u/Slogllykop

I'm a final-year (8th semester) student and recently interviewed for an AI + Full Stack role at an AI-biotech startup.

Timeline:

• May 16: Submitted take-home assignment
• May 20: Received a call to schedule the technical interview
• May 22: Technical interview
• May 24: Behavioral round with the CSO
• May 26: Face-to-face discussion at their office

I cleared 3-4 rounds and was told I was selected from 150+ candidates.

During the behavioral round, I informed the CSO that my exams end on June 11 and I could join from June 15. He seemed fine with that. When asked about salary expectations, I said 8-12 LPA, and again there was no objection, he said "Ok".

When I visited their office, everyone was friendly and the interviewer told me I was the chosen candidate. He said the company was well-funded and that the CSO would likely be comfortable with my expected salary range. He even mentioned that he would personally try to get me a higher package within that range.

For context, I'm from a tier-3 college and my family is going through a severe financial crisis, so this opportunity meant a lot to me.

Today, everything changed.

The CSO called and said they need me to start on June 8, even though I still have exams on June 9 and June 11 so he asked me to work on non exam days. He said I would first need to join as an intern/part-time employee, and conversion to full-time would be performance-based.

He then asked my salary expectations again. When I repeated 8-12 LPA, he said they cannot offer anything close to that. He told me other AI Engineers earn around 6 LPA, and that I would be offered even less despite my role being AI + Full stack both.

He also said he hadn't taken notes during my interview and that the salary range discussed by the interviewer didn't match mine. Later, the interviewer called me after 30mins and, after hearing my expected range again, also said the company is small and pays much less than that (which is completely opposite of what he told me earlier).

What frustrates me the most is the complete lack of transparency throughout the process. The CSO never communicated that my salary expectations were outside their budget, despite discussing them during the behavioral round. If they had been upfront about their compensation range, I would have continued interviewing elsewhere instead of assuming we were aligned. I'm disappointed because I was clear about my expectations and availability from the very beginning, yet there still seems to have been a significant miscommunication somewhere in the process.

I even turned down an interview opportunity with a YC-backed company that was offering 10-15 LPA remote, because I genuinely believed this role would work out and I would get to learn a lot.

To make things worse:

• The CEO told me on May 26 that I'd receive an offer letter within 2 days.
• After waiting 7 days with no update, I followed up myself and was only told that HR would send it in the coming days.
• It's now been almost 2 weeks and I still don't have an offer letter.
• The joining date changed.
• The role changed from what appeared to be a direct full-time position to an internship first.
• The compensation expectations changed completely.

The role is fully in-office, requires about 2 hours of commuting daily, and follows a 9 AM-6 PM schedule with only even Saturdays off, which is already a heavier workload than many entry-level opportunities. Now they're asking me to do all of that for significantly less pay than what was discussed and with no guaranteed full-time conversion.

I'm now confused about what to do. On one hand, my family currently has almost no income and I urgently need a job. On the other hand, the lack of transparency, delayed offer letter, changing joining date, internship requirement, and salary U-turn all have caused me anxiety now and I feel very depressed.

Please help me out, Please guide me on what I can do, I have no other offers or options, I do accept that is completely my fault but I am still in early career phase and don't know much about corporate. I should've recorded my interviews or asked for written confirmation. I messed up. Getting a job in this market is very hard in the first place + I am from a Tier 3 to make things worse. I almost cannot decline this offer so please tell me what can I do?

TL;DR: Cleared multiple rounds at an AI startup and was told I was the selected candidate. I clearly communicated that I could join after my exams on June 15 and expected 8-12 LPA, which nobody objected to during the process. After nearly 2 weeks, no offer letter, repeated delays, and a follow-up from my side, the company suddenly changed the joining date, asked me to start as an intern with performance-based FTE conversion, and informed me that they couldn't offer anything close to my expected salary. I also turned down another interview opportunity because I believed this role was finalized. Given my family's financial situation, I urgently need a job, but the lack of transparency and multiple changes to the terms discussed have left me unsure whether I should accept the opportunity and continue searching or decline it and look elsewhere.

PS: I used AI to structure my thoughts better.