and possible ways you would address this problem as a future social worker. How has this problem influenced your immediate and long term social work goals? How will CSSW prepare you to address the problem? (500-700 words max)”
When choosing a social issue, I recommend picking an issue that is closely related to your goals as a social worker. This allows you to show the admissions committee that there is a need for social work in your area of interest – and it also gives you an opportunity to show the admissions committee how you can be the person to address that gap!
I would also get specific. If you need help choosing a social issue I would recommend checking out our webinar where we cover how to choose a social issue and connect it to your goals.
Columbia Essay 2: Anti-Racism Statement
“Columbia School of Social Work is committed to becoming an anti-racist institution and we have embarked on the pursuit of an anti-racism action plan that involves all members of our community. As a potential future member of our community, please describe your commitment to anti-racism and the ways you hope to engage in anti-oppressive actions as a social worker. (500 words max)”
Columbia University emphasizes anti-racism because this is a central tenet of the social work profession. Therefore, they want to understand your commitment to anti-racism, and they are likely assessing your responses for your commitment to social work values, your ability to reflect and grow professionally, and your ability to critically self-refect.
When writing this essay be sure to provide concrete examples that show the reader your commitment to anti-racism. Show, don’t just tell!
Check out our in-depth article for drafting a response for this essay here.
Conclusion
This guide provides a general overview of how to complete the Columbia University MSSW essays. If you are applying to social work programs I highly recommend getting connected to the MSW Helper community to get support from others who have been, or who are currently going through the grad school application process!
