Advance Program Vs Rotational Program at PricewaterhouseCoopers

Good day community,

I am a fresh graduate who will be joining PricewaterhouseCoopers’ deals team in Asia and I am currently presented with 2 options:

1. Advance entry as a year 2 associate (Big4s start with associate rank) within the Corporate Finance (internal investment banking) team
2. Rotational program within the Restructuring M&A, Strategy& and Corporate Finance departments

While the advance entry option seems very attractive to me, I believe working years & experience still trumps ranking especially as a junior employee at sell-side firms. My goal would be to transit to the buy-side or hopefully have a shot at making partner in PwC, though I know the possibility is very limited. Therefore, I am considering option 2 which would allow me to have a broader base of skill sets and I am hoping it would make my resume more attractive to buy-side firms.

Also, each rotation lasts 6 months, so I will have 3 rotations in total and at the end I will remain in corporate finance until my next gig starts. (Restructuring M&A -> Strategy& -> Corporate Finance) While I am unsure of PwC’s reputation as a deal maker in western countries, PwC has taken up 80% of the middle-market M&A deals within APAC and have many alumni who are currently at buy-side firms. However, the rotational program is relatively new and I thought it could add value to my resume especially.

I would greatly appreciate any advice from seniors who have make the transit to buy-side firms and thank you to everyone in advance!