St. Cloud State University

PROCESS FOR ADMISSION TO THE SOCIAL WORK MAJOR

WHEN?

Students are eligible to apply to the Social Work major when they have completed the following courses: Social Work 195, Sociology 160, Applied Psychology 262 or Psychology 240, Biology 103, Human Relations 201 and 206, Statistics 193 and have a GPA of at least 2.5.

The Social Work Department recommends that students apply for admissions the semester they are enrolled in SW 340.

*Students with a disability whose Grade Point Average (GPA) is between 2.0 and 2.5 will be considered as having met the basic admissions criteria for the GPA by providing a letter of support from the Office of Disability Services. The letter of support should document the student's request that the GPA requirement be waived based on the disability and must be included in their social work program admission materials.

**Students without a learning disability and a Grade Point Average (GPA) of 2.5 or lower will need to address the following questions in their Letter of Application.

1. Why do you feel you should be considered for admittance to the Social Work major with a low GPA?
2. Discuss how your GPA has evolved.
3. How could you see yourself improving your GPA?

The Department of Social Work will consider your application (but priority may be given to those students with a GPA of 2.5 or above).

Admissions meetings generally occur during the fourth or fifth week of each semester. Prior to this, students seeking admission have approximately three weeks to organize their materials and prepare for the process. The admission dates will be announced in SW 330 and 340 and will be posted on the Social Work bulletin board on the second floor of Stewart Hall.

HOW?

The admissions procedure takes time and preparation on the part of students. It is described below as having Eight Steps. To understand the process from Start to Finish, read the following eight steps. You will see that various forms need to be filled out. When completed, most of these forms will be kept in your own personal file in the department.

STEP ONE

Admission packet will be distributed to interested students in SW 340. Go through the packet to make sure it includes these forms for completion:

• Social Work Information Form
• SCSU Major/Minor Application form
• Disclosure Form
• Two Reference Forms
• Format for the Letter of Application

This packet will also include the following forms:

• Discussion questions for admissions meeting
• Suggested Sequence of Courses
• NASW Code of Ethics (obtain from website http:www.socialworkers.org/)
• Department's Position on Attitudes Toward Gay and Lesbian People
• Admissions checklist
• Appeals Procedure to follow if you're in disagreement with the decision regarding your own application
• Class Plan Change form
• Pre-registration system information for Social Work courses
• Department Mission Statement
• General information about the program, its courses and electives.

STEP TWO

1. Obtain a copy of your transcript(s) for your meeting with the peer advisors.
2. Sign up for admissions meeting on grid posted on main office door.
3. Using the forms in the packet, get two letters of reference. One letter is to be from an employer or someone who has supervised your volunteer work. The other letter is to be from a teacher or professor. Contact your references immediately since the letters must be in your file prior to your admissions meeting with a faculty member.
4. Your letter of application should be consistent with the "format for the Letter of Application."

STEP THREE

Optional meeting with Peer Advisor. You may choose to make an appointment with a peer advisor to:

1. Help you understand the overall process and alleviate as much anxiety as possible
2. Discuss specifically any questions you may have about letter of application, admissions meeting/interview, or how the faculty make their decisions.

STEP FOUR

Complete your file in preparation for the admissions meeting/interview.

• Two Letters of Reference
• Letter of Application (Be sure to read the "format")
• Disclosure Form
  If you need to answer "yes" to any of the questions on the Disclosure Form you will need to discuss this in the admission meeting. In the long term, this could affect your opportunity to be licensed as a social worker in Minnesota; in the short term, it will be taken into account by this department before your application is accepted.
• SW Information Form

STEP FIVE

Keep the appointment you set up with the faculty member. At this meeting you will be responsible for addressing the issues and questions listed on the Admissions Meeting sheet. COME PREPARED. The faculty member will ask you follow-up questions.

STEP SIX

Acceptance/Non Acceptance Letter Sent to Student. Following the week of admissions meetings, faculty as a group will consider all the students who presented themselves as applicants for the major. Ordinarily, the department will accept 40 students into the major each semester. However, the department may accept a few more or a few less than the limit of 40 students any specific semester.

The quality of the applications are based upon:

1. G.P.A.
2. Letter of Application
3. Letters of Reference
4. Admission Meeting

A letter will be sent to all applicants informing them whether they should move on to the final Steps #7 & #8 in the process or whether faculty see something that prevents that at this time.

If your letter states that you are admitted to the major, move ahead to Step #7.

STEP SEVEN

Meeting with Peer Advisor (If Admitted). Get assistance with major/minor application, review course sequencing and answer your questions about the social work program.

STEP EIGHT

Meet with your major advisor.

Assuming that your application is moving ahead, you will make and keep an appointment with your major advisor. During this meeting the following will be accomplished: major/minor application form will be reviewed to make sure that credits and courses are correctly listed and counted. If you have signed major/minor forms in other departments you will need to bring these. Your advisor will discuss with you a possible minor program and any concerns that you have about the Social Work program.

At this point in the process your major / minor application will be signed by Department Chair and sent to Records and Registration. The University will recognize you officially as a Social Work major.

MORE ADMISSION INFORMATION