Internship wars: IB SA vs Research SA?

It's been discussed before but I've yet to see any thorough answer so here it goes. What are the MAJOR differences between an IB SA position and a Research SA position as far as internships go? Is one really THAT much better than the other? I want to do a research internship but I've been discouraged by the posts saying that IB analysts get all the opportunities afterwards and are paid a lot better. Help me separate fact from fiction here in terms of work quality/hours, pay, and opps. Thanks guys!

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Best Response

I expect most people will push for you to go IB SA, but I have buddies who did ER SA at BBs and loved it. 60-70 hrs/week, actual analytical work (not just aligning boxes/centering logos for half the day) and could easily hold in-depth market conversations with HF managers who were very interested in hiring them out of undergrad. ER is a very respected line of work and many large banks would win significantly less engagements if they didn't have good research analysts.

For what it's worth, I summered in MM IBD and will be returning as a FT analyst.

 

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