If you could choose PE or IB: which would you do?

let's say you had offers from a top BB IB or a top PE shop right out of UG? What would you pick and why? Assume the comps are mostly equal, which I venture to guess is a fair assumption, correct me if not.

6,201 WSO Academy Investment Banking Session Reviews: 4.82/5

Class of '24 Oct 2026 Cohort

5.00/5

Investment Banking LinkedIn Review

“I wanted to share some feedback on my sessions with Andre. Andre has deep knowledge of investment banking, and he approaches every topic very strategically. His guidance while I was preparing my interview stories was especially valuable. One thing that stood out was that even a week after our previous session, Andre remembered me and everything I had shared about my background and goals. That meant a lot to me and made our sessions much more productive. He is also very direct. He tells me clearly what works and what doesn’t, which is exactly the kind of feedback I need. At the same time, he is funny and witty, so working with him is a lot of fun. Our sessions almost always run longer than scheduled, because Andre makes sure we cover everything properly before we wrap up. He is very dedicated and very patient, and I really appreciate the time and effort he puts in. I leave every session with Andre feeling clearer and more confident about my preparation. Thank you, Andre.”

Canadian University Dubai

Class of '30 Sep 2026 Cohort

5.00/5

Investment Banking Why [Industry] Review

“Amandine is a really helpful mentor for my situation as it was really easy reaching out to her via WSO and scheduling a session and her advise was really helpful and i'd love to learn more from her experience as she's very experienced and very kind and has wide market understanding and is very nice .”

See All 11,457 WSO Academy Reviews

4 Comments

chubbybunny

O

16y

are you fucking retarded?

Reply

Quote

Report

Other

Gekko21

HF

16y

Why is this a question? Everyone whould pick PE and the reasons have been discussed/sated numerous times...it's always better to be the one fucking than the one getting fucked.

Reply

Quote

Report

Other

"Greed, in all of its forms; greed for life, for money, for love, for knowledge has marked the upward surge of mankind. And greed, you mark my words, will not only save Teldar Paper, but that other malfunctioning corporation called the USA."

monkeysama

?

16y

Gekko21Why is this a question? Everyone whould pick PE and the reasons have been discussed/sated numerous times...it's always better to be the one fucking than the one getting fucked.

So what you're saying is that there are no sell side PE positions and no buy side IB positions, am I getting that correct? Or were you just being an asshole?

Reply

Quote

Report

Other

Negative Interest Rates Economics

Stringer Bell

PE

16y

Totam modi minus repudiandae sed. Accusantium aut velit incidunt doloribus quas et sunt doloremque. Dolorum non et veritatis minus hic.

Et deserunt rerum quo mollitia voluptas quia. Esse quisquam eaque voluptates provident. Sapiente nam exercitationem minima placeat impedit dolor. Sit cumque quo odio accusantium.

Reply

Quote

Report

Other

Ace all your PE interview questions with the WSO Private Equity Prep Pack: http://www.wallstreetoasis.com/guide/private-equity-interview-prep-questions

+157	UBS Tech layoff	52	21h
+147	Analyst: Why is UBS IB doing worse than peers?, UBS CFO: No Comment	23	1h
+145	UBS’s M&A BANKERS ARE DOING TERRIBLY. $200M EXTRA IS BEING CUT	31	37m
+60	Are target prospects getting dumber?	26	3h
+58	How do YOU manage networking requests?	17	5h
+46	Leaked Interview Questions to Recruiting Services	26	22m
+37	What Differentiates the Best Analysts as AI Improves?	9	4d
+36	Quitting After First 4 months	12	1d
+34	MBB Pay Raises	26	1d
+33	Cornell Club T10 Rankings (UPDATED 10/2026)	19	1d

1	redever	99.2
2	BankonBanking	99.0
3	kanon	99.0
4	Secyh62	99.0
5	Betsy Massar	98.9
6	CompBanker	98.9
7	dosk17	98.9
8	GameTheory	98.9
9	DrApeman	98.9
10	Linda Abraham	98.8

Elite Career Bootcamp. Top Job Offer Guaranteed.

Elite Career Bootcamp. Top Job Offer Guaranteed.

If you could choose PE or IB: which would you do?

Score Breakdown

Feedback

Score Breakdown

Feedback

Elite Career Bootcamp. Top Job Offer Guaranteed.

Elite Career Bootcamp. Top Job Offer Guaranteed.

If you could choose PE or IB: which would you do?

See All Comments - 100% Free

Trending Content - Investment Banking Forum