by Vandal » Wed Jun 28, 2023 11:45 am
Guest12345 wrote: ↑Tue Jun 27, 2023 12:14 pm
Vandal wrote: ↑Tue Jun 27, 2023 10:11 am
Great, thank you for your advice! My only issue is that I already have free tuition, meaning the only thing I’d be gaining is 30k a year for 2 years, and a job offer. So I’d get 60k along with a lower starting salary than the private sector, which I don’t feel is really worth it for me in exchange for 2 years working where I don’t think I’d like to commit to. Any thoughts?
I mean that certainly makes the program immensely less worthwhile for you. (Do note that the scholarship does limit your ability to work outside of your classes to up to 16hrs per week so if you're looking for more than just the monthly stipend for spending money your options are limited.) If you are not benefitting from the free tuition I wouldn't accept it personally. I was incredibly lucky to be placed at a position that interests me but based on other stories on this forum that is not always a given and if you don't have the need for the tuition portion of the scholarship it sounds like you would just be committing yourself to a job for a set amount of time where you have little bargaining power regarding starting salary, location, position etc.
You can always do the math if the 60K for the 2 year commitment would be > or < the potential salary for that equivalent in the private sector job, however keep in mind that many gov (at least from my experience as a "civilian") positions have built in promotions; in my case I've moved up from a GS-7 to GS-9 after 1 year, and I'm now about to move to a GS-11 position at the end of my 2nd year, which with my specific location's pay locality and job specialty rate does end up placing me at a happy salary position. You should be able to, if you haven't already, take a tour through your SF office/building/etc and be able to ask what your expected starting position, pay etc would be PRIOR to submitting your final decision on the scholarship. NOTE: In my case there was a SIGNIFICANT difference in pay between being a "local hire" (the better option imo) and being what's called an ACT-ED (pretty much being hired by big military, Army/Airforce/etc, and just technically being on "loan" to your SF until your intern/learning period is over) so if this is a possibility try your best to figure out which you would/could be prior to accepting if you do. (Local = ~30% higher pay, ACT-ED = "more" training opportunities as you'd be pulling from big military budget instead of your SFs but this is very much in flux as budget comes and goes, so not worth it to be an ACTED imo)
Overall if you're not going to benefit from the tuition ride, just be proactive with job interviews and you'll most likely end up at a better position in the long run. Plus I'm sure someone else would be thrilled to take up the spare scholarship if you decline. Best of luck!
[quote=Guest12345 post_id=16624 time=1687882489]
[quote=Vandal post_id=16622 time=1687875118 user_id=1269]
[/quote]
Great, thank you for your advice! My only issue is that I already have free tuition, meaning the only thing I’d be gaining is 30k a year for 2 years, and a job offer. So I’d get 60k along with a lower starting salary than the private sector, which I don’t feel is really worth it for me in exchange for 2 years working where I don’t think I’d like to commit to. Any thoughts?
[/quote]
I mean that certainly makes the program immensely less worthwhile for you. (Do note that the scholarship does limit your ability to work outside of your classes to up to 16hrs per week so if you're looking for more than just the monthly stipend for spending money your options are limited.) If you are not benefitting from the free tuition I wouldn't accept it personally. I was incredibly lucky to be placed at a position that interests me but based on other stories on this forum that is not always a given and if you don't have the need for the tuition portion of the scholarship it sounds like you would just be committing yourself to a job for a set amount of time where you have little bargaining power regarding starting salary, location, position etc.
You can always do the math if the 60K for the 2 year commitment would be > or < the potential salary for that equivalent in the private sector job, however keep in mind that many gov (at least from my experience as a "civilian") positions have built in promotions; in my case I've moved up from a GS-7 to GS-9 after 1 year, and I'm now about to move to a GS-11 position at the end of my 2nd year, which with my specific location's pay locality and job specialty rate does end up placing me at a happy salary position. You should be able to, if you haven't already, take a tour through your SF office/building/etc and be able to ask what your expected starting position, pay etc would be PRIOR to submitting your final decision on the scholarship. NOTE: In my case there was a SIGNIFICANT difference in pay between being a "local hire" (the better option imo) and being what's called an ACT-ED (pretty much being hired by big military, Army/Airforce/etc, and just technically being on "loan" to your SF until your intern/learning period is over) so if this is a possibility try your best to figure out which you would/could be prior to accepting if you do. (Local = ~30% higher pay, ACT-ED = "more" training opportunities as you'd be pulling from big military budget instead of your SFs but this is very much in flux as budget comes and goes, so not worth it to be an ACTED imo)
Overall if you're not going to benefit from the tuition ride, just be proactive with job interviews and you'll most likely end up at a better position in the long run. Plus I'm sure someone else would be thrilled to take up the spare scholarship if you decline. Best of luck!