Private Equity Internships are a scam
Not talking about (the very few) MFs who offer internships (BX, KKR, Carlyle for example), as here you get good experience and paid properly. Although good luck getting onto these without being 26, having 3 Master’s degrees from top EU biz schools and 7 years of internship experience.
Almost all PE internships are a total scam. Pay less than £40k pro rata (plenty paying £30k) and get no proper experience. Can be a good name for your cv but you will have nothing to speak to for your time there. Firms just use you as extremely cheap labour to grind through a load of grunt work for 80 hours per week. I’m not just talking about no name emerging funds here, some of the larger European names, with €20bn+ in AUM.
Be wary before committing yourself to terrible internships like these.
Private equity internships, especially outside of the top-tier megafunds (like Blackstone, KKR, Carlyle), often come with significant drawbacks. Based on the most helpful WSO content, here are the key points to consider:
Pay and Exploitation: Many PE internships, particularly in Europe, offer compensation that is far below market standards, sometimes pro-rated to less than £40k or even £30k annually. This is despite the expectation of working 80+ hours per week, often on repetitive and low-value tasks.
Lack of Meaningful Experience: While these internships might add a recognizable name to your CV, the actual experience gained is often minimal. Interns are frequently relegated to grunt work, with little exposure to the core aspects of private equity, such as deal-making or strategic decision-making.
Prestige vs. Reality: Even some larger European funds with significant AUM (€20bn+) have been criticized for offering internships that fail to provide substantial learning opportunities. The allure of a prestigious name can sometimes mask the reality of the role.
Megafunds as an Exception: Internships at top-tier firms like BX, KKR, and Carlyle are exceptions to this trend. These roles typically offer better pay, meaningful work experience, and a stronger platform for career advancement. However, securing these positions is highly competitive, often requiring extensive qualifications and prior experience.
Caution and Research: Before committing to a PE internship, it's crucial to thoroughly research the firm and role. Understand the expectations, compensation, and potential learning opportunities to ensure the experience aligns with your career goals.
In summary, while PE internships can be a stepping stone for your CV, many come with significant trade-offs. Be strategic and selective to avoid falling into roles that offer little value beyond a name on paper.
Sources: Do you consider your Private Equity job intellectually stimulating?, Why Banking Over Private Equity/Hedge Fund?, Investment Banking Recruiting allows underclassmen to get exploited and doesn't do anything about it., Why The Grass Isn't Greener: The Private Equity Associate Crisis (PEAC), Handling Stress / Burnout in Private Equity
Give some examples then
Astorg easily
Disgraceful
I had a great experience interning on the MidCap team. Was pretty similar to being a full time analyst (I am one somewhere else now) and they were reasonably helpful when it came to recruiting. Of the 5 people I interned with 3 went straight to PE full time, two went to great IB seats.
Large cap is less fun. You don’t get much in the way of valuable experience from what I heard.
ARCHIMED - would think with $5B latest fund they could pay more than 1k EUR / month to their 6-12 month junior analysts...
Really getting sick and tired of this boring narrative on WSO. It is just totally incorrect. BX took a 2nd year warwick UG (yes the bottom of the top tier unis).
UK students need to stop bitching and start grinding
Female?
Yep
No indian dude in 2025
Perhaps woman in 2026
Which is crazy placement from such a mediocre place
Shut the fuck up you ungrateful little shit
Ungrateful because funds are flat out lying about the exposure you’ll get if you intern with them? And ungrateful because you (literally) work for about £7 per hour? Obviously a “PE internship” at a big name brand is great for your cv but other than that these internships are terrible.
Curious if cd&r make the list here
Haven’t heard anything about their internships but I would assume that it’d actually be very good there
Comp at CD&R for interns is top. The big offenders on the cheap labour front are Astorg and PAI Partners from what I know
I’ll bite - what would you expect to do as an intern? Give some real, tangible / practical things (not some bullshit ‘be involved in a deal’ stuff). I’ll try to help calibrate in good faith if it’s a bad internship, your expectations are off or a bit of both
Controversial opinion but I think PE internships are great. I did 3x6months so by the last one I was getting great reps. The pay is not good for finance c£36k p.a annualised but it is pretty good relative to gen pop.
The personal track record of good work makes the connections great for recruiting. When there are only 5-10 seats per year in UMM/MF PE analyst seats the internship is the only way to build the CV enough to actually get one. I’m an UMM PE analyst now and would certainly not have gotten this seat without the internships.
It is all about getting the right internships (e.g. MidCap ones give better reps) and doing great work when you get the job.
Thanks for the insight. May I ask, how does having three six-months internships work with the school semester? I assume they were all off-cycles then. Would you mind sharing?
Was in French B-school so there is a gap year as part of the program. Did 2x6 months during the gap year and then another 6 months after I graduated (different fund).
Yes obviously. Good if your daddy’s friend is a partner tho
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