Why does prestige matter?

I received an offer at WF for $53/h 1.5x overtime and am having trouble deciding whether to take that or another bank that is BB and has more "prestige" but pays less. I do not understand why I wouldn't choose the bank offering more money, maybe someone can explain to me why prestige matters more than how much you earn. 

2 Comments
 
Most Helpful

Prestige matters because NY employees can't know your past comp and won't believe you if you tell them. So the only "information" that can be passed across your career is prestige. Since there are far more people that want your job than seats, you need a lot of information in your favor to get a job. As such, prestige matters more than most other factors. 

That said, if you are a badass trader and you have a lot of PnL and somehow everybody on the street one day knows that then of course this is better. But in most cases, prestige matters a lot until it's clearer to others what your individual contribution is. 

 

Deserunt ab quia illum fuga porro. Aut eaque voluptatum aliquid recusandae labore. Voluptas et excepturi consequatur voluptatem. Et autem nam vel earum sit.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.3%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.7%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.3%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • Goldman Sachs 02 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (44) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (79) $150
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $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
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
6
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
8
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
Linda Abraham's picture
Linda Abraham
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...”