How do you break internship commitments?

What's up fellow primates,

I'm currently interning at a real estate focused fund and I'm supposed to be here until late fall. However, after a few months I've realized that I dont want to be in RE.

I have done a super job so far so everyone's very pleased with me. I was thinking it would be ideal if I could shorten the length of the internship till the end of summer (basically turn it into a summer internship as opposed to an off-cycle one), this way I could return to the states (as im currently abroad) and be there in time for recruiting this fall.

Does anyone have any experience with breaking commitments? Ultimately I want to be as tactful as possible because I don't want to tarnish the relationships I've built and I dont want to part on bad terms... obviously they may be taken aback, or initially feel upset but I would like for them to understand where I'm coming from, if that's possible.

Help!

 

Always take the high road. As long as you cover all of your bases and remain respectful, that is all they can expect from you. You should see the positive in that you now know RE is something you won't consider full time, plus you can use this dilemma with interviews for other gigs down the road.

 

You don't. Work out the remainder of the internship. Maintain your integrity, and keep the door open for future jobs/recommendations. Quitting because you're a little baby who doesn't want to work for a few extra weeks is never a good signal.

 
Best Response

The assumption behind that is that he simply wants to quit because he doesn't like it.

I'm under the impression that he's come to an accurate realization about his career objectives in that he knows that RE isn't for him. The OP also wants to stop wasting his time and go chase something he might enjoy, especially since he's going into junior year recruiting season.

It is a risk, but this is the best time to take such a risk. Post-graduation, leaving a job means you're unemployed. I say follow marketman's advice. It will not be easy to articulate, but you should do what you have to do. Cover your bases and don't give them any reason to be pissed off at you.

If you think that you could maneuver your way through recruiting season from abroad, though, you definitely should.

in it 2 win it
 

Get your head out of your long-winded @ss. The first paragraph says "I don't want to be in RE." He doesn't like it..plain and simple. We're talking about an extra month or so. WTF is he going to "chase" in that time that he can't "chase" after completing the internship? He's going to sit on his @ss and do absolutely nothing.

OP, just finish the internship, and move on. An extra month won't kill you.

 

I'm curious to know why you "can't take advantage of fall senior recruiting?"

I'd still stick the internship out for as long as I could. The extra cash and work experience has no downside. When you actually get to a point where you need the extra time to do something else, THEN you can think about quitting. For now, you'd probably just be sitting on your @ss, doing nothing.

 

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