Gap Year before Banking?

I will be an SA this summer at a NY EB. If I get a FT offer (big if, yes I know), is it reasonable to request a 1-yr deferment?

It seems like a decent idea because of the uncertain M&A environment in the next 18 months, especially since M&A activity typically lags behind economic recovery. Additionally, I could crush the GMAT and maybe CFA level 1 during the gap.

If reasonable to ask, then what are respectable things to do for that year? I’ve heard Teach for America, and I have some interest in the Schwarzman Scholar program too, but what else is out there?

9 Comments
 

You could crush 2 CFA Levels if you've got time (first in Dec, second in June).

“Destiny is a gift. Some go their entire lives, living existences of quiet desperation, never learning the truth that what feels as though a burden pushing down upon their shoulders is really a sense of purpose that lifts us to greater heights. Never forget that fear is but the precursor to valor, that to strive and triumph in the face of fear is what it means to be a hero. Don’t think. Become.”
 

I graduated early and was able to take a gap year at my BB, (I did my summer internship after graduation and got FT offer)albeit it got cut short by Covid. Was able get a Working Holiday Visa in Australia and did a road trip and then settled in Sydney. I recommend it if you really want to go for it. My situation was a bit different but HR was pretty flexible even offering the chance to start earlier than my analyst class.

 
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