Information Sessions & Recruitment

As we begin the fourth week of the new semester here at SP2, classes, field placements, reading assignments, papers, and - for the admissions department – recruitment, is well underway.  We held our first on-site Information Session for the Master Level programs this past Saturday with great success. 

Although the day began as a rainy Saturday morning, it turned out to be a beautiful day and everyone who was registered to attend was present.  The Associate Dean of Enrollment Management, Mary Mazzola, the Associate Director of the Non-Profit/NGO Leadership Program, Eric Ashton, the Recruitment Coordinator, Lindsay Guge, our Admission Specialist, Christina Chong, and I were all there to welcome prospective students and speak about Penn and SP2.  Attendees reported that the session was informative, helpful, and answered all of their questions. 

If you have any interest in attending an upcoming Information Session here at Penn’s School of Social Policy & Practice for any of our Masters programs, they are scheduled from 10am – 12pm on the following Saturdays:

Oct. 22, 2011
Nov. 19, 2011
Dec. 10, 2011
Jan. 14, 2012.

We also have Information Sessions scheduled for our Clinical Doctorate in Social Work (DSW) Program from 10am – 12pm on the following Saturdays:

Oct. 15, 2011
Nov. 19, 2011
Dec 10, 2011.

In order to register for any of the above sessions, visit:  http://www.sp2.upenn.edu/programs/open_house/index.html.

Additionally, as I mentioned, we have been on the road recruiting.  Several of the admissions and recruitment staff have been on the road to New York City, Washington DC, Boston, upstate NY, Maryland, and various other locations already to inform prospective students about the program offerings at Penn’s School of Social Policy & Practice at college graduate fairs and Idealist.org Graduate Fairs.  To catch us on the road near you, check out our recruitment calendar:  http://www.sp2.upenn.edu/programs/open_house/recruitmentcalendar.html.

We will be attending several more Idealist.org Graduate Fairs throughout the country, and various other regional graduate school fairs.  Remember, though, if we are not coming to your area, you can always contact us at apply@sp2.upenn.edu or 215-898-5539.  Please feel free to reach out to us at any time.

You can also drop by our new Admission and Enrollment Suite, C-200, constructed this summer.  Housed on the 2nd floor of the Caster Building, containing all admission and enrollment staff:  Associate Dean of Enrollment, Associate Director of Admissions and Recruitment, Recruitment Coordinator, Admissions Specialist, Director of Financial Aid, and the Registrar.   

Best of luck in your graduate school search,

Melissa Bottiglio, MSW, LCSW

Associate Director of Admissions and Recruitment

Investing in Graduate Education: Is it Worth the Cost?

With New Student Orientation just a week behind us, the SP2 admissions staff and myself are already looking ahead to meeting a talented and diverse new class of potential students.  A question that most students ask themselves, and should ask, is whether investing in a graduate education is worth the cost.  The short answer is a definite ‘yes’ but rarely does one hear why exactly that is the case.  Many studies have been done over the years showing the benefits of earning a college degree; the oft touted statistic that earning a Bachelor’s degree leads to over a million dollar increase in lifetime earnings.  The story is very similar for graduate students; the correlation is very strong between education attainment and lifetime earnings, the higher the level of education, the higher the earnings. 

Financing an education at Penn SP2 is a significant investment.  However, investing in education is nearly universally one of the best investments one can possibly make.  Both anecdotally and empirically, investing in a graduate degree at the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Social Policy and Practice leads to more career opportunities, higher earnings and increased career mobility. 

If you are concerned about your ability to finance your education, please feel free to contact me at light@sp2.upenn.edu.  I can speak with you about your options, including loans, School grants and scholarships, and outside scholarships. 

Best of luck in your graduate search,

Michael Light

Director of Financial Aid

Penn's SP2 Program Offerings

As the new school year is just around the corner, many people are beginning their search for the right graduate program to meet their academic and future career aspirations.  Here at the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Social Policy & Practice (SP2), the Admissions Team and I have had a busy summer preparing for the upcoming year.  It is my hope that this blog helps disseminate more information about the admissions process and keep you apprised of the ongoing changes here at SP2.

The admissions office often gets many questions about the admissions process, so I thought I would take a few moments to highlight where to find information on our five programs, including the admissions criteria: 

Master of Social Work (MSW):  http://www.sp2.upenn.edu/programs/msw/index.html

Master of Science in Nonprofit/NGO Leadership (NPL):  http://www.sp2.upenn.edu/programs/npl/index.html

Master of Science in Social Policy (MSSP):  http://www.sp2.upenn.edu/programs/mssp/index.html

Clinical Doctorate in Social Work (DSW):  http://www.sp2.upenn.edu/programs/dsw/index.html

and Ph.D. in Social Welfare (Ph.D.):  http://www.sp2.upenn.edu/programs/phd/index.html.

One big change this year involves our admissions deadlines for applications. Students are admitted to the School’s MSW, NPL, MSSP, DSW, and Ph.D. programs for fall enrollment, while Advanced Standing students begin their studies in July. Students are admitted to the Masters programs on a rolling basis.  The DSW and Ph.D. programs do not admit on a rolling basis. The table below indicates new application deadlines and priority deadlines for all five degree programs. 

Program	Priority Deadline	Rolling Admissions?
MSW (Full and Part Time)	February 1st	Yes
MSW Advanced Standing	January 15th	Yes
NPL	April 1st	Yes
MSSP	April 15th	Yes
DSW	February 15th	No
Ph.D.	December 15th	No

Check back often for more updates and tips about the admission process, feedback from current students, and other useful information as you begin your graduate school search.   

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact the admissions department directly at apply@sp2.upenn.edu.  Most importantly, though, enjoy the rest of your summer!

All the best,

Melissa Bottiglio, MSW, LCSW
Associate Director of Admissions and Recruitment