Tips For Your University of Toronto MSW Application
Applying for grad school can be overwhelming, especially when you’re trying to keep track of all the different application requirements from the programs you’re applying to. Trust me, I’ve been there! Below, I’m sharing a guide to your University of Toronto (UofT) MSW application so that the process is as simple as possible for you, and you can focus on putting your best foot forward on the application itself!
Disclaimer: MSW Helper is not affiliated with the University of Toronto (UofT) or the Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work (FIFSW). All advice, thoughts, and opinions in this blog belong to MSW Helper and do not reflect the views or opinions of the University of Toronto. Please email info@mswhelper.com for questions and concerns.
University of Toronto MSW Programs
Like many schools, the University of Toronto offers a few different MSW programs: a two-year foundational program, a one-year advanced program. As well, they also offer a two-year Indigenous Trauma and Resiliency program.
Two-Year MSW program: (full time)
For MSW applicants with a degree besides a BSW, the University of Toronto offers a two-year full-time MSW program. This type of program is often referred to as a “foundational” program because you complete a “foundation” year before moving on to the second year and joining the advanced cohort. For more information on this program, you can take a look at the program website here.
Advanced Standing MSW program: (full or part time)
The University of Toronto offers two different one-year advanced standing MSW programs for applicants entering who have already completed their BSW. At UofT, you can either complete the advanced standing program on a full-time basis over the course of one year, or part-time over two years. Both the full-time and the part-time tracks complete the same course requirements, they are just spaced out differently depending on the program. More information on the advanced standing programs can be found here.
In both the one-year and two-year MSW programs at the University of Toronto, students will be able to choose between five different fields of study, which provides an opportunity to tailor your MSW degree to your own professional interests. The five fields of study are:
Children and their Families
Human Services Management & Leadership
Mental Health & Health
Social Justice & Diversity
Social Work in Gerontology
For more information on these fields of study at the University of Toronto, you can take a look at their website here!
Indigenous Trauma and Resiliency
The MSW – Indigenous Trauma and Resiliency program is a unique program where students have the opportunity to learn from Elders and cultural mentors while focusing their learning on trauma intervention and treatment. This is a two-year full-time program for applicants with a BSW or a non-BSW degree. This program differs significantly from the other MSW programs offered at UofT, and also has different admission requirements. Although the rest of this post will be specific to the standard one-year and two-year MSW program, you can find more information on this particular program and admission requirements on their website!
Application Process for the FIFSW MSW program
Similar to most MSW applications, the University of Toronto’s MSW application is comprised of a few different components. Applicants will complete an online application and pay the fee. In the online portal, applicants will also have to upload unofficial transcripts, along with their CV/resume, personal statement, and information for references. Additionally, those applying to the advanced standing program will be asked to provide information on their field practicum experience from their BSW. I’ll discuss the main components of the application below, but for more information on each requirement, you can check out the MSW admissions website here!
Note that the University of Toronto offers both a Black Student Application Program, as well as an Indigenous Student Application Program. Information about both of these applications can be found on the admissions website. Also, as I mentioned above, the Indigenous Trauma and Resiliency has a different application process, so make sure you are following the application instructions for your desired program!
References
Applicants to the MSW programs at the University of Toronto will be required to provide three references. For those applying to the two-year program, one reference will need to be from a work or volunteer supervisor, one will need to be from a past university instructor, and the third one can be from either of these categories. For the one-year MSW program, one reference needs to be from a past university instructor, one needs to be from a work or volunteer setting, and one needs to be from a practicum supervisor from your BSW if your BSW is currently in progress or it has been completed in the past two years. You can find more details related to reference requirements on the website here!
References can be a tricky part of the application process! To help you along in the process of finding and contacting references, check out our guide to grad school references!
CV
For both the one-year and two-year MSW applications, the University of Toronto has provided guidelines for what should be included in your CV along with suggested headings. When creating your CV, make sure you follow the headings provided, as well as follow the specific instructions for including the dates and number of hours from each of your experiences! Details on CV instructions can be found here.
Personal Statement Prompts
The personal statement is arguably the most important aspect of your MSW application, so it is important to put your best foot forward by providing a well-written personal statement. The University of Toronto’s social work program provides five questions for the personal statement, and each one must be answered. There is a limit of 400 words per question, so it is important to be concise in your answers. Below, I’ll break down each of the five prompts with ideas and tips for how to answer them.
Prompt 1: What experiences motivate you to (a) become a social worker; or (b) continue your social work education?
Trying to answer what motivates you to pursue social work, especially when you are already coming from a BSW background can be tough. It is important to be as specific as possible here; although your gut reaction to this question might be to say “I want to help people”, this is a vague answer that doesn’t give the admission committee an understanding of why you are pursuing social work specifically.
For this prompt, figuring out what your “mission statement” or thesis for your whole personal statement will be extremely helpful in narrowing down what you want to say here. This means that you should start thinking about what experiences you have had up to this point that made you decide to go into social work, as well as what your future goals are in your social work career. In addition, it can also be helpful to think about what gaps exist in your knowledge or skills that you are hoping to learn from the MSW program, because this can also help you narrow down your “why” even further. We have an entire post dedicated to this that you can check out here to help you get started!
Get MSW Helper’s free personal statement template to help you start and structure your personal statement.
Prompt 2: Describe your skills (e.g.: volunteer/work) that you believe are relevant to social work (with examples). In particular, please describe your experiences working with diverse and marginalized populations.
This question is fairly direct in what you will want to highlight here, but it isn’t always easy figuring out what skills and experience to talk about, especially if you come from a non-social work background. For this question, I would start by thinking about some skills related to social work you already have. For example, some of the skills you might want to highlight could include communication, empathy, critical thinking, problem-solving, working collaboratively with a team, or organization. From here, you can start to think about what professional or volunteer experiences you have which have helped you develop these skills. Perhaps you worked in a seniors home and developed empathy and problem-solving, or maybe you worked in retail and developed communication and patience. If you have experience related to social work you should absolutely highlight it, but you can also frame your non-social work experience in a way that shows that you are a valuable candidate!
Prompt 3: Describe your most substantial accomplishment and explain why you view it as such.
Answering this prompt can be tough because it is important to strike a balance between showing the admissions committee why you are a great candidate, but not coming across as too “braggy”. When choosing what accomplishment you want to discuss here, it can help you stand out by choosing something unique and meaningful to you. For example, for one person graduating from their bachelor’s degree may not have felt like their most substantial accomplishment, but for another person, perhaps they faced significant barriers throughout their degree and therefore earning their bachelor’s was extremely significant and meaningful to them.
When choosing your topic for this section, it doesn’t have to be directly related to social work or your career on the surface. However, as you discuss the accomplishment, I would recommend linking your accomplishment back to this application and your future career in social work in some way. For example, if your greatest accomplishment was something related to a sport you competed in for many years, you could use this to highlight your personal traits of being highly dedicated and motivated and discuss what this taught you about perseverance that will translate into you being an amazing social worker. In sum, whatever you choose to discuss here, try to break it down in a way that highlights some of the skills and experience you have that will allow you to make a difference in the future as a social worker.
Prompt 4: Discuss how you believe a social worker could work with a contemporary social problem of interest to you.
Although you might find the wording of this prompt a little confusing, this question is basically asking you to analyze a social justice issue. I would recommend choosing an issue you are interested in related to your past experience or future goals in the field, so that this section is related to the others and your personal statement feels cohesive overall. In addition, when selecting your social justice issue of interest, I would suggest making sure you choose something relatively specific so that you can go into detail in this section. By doing this, you can demonstrate not only your academic writing skills, but also your critical thinking as well. Lastly, in this section I would highly recommend including a few scholarly references to back up your discussion of the social issue of interest. The social justice issue piece of the personal statement can be tricky, but for further guidance you can check out this post with more tips and examples!
FREE WEBINAR: How to write your MSW personal statement
Our webinar is a great starting point for applicants who are applying to Master of Social Work programs. We discuss the most important considerations for your MSW Personal Statement, as well as how to position yourself as a strong candidate even if you have a low GPA or lack experience in the field.
Prompt 5: How do you think that the FIFSW MSW program can specifically benefit you and how do you think that you can contribute to the program? Please provide specific examples of how you will use your education in the future.
For this prompt, your job is to highlight why you have chosen UofT’s MSW program in particular to apply to. In writing this section, I would suggest discussing which of the five specific field(s) of study you are interested in and how this program is uniquely positioned to help you reach your professional goals. In addition, you can set yourself apart and demonstrate your genuine interest in the program by mentioning a specific instructor that you are hoping to work with, or even a class or two that you are hoping to take which would help you build the skills you need as a future social worker. When answering this question, it will also be important to make a point of discussing your career goals in a fairly detailed manner. As opposed to saying you want to work directly with clients, you could be specific and say that your goal is to be a counsellor for youths struggling with substance abuse.
Final Tips for Your FIFSW MSW program Application
Lastly, here are a few general tips for your University of Toronto MSW personal statement!
Make sure you upload your personal statement as a PDF because this is something that the FIFSW MSW program specifically requests/prefers.
Generally speaking, APA format is most common in the field of social work, so I always recommend following APA format for your personal statement so it shows your attention to detail and professionalism. You can find a guide for APA 7th edition student papers here!
Make sure you include your name on each page, this is another formatting requirement from the FIFSW MSW program!
For each question, the word count limit is 400 words so make sure you are following this! If you are having trouble being concise, I would suggest seeing if there are details you added that can be omitted. For example, applicants will often write a sentence or two about the organization that they worked for, but ultimately this doesn’t add much about why you will be an amazing social worker. Basically, anything that doesn’t directly show the admissions committee why you are a well-qualified applicant and will be a great social worker in the future can probably be omitted.
Our Application Advisors have been successfully admitted to social work programs in Canada and are here to help you make your personal statement stand out. Learn more here.
MSW applications can be daunting, but in sum, when applying for the University of Toronto’s Master of Social Work program the key parts of the application are gathering your references, writing your CV, and writing your personal statement. By following these suggestions above, you will be ready to get started and submit an amazing application!
