Is the person who enters a HF out of 1-2 years in banking “ahead of the game”?

If you do 2 years banking and 2 years PE (and 2 years MBA) before breaking into a hedge fund, are you technically junior to the ~24-25 year old who broke into the fund right after banking that has already been there for a year or do hedge funds give you some seniority for having those 2 years of PE (and MBA) under your belt?

In other words, are you “ahead of the game” if you skip PE and are able to go directly to a hedge fund?

10 Comments
 
 

I wouldn’t look on it in those terms. it’s quite possible the guy with a few more years experience could outperform as a result or add value in a way someone with the same title with less experience could not. over a period of time (5-10+ years) a couple years experience here or there would probably even out to who’s outperforming or not on their P&L

 

I’ll give it to you honestly. I work at a small fund after working at a BB. We had a very good 2019 and now are having a weak 2020. Small team, lack of upward mobility.... I look at opportunities in the market and most of them want a PE background for some reason. Brand name matters more than I thought. My philosophy was that public markets investing exp > brand name PE. It’s an odd dynamic IMO... while yes financially + experience wise I was ahead of the curve for a while, I’ve seen many other guys who jump early get stuck, whereas the PE guys have an extra shot at HFs...

 

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