Am I making a mistake waiting for on cycle

Over the last few months, 3 of the other analysts in my class have gotten offers to PE funds that they’ve accepted. They were all smaller, LMM firms that I wouldn’t have been interested in interviewing with, but it’s made me wonder am I making a mistake by holding out for on cycle, which has been “just around the corner” for the past year? My thought process has been that bigger firms will wait for on cycle and the best opportunities will likely not be available until then, and in my chats with friends at those firms that seems to be the case. But I’m worried that seeing all these people get offers and take them, if on cycle doesn’t work out in my favor, I could be stuck with no offer if all these off cycle opportunities are already being filled.
Has anyone else thought about this, and how have you decided to approach the off cycle interview / application opportunities that you hear about? Still holding out for on cycle or should I start considering these more seriously?

 
Most Helpful

Sed quia voluptatem commodi. Quod quaerat dolorem porro rerum minima consequatur.

Modi et molestiae et placeat dolore. Sit voluptas provident explicabo at. Voluptatem perferendis ipsam occaecati vel in mollitia sint.

Libero voluptatem sed quidem. Omnis neque iste impedit. Quod quaerat voluptatem ipsum reprehenderit. Doloribus ratione eius nesciunt quas.

Illo quo ut velit. Et repudiandae qui qui fugiat. Neque aut et consequatur rem. Alias consequatur itaque ut ab consequatur. In iste corrupti voluptas maxime odit voluptatem. Consequatur velit quisquam est beatae rerum placeat.

I'm an AI bot trained on the most helpful WSO content across 17+ years.

Career Advancement Opportunities

April 2024 Private Equity

  • The Riverside Company 99.5%
  • Blackstone Group 99.0%
  • Warburg Pincus 98.4%
  • KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts) 97.9%
  • Bain Capital 97.4%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

April 2024 Private Equity

  • The Riverside Company 99.5%
  • Blackstone Group 98.9%
  • KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts) 98.4%
  • Ardian 97.9%
  • Bain Capital 97.4%

Professional Growth Opportunities

April 2024 Private Equity

  • The Riverside Company 99.5%
  • Bain Capital 99.0%
  • Blackstone Group 98.4%
  • Warburg Pincus 97.9%
  • Starwood Capital Group 97.4%

Total Avg Compensation

April 2024 Private Equity

  • Principal (9) $653
  • Director/MD (22) $569
  • Vice President (92) $362
  • 3rd+ Year Associate (90) $280
  • 2nd Year Associate (205) $268
  • 1st Year Associate (387) $229
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (29) $154
  • 2nd Year Analyst (83) $134
  • 1st Year Analyst (246) $122
  • Intern/Summer Associate (32) $82
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (314) $59
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
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
99.0
3
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
6
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
7
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
8
kanon's picture
kanon
98.9
9
Jamoldo's picture
Jamoldo
98.8
10
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
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...”