PE or Asset/Investment Management gig out of undergraduate B-School?
Hey Guys
I was wondering how the job prospects were to get a decent job at a PE or Asset Management firm right out of undergraduate business school. I am planning to continue graduate studies afterwards and I am looking just to gain some real world experience so I am not looking necessarily for a big name like Merrill Lynch but a pretty decent job at one of these types of firms. How hard would it exactly be?
Thanks
PE or Investment management (Originally Posted: 05/02/2012)
I'm currently facing a dilemma about what to do this summer. I have two offers and I need to decide quickly. I thought you guys might be able to give some perspective on the choices.
The first is for an Investment Management internship position at a mid-sized wealth management firm. I would be paid solid money, and there's a chance for a FT offer when I graduate next year. The people seem nice, though older, and the work would be fairly interesting.
The second is for a Summer Analyst position at a small (recently started) PE firm. I would be working right alongside the partners on creating models, developing strategies for the portfolio companies, looking into new investments, etc. The partners are young Ivy League grads from top B-schools, and I think I would have a lot of fun. But, the pay is abysmal and there's little chance of a FT offer, though they've expressed a desire to help me network using their connections.
Like many people on this board, my dream is to end up at a top PE shop. I'm thinking the second makes more sense, but I'm not sure how investment management is viewed by IB/PE firms. Will investment management get me the same kind of interviews/offers for FT as an SA stint at a small PE firm? If so, I could take the first, make good money this summer, and have a solid FT offer to fall back on when I graduate.
Thanks for the help guys
I think it depends on the skills you will build in each internship. Whatever gig gives you more technical skills with modeling, etc, will be better in the long run. Future firms will want you to be able to hit the ground running. From what you listed, it seems the PE firm will be more interesting and fulfilling, but I can't say much since you didn't list exactly what the first internship consists of.
The small PE firm, and it's not even close.
PE
If you want to go into PE, it seems very strange to try and tiptoe around that goal.
If I'm getting this correctly, PE vs PWM?
Yeah, you guys have confirmed what I was thinking. Just wanted to make sure I wasn't overlooking anything.
Take the PE gig, learn as much as possible, and never look back.
One quick note: if your goal is to end up at an established private equity fund, you need to work aggressively to convert this summer into a full-time IBD offer at a good bank in a good group, and perform well there. This will not be easy with either of these internships, but I agree that you might be better off at the PE firm. I would not be as unequivocal about this choice as some of your prior responders. Has the PE firm raised a fund? Have they closed a deal?
Unlike hedge funds, many successful examples of which were started by young, enterprising individuals, private equity sponsorship generally requires seasoned management, substantial initial capital, and a lot of infrastructure. The odds of a bunch of b-school grads raising and deploying a successful, legitimate fund are dubious. In some ways you might be better off from a general career perspective going with a respected firm in a less glamorous part of the financial services industry than a firm that will be looked down on. Also, I find it's generally a bad sign when firms volunteer their connections as a reason to join.
I don't see anything wrong with them advertising the access to their network. They appear to be transparent, in that they provided the OP the sense that a full-time offer is not likely to come from this internship, and that that is mitigated by their connections. As long as it wasn't pimped in the job description, and was communicated orally, I don't see an issue.
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