Hiring at Goldman Sachs: Analyst track vs. lateral hire?

I'm a bit confused about the pros/cons of applying to Goldman Sachs via the analyst track or as a lateral hire.

My situation: * I have a PhD (almost finished), MS, and BS in STEM fields. Interested in moving into IB or MBB consulting. * I have ~2.5 years of work experience in gov/industry role between my BS and MS. * Spoke w/ a recruiter recently and was told that I could likely choose which route I wanted to apply through (analyst track or as a lateral hire).

Would I start as a 1st yr analyst or something higher up? What qualifies someone to start at an Associate level? What positions are typical for lateral hires with my experience? What should I consider when choosing how I apply, as I still don't know a ton about the firm? (I wasn't really considering GS or IB in general until a GS VP reached out to me saying I should consider it.

3 Comments
 

Thanks! The VP I spoke with said I would "probably come in through the analyst track" unless I wanted to go the lateral hire route, so that is why I was confused. I had read that PhD would probably be treated like an MBA, like you mentioned. But I get that they might not count it since it's in a non-finance field.

 

Voluptatibus perferendis sint id culpa itaque. Enim natus ullam est assumenda consequatur et sed nam. Dolor autem at deserunt. Et voluptatibus animi quibusdam et. Earum non soluta maxime illo quisquam ut.

A tempore magni est vel incidunt nisi rerum. Et distinctio inventore et est inventore possimus. Ut unde enim dolorem dolorum eos.

Career Advancement Opportunities

October 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Guggenheim Partners 02 97.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 97.4%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

October 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 99.0%
  • Evercore 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.9%
  • BMO Capital Markets 13 97.4%

Professional Growth Opportunities

October 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.9%
  • JPMorgan No 97.4%

Total Avg Compensation

October 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (57) $264
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (28) $184
  • Intern/Summer Associate (16) $161
  • 1st Year Analyst (84) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (76) $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
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
6
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
7
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
8
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
9
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
10
numi's picture
numi
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...”