RBC Capital Markets vs Citi Investment Banking Summer Internship

Please help!

I'm fortunate enough to have received offers for summer analyst positions at Citi and RBC Capital Markets (both generalist IB offers, both in NYC). My offer deadline is coming up and I seriously have no idea what to do.

I was able to meet a bunch of members of the RBC CM team at a recruiting event and thought the culture was a great fit. I vibed with every single person I met--that being said, I haven't met any interns yet (who are the people I'll be spending the majority of my time with). Other attractive factors include rapid growth in the US and a solid support system for summer interns.

On the flipside, Citi pays much better, has other interns from my university, has an international footprint (something that's very important to me), has higher deal volume and value, and would look better on a resume if I end up transferring. I think I would probably work on more interesting deals at Citi. However, I don't have a great grasp on what the culture is like--I've heard mixed things.

Which should I choose? What's the actual difference in prestige? What's the culture like at Citi? How much does culture really matter at a summer internship? What are the differences in exit opportunities?

Any and all advice is welcome!

4 Comments
 

Take Citi. RBC might be growing but Citi is a very established bulge bracket. If you don't like the culture at Citi, just lateral to another place FT.

 
Most Helpful

I strongly disagree here. You can't discount a firm's culture. Ever. Assuming you can lateral after FT is also a massive assumption. I'm not sure if you saw the 2019 FT Recruiting thread from this year, but FT opportunities were minimal.

If you are set on investment banking, you are likely going to be working with your team for at least two years, if not more. Choose the bank that has the stronger culture. It's not worth suffering and hating your life for two years for marginally better "prestige" or exit ops.

 

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