Do you really get to experience NYC as a IB Analyst?

I’m trying to figure out what to do full-time after graduation. Last summer, I had a finance internship in NYC—not anything super prestigious, but it gave me a chance to work around 40 hours a week and really enjoy the city. I loved it. I spent my free time exploring different neighborhoods, trying out amazing restaurants, going to bars, and just soaking in everything the city had to offer. That experience made me realize how much I love NYC.

Now I have two job offers: one is an IB analyst role in NYC, and the other is a really interesting finance job in my hometown. If that hometown job were based in NYC, I wouldn’t even hesitate—I’d take it over IB in a heartbeat. The only thing making me consider IB is the chance to be in NYC again. But the reality is, I probably wouldn’t even get to enjoy the city. I’d be working all day, every day, and it feels like I’d just be living in NYC, not actually experiencing it.

On the other hand, the hometown job is in a solid tier 3 city. I’ve got a lot of friends and connections there, and it offers a great work-life balance. I’m just not sure if I want to go back right after graduation—but at the same time, I don’t want to burn myself out just to live in NYC without the time to enjoy it.

14 Comments
 

i'm assuming you want to exit into corp dev if you did IB anyways since you seem to prefer corp dev currently already?

well, they're both good offers and you can't really go wrong. i'm not sure what type of boutique the offer is from, some are hardcore sweatshops and some struggle with landing deals. personally, if i wanted to stick with corp dev down the line, i would take the corp dev offer. you can always lateral in 1-3 years to an nyc corp dev role and you'll still be young and able to enjoy nyc. i think if the boutique IB is a sweatshop or struggles with deals, you might not get the nyc experience you want.

 

Not really tbh… you can get shitfaced at bars and go to restaurants and go on hinge dates with randos but you really have so little time as an IB analyst. 

But, would say IB will make you a lot better at corp dev than if you just started in corp dev and you can get more lucrative corp dev jobs out of IB than otherwise. Ideally you learn a lot in two years and come out the other side a beast. So would recommend but it’s hell on earth. 

 

Alternatively: Enjoying NYC is more about the type of people you meet than trying new restaurants or having free time every weekend. Having high-value connections with even just 20 well-connected people from around the globe is lucrative to your life long-term. I'm very worldly but 100% do IB.

 

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