Capella University offers two pathways to the Master of Social Work (MSW) degree: the Master of Social Work program (foundation) and the Master of Social Work–Advanced Standing.

The latter is exclusively for applicants with a bachelor’s degree from a Council on Social Work Education (CSWE)-accredited program. All other applicants may apply for the Master of Social Work program (foundation). Both programs provide the opportunity to earn the MSW degree.

Faculty and admissions staff seek to understand each applicant’s personal goals, values, and interest in the social work profession. To this end, the MSW program faculty requests each prospective learner to compose and submit a personal statement which specifically addresses the questions below. The personal statement is an important part of the admission application and provides an opportunity for faculty to review the applicant’s writing skills and professional experiences.

The MSW program does not offer individual meetings or interviews; thus, the personal statement is the communicative tool used to present an applicant’s experiences and goals. The essay should be no more than three double-spaced typed pages using 12-point Times New Roman font. The personal statement should be well written and in the applicant’s own words. Applicants should use the underlined headings below to address each area of the personal statement. Your goal statement will be checked through Turnitin software for originality and academic integrity.

Please utilize the required template that begins on page 2 and address each of these three essay components under the provided headings. Please include the headings, outlined in red boxes, in your final draft.

1. Interest Statement
   1. Please discuss your interest in entering the social work profession.
   1. Describe your career goals in the social work profession.
2. Academic Statement
   1. Share your reasons for pursing a graduate degree at Capella University.
   1. Discuss your experience in using the Internet and computer technology (email, social media, video, chats, etc.) to complete important tasks and how it may serve you as a graduate student at Capella University.
   1. Describe the support you will have to promote your success in a graduate program (i.e., family, friends, community, colleagues, etc.).
   1. Outline and describe your academic progress to date (include your overall GPA achieved, honors, awards, etc.), how you were successful in achieving your undergraduate degree, how you overcame challenges and life experiences while earning your degree, and how you will be successful in the MSW program at Capella University.
3. Social Justice Statement
   1. Describe your commitment to social and economic justice for all persons.

Please either email or fax your completed essay to:

Attn: DMMS, Capella University,

Capella Tower

225 South Sixth Street, Ninth Floor Minneapolis, MN 55402

Fax: 612.977.5060   Toll free fax: 1.888.227.8492

Email: documents@capella.edu

Insert your answer to statement number 1 here:

Insert your answer to statement number 2 here:

Insert your answer to statement number 3 here: