Why Did Conrad Get Fired in 'The Summer I Turned Pretty'? The Reason Was Refreshingly Real

Spoiler alert: This article contains spoilers for Season 3 of The Summer I Turned Pretty.

If you’ve been wondering why Conrad got fired in The Summer I Turned Pretty, it wasn’t because of some over-the-top plot twist or petty drama. Nope — it was for something that would actually get you fired in real life. Honestly, fans think that’s exactly why the scene works so well.

Conrad’s summer clinic gig lasted about as long as a Cousins Beach rainstorm. On his very first day, he made a big mistake: mislabeling a blood sample. Not spilling coffee. Not forgetting a file. A mistake that, in a medical setting, can have real consequences. His attending didn’t give him a pep talk or a warning. She called him a liability and told him to go. Brutal? Yes. Believable? Absolutely.

The moment hit because it didn’t feel like TV magic. Conrad wasn’t saved by a sympathetic boss or a last-minute distraction. He was distracted — juggling Belly’s situation, Steven’s accident, and whatever else was running through his head — and that distraction cost him.

Fans picked up on that right away. One viewer summed it up perfectly in a thread on Reddit. Conrad might be great in school and work hard, but that doesn’t mean he’s bulletproof in a high-pressure job. Especially not when life outside of work is this messy. It made him feel less like a scripted “perfect guy” and more like … Well, the rest of us.

Here’s where things got interesting: people who actually work in medicine weighed in, and they weren’t rolling their eyes like they usually do with TV hospital scenes. A current medical resident jumped into the conversation and said the whole thing was painfully accurate.

They explained that, in real life, even smart, capable people can suddenly feel average once they’re surrounded by other top performers — and yes, getting kicked out of a program or internship over a mistake like Conrad’s is common. They even spotted the error before the attending called him out. When that scanner flashed red, they knew something was wrong. And when she tore into him? That’s exactly what would happen in real life.

In their words, medicine isn’t just about skill — it’s about knowing your limits, owning your mistakes, and coming back ready to do better. That’s exactly the lesson Conrad’s attending was trying to hammer into him.

Part of why this storyline landed is because it didn’t wrap Conrad in plot armor. The writers didn’t say, “Well, he’s the lead, we can’t let him fail.” They let him fail — and fail in a way that feels earned.

This isn’t Season 1 Conrad, moody and closed off. This is an older, therapy-going version who’s trying to figure himself out. Losing his job isn’t a tragedy — it’s a fork in the road. Fans are genuinely curious to see how he handles it. Will he sulk? Or will he regroup, learn, and come back stronger next year?