Take buyside internship now or wait for IB? - Junior at semi-target

So I'm a junior at a semi-target with a solid GPA (3.7+) and past buyside (7bn+ HF) internship experience.

I have an offer for a top buyside firm (deals with both public and private investments) for an internship this summer. Would be a killer name to have on resume, but will not turn into a full-time gig afterward as they don't hire out of undergrad. I have to make a decision soon, so that obviously would cut me out of the recruiting process for summer analyst at BB IB this summer.

Ultimately I want to be in buyside as I really enjoy the investment process...kinda was figuring I would have to do a 2 year stint in IB first but if I take this gig I figure I might be able to parlay the experience into a buyside job somewhere.

The question is whether it's worth it to take this bird in the hand over the potential for BB summer analyst? And, if I decide I want to do IB/can't find a buyside job after this, how disadvantaged would I be coming back into the recruiting cycle as a senior who didn't do a summer IB gig?

4 Comments
 
Best Response

You'll definitely be able to parlay the experience into a FT BB gig - however chances are it will not be a top-tier BB (GS/MS/JPM). Usually, the non-GS/MS/JPM banks tend to hire more during FT season because a smaller percentage of their summer class accepts the offer (because again, everyone wants to "trade up")

Personally, I would see if I could land a top-tier BB first. If you are at GS/MS/JPM, with past buyside experience and presumably a network on the buyside, landing a buyside job two years after your analyst experience will be no problem. Alternatively, you have the brand name of he BB bank on your resume, and you can pursue other opportunities if you should desire.

 

You'll definitely be able to parlay the experience into a FT BB gig - however chances are it will not be a top-tier BB (GS/MS/JPM). Usually, the non-GS/MS/JPM banks tend to hire more during FT season because a smaller percentage of their summer class accepts the offer (because again, everyone wants to "trade up")

Personally, I would see if I could land a top-tier BB first. If you are at GS/MS/JPM, with past buyside experience and presumably a network on the buyside, landing a buyside job two years after your analyst experience will be no problem. Alternatively, you have the brand name of he BB bank on your resume, and you can pursue other opportunities if you should desire.

 

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