Monkeys, Please Advise

I'm in a bit of a dilemma. I am currently on hold for a lower-tier BB but have an offer at a MM bank that is not so prominent (so not an elite boutique). my ambitions are to jump over to PE in the near future. I'm not talking about KKR, Carlyle, etc (even though that would be nice) -- I would be very satisfied with just working at a MM PE Shop.

The question i have is actually 2-part.

1) My offer explodes very soon. HR from the lower-tier BB told me that it might take weeks before they figure things out. If my goal is PE at the end, should I accept the offer from the MM bank and renege if i get an offer from the BB? It's something I find difficult to do, because the guys at the MM bank are great, but for the sake of my ambitions I would do it.

2) If I do not get the BB offer, and am stuck in the MM bank, where do I go from there? What is my plan of action? Do I work my ass off the first-year and try to lateral to another more prominent bank? And if so, how difficult would that be, given I'll be working the late nights and really won't have the time to network. Or, on the flipside, do I stay for my 2 year tenure at the MM bank and garner a good reputation, then try to jump over to PE.

Thanks so much fellow monkeys!

4 Comments
 

Accept the MM. Cross the reneging bridge when you cross it, if you do. Don't worry about it until that point it will just cause unneeded stress. Honestly, 99% students that are put on hold at BBs never hear again or get rejected weeks later. Start building your relationships at the MM.

 

Take the MM job and never look back. You'll be absolutely fine for MM PE coming from places like Jeffries, HW, Blair, Baird, and tons of other MM shops - don't consider yourself "stuck" at all.

- Capt K - "Prestige is like a powerful magnet that warps even your beliefs about what you enjoy. If you want to make ambitious people waste their time on errands, bait the hook with prestige." - Paul Graham
 

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