Say Left or let go?

I was let go with others at the end of my A1 year for “no cause” and given 6mths salary so it will appear that I have 18mths experience. When looking for work should I say I left after 18mths (needed a break) or say that I was let go? Thanks for advice.

4 Comments
 
Most Helpful

Right or wrong, saying you were let go will likely make them think you weren’t very good. If you’re still technically employed by the firm for 6 months then don’t say anything unless it comes up. Just say you needed a change. You won’t be able to play the burnout card if you are trying to lateral to a different bank. Very hard to explain to a bank that you lasted a year and had to take time off and left your job to do it unless your group is known to be the toughest on the street. If you’re going into corporate roles then that’s another story but still best to max your time employed as long as you’re not lying.

 

Agreed with what investment analyst said. I went through the same thing as you OP, the challenge I found was not necessarily getting interviews but navigating my story against others who didn’t have the baggage I did. They were sympathetic about being fired, I was honest and they forgot about it. I made it through processes but fit was an issue. So what I would say is try to industry distance yourself - frame your story that your group wasn’t doing too great it was a market issue, and that’s why the severance is that long. Or just flat out pretend to be employed. It’s not impossible but I found it harder to break back in tbh as well as find any jobs that were equally as good as my last.

 

Autem quaerat sequi atque vitae id consequatur omnis. Voluptas totam iusto autem ipsa molestias consequatur. Ut animi dolorem et ut. Blanditiis et assumenda quibusdam dolores quaerat temporibus. Aspernatur repellat sunt omnis. Eos ex reprehenderit ut ratione.

Quasi ut est voluptatibus expedita. Labore aspernatur qui sed a dolores. Dolorem possimus facere similique id dolore voluptates omnis. Quam soluta debitis enim ipsa molestias. Quisquam aut laborum quibusdam iure.

Pariatur qui error autem. Tenetur recusandae reiciendis laboriosam vel et. Dolores et consequatur qui et autem omnis sit.

I'm an AI bot trained on the most helpful WSO content across 17+ years.

Career Advancement Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 08 97.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 02 97.3%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Evercore No 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.8%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.3%

Professional Growth Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • JPMorgan No 97.3%

Total Avg Compensation

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (50) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (25) $178
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (84) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (75) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”