[Shashi]

As many of you know, I didn't get tenure at the college where I teach, which means that in one year, I will be out of a job. The main reason I didn't get tenure was due to my medical problems. I was delayed getting my master's degree and also wasn't able to complete several things I had volunteered for because of having to deal not only cervical cancer and its treatment, but also these weird MS-like symptoms (no diagnosis yet).

I had to withdraw my application for tenure and resign, which allowed me to teach for another year here, as the other choice would have been to try to appeal the decision (which I was told has never been successful for any other faculty member) and be immediately terminated at the end of this month and have the tenure rejection go into my employment record.

So, I'm wondering, what on earth do I tell potential employers when they ask why I resigned from such a wonderful job that I loved? If I tell them I was rejected for tenure, then that will look bad on me. If I tell them about my medical problems, they probably won't hire me. Yet I can't think of any other valid reason why I would resign from my job.

Any suggestions on how to explain this without ruining my chances during an interview?