Corp Dev Exit After IB

Currently a college senior starting FT in IB next year. I've seen a few threads here about people either starting with corporate internships or FT and wanting to switch to IB, but I'm wondering if there's anyone that could share their experiences with corp dev/strategy as an exit op from IB. I don't really have a desire to go PE(or what I would want to do after that) after going to a headhunter info session on campus, but I do like the idea of trying for corp dev essentially as in-house M&A to do work that is applicable from my IB experience but hopefully with a better work-life and more sustainable longer term career moving up at the firm. One of my assumptions is that it would be best to start in a coverage group in an industry that I'd like to aim for in corp dev. Another assumption is the move would involve a sizable paycut from a third year analyst/first year associate salary, but assuming I'm ok with that, is this a good path to aim for for someone that wants to learn through the analyst IB experience and then move to a bit more chill of a lifestyle? There also doesn't seem to be as structured of a process for corp dev, so does it just involve keeping eyes out for postings as they come from specific companies/regions and applying? Appreciate any responses and insights into the process or any personal/anecdotal experiences about a path like this.