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I am a recent graduate who started a new job about a month and a half ago. The job ended up being different from what I expected and what I was led to believe by recruiters, and I want to find a new job more in line with my career prospects. The company has spent significant amount of money relocating me; I did not have to spend a single cent out of pocket for relocation purposes that was not reimbursed in some way. I signed an agreement that I would pay back these expenditures if I voluntarily left within 6 months of deposit (about 5.5 months from today).

I am currently in the process of finding a new job, but I do not know the exact amount of money I would owe to my current employer if I quit. I am worried that asking about this will indicate to the company that I am planning on leaving, which may have consequences. Is it a bad idea to ask my company how much money I would owe if I left within the time frame of this contract?

First off, if it had consequences they wouldn't affect you, other than that you'd either be terminated (so you wouldn't owe the money), or they might just make your life miserable.

The best win-win solution is for you to have a frank discussion with your employer and explain that the job isn't what you were looking for, or wasn't what you thought it was. Say that you want to stay, if the job was what you were looking for. Unless it isn't, because you're in the completely wrong field.

One of the things about being early in your career is that what you think the career is, often isn't what it is. For example, I thought being a software engineer was a lot of coding. It wasn't. Once I did figure out what being a software engineer was all about, I learned that it was about even more than that. I rolled with the tide and became even better at what a software engineer is, and now I'm an old lady with a long career that I've loved.

So. Advice time? Hold off doing anything rash for the time being. Ask others in your field what being in your field is about. Understand that people early in their careers really do change jobs, and really do learn that it isn't what you likely thought it was when you were in college. If this approach doesn't work, THEN go talk with the boss and share your ambitions and see if something can be done to align your ambitions and the company's needs.

Is it a bad idea to ask my company how much money I would owe if I
left within the time frame of this contract?

It is a bad idea to ask such a thing and it can only hurt your relationships at work.

Have you thought about the possibility that what you've done in the first two weeks of the job is not 100% of the job? If it were me, I would give the job more time. Two weeks at a job is typically not enough time to fully gauge the type of work you will be doing for that job.

However if you truly don't want to work there, then continue searching for a new job and say nothing until you have another job offer in writing and signed. Only then would I say it would be ok to ask about paying back the relocation cost.