SSW FAQ

The best thing you can do is begin planning in advance to present a complete and high-quality application. This means doing research to find out who the faculty are in both the School of Social Work and the discipline in which you are interested, and thinking about how their interests line up with yours. Also, prepare well for the GRE and/or TOEFL tests and leave yourself enough time for a retest if you feel you have not done your very best.

In this same vein, start well in advance contacting current and previous universities and colleges about submitting grade transcripts. We cannot consider your application without them. Finally, think about who you will ask to write letters of recommendation for you. Try to get at least two of the letters from a current or former professor. If possible, talk with the people who will be writing letters for you about your plans to apply to the Joint Program. It is important for them to know what your career goals are and why you are applying to a doctoral program.

When submitting your application, it is crucial to write a clear, concise personal statement outlining your professional, intellectual, and research interests and career goals and how they connect to the professional and intellectual commitments of social work and your preferred social science. Take time in preparing this statement, and include an assessment of how your interests connect to the interests of the faculty.

Because of the quality and breadth of their training, graduates of the Joint PhD Program are heavily recruited nationally and internationally. In the past four years, the majority of graduates have secured tenure-track positions in colleges and universities. Recent graduates have also taken post-doctorate fellowships in leading universities, and have gone to work in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors.

• Applicants must have completed a U.S. bachelor’s degree or its equivalent prior to enrollment in September unless they have been admitted through our non-BA program.
• Applicants must have completed 20 semester hours of social science/liberal arts/language coursework (for example: Anthropology, Economics, History, Political Science, Psychology, Sociology, Social Work, relevant languages etc.) The relevant coursework must be in three or more of the social science areas.

To learn more about admission requirements please visit the MSW application page.

You can apply as soon as the application is available online, which is usually in September for admission for the following fall semester.

Applicants must submit the following*:

• School of Social Work MSW application
• Transcripts from all colleges and universities attended, including transfer and study abroad
• Supplementary Statement (maximum 3 pages double-spaced)
• Three recommendation forms and/or letters
• Current resume
• Application fee

*Non-native speakers of English, non-BA, transfer, and International applicants must submit additional materials.

The application fee is $75 if you submit the online web application and $150 if you submit a paper application. If you cannot afford the application fee, please contact the Office of Student Services and Enrollment Management (734-936-0961) or email [email protected] for information on obtaining a fee waiver.

No. However, the admissions committee may request to interview you before making their final decision. You may request an interview to discuss your work history, grades or a career change. An admissions counselor can offer additional information on whether a self-initiated interview would be beneficial.

No, to apply to the MSW degree program you only need to submit your application to the School of Social Work. You do not need to submit an application to the Rackham School of Graduate Studies unless you are applying to the Joint PhD Program in Social Work and Social Science.

Yes, official transcripts from all colleges and universities attended must be submitted.