I Got Screwed With My Internship Placement, Can I Ask to Switch Roles or Am I Fucked?
For some context, I am a rising senior at a semi-target school and I only made the transition to finance this year. Last summer I had a sales internship with a Fortune 50 company, and I found quickly that I did not want to be within sales. I networked within the organization and found that Finance would be the best role for me.
Even though I hated the work I was doing, I did really well and was able to secure an internship within their Financial Leadership Program before the summer even ended. Being foolish, I accepted without even looking into all the options for a Finance major(I wish I found this site).
So time passed and they kept pushing off telling me my placement for the summer, and finally, a week before I start, they tell me that I got placed within their Controllership and Accountancy division. WHAT THE FUCK. Out of the five possible placements, I got the shittiest one, in the shittiest location and I was literally the first fucking person they hired for this position. I knew that my experience this summer wasn't perfect, but I was hoping with some relevant experience, a strong GPA(Not 4.0 but not 3.5), high engagement in extracurriculars and leadership positions that I could leverage into a better full time position. Now I'm going to have accounting on my resume for my junior year internship.
It is possible for me to ask them to switch my role, or do I just have to tough it out? Also, would I even have a shot at some of the more competitive full time positions with this on my resume or will I have to take an alternative route?
I'd say just tough it out and shoot for something like consulting. They value different types of experiences and if you're as good as a candidate as you say you are, then you should be fine getting a job at a Tier 1 or Tier 2 firm. Then, after a few years leverage that to get your MBA or go into PE or whatever you find yourself interested in by then.
I wouldn't waste your time trying to get a top IB role, I assume that's what you meant by the more competitive positions.