How to withdraw from internship?
Hi,
A while back I had received and accepted an internship offer with a Big 4 firm in Corporate Finance. A little over a week ago I ended up getting a BB IB offer... obviously I'm going to do the IB internship.
What is the best way to approach the Big 4 firm and minimize the chance of burning that bridge, since for all I know, IB might not be for me. Sending a polite e-mail apologizing and citing "personal reasons"? Being Honest? Calling and talking about it?
I would definitely give the hiring manager (or respective person) a call and just let them know that you are going to have to rescind your acceptance. Apologize for any problems, etc that you may have caused, and thank them for the opportunity. If they ask why, i would just be honest with them and say that you have decided to pursue another opportunity. No bridges should be burned with this type of phone call as people bow out of internships frequently, and it shows that you aren't trying to screw anyone and actually care about making sure the information gets to the right person via a personal phone call. They'll forget that your dropped in a week, if that - it's a big four, and you were going to be an intern - not that big of a deal.
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You will definitely burn bridges at the Big 4 firm and run the risk of ramifications from your school as well, if the Big 4 firm recruits at your school. This is a major hot button for career services offices and their relationships with the firms that recruit there. Do some digging on your career services site so you know what their policy is.
That said, in this environment, the Big 4 firm MAY be somewhat less concerned about this because there are probably other strong candidates they can bring in. Definitely rescind your acceptance in a phone conversation (not a message). Be appropriately penitent. This is a big deal. Imagine if a firm did this to you - sorry, we found a candidate that we like better so we're going to rescind your offer.
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Thanks for the timely advice.
I think I will call the person in HR who dealt with me throughout most of the application process and just say something about personal issues / other commitments will prevent me from doing it, sorry for any hassle etc.
It's quite an unfortunate situation, and I would have liked to avoid it if possible. Unfortunately they (Big 4) had their internship recruitment much earlier than IBs in my area, so my only other option would have been to not apply and hope I got an IB offer.
Ah well, worst case scenario - it's just 1 out of the 4.
was in a similar situation this summer. I called them and was honest about my situation. they were pretty understanding... it happens to all of us from time to time.
Call. And tell the truth. That's really all you can do in this situation. Depending on the hiring manager, HR person, and other variables you may or may not end up burning the bridge regardless of how you approach the situation.
If you received an offer through your career services, there is a risk that company may inform career services. It happened to me after I reneged....
If this happens at my university, the student is banned from using our on-campus recruiting. Given that banking internships in this environment don't lead to automatic full-time offers, I'd keep this in mind (but only if the same applies at your university).
I don't think this will be an issue for me - the only on campus recruiting we have is promotional events from the banks/firms (ie. they just send a team of a few people to give a brief speech about the company then talk/answer questions to those who attended).
Recruiting is generally apply online, and then if you get interviewed you go to the firm etc.
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