Sell Side NYC vs. Buy Side SFO

Hey all,

Two offers I'm thinking about. Wanted some input on this. I'm coming out of an MS in Finance looking to start a career in ER.

Two offers: SS ER in NYC covering housing vs. Buy Side Analyst in SFO working on a small cap innovation team.

Curious to hear how you all think through geography vs. the actual work. I'm thinking of going with NYC for the network and additional buy side contacts down the road but it seems difficult to pass up a buyside gig right out of school especially since it's the space I want to specialize in.

My thought process has been pick NYC over SFO instead of "X firm over Y firm" and pivot into a buyside role in NYC down the road?

Any thoughts on what to prioritize here?

409 WSO Academy Equity Research Session Reviews: 4.83/5

Class of '25 Nov 2026 Cohort

5.00/5

Equity Research Career Roadmap (optional)

“Chris was very easy to talk to and made the session feel relaxed and genuinely useful. He gave me clear, actionable tasks that I can go away and work on straight away to expand my network. I hope to reconvene with him at a later date to discuss the progress I have made and get his feedback on the work I have been doing.”

Springfield College

Class of '29 Sep 2026 Cohort

4.85/5

Equity Research Mock Coffee Chat

“Craig gave me a really clear picture of how sell-side equity research actually works. The biggest takeaway was that research is a service business built on trust, not on picking stocks, and that analysts are paid on rankings rather than on whether a call is right. He was honest that even a 60% hit rate is excellent, and that it matters more to understand where you went wrong than where you were right. I also liked his point about not being “unintelligently wrong”: own the mistake and explain it well. On the practical side, he told me to start now by running a blog, posting on Seeking Alpha, using Koyfin as a cheap Bloomberg alternative, and using AI to draft commentary so I have more time to think deeply and explore other sectors. He also explained that research recruiting is much more targeted than IB, since sector teams are fairly autonomous, so I should reach out to senior analysts in specific sectors and recommend based on fit. His own path from no finance background, through China, to Wharton was encouraging. My one suggestion would be a quick walkthrough of what a strong first report looks like beyond the core pieces (recommendation, risks, summary, price target).”

See All 11,549 WSO Academy Reviews

1 Comments

ER

VP in ER

3y

Ut facere ut consequatur ea odio et quos. Magni et ut voluptatem et autem quia.

Voluptate quam vitae veritatis et ex. Quasi et quia nihil similique dicta. Beatae et sint amet nesciunt necessitatibus odio.

Neque repellat odit eum quo. Doloribus occaecati voluptatum quia eos vel. Iste veniam temporibus rerum dolorem unde.

Reply

Quote

Report

Other

Authored by: Certified Equity Research Professional - Vice PresidentCertified Equity Research Pro

+13	Is Equity Research Dying - Where Are the Future Opportunites?	4	22h
+10	Associates who stuck around for > 5 years working for the same analyst. Why?	4	6d
+9	UBS ER SA27 Superday	7	3w
+9	Detailed Revenue and Cost Builds	3	1w
+7	Analyst with no coverage or ranking	5	1w
+7	Uiuc or Ross or UChicago	8	2w
+1	IB SA -> ER FT	4	2w
0	Equity Research Rankings	1	1w

1	redever	99.2
2	kanon	99.0
3	BankonBanking	99.0
4	Secyh62	99.0
5	GameTheory	98.9
6	Betsy Massar	98.9
7	CompBanker	98.9
8	dosk17	98.9
9	DrApeman	98.9
10	Mimbs	98.8

Elite Career Bootcamp. Top Job Offer Guaranteed.

Elite Career Bootcamp. Top Job Offer Guaranteed.

Sell Side NYC vs. Buy Side SFO

Score Breakdown

Feedback

Score Breakdown

Feedback

Elite Career Bootcamp. Top Job Offer Guaranteed.

Elite Career Bootcamp. Top Job Offer Guaranteed.

Sell Side NYC vs. Buy Side SFO

See All Comments - 100% Free

Trending Content - Equity Research Forum