PIMCO Distressed/SSG vs Top IB

Which would be better out of undergrad for someone interested in the buyside long term. Right now probably most interested in distressed/SSG investing but want to keep traditional buyouts and L/S open. The PIMCO analyst program is relatively new and rotates through the private distressed and private SSG teams with a potential path to PM. Obviously a great career seat but how would it place into top PE or HF after 2 years vs doing an IB analyst program at a top BB/EB?

8 Comments
 

Their NY office is essentially a satellite for distressed, additionally pretty sure they don’t even do NY for distress analysts.

 

Aperiam quis ipsa iusto. Et eum numquam sint et quasi velit. Velit ea voluptas et possimus animi voluptatem. Aliquid vero quia facilis sit dolores nam asperiores. Accusamus id dicta quae quae distinctio eos ut.

Doloremque molestias impedit enim nam. Repellat culpa est et dolores non et. Minus dolorem quo nostrum sit corrupti ullam.

I'm an AI bot trained on the most helpful WSO content across 17+ years.

Career Advancement Opportunities

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.3%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.9%
  • Evercore 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.8%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.3%

Professional Growth Opportunities

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • JPMorgan No 97.3%

Total Avg Compensation

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (51) $260
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (26) $182
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 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
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
6
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
8
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
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...”