• Transcripts showing either completion of a bachelor’s degree or current progress toward completion. Applicants still finishing a bachelor’s degree may apply, but if admitted, they may not register until they submit a completed transcript. Transcripts must also reflect a minimum GPA of 3.0 in the final two years of undergraduate study and in the courses associated with the major.
• The above transcript must show one of the majors listed in the first bullet below OR the applicant must complete an Undergraduate Coursework Form showing their undergraduate education included 12 300/3000-level or higher humanities or social science credits listed in programs such as:
  • Africana Studies, American Studies, Anthropology, Chicana/o Studies, Communications, Counseling, Family and Child Studies, Gender and Sexuality Studies, Healing Arts or expressive arts therapy, Health/Medicine/Human Values, Native American Studies, Political Science, Population Health or Public Health, Psychology or Educational Psychology, Public Administration, Religious Studies, or Sociology.
  • Courses in other fields on topics such as mental health, substance abuse, human rights, social or environmental justice can be used toward the 12-credit hour requirement. 
• A two-page, double-spaced personal statement addressing:
  • reasons for applying to an MSW program,
  • what the applicant hopes to gain, and
  • populations or topics of interest.
    including concentration interest (clinical or medical) if known.
  • Three professional or academic letters of recommendation describing the applicant’s strengths and weaknesses related to graduate study and a career in social work.
• A current résumé or CV.
• For international applicants, TOEFL scores with a minimum score of 550.

Three credits in a 100-level Biology, Anatomy, or Physiology course are highly recommended, especially for students interested in the Medical Social Work concentration, though this is not required.

The program uses four admissions decision categories: full admission, provisional admission, waitlist, and refusal. Provisional admission is used only for applicants who are current bachelor’s students. Applicants offered full or provisional admission have one month to respond in the regular cycle; for Spring 2027 only, the response window is two weeks. Admitted students may also request to defer admission for up to one cycle, as long as they notify the program within the response period. Qualified applicants may also be placed on a waitlist if available seats are filled.

Students who have completed some MSW coursework at a CSWE-accredited program or a program in candidacy may apply to transfer to UNM. Because the UNM MSW Program is new, our ability to accept transfer students will be limited until 2028. Transfer applicants must explain their reasons for seeking transfer as part of the application.

Transfer credit is limited by clear program requirements: only courses completed in a CSWE-accredited or candidacy social work program may be considered; this includes field education, practice courses, and other required or elective social work courses. However, only generalist-level classes may be transferred. Because of institutional requirements, specialty courses cannot be transferred. Courses from graduate programs outside of social work, including other graduate programs at UNM, are not accepted for transfer into the MSW program.

To have prior coursework reviewed, transfer students must petition for a transcript- and syllabus-level content review of previous MSW coursework. Faculty on the admissions committee evaluate whether the prior course is sufficiently aligned with current CSWE EPAS expectations and the UNM curriculum. To be approved, the student must also have earned a minimum grade of B in the course. If those standards are met, one or more generalist courses may be accepted in transfer.

Since the program is still in development, the Advanced Standing option will not be available until Spring 2028. Please see this overview document on what to expect in order to qualify for the Advanced Standing program in the future.

The UNM Master of Social Work program values the personal and professional experience applicants bring to graduate study. However, the program cannot provide social work course credit for either life experience or previous work experience under any circumstances.