Best funds to optimize for learning out of UG?

Between a 1B+ SM, MMHF, and LO AM, what are the best seats to optimize for learning out of undergrad? 

Obviously I understand that these are all different styles of investing, but which of the places will make you a better investor in the long run?

E.g. p72/citadel have FT analyst training programs and some LO AMs have research associate roles for 3ish years. Presumably these things make you a better investor down the road.

If you didn't care about comp, where would you go if you wanted to learn the most? 

4 Comments
 

It's very hard to say definitively. unlike IB, there is very little standardization for post-undergrad roles at public equity investment firms. Your experience at different SMs would vary dramatically, and the same can be said for LO RA programs even if there may be a bit more consistency there. so to answer your question, I don't think you can paint these roles with a broad brush like that. it is probably best to evaluate each individual role you are considering.

 
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Been at an SM for ~3 years now though I started out in IB and then PE. I've got friends in most of the firms I'm mentioning, so here's my take. Point72 is probably the only "good" MM for training, it's more structured and retention is much higher than at Citadel for example, which means they're willing to invest resources to teach you. Millennium outsources UG training to UBS, which is decent but not comparable. Citadel's new program seems ok but is still too fresh too tell, would argue that the fund itself is better than Pt72 but from a training perspective, Pt72 is better.

To be completely honest, though, if you're willing to sacrifice "prestige" and if learning is your priority, I would say a smaller fund ($1bn+ min. though) with leaner headcount is the best place to start out of UG if you're sure you want public side investing. Names like Weiss, Abdiel, Bracebridge or larger ones like Farallon and Arrowstreet are all probably better than the MMs and I know at least some of these recruit UG. The biggest issue with most MMs is just that they literally don't gaf about their people beyond their earning potential, which means 1) less effort on training and 2) really toxic culture and 3) high volatility. Not 100% sure about comp but I'd say these ones are probably equal if not higher than MMs and less volatile. Also, my SM doesn't really recruit from MMs and that's generally a trend across some of the better ones, so that's some more food for thought

In terms of LOs, I’d just say the work there might be nice but it’ll be much slower pace than an actual HF. Seems more like a good place to end up when I’m 40 as opposed to in 20s

 

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