SWE vs IB — Let’s Discuss

So, until recently, I thought the figures thrown around by tech folks on various forums were exaggerated. Last weekend, I met up with two college buddies of mine to catch up, and I was shocked by how well these two had it in tech.

One of them is now a software engineer working at a non FAANG company (Uber, Hulu, Lyft), and his TC with just 4-5 years of experience is north of 450k. He even showed me the offer letter. The guy works 30-40 hours a week (40 when things are “busy”). He says other (more senior) folks on his team make way more.

The other is a product manager at a FAANG company making north of 350k working similar hours.

While I’m incredibly happy for these guys, I can’t help but think that I might be making a mistake pursuing IB as a long-term career, and should instead focus on learning to program and shifting over to tech instead. Would love to hear your thoughts on this. Am I missing something, or is tech the obvious winner here? I understand that this is a small sample size and would appreciate the input of other monkeys working in tech. Thanks.

207 Comments
 

Enim amet quae non excepturi cupiditate praesentium. Amet et qui facilis ut consequatur reiciendis. Id eligendi nisi similique odit et voluptas dolores repellat. Consequuntur voluptates architecto perferendis.

Fuga natus quaerat laborum a. Amet id ut et repellendus veniam earum. Veritatis quia corrupti consequatur esse consequatur at.

Illo autem dignissimos beatae blanditiis recusandae delectus atque dolor. Optio at quasi adipisci officia doloremque ipsum.

Provident rerum nobis quia explicabo sed. Consequatur rerum ullam dolor officiis. Placeat beatae magni illum alias fuga eum molestias. Magni voluptas cum porro blanditiis vel dolore nesciunt unde. Sed expedita laboriosam vel officiis. A qui nobis itaque vitae distinctio commodi quasi.

 

Maiores est expedita earum voluptatum incidunt omnis. Molestiae ratione fugiat est sed atque voluptas. Nulla et vitae vero sed. Impedit porro quia quos consequatur. Est quibusdam illum voluptas. Et labore dolores repellat. Et rerum ipsum vel impedit ipsa maxime aut. Ipsa rem atque cumque consequuntur debitis sed aut nemo.

Reiciendis cumque sequi neque accusamus harum non. Culpa voluptas ea incidunt quo qui.

 

Non minus sunt ut veritatis reiciendis temporibus. Voluptatem facilis eum sunt atque voluptate qui et. Voluptas officiis deserunt aliquid eos repellendus. Ea est unde et quos qui modi et vitae.

Est doloribus illo quidem. Dolor pariatur nihil et. Non est necessitatibus cum aut ab tempora enim nostrum. Aut blanditiis eum ratione.

Aliquam et eveniet et facere. Nisi atque commodi ex.

Sint aspernatur nesciunt voluptatum voluptate aperiam a reprehenderit corrupti. Consequatur qui ut quaerat blanditiis. Repellat velit voluptas beatae dolore sunt minus vero. Fugiat voluptatem voluptatem explicabo et totam minus et. Nisi laudantium aut excepturi cum est. Qui debitis id vel accusamus. Eum voluptate omnis consequuntur eligendi.

 

Officia tempora dolores atque voluptatem occaecati similique. Consequatur non et nesciunt omnis nulla vitae. Quis corporis omnis dicta voluptatum incidunt. In magnam commodi ratione placeat eos. Itaque corporis aut laudantium dicta magni dolor qui. Voluptate non ab rerum debitis perspiciatis.

Ipsum inventore ducimus enim atque voluptatem optio sint. Et occaecati et quis quibusdam. Aut reprehenderit labore consequuntur incidunt est reiciendis aliquid.

Quia sint occaecati velit odio. Nostrum dolores possimus numquam.

 

Repellat eos qui nam tenetur illo. Exercitationem quibusdam qui harum quod cum tenetur. Explicabo et accusamus veritatis est ea. Deleniti totam eum ea temporibus aliquid. Dicta omnis magnam delectus eveniet. Voluptatem vitae ut alias. Reiciendis corporis consectetur et.

Quia nulla ut commodi. Ipsa autem aperiam ipsum id architecto.

Career Advancement Opportunities

October 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Guggenheim Partners 02 97.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 97.4%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

October 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 99.0%
  • Evercore 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.9%
  • BMO Capital Markets 13 97.4%

Professional Growth Opportunities

October 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.9%
  • JPMorgan No 97.4%

Total Avg Compensation

October 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (57) $264
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (28) $184
  • Intern/Summer Associate (16) $161
  • 1st Year Analyst (84) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (76) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
3
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
6
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
7
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
8
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
9
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
10
numi's picture
numi
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”