Taking a semester off

I'm currently a junior on a pretty typical path to getting a job in investment banking. I have a solid GPA at a highly recruited public school, one finance internship, a PWM internship, etc...

My mother has a terminal disease, and I am pretty set on taking the next semester off.

I will most probably go home and work in PWM for the semester...I may still recruit for the coming summer, but I probably won't. I will be graduating one semester later, December 2009 instead of May 2009.

I'm wondering...will this look terrible to employers? What effects could it have? What is my best plan of action?

Any thoughts or suggestions will be highly appreciated.

 

I'm not really thinking twice about the decision itself, but, rather, how should I move forward? I'm going to take the PWM job just to stay somewhat busy. Beyond that, any suggestions? Any similar stories?

 

I've PM'd you. But for the general public, there's a reason they say "penultimate year," not "third year." You will be eligible for SA, but you will also want to have a good answer for why you took off.

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