How short is too short in IB/PE
I've been getting a lot of inbound networking calls lately. I try to be as transparent as possible because I genuinely want to give sound counsel. In turn, these calls tend to get very honest and students/IB analysts will admit they only want to do IB/PE/HF to "get ahead" before exiting in a couple years.
How long do you think you need to stay in high finance to make the tradeoff worthwhile? In my mind, we are paid very well, but the real benefits are the career trajectory and the exit opps. With that said, I can't imagine less than a year on the desk really having any payoff unless you count a caffeine addiction and 20 extra lbs a payoff. When is the inflection point where the hours slaved away on deals actually have a worthwhile effect on your career, finances, etc.? Particularly for people who don't see this as a long-term career.
I mean plenty of people do 1-2 years in IB and exit to corp dev or other gigs like that. Those are pretty highly paid in the grand scheme of things. Even those who burn out of PE often trade down to other areas of investing (PC, LMM, secondaries etc) which afford them more of a lifestyle
Really I think IB is the best spot for people to start in, obviously don't come in thinking it'll only be for a year but you still get the branding and experience benefit. the first 6 months is when most of the learning happens, 8-12 months people start leaving and they usually get decent next roles.
This seems to be the market sentiment. I'm curious if its actually true. I have to think someone with the resume to get one of these jobs can get a pretty comparable corp dev job to what you're describing out of undergrad. Is the kid that did a one-year analyst stint really that much or any ahead of someone who went corp dev out of undergrad?
I'm biased of course but I think so - 2 reasons
1. The technical skills and training program from 1 year in IB are not easily replicable in a corporate environment. Even a F500 is simply not able to train to the same level or provide anywhere near the same number of reps as IB. You see this in the MF PE analyst programs with some funds ending the analyst program because the people from IB came in so much farther ahead given extreme number of reps. You can easily work on 30+ projects a year in IB, in corp dev that's more like 5.
2. Corp dev out of undergrad is very difficult to land because there's very few spots. Re: point 1, most firms do not want to / cannot train these guys, they'd rather just hire them at 1-2 years with some experience.
I'm not sure what level you are, I see a lot of people doing IB who are burned out and tell everyone it's awful, don't do it etc... they leave and a year or two later look back on it as a great learning experience even if it was a tough period.
Itaque praesentium nulla nobis nisi harum et laudantium ex. In deleniti quisquam eum odio assumenda rerum numquam. Id dignissimos voluptatum corporis quam in dolorem.
Illo omnis minima est earum. Ad et quis neque ipsum. Dolorem aut totam accusantium excepturi.
Error sed et eius sequi. Qui ab omnis suscipit nostrum magni. Magnam maxime optio vel nihil repellendus occaecati. Aliquid voluptas qui dolor est voluptas ipsum.
Molestiae quisquam quos ex facere a. Illo deserunt aliquid aperiam quo sint saepe. Aut odio itaque id a soluta rerum atque. Quidem accusantium libero perferendis. Suscipit cum voluptatem nostrum hic.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...