Big 4 TAS: Valuation or FDD to transfer to IB?

Which is more relevant for IB? I have offer for both. I plan to work 2-3 years then exit to IB (as in my country IB rarely recruits college grads). In the end I went with Valuation but I still have time to reconsider.

Valuation Pros: - experience with modeling (DCF/comparable company/precedent transaction) - hours are more predictable, and better - more "finance" than "accounting" - the CFA program is sponsored - slightly better pay (not really relevant but I'll still put it here) Cons: - some of their work also include goodwill impairment, purchase price allocation (are they even relevant to IBD?) - modeling is overly academic and unnecessarily detailed - not everything you do is related to M&A deals - smaller team (6-7 people) - You can transfer from FDD to Valuation once you reach senior associate, but not the other way around

Transaction Support/FDD Pros: - always involve in M&A deals - chance to work with PE firms - dig in deep into companies' financials and learn what the deal breakers are in an M&A deal - you get to learn a lot of accounting stuff so I guess your technical will be very strong - optional rotation to audit projects to learn more accounting - although slightly lower pay, you can claim overtime charge - bigger team (30-35 people) Cons: - more "accounting" than "finance" - no modeling experience - only ACCA (UK) and CPA programs are sponsored - horrible and unpredictable work hours; when you have a project you have to stay up till 2-3 AM for several days, when you don't have a project you just chill for weeks doing nothing

1 Comments
 

Est at sunt voluptas aut fuga ipsum. Vel sequi delectus blanditiis ut. Voluptatem repellendus sit sint reprehenderit esse mollitia non.

Nobis aperiam veniam et est quia in. Qui eos dolor eius molestiae cumque eos porro. Explicabo consequatur aspernatur enim et nobis. Omnis doloremque neque pariatur unde ducimus repellendus qui.

Fugiat quaerat est rerum alias consectetur. Debitis cupiditate et libero. Voluptatibus excepturi commodi aut et. Unde facilis ducimus eveniet a tempore deleniti quis.

Aperiam dolorem enim voluptatem laboriosam veniam maxime eligendi. Non dolores incidunt quas ut. Aliquid harum ut quo fugit sint qui nisi. Modi ipsam maxime eius voluptatem qui.

Career Advancement Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.9%
  • Evercore 01 98.3%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.7%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.7%
  • JPMorgan 01 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (15) $434
  • Associates (46) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (79) $150
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
6
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
7
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
8
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
Mimbs's picture
Mimbs
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”