Rejected an offer and then became interested (a bad decision I made)

Question

Three months ago, a professor has offered to me a research position at his university with high salary, and I rejected it because I wanted to join a master's program. Unfortunately, I made a bad decision and now I changed my mind and became very interested to the exciting position he offered to me.

Do you think is it a good idea that I send him an email and ask if the offer is still available? So even that I rejected the offer 3 months ago, is it possible that I ask the professor about that offer again?

Answer 1

Yes, it is a good idea to ask. But explain that you now think you made a mistake in rejecting the offer. You might also want to mention your longer term goals, which I assume include further education. He can help you with that if he has a good sense of your needs. If your work for him is good enough, he might also have some incentive to help you along. One hopes for such an outcome, anyway.

But yes, ask. Silence gains you nothing, nor him, either.

Answer 2

If you already know that you are interested in the position only for 9 months from your side (until Aug 2020), and he is looking for a more long-term assistant, be aware that he may not want to hire you.

Hiring a RA is in many places quite a bit of bureaucratic work, and unless you are absolutely outstanding, I can imagine the prof not being interested in a very temporary candidate for whom (repeatedly) another line, namely an MSc, is of higher priority. Of course, that all depends on the professor, but I could imagine them to go for a candidate with a longer-term perspective.

Of course, asking never hurts, as long as your request is polite and makes clear you will accept any decision the prof makes. Be also prepared that perhaps they have also already hired someone.