MSW Admissions FAQs

The University of Texas at Arlington does not have application deadlines. UTA has priority application dates and will accept applications after these dates. UTA will process your application as quickly as possible and every attempt will be made to ensure consideration for the desired semester. However, applying early (by the priority date) gives you the best opportunity to be admitted early enough to later be eligible to apply for scholarships, grants, fellowships and assistantships.  A general rule is to have your application and supporting documents submitted at least two months before the desired semester start date. Click here for UTA priority application dates and check with the School of Social Work Admissions Office to determine if the application ApplyTexas portal is still open for your desired semester and cohort program. Generally, the ApplyTexas portal is open and still accepting applications up to 30 days before the start of the desired semester. International applicants should give themselves more lead time in the application process. International applicants should click here for more information.

Yes, our BSW and MSW programs are accredited through the Council for Social Work Education (CSWE), and adhere to the Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards which include the competencies that all BSW and MSW students are expected to achieve upon graduation.  Our MSW program is one of the oldest in the state of Texas. We graduated our first class in 1970, the same year we received our initial CSWE accreditation. In addition, The University of Texas at Arlington including the School of Social Work is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACS) to award baccalaureate, master’s, and doctoral degrees.

To be eligible for our Quick Admissions, you must have a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university with a grade point average of 3.0 or above in the last approximately 60 hours of university-level credit hours (not junior/community college credits). If the applicant’s GPA is less than a 3.0, but greater than a 2.7 in the approximately last 60 hours of undergraduate university-level study, you may be asked to submit three completed recommendation forms and submit a narrative to be considered for admissions by the selection committee. The GRE is currently being waived for all MSW applicants.  All MSW applicants should just first complete the two-step process: (1)Apply and pay the application fee and (2)submit your transcripts for the quick admissions decision and you will be notified if you need to provide any additional information.

You should list all degrees completed and note this in this in the comments section on the Apply Texas application. In addition, you should submit all transcripts from higher education institutions attended. Furthermore, if you earned less than 3.0 GPA in approximately the last 60 undergraduate credit hours, you will still be required (regardless of post graduate degrees already attained) to take and submit GRE scores, submit three completed recommendation forms, and write and submit a narrative to be considered for admissions. The post graduate and professional degrees already conferred will then be considered by the selection committee along with the aforementioned items (GRE scores, recommendation forms and narrative).

If you earn a grade of “C” or lower in a required BSW course, the course will not be waived in the MSW program. You will be required to take the equivalent graduate course in the MSW program.

No. Although there are many benefits to earning the BSW degree including possibly being eligible for Advanced Standing and having your first year waived, you are not required to have a BSW degree to apply for and matriculate through the MSW program.  About 50% of our MSW students are non-BSW graduates with bachelor’s degrees in fields such as psychology, sociology, criminal justice, nursing, business, education, communication, kinesiology, legal studies, public health, substance use treatment and other fields.  In addition, we have MSW students who have already earned a J.D., Ph.D. or a master’s degree in another discipline.

We encourage applicants to first apply and submit transcripts to have their GPA officially calculated by the University.  Applicants will then be advised of the next steps. If you already know your GPA is below a 3.0, but greater than a 2.7, you can take classes as a degreed undergraduate at any 4-year institution. You may take any undergraduate 3000-4000 level textbook class (No PE or Music classes). If you apply and received a deferred admissions status because of your GPA, you can use the UTA GPA Calculator to determine how many credit hours and A’s you will need to raise your GPA. Once you’ve completed these additional degreed classes, you can apply or re-activate your application for a new GPA calculation by the University. Please consult with an SSW Admissions Counselor for additional information before attempting to take classes as a degreed undergraduate student. At no time, will undergraduate leveling courses be used to waive taking graduate courses when you are admitted to the MSW program.

Advanced Standing requires a BSW degree from a CSWE accredited program granted no more than six (6) years prior to the expected start date of your MSW program. If you have earned a BSW within the past six years, Advanced Standing will be considered, as long as you meet the 3.0 GPA Quick Admissions criteria and earned a B or better in all Social Work undergraduate required courses. Non-BSW degree graduates are not eligible for Advanced Standing.

In general, we waive courses in the MSW foundation year based upon earning a B or better in the equivalent BSW undergraduate course. Once admitted, Advanced Standing students should consult with their SSW Academic Advisor.

Applicants who do not meet the Quick Admissions 3.0 GPA requirement will be required to submit a written narrative for the selection committee. These students are asked to respond to the following prompt:

Social Work practice is often classified as either micro or macro. Explain what is meant by micro practice and macro practice, and address why both micro and macro are essential to effective social work practice. Use three outside sources to support your statement and include complete in-text citations and references for each. You may also include your motivation to earn the MSW degree and practice social work. The narrative should be written following APA or MLA writing style and format.

Applicants will be notified if they do not meet the 3.0 GPA requirement and need to submit the narrative, GRE scores and three recommendation forms.

Each class meets one day a week for three (3) hours. Typically, graduate classes are offered Monday through Thursday. Classes typically meet from 9 a.m. to noon, 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.; and 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.  See your desired cohort program or degree plan for more information.

Not at this time.

Yes, the MSW program can be completed fully online. In addition, we offer several cohort programs specialty options for online students (full-time and part-time). Online students, just like the face-to-face students, must meet the required field education internship requirements. Working with our Field Education Office, online students will conduct their field placement internship near where they reside.

Yes, all of the degree plans offered in the MSW program are accredited through the Council for Social Work Education (CSWE), and adhere to the Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards. These include the competencies that all MSW students are expected to achieve upon graduation.  There is no distinction between earning the MSW degree online or face-to-face. The same faculty that teach our face-to-face classes teach our online classes.

Click here to review all residency requirements. The School of Social Work does not determine residency. The University residence determination official can be found in the UTA Office of Admissions, Records, & Registration. The Residency Determination Official for UT Arlington's Office can be reached via e-mail grad.admission@uta.edu or phone 817-272-6287.

The School of Social Work offers scholarships, and limited fellowships and paid graduate research assistantships at the MSW level. Click here for a list of School of Social Work scholarships such as the Roy Dulak scholarship, the Lila B. Hagins scholarship, the Peter Guapp scholarship, and more. In addition, click here for UTA scholarships, fellowships, grants and assistantships information for graduate students. We encourage prospective students to apply to the MSW program as early as possible, so they can be admitted and then be eligible to apply for scholarships, fellowships, grants and assistantships before the deadline for these funding opportunities. School of Social Work Scholarships usually open for applications for about 30 days around April 1 for the fall semester and around November 1 for the spring semester.

Applicants should submit official transcripts of all higher education institutions attended to the UTA Office of Admissions, Records and Registration. Do not submit transcripts to the School of Social Work Admissions Office. Current UTA students and alumni do not need to request their UTA transcripts be sent to the University (the University will automatically pull the UTA transcripts). In addition, unofficial transcripts can be submitted and uploaded during the application process with ApplyTexas, but if you are offered and you accept admission, official transcripts must be sent prior to enrolling. Newly admitted students will not be allowed to enroll or register for classes without the University receiving your official transcripts. After being offered admission and before meeting with your MSW academic advisor, please ensure all official transcripts of institutions attended have been submitted and received by the University. If you have been offered a provisional admission, please ensure that all final official transcripts listing bachelor degree earned have been submitted and received at the University prior to meeting with your MSW Academic Advisor. Click here for more information on how to submit transcripts.

The GRE is required for students who have less than a 3.0 GPA in approximately the last 60 undergraduate university-level credit hours. If you know for sure that you will not meet our 3.0 GPA Quick Admissions requirement, you should plan to take the GRE. However, we strongly recommend that prospective students first apply and submit transcripts and wait for the University to officially calculate their GPA. This is why we encourage applicants to apply as early as possible. Prospective students usually can apply about one year out from their planned semester or summer start date. When you take the GRE, please send an official copy of your score from ETS to UTA Graduate Admissions Office. UTA's institution code is 6013. If you have already taken the GRE, you can request ETS to send a report by calling ETS at 1-888-GRE-SCORE or go to www.ets.org/gre, for more information. The GRE is not required for applicants who meet our 3.0 GPA Quick Admissions criteria. Do not send GRE scores to the School of Social Work Admissions Office.

The MSW program offers two Professional Concentrations:
Direct Practice (Micro Social Work) Concentration or Community & Administrative Practice (Macro Social Work) Concentration.

If the student chooses Direct Practice (Micro Social Work) Concentration, they must select from one of the four advanced specialties:

• Direct Practice in Aging
• Direct Practice with Children & Families
• Direct Practice in Health
• Direct Practice in Mental Health & Substance Abuse

Yes, the School of Social Work currently offers four Graduate Certificate options for UTA graduate students, non-degree seeking students and post-graduate students. For more information go to Graduate Certificates.

For Advanced Standing students (qualified BSW graduates), the MSW program is 38 credit hours and includes one field placement internship. For Traditional students (mostly non-BSW students), the MSW program is 61 credit hours and includes two field placement internships.

It depends on whether you are admitted as an Advanced Standing student or a Traditional student.  Advanced Standing students must complete 480 hours of one field placement internship and Traditional students must complete 960 hours split between two field placement internships (one in the foundation year and one in the advanced year).  Students can complete each field placement in one block in one semester or split over two semesters.

All students wishing to receive federal and state financial aid must complete and submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Please include UTA's school code (003656). Beware of scams and companies who ask for money to complete the FAFSA. The application is always free and is found at StudentAid.gov. For more information, contact the UTA Financial Aid office by clicking here.

Yes, in addition to offering face-to-face classes at our Arlington campus, and having a fully online MSW program, we also offer through a cohort model, classes at our UTA Fort Worth location.  Advanced Standing students start in the summer at our Fort Worth location and Traditional students start in the fall at UTA Fort Worth located in downtown Fort Worth at 1401 Jones Street.  We also offer our MSW program through a partnership at Lubbock Christian University This program at LCU starts every odd year in the fall (e.g., Fall 2021).

Social Workers with an MSW degree have a promising future in the job market. According to a new Burning Glass report, 71.8% of 26,691 recent job postings for Social Work titles requested an MSW degree. According to the Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, the career field is expected to more than double the national job-growth rate at 16% between 2016 and 2026. MSW specialty areas such as mental health, substance abuse and health care surpass those numbers. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), professional Social Workers are the nation’s largest group of mental health services providers. There are more clinically trained social workers—over 200,000—than psychiatrists, psychologists, and psychiatric nurses combined. Federal law and the National Institutes of Health recognize social work as one of five core mental health professions.

Additionally, there's a new trend of hiring Social Workers to head corporate client care, employee motivation efforts, or roles in which relationship development is key at insurance companies, financial corporations, nonprofits, and more. The MSW degree is a versatile degree allowing graduates to work in a variety of fields and areas such as Hospitals, Private Clinical Practice, School Social Worker, Substance Abuse Counselor, Medical Social Worker, Sports/Athletics Social Worker, Public Health Administrator, Police/Victim Services Officer, Public Policy Social Worker, Multicultural/Diversity Officer, Gerontology, Children and Family Services, Criminal Justice/Corrections, Community Organizations/Lobbying, Non-Profit Management, Higher Education Leadership, Advising and Student Affairs, Social Worker Courts/Legal Services, and much more.

Satisfactory scores on the TOEFL or the TSE must be submitted to the UTA Graduate Admissions Office. Applicants must submit a score of at least 550 on the paper-based TOEFL, a score of at least 213 on the computer-based TOEFL, a minimum score of 6.5 on the International English Language Testing System (IELTS), or a minimum TOEFL iBT-Internet Based Test total score of 79 with sectional scores that meet or exceed the following:

• 22 for the writing section
• 21 for the speaking section
• 20 for the reading section
• 16 for the listening section

About once a month MSW Admissions Information Sessions are held in Arlington, Fort Worth or Dallas. In addition, web conference online information sessions are available. Click here to register for an upcoming MSW Admissions Information Session. In addition, we accept walk-ins during normal working hours Monday through Friday (excluding holidays and staff trainings). However, we strongly encourage prospective students to make an appointment or attend an SSW Admissions Information session. The SSW Admissions Office main phone number is 817-272-1044 or email sswadmissions@uta.edu. The SSW Admissions Office is located in Building B (Southside) of the School of Social Work Complex at 211. S Cooper Street, Arlington, Texas 76019.

All students must take a minimum of six (6) credit hours in the fall and spring semesters. Students can take three (3) or more hours during the summer session. The maximum course load for full-time graduate students is fifteen (15) semester hours for fall or spring semesters and twelve (12) hours for the summer session. Registration in excess of this maximum may be approved by the Director of Graduate Programs only in exceptional circumstances. International students must be enrolled for a minimum of nine (9) semester hours to maintain their visa status.

No, because the requirement is that students must take six (6) hours each fall and spring semester, you may not drop a course. However, a student can petition to have this requirement waived temporarily provided that you can develop a plan with your academic advisor that will bring you up to six (6) hours per semester as soon as possible.

Yes, the Integrative Seminar is equivalent to a final exam/capstone course and therefore must be taken in the final semester.  Students choosing the thesis option do not have to complete integrative seminar. Instead, these students will register for the thesis course during their final two semesters.

By taking a minimum of six (6) hours per semester, the MSW can be completed within four (4) years on a part-time basis. You must complete the degree within six (6) years from the original program start date. Most Advanced Standing students complete the program in about one year as full-time students and most Traditional students complete the program in about two years as full-time students.

There are no prerequisite courses required to begin the MSW program.

A cohort is a group of students that start together at the same time, complete a sequence of prescribed courses each semester, and graduate the program together. The purpose, broadly speaking, of cohort groups is to encourage a more dynamic, collaborative, and supportive learning environment to carry students through their program. Students in cohorts receive priority placement with course offerings. If there are not enough students registered for a particular cohort, students may be asked to move to another cohort or matriculate without being in a cohort. Although there are numerous benefits to being in a cohort, students are not required to choose a cohort. You can also choose to complete the MSW program as a non-cohort/regular matriculation.

Advanced Standing is a designation for students who earned a BSW degree from a CSWE accredited institution within the past six years and before the start of their MSW Advanced Year matriculation. The student must also have met the 3.0 GPA Quick Admissions criteria and earned a B or better in all social work undergraduate required courses.

Traditional is a designation for students who earned a bachelor’s degree in another discipline/field/major or a BSW graduate who does not meet the Advanced Standing criteria for whatever reason. Traditional students must complete the Foundation and Advanced years which consist of 61 credit hours and includes two field internship placements. About 50% of our MSW students are Traditional (non-BSW graduates) students.

Foundation Year is the first year of the MSW program. Traditional students must first complete the Foundation Year which consists of 23 credit hours including a field internship placement and then Traditional students complete the Advanced Year of 35 credit hours including a field internship placement. The Foundation Year is waived for Advanced Standing students. Advanced Standing students will begin their matriculation in the Advanced Year which for them consists of 38 credit hours including a field internship placement.

Yes, at the School of Social Work, once admitted, each MSW student is assigned an Academic Advisor and later assigned a Field Advisor.  All of our SSW academic and field advisors are full-time staff who have already earned the MSW degree. Academic advisors assist, provide advice and counsel students on degree plans, course offerings and career options. Academic Advisors also assist and connect students who are struggling academically or having personal challenges with School and University resources. Academic Advisors will help students develop Self-Care principles. Self-Care is an essential Social Work survival skill. Self-Care refers to activities and practices that we can engage in on a regular basis to reduce stress and maintain and enhance our short and longer-term health and well-being. Self-Care is necessary for your effectiveness and success in honoring your professional and personal commitments. The Office of Advising and Student Success has MSW Advisors to help students navigate their MSW degree plan whether you are a cohort or non-cohort student. MSW students are not required to be advised every semester. Academic advising is required prior to registration for the first semester in the program and prior to registration for Integrative Seminar or Thesis Research courses (usually the last semester(s) in the program). Students who have a cumulative MSW GPA of less than 3.0 must be advised every semester before registration. Once admitted to the program, new students will be assigned an academic advisor and are required to meet (email, phone, face-to-face or web online) with their academic advisor prior to registering for the first semester. Click here for more Advising information and here for Field Education information.