Intern asks for 2 weeks of vacation time?

Hi all,

This past month a fellow summer analyst asked me if I thought management would mind if he took a 2 week vacation to visit his girl friend in Italy. Let me remind you that this is a 10-12 week internship... This guy has always been sort of an odd ball, but this was plain shocking.

I told him (we'll call him Romeo for the sake of the story) that he should weigh his options. How important is this female friend to you Romeo? Is she more important than your career right now? At this point I'm about as puzzled as a dog with a water hose, but the story must continue.

Then came the most insane part of the story. Romeo met this "girl" on a dating website and they've been chatting for a few months... and he believed she was the "one". I let out a little laugh and Romeo barged out of our office and right before he left, he shouted "I'm just going to go for it". Soon after, I see Romeo knocking on upper management door while the rest of us interns huddled around watching.

Long story short, that was the last time I saw Romeo. Did Romeo ever find his love? Is he still in Italy? I guess we'll never find out.

41 Comments
 

No return offer for him.

Reality is many kids don’t understand you can’t just take 2 weeks off.Maybe someone should explain shit to him. Either way, kid sounds like a bad fit.

 
"BermudaLovesBusiness" Who has the money to go to Italy for a girl you haven't met.

Probably someone that doesn't meet many girls.

"If you always put limits on everything you do, physical or anything else, it will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them." - Bruce Lee
 

Totally insane. "So you said you are an investment banker?" "Well, I was for a few weeks.." "Oh now what do you do?" "Well... nothing I guess." "............"

 
Most Helpful

Complete insanity. I’m wrapping up managing/mentoring a cohort at a BB. Two asked for time off - 1 for 2 days and another for 4 days. Both had serious reasons (death and illness in the family). They had to go through a massive list of approvals and verifications for these handful of days. I can’t imagine what would happen when someone asks for 2 weeks, especially for a stupid reason. Most likely would be dropped from the program.

 

The plot twist here is if this "online" girlfriend of Romeo happens to be some 40+ year old dude.

Pwned.

No pain no game.
 
"If you always put limits on everything you do, physical or anything else, it will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them." - Bruce Lee
 

Est consequatur suscipit nostrum natus. Earum debitis aliquam impedit amet explicabo rerum. Nisi sapiente eum tempore consequatur perspiciatis. Quidem maxime eos ex error. Quidem minus dolor unde. Nobis recusandae est non debitis. Laboriosam sed sed dolores provident.

Voluptas quia cum alias ab optio ut. Placeat fugit sit aut mollitia quia. Nemo atque reprehenderit sit quaerat quaerat a sed.

Id veniam esse et totam quis id nam. Voluptas nostrum libero molestiae qui cum recusandae cumque omnis. Qui rerum distinctio aspernatur voluptates enim excepturi.

 

Aut sed aut dignissimos est quas magni. Omnis in occaecati ab doloremque libero. Ut commodi temporibus sequi reiciendis qui tempora quidem.

Dolores dolores nihil voluptas id. Itaque eos facilis adipisci earum molestias labore temporibus et. Ipsam facere exercitationem omnis facilis illum. Aut reprehenderit laboriosam eveniet repellat.

Veritatis autem molestiae molestias enim quas. Quibusdam accusamus qui non distinctio ipsa. Hic omnis corrupti commodi ut impedit.

Career Advancement Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.2%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.3%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.2%

Professional Growth Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 97.2%

Total Avg Compensation

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (46) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (80) $150
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $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...”