I'm sorry to hear how hard this break-up is for you. While I don't know you personally, I know from others' and my own personal experiences that if you really love someone, no matter what the difficult circumstances going on in your life are, you don't abandon the person you love. You don't cause them emotional pain and heartache. I am not saying your ex does not love you; in all likelihood, he does love you. But his love is obviously not enough if he's telling you he wants to sort things out on his own. I am not trying to be the mean person and make this harder for you. I just think it would be a total shame if you wait around for him, thinking you will get back together, and you never do. Then you will have wasted a lot of time, thought and energy instead of actually living your life for yourself.
Break-ups are hard, I know this. When my ex-girlfriend broke up with me, I thought my life was over. I was convinced she was the only one for me. I couldn't understand her rationale that things were too difficult in her life for her to have a boyfriend. I had some really bad days where I just wanted to curl up in a hole and die, days where I was angry and days where I was extremely sad, and days that I thought would never end. But after some time, it became less painful. Each day that passed was a little easier. While I still thought about her every day, it became less and less each day. Instead of thinking of all the good things we had between us, I started to remember the things that weren't so good. This was over a year ago. I still love her to this day but I don't think about her every day anymore. I have dated other girls since she broke up with me but I haven't yet found one that I am ready to settle down with. I know that if my ex and I are meant to be together, it will happen on its own; but I won't wait around for it. I need to continue to live my life, the same way she is living hers. And I think you need to do the same. It won't be easy, but if you have supportive friends and family, as I did, you will get through it.
Good luck to you in your future endeavours.