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Are there restrictions on the tuition reimbursement plan? Are there online options for the program you want?
If the MPH degree itself matters more than where it came from, and you aren’t limited as long as the school is regionally accredited, then it may make sense to find the cheapest school that fits the bill. You reimburse what you can and pay the rest out of pocket. I would not incur tens of thousands of debt for a “name” school if you are working in government.
There are online options I can take. Online would probably be better as my metropolitan area does not have an in-person version of this program as far as I'm aware, and I would need to do night classes anyway as I would have to still work to get the tuition reimbursement.
I do need to ask the higher ups about restrictions on the tuition reimbursement plan. What I know is that it covers 6k/year for tuition. What I don't know is how restrictive it is on majors. I have a coworker for example who wanted to get a nursing degree, but they denied him because it's not related enough to his current role (same role as me). My job is already in Public Health, this is a different specialization, so there's a good chance it could still count towards it. But they could also deny it, and that would change everything.
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Originally Posted by jobaba
What I tell the junior employees at my company (which you are) is to look at the big picture.
Are you going to be doing this long term?
Can you see yourself doing this for the rest of your life?
If the answer is a clear yes, then get the Masters.
If it's no, then hold off.
I wish I had more practical information on the job, like what the day to day entails. I do know they are involved in investigating outbreaks/disasters and that's what I originally wanted to do, and I was looking in the wrong places. What I learned in one of my previous internships in emergency management is that the emergency management team does the administrative duties, and epidemiologists actually do the outbreak response. My current job does some of this response, in a specialized team in my department that unfortunately I am not in (because it's a team of 2).
Quote:
Originally Posted by otowi
Sounds like you'd make your investment back pretty quickly if it netted you a 12k a year raise. Basically, from an earnings standpoint, the degree is worth it if you make back the money it costs to get the degree before retirement so that you have a net lifetime income gain. To keep the math simple, you need to either take your first few years of earnings gains and apply directly and wholly to your education loans, or you need to be weighing the total cost of the education including debt interest and not just the sticker price. There are other factors to consider as well, such as any change in benefits, quality of life, enjoyment at work, etc. If you are more than, say, 5 years away from retirement and have reasonably prospects of actually getting the job and pay you mention, it sounds like a good deal if you want to do it.
I'm in my 20s so this is easily 20+ years of investment. I don't have a guarantee of getting into the field and that's pretty scary, but that's a risk everyone takes when getting a degree.
I wish I had more practical information on the job, like what the day to day entails. I do know they are involved in investigating outbreaks/disasters and that's what I originally wanted to do, and I was looking in the wrong places. What I learned in one of my previous internships in emergency management is that the emergency management team does the administrative duties, and epidemiologists actually do the outbreak response. My current job does some of this response, in a specialized team in my department that unfortunately I am not in (because it's a team of 2).
I don't know where you are, but I do know a few people who have worked for the CDC... they worked their way up from inside the system.
Even if they were brought in from the outside, it isn't a true "outsider", they have worked with/alongside/consulted/etc with the agency before. They have decades of experience to boot.
If you looked at the job descriptions, it gives the illusion that someone with X degree "qualifies" for the job, they won't get it if all they have is the degree however. Because right there next to the "degree", is generally a clause or disclaimer saying X experience or whatnot can also qualify for the job. Once the jobs move past GS 12/13, they stop asking for degrees, it's all about having a experience at a lower grade or exceptions for reputable people in that field
Yes, a lot of them have masters/phd, and a lot of them got them AFTER they were in the system and already working their way up. They didn't get the degrees before starting, they got it at a later time point.
I got both of mine just because at the time, my employer made education economical and I like learning. Further, in my degrees, they were more a generalization than a specialization.
Basically, what does that mean? People consider an ideal candidate for what I like to do without being directly in that field.
I don't know where you are, but I do know a few people who have worked for the CDC... they worked their way up from inside the system.
Even if they were brought in from the outside, it isn't a true "outsider", they have worked with/alongside/consulted/etc with the agency before. They have decades of experience to boot.
If you looked at the job descriptions, it gives the illusion that someone with X degree "qualifies" for the job, they won't get it if all they have is the degree however. Because right there next to the "degree", is generally a clause or disclaimer saying X experience or whatnot can also qualify for the job. Once the jobs move past GS 12/13, they stop asking for degrees, it's all about having a experience at a lower grade or exceptions for reputable people in that field
Yes, a lot of them have masters/phd, and a lot of them got them AFTER they were in the system and already working their way up. They didn't get the degrees before starting, they got it at a later time point.
unless you want to work for the county or state health department and not at a federal level
The CDC isn't the end all be all, since I'm funding this myself I can't just simply move thousands and thousands of miles away to a whole new city, figure out my rent, and take on internships with the CDC while getting a master's. Unlike a lot of the Emory kids I wouldn't have mom and dad funding me. I need employment. Now if the CDC offered me some kind of paid thing and I lived off something cheap like ramen I might be able to loan all of my expenses and forgo the tuition reimbursement and everything but, that's not what's going to happen. I'd be in competition with Ivy League grads for those opportunities anywhere from Harvard to John Hopkins. I was fortunate enough to have my Bachelor's funded and that was the deal, any more education would be on me.
Not sure I would even want to live in ATL anyway. The CDC is obviously where the top dogs go to work in my field. I'm not a top dog. Though it would be cool to work for the CDC and I'd take a job there in a heartbeat, I'm just trying to be more realistic.
I need to research more on what my options are. The sooner I get to where I want to be, the better.
How many years have you been working? I believe it's better to just work your way up with experience rather than taking on potential debt. 12K isn't enough of a jump for me, but I also work in an area where people jump jobs every couple of years to rack up their salary.
FWIW, I've seen people who Master's degrees who are really no smarter or "top dog" than others. I've also seen people with bachelor's degrees that are just go-getters and proved themselves all the way to the top.
It's hard to further your career in public health without an MPH. You also can't compare yourself to people who have been in the field for decades. They were able to work their way up when few people even had a bachelor's degree. Now, a lot of people moving up to GS-12 and higher got into lower pay grades with a graduate degree. Even if you can spend years longer working your way up from the bottom and eventually be able to compete with people with graduate degrees, why would you want to? You can jump right into GS-9 with a master's degree and be able to progress to higher pay grades faster. I received a GS-9 job offer (not in public health) with no experience in a similar position simply because I have a master's degree. It would have taken me years longer to qualify on experience, alone; and, my master's program was cheap. My doctoral program was less than $7,000 per year, and my doctoral credits have gotten me interviews for GS-11 positions in fields I have no experience in.
There are dozens of online, CEPH-accredited MPH programs. You can cross reference them with the list of affordable programs I'm linking to.
If you ever want to work for USPHS, you can't work in public health without a CEPH-accredited MPH. Even if you have 50 years of experience, you will not qualify. If you want to qualify as an environmental health officer (these openings occur more frequently than public health), then choose a concentration in environmental health and safety, industrial hygiene, or occupational safety.
How many years have you been working? I believe it's better to just work your way up with experience rather than taking on potential debt. 12K isn't enough of a jump for me, but I also work in an area where people jump jobs every couple of years to rack up their salary.
FWIW, I've seen people who Master's degrees who are really no smarter or "top dog" than others. I've also seen people with bachelor's degrees that are just go-getters and proved themselves all the way to the top.
It's been almost one year exactly since graduating. I got hired right out the gate. To pay for the Master's and work my way up to save will take time, might as well start looking now.
I'm just trying to be realistic, again. I'm not as well-connected. Public Health is mostly in the south (specifically Atlanta) and it's somewhere I don't live, I have to figure out the cost to move and everything it would be very difficult. I'm a single income earner, so I don't have a partner to assist me in housing costs or anything like that. I need to know my options outside of Atlanta.
Quote:
Originally Posted by L210
It's hard to further your career in public health without an MPH. You also can't compare yourself to people who have been in the field for decades. They were able to work their way up when few people even had a bachelor's degree. Now, a lot of people moving up to GS-12 and higher got into lower pay grades with a graduate degree. Even if you can spend years longer working your way up from the bottom and eventually be able to compete with people with graduate degrees, why would you want to? You can jump right into GS-9 with a master's degree and be able to progress to higher pay grades faster. I received a GS-9 job offer (not in public health) with no experience in a similar position simply because I have a master's degree. It would have taken me years longer to qualify on experience, alone; and, my master's program was cheap. My doctoral program was less than $7,000 per year, and my doctoral credits have gotten me interviews for GS-11 positions in fields I have no experience in.
There are dozens of online, CEPH-accredited MPH programs. You can cross reference them with the list of affordable programs I'm linking to.
If you ever want to work for USPHS, you can't work in public health without a CEPH-accredited MPH. Even if you have 50 years of experience, you will not qualify. If you want to qualify as an environmental health officer (these openings occur more frequently than public health), then choose a concentration in environmental health and safety, industrial hygiene, or occupational safety.
This is the most field-applicable advice I've seen in the thread so far! Thank you.
I work in environmental health currently, though I'm not sure I want to pursue this field further and specialize in safety. I did a concentration in my Bachelor's of Public Health in EHS and while I was good at it compared to my peers and it was interesting, I don't think I could do it every day. Industrial hygiene pays very well, but it's not for me. It's also a shrinking field last time I checked.
It seems the MPH is inevitable. Especially if I want to get out of my current job, which I will want to eventually. I personally think Epidemiology is a better lineup with my interests and what I want to achieve in my career. I'm fairly good with data analysis, but not good enough for biostatistics. I'm fairly good with the topics of occupational safety, but have very little interest in it. Environmental health I enjoy, but I don't have much options to pursue further without going into safety. I did an internship in community health and didn't enjoy the work, I'm not that social and prefer a bit more analytical roles. My last internship in public health-specific emergency management made me realize it was a lot more administrative duties and less of actual outbreak investigation like I thought it would be.
I know that I want to be in this field. But right now I'm in the wrong specialization and I want to switch. It's just a matter of "how".
A Bachelors wasn't even worth it for me. So why go in further in debt with a Masters with no guarantee of a better job or more money?
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