I'll be joining an investment bank in SF for Summer 2021. I applied to both NY and SF firms and I ended up getting an SF offer early so I ended up taking it. I don't have any family there, but California seems like a great place to be in my 20s (or maybe even afterwards idk).
If anyone is doing IB in SF here, how do you like it? how does it compare to NY? what are pros and cons? Thank you!
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SF investment banking is primarily focused within the technology and healthcare industries, with a few firms that have financial sponsors groups (BofA, DB). Working in NY IB would probably give you more options for different coverage groups. If you really want to work in tech IB, SF is the place to be. If not, then NY may be better.
I'm not a hardcore tech nerd and idk *that* much about it, but it is interesting to me. Would it still be okay for me? And could I still grow and learn there
That sounds like you should go and try it out. Assuming you're at least a relatively decent shop in the bay, you will have a great learning experience.
Bump, what are the differences in terms of work life and culture?
Banking is still banking. People may seem a little more nicer, but expect x100 more micro-aggression and hours are still 80-100/week.
In terms of dating, girls are horrific in SF - Think feminists with weird ass pronouns who refuses to shave their armpits. They feel more "bruh" than my guy friends. I won't even go into cost of living in SF, and the sheer amount of gold-diggers (both men and women) you will encounter in the dating scene, a lot of whom work at some stupid startup that has zero chance of going anywhere and pays most of their salary in stock based comp and are eager to move in with you as soon as they find out that you live in a "habitable" apartment. They're like those artist-types in NYC, but with less shame and more focus on FIRE. At least the actor/model types you meet in LA/NYC look nice.
Of course no matter how realistically I describe the life in SF, all the San Franciscan wannabes will still flock to this shit hole of a city as soon as they get a chance. You really have to live here for a while to truly comprehend how bad things are and regret your decision moving. If I had the option, I would definitely go work in LA.
what the associate described is an accurate depiction of SF
Avoid with a 100m pole and choose NY/LA every time
Seriously... just don't come to this pathetic excuse of a shithole
I worked in SF a couple years ago. Definitely more laid back in the office which is nice, but the far left bullshit is annoying. I'm still connected on LinkedIn with people I worked with there and they flood the feed with posts preaching about how office culture is inherently racist and "micro aggressions" are everywhere. Funniest part is the people posting this shit are all white
I've heard much of the same from my friends who left for SF, they came from NYC offices. Not really surprising though. One of my friends who I would consider to be very moderate, especially by today's standards, said he is considered to be alt-right in SF.
I will second much of what is being said but want to expand on the politics and what that entails for your lifestyle potentially.
Overall, be careful but as someone who has worked in SF its not horrible if you find your people at work or find a conservative bubble to live in and commute into SF
I'm from the area...if you wanted a more conservative area you could go for Contra Costa County. Not sure how feasible it is to commute from there to SF though.
Very similar situation, OP. Advanced through with the SF office, and not NY. Would appreciate SF people to provide some insight into "Why SF" question in an interview. As mentioned above, I know tech and HC is big but what are some other reasons SF could be a positive
SF weather is a lot better and there is a lot more nature / outdoor activity potential. Big drinking at parks culture on weekends. Easy to take a weekend trip to Napa / Tahoe etc. Overall very fun city esp during covid. A lot of fun bars everywhere before covid
Agreed. Biggest selling point imo is the proximity to everything. Want to go to Yosemite? Grab a car and drive a few hours (and hope your MD doesn't ream you). Surfer? Pacifica, Mavericks, etc. Snowboarding/boating? Tahoe + plenty of other lakes. Think you're sophisticated and enjoy wine as a 23-year-old? Napa. Really good Mexican food, parks are fun (if you don't sit in human shit), and a good amount of sports teams in the area. Marin, parts of East Bay, and the South Bay are also fun to go to. If you can tolerate suffocatingly liberal liberals and the fact that there's shit everywhere, it's a pretty good city.
The fact that everything fun you mentioned is outside of the city is actually the answer to the OP's qn
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After the political turmoil that's been going on in HK, I would cross off HK from that list.
paris..? did you just finish Emily in Paris or something. also agree that hk will significantly decline for political reasons.
SF IB is a more chill atmosphere than NY IB, but the same BS. Same hours, generally more lax dress code in SF, there are fewer opportunities if you want to exit to an industry outside of tech or PE/VC. Rent is more expensive in SF than NY. With regards to dating...there's a reason they're called the SF 49'ers...it's a city filled with women who are 4's that act like 9's.
IMO - there is no experience like being a guy in your 20s in NYC making good money.
Rent is more expensive in SF than manhattan? Wow. Even in pre covid times??
Not sure about now, but I left SF 5 years ago and it was more expensive than NYC at the time by 10-20% on average.
SF rents and COL have always been higher than NYC.
Recently relocated to SF. Not a single day goes by without seeing a piece on the news or an article on the SF Chronicle about SF's housing crisis. SF has been for the past 30 years at least, the center of the universe when it comes to tech (startups and big tech) and VC. This small city has the highest population density in U.S., highest millenial millionaire population, highest population growth (yes, still growing at 6-8% yoy vs negative growth in NYC), and attracts more than 60-70% of U.S. VC invesments every year. Pre-covid, average condo price was $3800-4000/sqf. I've even seen some investment banking VPs (some even married) living with roommates in SF.
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