How to Decline Offers Tactfully and Not Burn Bridges?
Hi all
I have a few offers, and it's a great position to be in. That being said, I now need to tell many banks that I will not be signing and that I've selected a different summer analyst program. It's been surprisingly difficult for me and I wanted some advice
At 1 particular shop where my school is a big target, I had indicated strong interest and got an IB offer at a so-called lower-tier BB, and others have congratulated me and pushed me to sign. Thing is, I just couldn't picture myself slaving away IB hours and would much rather take the S&T offer at a smaller different bank.
The IB alums have been aggressive, calling and congratulating me. Some have political ties to me (pushed my resume and helped out every single step of the process). How do I navigate this? Do I tell the places where I will be going, or just leave it vague?
I plan on just sending some thoughtful emails, but maybe I should call as well (at least for the MDs who went out of their way to congratulate me)? Especially for the higher ups (MDs) that have reached out and put pressure on me to sign, I want to not burn any bridges since the street is small.
Thank you for any advice!
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Don't overthink it. The calls from seniors and pressure is standard.
Don't string them along, and don't volunteer extra info, but don't lie if asked about where you're going.
If you were honest with people throughout the process, I wouldn't worry about burning bridges. People generally only get into trouble if they said they said something was their top choice when it wasn't or if they told them they were all in on IBD when they were simultaneously recruiting for other industries. Also, definitely don't tell them you're turning down IBD because of the hours.
So I've been stringing them... in a sense. They were going to bat for me and I knew for sure I didnt want to do IB (but was desperate back in July so applied to everything). As soon as I got the offer I knew I wouldnt take it so I waited for a couple days to tell them. That turned into 2-3 weeks now. When should I pull the trigger?
Just call them tomorrow.
Completely understand the mindset of applying to everything. I'm sure they have a large waitlist of candidates - they might be upset for 30 seconds but anyone reasonable will quickly move on. I know the calls are a bit unpleasant, but you have nothing to worry about.
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