Social work admissions essay

I am now 95% done with MSW (Master of Social Work) applications. I am sending essentially the same essay to all three schools I am applying to. Here it is! I want to become a social worker because for as long as I can remember, I have had a passion for social justice and advocating for all of humanity to be treated equally. If I had to point exactly when this passion started, I would have to say that it began in high school. In elementary school, I was diagnosed with mild autism, a disorder that affects ones ability to socialize and communicate. In addition, I was diagnosed with dyscalculia, a mathematics and counting disorder. I had to be re-diagnosed every few years to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). After completing the necessary testing my freshman year, I was told that I would never go to college, get a job, learn adequate social skills, live on my own or amount to anything and that a degree in music was not realistic for one with a mathematics disorder by school officials in the Special Education Department. Understandably, I was furious, but used these feelings of anger and rage to help myself. I researched my disability, learned what was needed for treatment and worked with both a therapist and math tutor. At the time, I wanted to finish an undergraduate education in music and work on a masters at a conservatory like The Juilliard School, one of the top music schools in the country. As early as my freshman year in high school, I started researching college programs. I researched schools all over the nation, including schools in California, New York, Florida, Texas, Illinois, Missouri, and Kansas. By my senior year of high school, I narrowed my list down to music programs at Washburn University in Topeka, KS, Kansas State University in Manhattan, KS and Chicago College of Performing Arts in Illinois. I gained admission and scholarship money to all three programs I applied to, and the staff in the Special Education Department in my high school was shocked. They had a plethora of questions about how I did it. I told them about my work with my therapist and math tutor, and they were impressed. After some discussion with my father, I chose K-State. We felt like the two-hour drive from Overland Park, my hometown, was far enough from home that I could continue to gain my independence, without being a great distance that I could come home on a moments notice if necessary. Their services for people with disabilities also had an excellent reputation, which was also a determining factor in my decision to attend that university. Once my classes at K-State started, I met Holly in the dorms, who became my best friend. Even though I was still working with a therapist, she picked up on my difficulty with social skills, which was evident in my other friendships and dating relationships. Eventually, she would tell me when I was doing something that was considered socially inappropriate, and finally the idea of social norms clicked. In time, I learned so much about the norms of society that unless you were a trained clinician in the area of autistic disorders or lived with me, you would never have known I was on the autism spectrum. As my social skills improved throughout college, I wanted friends other then just Holly. I worked with a drama therapist to improve my ability to read body language and got involved with a number of student groups. This included Wildcats Against Rape where I was made Head of Public Relations. I also joined Sigma Alpha Iota, a professional womens music fraternity where I was Corresponding Secretary and very instrumental in helping us get connected with poor families. Once involved, we helped them receive free music lessons and access to instruments. In

addition, I also volunteered for K-States Disability Support Services where I helped students understand how our center worked. Soon after, I started working with the director of the Disability Support Services on campus, who was the faculty advisor of the homosexual student group at K-State. Eventually, I became an ally for homosexual and transgendered people in the student community. My involvement with the homosexual and transgendered community eventually motivated me to become interested in spirituality. A transgendered friend, who I found fascinating, invited me to come to Open Mic Night at her campus ministry. After a few months, I learned to call that campus ministry home and thought that my passion for social justice and making the world a better place was deserving of a seminary education. This worked out well, because towards the end of college, I was realizing that a full time career in music was not for me, because it did not fit in well with the idea of family life, and having a family was always important to me. After being admitted and spending some time in seminary I became bored. All I learned about was theology and Bible, which confused me because the career of a professional clergyperson or lay leader requires skills in administration and crisis intervention, yet the coursework to sharpen those skills was minimal at best. I expressed these concerns to a friend who suggested I consider a degree in social work. I seemed to think most masters level social workers functioned as therapists. When I mentioned I wasnt so sure about that because of my issues reading people due to my autism, she suggested I look at areas in the more macro side, such as community organizing, research, or policy advocacy. The idea grew on me throughout first semester, and eventually I started to loose interest in my seminary classes. On the days I wasnt in class or studying, I spent some of my free time volunteering at the Kansas City Community Kitchen, an organization that fed poor and homeless people during lunch. As time passed, I decided to volunteer at the Metropolitan Organization to Counter Sexual Assault (MOCSA) where I helped teach people of the Kansas City community about sexual violence. I also volunteered at The Whole Person, an organization that helps people with disabilities live independently. My volunteer work there consisted of administrative duties and doing research for their various community projects. My volunteer experience felt rewarding, and the more I volunteered, any doubts I once had about social work disappeared. I am confident that I would be successful as a social worker in the area of policy advocacy because I believe myself to be a talented researcher; I have a deep interest in policy and legislative issues, and am gifted in the area of advocacy. (School deleted for privacy)s School of Social Work has an excellent reputation, and its graduates go on to some top job placements. When I visited campus I was very impressed with how warm and welcoming the faculty was. It was clear that they were willing to go the extra mile for the benefit of the student. If admitted to (school deleted for privacy), I hope to gain competence as a social work student in the area of policy advocacy and work with faculty who will help me reach my goals of being an effective policy advocate, perhaps in the area of helping people with disabilities. I hope to assist others in having a variety of opportunities in spite of their obstacles, just as I have had.