obraumuller:
You might be eligible for a PhD program, but then again you might not. Depends on which program you apply to and what your academic qualifications are. Much more likely that you could skip the MPH portion of a program if you already have a professional level degree: RN, MD, etc.
Zero guarantee of a federal job at any level after the program. You'll eventually get a job somewhere. What constitutes decent pay is totally up to you. I think GS9 equivalent pay outside the federal govt in a nonsupervisory position is extremely optimistic. I have 10+ years of experience a public health supervisor. I've had an interview to be a county health director where the starting salary range was $91-106K: the county had a nuclear reactor and I would have been responsible for the emergency management plan. That reactor ended up having a minor incident last year. I've also had interviews for similar non-potential nuclear disaster jobs where the salary was only $51-65K. GS9 in most of the US is about $50,000. So if that's all the agency director is getting paid in some locations, the other people working there are getting paid a whole lot less.
I'm not doing anything about housing until if/when I show up at the host site. There's absolutely no way I would rent anything sight unseen: disaster waiting to happen. It seems like half the litigants on Judge Judy/Mathis/Joe Brown rented their apartment/found roommates on Craigslist without the necessary due diligence. Not gonna be me
You are at the host site for the entire two years; you can't transfer.
There's usually a 1 year service commitment with a federal agency if they pay for your moving expenses or give you a signing bonus. Since CDC isn't offering any of this, you should be free to leave at any time if you decide the job isn't for you.
I don't know how well known the PHAP program is. But having been a CDC employee makes you stand out in the public health job market. At the end of the program, you get to say that you worked for the CDC: that is all.
You can definitely work in public health without a graduate degree. However, If you want to be a supervisor, you will probably have to get a MPH. It's been a mandatory/preferred qualification for almost every job I have ever even considered applying for.
If I were younger and just out of undergrad, taking the fellowship would be a no-brainer for me: graduate school is still going to be around in 5-15 years. You could also work on the master's and do PHAP at the same time, although I don't know where you would get the tuition money. Spoken as the single, childless person that I am: I don't really have the needs/wants of other people influencing my decisions. What works for you might be totally different.
