Get the whole offer first
Ask for the offer in writing with base pay, bonus or commission structure, benefits, start date, location, and any relocation or signing amount. You cannot evaluate or negotiate a number you have half-heard on a call. It is normal to ask for a few days to review.
Know your number
Before you respond, research the range for the role, level, and location — the first-destination survey, salary sites, and a career coach can triangulate it. Decide on three numbers: what you would be thrilled with, what is fair, and your walk-away. Negotiate toward the first, expect the second.
The script
Lead with enthusiasm, then make one specific, reasoned ask: "I’m excited about this role. Based on my internship experience with X and the range I’m seeing for this kind of position, I was hoping we could get the base to [number]. Is there flexibility there?" Then stop talking and let them respond.
Beyond base pay
If base is fixed, other things often move: signing bonus, start date, relocation help, a professional-development budget, extra PTO, an earlier review. A "no" on salary is not a "no" on everything.
When to hold back
For many entry-level roles at large employers, pay is banded and genuinely fixed — a coach can tell you which. Do not negotiate an exploding offer aggressively, do not negotiate something you have already verbally accepted, and do not bluff a competing offer you do not have. One clear, polite ask does not cost you a job; being difficult can.
Closing it out
Get the final terms in writing before you resign anything or decline other offers. Then send a warm acceptance and, if you were interviewing elsewhere, a courteous withdrawal to those recruiters — the field is small.
Fictional information
UW–Porter Falls is a work of parody. Every office, person, building, phone number and statistic on this page is invented; nothing here describes a real institution or a service you can actually contact.