Job Opportunities!!!! I need advice (long)

[Disneylover79]

OK here it goes... I (as you can see by my ticker) just finished grad school... I had an interview the end of July and it went well and was told to contact them when I was closer to taking my certification test, OK so on I go about my life...

Then I have a friend that applies for the same position, and she was emailed the next day stating that the position had been filled.... I did not receive such an email....

So today another possible employer contacts me and pretty much offers me the job on the phone.... I was in shock because I wasn't expecting it....

So here are my problems...1. Job #1 is with the same employer where I work now and would be a promotion, I would keep all my benefits and seniority, I would also give them my 18 months time in order to pay off my tuition that they paid in order for me to go to school....
Job #2 would be a good job but I was not expecting to be offered the job on the phone, I told him I wanted to think it over...in the meantime I call my mom and she says that she thinks that she heard that this employer might not be good for me....

So I need to contact employer #1 and ask them if they plan on hiring me (this is the job I would love to have) but how do I do this.... please help me in trying to figure this out

Also how do I tell employer #2 that I will have to pay back the tuition to my current employer?


TIA

 

[Carly_Roach]

So here are my problems...1. Job #1 is with the same employer where I work now and would be a promotion, I would keep all my benefits and seniority, I would also give them my 18 months time in order to pay off my tuition that they paid in order for me to go to school....

It seems like a no-brainer to me unless there's information I'm missing here. Since your employer paid for you to go to school, you're obligated to stay with them for a year and 1/2 to pay them back. Both jobs outside of that employer will have to wait for at least that long.

 

[mtemm]

so are you closer to your certification test now than in july? that is when you were supposed to contact #1 again, right? if so, yep, perfect time to touch base. and since they are your current employer, might be an easy way to do it fairly casually. all I would do,depending on the culture, is call or email and check in, see what they say.

not sure what field you are in. is it a field that typically gives any kind of sign on bonus? if so, would that be enough to cover the tuition reimbursement? (a stretch, and in this economy probably a huge stretch!)

did employer #2 actually offer you the job? you said they pretty much did...what does pretty much mean?

 

[DVCLiz]

Contact Employer #1 and say, "I'm following up on our previous conversation. I've had a job offer from another business and I would like to discuss my options here at XYZ Company." Don't mention the tuition reimbursement - obviously they know you owe it but if there is an option to simply repay them with cash you can easily go to another employer and pay them back from your earnings there.

If #1 is the job you really want, ask them to be specific about your options. If they can't make any offers, take the second job and tell Employer #2 you need x dollars in addition to your salary and benefits package in order to repay your tuition advance. If they want you badly enough to be making an unsolicited offer over the phone they probably won't balk at a little tuition. If they do, but still offer you a good job, then you'll have to decide how to repay that tuition.

But DON'T be casual about it. You're a professional now and you need to speak professionally to the HR department, etc. Figure out what you want and then go for it.

 

[DVCLiz]

It seems like a no-brainer to me unless there's information I'm missing here. Since your employer paid for you to go to school, you're obligated to stay with them for a year and 1/2 to pay them back. Both jobs outside of that employer will have to wait for at least that long.

That's totally wrong, Carly - we don't have indentured servitude in the United States!!! If you make that agreement with an employer you are obligated to either stay at the job OR to repay the money if you leave the employer before the agreed-upon time, but you don't have to "serve a sentence."

 

[Disneylover79]

Thank you all for your advice...

 

[DVCLiz]

Thank you all for your advice...

Let us know how it goes!

 

[BelleWDW]

That's totally wrong, Carly - we don't have indentured servitude in the United States!!! ."

To the OP:congrats on your advanced degree. Extra education is always worth it!

 

[LadyZolt]

.... [W]e don't have indentured servitude in the United States!!! If you make that agreement with an employer you are obligated to either stay at the job OR to repay the money if you leave the employer before the agreed-upon time, but you don't have to "serve a sentence."

I just want to say that in some cases, people sign contracts that do require them to work for a number of years in exchange for education. Medical programs have done this to train people who then serve a few years in remote or less desirable locations. The military ROTC programs work the same way. Indentured servitude, no. Contractual obligation, yes. In the OPs case, no contract was signed, but there could be an implication that if they pay for it, the employer will benefit from the education. It could hurt the OP in her field to not fulfill the implied obligation as the "grape vine" among co-workers or employers could scar her reputation, so I would recommend that she start by talking to the current employer and being transparent about her desire to continue employment with them. My two cents!

-Dorothy (LadyZolt)