Associate at Goldman Out Of Undergrad?

I recently applied to Goldman for an IB analyst role, but their operations department hijacked my application and asked me to interview for an associate role instead. I played ball figuring a typical shitty HR team mistake, but I just completed a second superday, one with the head of the division. Is it worth throwing off my momentum in IB, for an associate role out of undergrad in Operations for the strong brand name? Curious to hear if this is common, and worth considering even when I have other IB roles(Boutique M&A), as well as PE roles(primarily growth equity, FOF's) in play. Not sure what to do here, and the potential value it may/may not have. I have heard operations is a dead end, have also heard internal transfers are unlikely. Any thoughts? Quick answer on my background, two years on independent sponsor analyst experience while in undergrad. Any and all advice would be appreciated. Thanks!