Piper Jaffray NYC vs Chicago vs Minneapolis vs SF
I have an internship offer and have the choice of 2 or 3 of these locations. I wanted to get some info on the strength of their various offices since it's not cut-and-dry because their HQ is in Minneapolis. Is SF worth considering if I'm interested in Tech or is it considered lower caliber than their other offices? Also, possible negatives for MPLS is the brutal winters and I probably won't know anyone else in the entire state.
If you don't know anyone in Minneapolis, I'd go w/ SF or NY. Chicago clear last IMO.
All the analysts I worked with who didn't know anyone in Minneapolis said it's pretty hard to meet people, and I can see why. Most people there are either grew up there or went to school there, instead of it being a city full of transplants like NY or SF.
I would go SF over NY, but that's just me. Consumer is really strong there and lower chance of getting cap markets. Although if you really want to be in NY over SF, I'd pick NY - not worth being in a city you don't like that much.
Alumni connections are basically irrelevant, FYI.
That said, I personally loved Minneapolis (although I knew a lot of people there). Yeah, winters suck, but people are really nice there, it's super cheap when you get paid the same as in all the other offices, being at HQ is nice (not a gamechanger necessarily, but is a perk), and during the summer time it is pretty amazing and there's a lot you can do outdoors, especially on the lakes - no need to schlep all the way to Tahoe or go to the Hamptons.