When to resign?

[downtownchick]

For those of you who are now working on a permanent position, when do you plan to tell your employer that you’re attending in fall this year?

I have just gotten my first informal acceptance from a prof via email. An hour before this, somebody announced in my work meeting that they were moving me up to a higher position. It had been in the works for a while but I had no idea it would come yesterday. My employer paid a lot to recruit me and train me so now I am feeling the guilt. In which month do you plan to tell them? As soon as you have decided where to go? April? May? Or just go the 2-week notice route?

[rogue]

I told my boss the day after I got my first acceptance, but I'm not sure this is the route to go for most people. It worked for me because everyone in my office knew I was applying and they've all been supportive. Also, my boss is dating a friend of mine (who would see the announcement on my Facebook page), and I wanted her to hear it from me first. Anyway, she was happy for me and happy to have so much lead time to fill my position.

If you have any reason to think you'll lose your job if you speak up now, I'd wait until about a month before you're set to leave and then tell them. It's better than a two-week notice, and they're not likely to find a replacement quickly enough to make you miss out on that last paycheck or two.

[red_crayons]

I told one boss when I was applying, and the other last week.

I would leave the first job soon, anyway. It's not a great fit for me anymore, and I've developed other skills/connections that give me the option to leave.

I told my supervisor at my other job because a. she is friends with one of my recommenders and b. she is also friends with the prof on the adcom who seems to be trying to get me in to one program. Soooo it would've been a huge violation of trust to keep it a secret much longer.

[expressionista]

I plan to give my notice approximately one month before I intend to stop working. I also have a job that has put a lot into training me and has like a ten year plan for me, so I want to give them quite a bit of notice. I don't want to tell them too soon though and risk having them tell me to go ahead and stop working immediately or something (I don't think they would do that, but you never know). However, once I am accepted to grad school (if I am) and sell my house, I'll feel more open about letting the secret out if needed (like if they try to send me off somewhere for training).

Edited January 29, 2010 by expressionista

[hubris]

Two weeks: never be fooled into thinking business relationships are anything but.

[Infinite Monkeys]

I just got a new job in the middle of application season; it's just a grad position, but I'm doing a specialized job in the department. I made it clear to my new boss that I'm applying to PhD programs. What we agreed on was that I'd help her find and train a replacement before I left. I still have to give minimum two weeks, but once I'm admitted somewhere (I hope-I hope-I hope), it'll be like an unofficial notice.

It'd be rough on the office just because they just had to hire and train replacements for their project manager/data analyst. They really don't want drastic change right now (or anytime soon).

[expressionista]

Two weeks: never be fooled into thinking business relationships are anything but.

I don't think the standard 2 weeks notice applies to every job though. I've heard (from MBA students, business journals, etc.) that for lower/middle management positions, 3 weeks is appropriate, and upper management employees should give 4 weeks. When an upper management employee at my current company gave 2 weeks notice last year (he ended up staying with the company in the end), everyone flipped out and then made him sign some kind of agreement that if he ever quit again, he needed to give 4 weeks notice. I am fully in the camp of business being business, but I also know that my employer is going to panic when I give my notice because no one else in our company does my job and someone will have to be trained before I leave. If I give my notice 3 weeks in advance, I give them time to have me train someone on the basics, and I don't think there's any risk of them telling me to only stay for 2 more weeks. Now if I gave something like 8 weeks notice, that could be a different story.

[NervousNellie]

I don't think the standard 2 weeks notice applies to every job though.

Right. I am in a vocational position in ministry. People give up to a year's notice in my field.

That said, both of my supervising ministers know that I am applying for school, and I have tried to make it clear that I really won't know what that means regarding work until at least mid-March. I am applying to two programs that are full-time, traditional programs. But I am also applying to two programs designed for working, commuter students. (All have a good reputation for high quality education, which is why I felt comfortable applying for the latter in addition to the former.)

I may continue to work, I may not. If I continue to work, I may reduce my hours significantly, or I may not.

Telling my supervising ministers was good on one hand. One wrote letters of recommendation for me and the other said she'd be a reference if I wanted.

On the other hand, one of them seems to be treating my work differently now. He is becoming more hands on with my work and sometimes is jumping in to interfere where he never did before. I feel like he is preparing for my departure, and I think it is premature to do that with so much being up in the air.

I also told a handful of congregants, under some requests for confidentiality, and I've really appreciated the overwhelming support but word has leaked in a couple cases. It's okay for now, but if rumors start before I really know what I am doing, it could be bad.

My plan is to make an announcement of one sort or another as soon as I have accepted an offer, have a financial plan in place, and know what the heck I am going to do.

Edited February 1, 2010 by NervousNellie

[Katzenmusik]

I had planned to put in 3 weeks' notice immediately after getting an acceptance (I work in a mid-level managerial position). This would give me time over the summer to either do some traveling or find some sort of internship/part-time position in my new field.

However, I happened to see an ad for a really cool-seeming summer position which relates more to what I want to do in life after grad school. I already applied and interviewed. So it's possible that I'll be leaving my job even before getting accepted to a grad program.

I'm looking for a change anyway--with or without grad school, I need to transition out of my current career, which I've been successful in but do not love.

[2400]

My boss and co-workers all knew I was applying for PhD programs last year. Because everyone in my office was a little nosy, my boss heard it through the grapevine once I started getting acceptance and rejection letters. I ended up giving my boss a four month notice.

Looking back on the whole experience, I wish I hadn't told anyone in my office I was applying to grad school. The application process and then the process of deciding where to go was stressful enough, without having my co-workers ask me about it nearly every day -- and bring it up in meetings. It was completely my fault because I asked one of my co-workers for help with my application essay (a few of my colleagues were former profs) and then the news circulated. I think a one month notice is generous. A two week notice is pretty standard.

[qberta]

for my job, the hiring process is notoriously slow & i know it'll screw my co-workers if they're without a replacement for a long time. i plan to give my supervisor, who's been a great ally in fighting for me at the job, an informal heads-up about 2-3 months before, like, "you know, i've been offered this paid graduate education and it seems likely i might take it.... i'll probably make a final decision & put in my notice in the summer... but maybe you want to start making plans for if that happens."

but then I'll wait to put in my notice with HR until 1 month before. I want my department to get the okay to hire, but i don't want to mess up my financial plans. we have a budget crisis every year around that time, so it's likely my job would get chopped early. in fact, i saw it happen to someone this summer.

[pea-jay]

My boss *IS* my primary LOR, so he is obviously knows from the get go. I informed him NINE months prior to my intended departure time and made a plan to complete all major projects I am working on. I think he'd be happier if I stayed because there's a chance my position could get deleted for budgetary reasons.

[anya11]

1 year into job, i wanted to continue with grad studies. I quit my job as an engineer 6 months before being admitted to grad school. Started working with a research centre in my field till the academic year begins.