Portland State University Rankings by Salary Score™

I graduated during the pandemic, which really impacted my last quarter in the program. I'm not going to focus as much on that, just because I don't think it's a normal circumstance and may not be reflective of the program. Honestly, I wouldn't recommend the MSW program to anyone and would recommend exploring other options. I was consistently disappointed every quarter with the class options, and a lot lacked a focus in social justice within the curriculum (which I think is a key part of doing social work).... Read More As someone that took time off to work before returning to get my MSW, most of the classes felt repetitive and didn't offer much new information besides a focus on theory. As for the practicum and internship options, I felt like the options I had were limited and left me in a position I wasn't interested in. Even in the Children, Youth, and Families concentration I felt there was a large focus on therapy (which is fine) but that my practicum and the options I'd been provided were not clinical or therapy based. This led to a disconnect between my internship experience and what I was learning from class, and also left me confused about what I wanted to do because I had never been interested in going into therapy or clinical services. I felt like the clinical/therapy route was pushed throughout the program and left me feeling lost upon graduation because I then was lacking therapy experience but being told that was what I 'should be' pursuing. Maybe if you wanted to do therapy, that would be a better focus, but I didn't feel like my concentration allowed for a broad exploration of the many roles you can have with children, youth, and families. Overall, I have left this program feeling disappointed and unprepared for employment. Paired with the pandemic, I've never felt so unsure about even continuing in social work, and unfortunately a lot of that came from my program experience and where it has left me. Please consider what you really want to be doing and explore other options, the price is better than other places, but I was hoping for experience vs paying for a piece of paper regardless of skill. Good luck.

PSU is a mess. Right as I came to graduatate, they applied my final course as a general elective - it should have applied towards what they call Clusters. In the degree audit, the course specifically is listed as applying. Despite their own audit stating the credit applied, they delayed my graduation and made me petition to have the course apply. I am still dealing with this. I know of 6 other people in my circle of peers that had this exact experience as well. I do not recommend this school. Beyond this issue,... Read More the professors in most departments are subpar and it’s very clear the professors from several departments are doing the bare minimum that they have to per course because despite tuition continuing to skyrocket, the university pays many of the professors less than what I make in my entry level tech job.