'Don't know what to do anymore': Graduate claims promised ₹35 LPA opportunity ended with a ₹6.5 LPA backup offer

What began as a dream internship with the prospect of a ₹35 LPA package ended in disappointment for an engineering graduate who says his company declined to offer PPOs to any of its 90 interns, forcing him to accept a ₹6.5 LPA backup offer instead.

In a post on Reddit, the graduate said he was from a tier-1.5 college and had secured an internship through campus placements at a company offering a ₹35 lakh per annum package. According to the post, the internship lasted six months and interns were repeatedly assured that securing a PPO would not be a problem.

"I gave my everything, tried my best during the internship and had a really positive manager feedback( I was basically told by my manager that I would 100% get the ppo and not to worry)," the user wrote.

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However, just two days before the internship ended, all 90 interns were informed that none of them would receive a PPO.

The graduate claimed the company had shifted its focus toward artificial intelligence investments and was no longer hiring interns full-time. "They basically spent all there money on AI and were not taking any interns," the post said.

Read the viral post here:

Left without an offer, the graduate eventually accepted a backup role at another company with a package of ₹6.5 LPA. Despite the offer, the user admitted struggling to move past the disappointment and uncertainty.

The post quickly gained traction online, with several users sharing similar experiences of internship promises that never translated into full-time jobs.

One commenter argued that companies often use attractive compensation packages to motivate interns without guaranteeing employment at the end of the programme. "They have literally scammed you guys with the dream of 35 LPA. They knew giving this offer would make interns work extra hard to land the PPO. Now they gave the excuse of AI to not follow up on their promise," the user wrote.

The commenter also suggested that hiring decisions are often driven by business priorities rather than individual performance. "Don’t overthink, even if you saved them from bankruptcy, they wouldn’t have hired you."

Another user said they found themselves in a similar position after rejecting an opportunity to interview with TCS because they were confident of receiving a PPO from their internship employer.

"Broo! I am in the same situation as you," the user wrote. "I was always told I will be given the PPO because the company needs people and I am doing really good work but it was all a lie and on my last day I was said 'no' because of business reasons."

The commenter said they are now unemployed despite actively searching for opportunities.

A third user sought to put the situation into perspective, noting that uncertainty has become increasingly common across the technology sector. Sharing their own experience, the commenter said their joining date had been pushed back by a year despite securing a campus placement.

"Bro, im telling you, don't worry," the user wrote. "It's kinda a good thing you didn't have to work at a place with such bad ethics. It's better to work somewhere with some humanity and ethics for lower salary than go for a high salary or claimed dream job with trash morals."

The discussion reflects a growing concern among fresh graduates about the unpredictability of campus hiring and PPO conversions. While internship programmes continue to be a key route into the technology industry, many young professionals say changing business priorities, hiring freezes and cost-cutting measures are making full-time offers far less certain than they once appeared.