johnnyx9 wrote:
Well if I was hiring someone and they told me that they left their job five months before starting business school, I would certainly think to myself, "Is this person going to be a malcontent? Will they get bored or disgruntled if I hire them? Are they lazy? How could they afford to take that much time off, are they independently wealthy? If so, then does that mean they don't really need this job and they'll quit as soon as they get tired of it?"
I completely agree with you that if I didn't have to go to work every day I could be doing much more interesting, life-enrichening things with my life. I think 99% of people would agree with that.
When I consider hiring someone with a long-ish gap, I have the same questions as Johnny. I think that if the gap were between two jobs, and not between job and b-school, it would be more of a problem for me. I think it's probably clear to most people that we're all about to experience a major change in our lives -- taking some time off before this is ok.
5 months is a long time, but doing something "productive" is helpful. Also, I think the most important piece is the context: have you been a job-hopper? I have been at my place for almost 5 years. If I had a nice long break in between, no one would wonder about my commitment to my work.
However, if you haven't managed to hold any job for more than a couple years, I would be more likely to hold this break against you.