PE out of college or BB two years?
I will have 2 IB summers under my belt by the time graduation comes. Goal long term is to be at a MF. Should I try to recruit lateral for PE firm out of college (which firms even do this?). I'm at a "good" BB (BAML) but would it be better to do 2 years there and then do on cycle? Or should I lateral elsewhere to get better chances
I would personally only do it if you can get into a reputable firm that you would like to spend your associate years at as well. I absolutely hated my time in IB (and pe as well) but it is kind of remarkable how much in F500 the brand value of a BB matters to people. People don’t really know what pe is or who the big firms are (I came across someone very senior in F500 who confused KKR for Kelloggs cereal company lol), so I do think there is surprisingly some value in doing your time at a big bank. The other benefit that people rarely talk about is the network you get to build - you have 100 really motivated people in your IB analyst class and after a few years they all end up doing all sorts of different interesting things. Additionally, weirdly enough bank alumni are surprisingly willing to talk to you even years later (kind of similar to your undergrad alumni network).
So in short, only go that route if you can get into a reputable firm that you would also be excited to work at as an associate. Banking is a shitty and mind numbing job, but it is actually worth doing and it does mean something to people in the long run, even if you don’t realize that while you’re going through it.
If you decide to take your banking offer, spend the rest of senior year having as much fun with your friends as possible, having new experiences, working on your social skills (hint: finance isn’t a meritocracy, it’s all about mastering politics and likeability), and spending some time prepping for oncycle (1 tab lbo in 1 hour, technicals, why pe answer) which unfortunately will start almost immediately once you begin training.
Echo this comment. If you can get an PE analyst job at Silver Lake, Blackstone, or similar, it's probably worth doing from a career standpoint. But honestly -- at the risk of sounding pushy -- otherwise just do banking. The network/brand carries significant option value throughout your career, and at a bank like BAML you'll get to do things with large brand name public companies which is a valuable experience/resume piece and provides useful perspective.
Banking can really suck but most people look back on their analyst years in IB fondly. You're surrounded by peers your age or a little older and it feels in some sense an extension of college where you work and get paid instead of studying. In my opinion banking is a better environment to transition into professional life, whereas PE firms are generally a bit more serious and distant even at the junior level.
Exactly what’s said above^
Only the millionth time I’ve seen this question answered on this forum, with that exact same (right) answer (PE > IB only if reputable/associate years available, training program, etc.) … list of MF Analyst programs has been published a few thousand times on this forum too
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