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Here's my problem: I'm a 1L. I graduated from UW-Madison in May 2010. From 2008 to October 2010, I worked at an 501(c)(4) organization, eventually working my way up to Deputy Development Director shortly after graduation.

Problem? I left in early October 2010, and the employer expected me to stay on until the end of the political campaign in November. I never really told the employer why I left, but I was tired of working 24/7 and wanted some time off to work-part time, travel, and in late October I had some commitments I really did not want to miss out on. After I left, the employer mentioned that I did good work, but couldn't give me a good reference because I left prematurely. I have other WE, but I really do not want to leave the Deputy Dev Director position out of my resume, as it's the best WE I've got.

What should I do?

You can't just leave it off your resume. There would be a giant gap. Only a few firms check.

IAFG wrote:You can't just leave it off your resume. There would be a giant gap. Only a few firms check.

So leave it on the resume, but don't submit them as a reference?

And if an employer asks why they're not on my list of references, should I frankly tell them that I did it for the aforementioned reasons?

Not one employer asked me for a list of references, and I only know of one firm that does.

Leave it on, get one of your coworkers to be a reference for that job. I was in the same situation. Did steller work but didn't give two weeks notice so my boss refused to be a reference. It was my first job. I wish I had given notice, but oh well. I'll definitely not leave a kid out to dry like that if the tables are ever turned, but whatever. You must have friends from that job that will be good references for you. They don't have to be a manager.

c3pO4 wrote:Leave it on, get one of your coworkers to be a reference for that job. I was in the same situation. Did steller work but didn't give two weeks notice so my boss refused to be a reference. It was my first job. I wish I had given notice, but oh well. I'll definitely not leave a kid out to dry like that if the tables are ever turned, but whatever. You must have friends from that job that will be good references for you. They don't have to be a manager.

I'll think about it, but off the top of my head I'm not sure I can find someone. I was on the low end of the core management team, and they were all pretty upset that I bailed on them a month before the campaign ended.

Anyway, the consensus seems to be that I should leave it on my resume. Any suggestions of what I should say if a potential employer asks why I did not include them on my list of references?

Anonymous User wrote:

c3pO4 wrote:Leave it on, get one of your coworkers to be a reference for that job. I was in the same situation. Did steller work but didn't give two weeks notice so my boss refused to be a reference. It was my first job. I wish I had given notice, but oh well. I'll definitely not leave a kid out to dry like that if the tables are ever turned, but whatever. You must have friends from that job that will be good references for you. They don't have to be a manager.

I'll think about it, but off the top of my head I'm not sure I can find someone. I was on the low end of the core management team, and they were all pretty upset that I bailed on them a month before the campaign ended.

Anyway, the consensus seems to be that I should leave it on my resume. Any suggestions of what I should say if a potential employer asks why I did not include them on my list of references?

It doesn't have to be a manager. You seriously weren't even friends with any secretaries or other people lower on the hierarchy? How about a client you worked with. IDK, only managers should care that you left early. If it was a foot soldier in the organization, they shouldn't give a crap at all. Unless you were a mean manager .

Anonymous User wrote:Here's my problem: I'm a 1L. I graduated from UW-Madison in May 2010. From 2008 to October 2010, I worked at an 501(c)(4) organization, eventually working my way up to Deputy Development Director shortly after graduation.

Problem? I left in early October 2010, and the employer expected me to stay on until the end of the political campaign in November. I never really told the employer why I left, but I was tired of working 24/7 and wanted some time off to work-part time, travel, and in late October I had some commitments I really did not want to miss out on. After I left, the employer mentioned that I did good work, but couldn't give me a good reference because I left prematurely. I have other WE, but I really do not want to leave the Deputy Dev Director position out of my resume, as it's the best WE I've got.

What should I do?

Leave it on your resume. When you get to the reference/background check stage, firms will generally just verify employment through an agency and they will only verify dates you list. They are not allowed to give out any additional information.