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Advice on delaying acceptances?
Posted: Wed Mar 04, 2015 2:03 pm
by Anonymous User
Hi guys. What is the "industry standard" when asking for an extension on accepting an internship offer?
Any advice on how to phrase things to avoid burning any bridges?
Does the amount of extension differ when comparing in-house versus firm versus government offers?
Thank you!
Re: Advice on delaying acceptances?
Posted: Wed Mar 04, 2015 2:06 pm
by mr.hands
Just tell them that you're in the process of applying for/confirming funding and you need a few days/weeks to secure that before getting back to them. Thank them again, express excitement, and then you're done
Re: Advice on delaying acceptances?
Posted: Wed Mar 04, 2015 2:16 pm
by Anonymous User
mr.hands wrote:Just tell them that you're in the process of applying for/confirming funding and you need a few days/weeks to secure that before getting back to them. Thank them again, express excitement, and then you're done
This is for a paid internship, so unfortunately funding can't be used as an excuse...
Is it okay to just say that you're waiting to hear back from another offer, would like to compare details before accepting, and will get back to them in a week? I think I'm just overthinking this, but this is my first time with legal internships.
Re: Advice on delaying acceptances?
Posted: Wed Mar 04, 2015 5:00 pm
by Anonymous User
posting b/c in same situation and worried I'm gonna end up pissing someone off for leading them on/wasting their time.
Re: Advice on delaying acceptances?
Posted: Wed Mar 04, 2015 6:05 pm
by Avian
Anonymous User wrote:mr.hands wrote:Just tell them that you're in the process of applying for/confirming funding and you need a few days/weeks to secure that before getting back to them. Thank them again, express excitement, and then you're done
This is for a paid internship, so unfortunately funding can't be used as an excuse...
Is it okay to just say that you're waiting to hear back from another offer, would like to compare details before accepting, and will get back to them in a week? I think I'm just overthinking this, but this is my first time with legal internships.
Yes, this is fine. They may not give you an extension, but it is not inappropriate to ask.
Re: Advice on delaying acceptances?
Posted: Wed Mar 04, 2015 10:46 pm
by k5220
Avian wrote:Anonymous User wrote:mr.hands wrote:Just tell them that you're in the process of applying for/confirming funding and you need a few days/weeks to secure that before getting back to them. Thank them again, express excitement, and then you're done
This is for a paid internship, so unfortunately funding can't be used as an excuse...
Is it okay to just say that you're waiting to hear back from another offer, would like to compare details before accepting, and will get back to them in a week? I think I'm just overthinking this, but this is my first time with legal internships.
Yes, this is fine. They may not give you an extension, but it is not inappropriate to ask.
You don't have to say you're waiting to hear back from another offer. You can make excuses like needing to figure out your housing situation, you can stall for time by asking for contact information for previous interns, or you can just ask when they need to hear back by / if you could have more time to consider the offer. In any case, it shouldn't hurt to ask.