Are (F)LDPs Incredibly Underrated?

I've made multiple comments about CF vs IB or other high finance careers (this one is pretty comprehensive). When it comes to FLDPs more specifically, I have a few thoughts:

Pros:

Experience: Getting into an FLDP out of undergrad is great because it gives you the opportunity to have multiple roles on your resume in a very short period. Employees taking "normal" entry level finance jobs likely have to sit in their first role for 2-3 years before jumping to their second, all while I was able to get three roles under my belt at 3 different locations in different states. You basically spend just long enough to learn the role before moving to the next, so it is all learning curve and no plateau.

Branding: An FLDP on your resume shows that you were a quality undergrad recruit. This is great branding if you want to head to business school 3-5 years after undergrad. It also is the first step on the "rockstar path". I like to think of what I would say if I get to the c-suite and am invited back to my alma mater to walk some students through my career. What story makes sense? what story ends with the c-suite? Many paths will get you there, but FLDP -> MBA -> management roles with increasing responsibility is a pretty natural walk. Not that the MBA is necessary (especially if you are hitting promotions at a regular cadence), but it's part of my path and is something that fits the "c-suite story". Side note- multiple FLDPs from my company with to HBS a year or two after the program. M7 placement is very possible out of F500 FLDPs.

Neutral:

Next steps: In my FLDP (F500 A&D), it seemed like there was a big disparity in performance ratings and career progress during and after the FLDP. Some members got top notch reviews everywhere they went, others seemed to be held to a higher standard because they were in the program. It depended on the manager. My experience left me feeling like the FLDP would not accelerate my career after my SFA promo, so I knew I needed to jump. There wasn't a clear path to management from the FLDP- it seemed like you were turned loose, and nearly all who finished the program were in the same place as those who weren't in the program. This is where your mileage may vary depending on the company, but I felt like the value of the program for me was best recognized through jumping and then starting my PT MBA.

Escalator vs staircase: An FLDP is a career escalator for the first 2-3 years of your career. You are taken higher automatically and don't have any control over the speed. At my company the program was 3 years. Some high achievers joined the company and hit SFA after 2 years, but those of us in the FLDP had to wait 3. You can beat an escalator if you run up the stairs- sometimes I felt like the FLDP was moving too slow.

Industry knowledge: My FLDP was structured to give a lot of exposure to the unique parts of the defense industry. I learned after the first year and a half that I didn't want to be in the defense industry- finance there was mostly cost accounting, not FP&A or anything more interesting. I had to specifically seek out rotations that would keep my experience broad and appealing to other industries. This reduced the number of attractive rotations by a large percentage. If you like the industry of your FLDP, great. But if not, hopefully you have control over your rotations and can steer your experience a bit more.

Cons:

CPA: Sometimes I wish I had gone the B4 route and gotten my CPA. Hours suck and audit sucks, but the vast majority of CFOs are CPAs.. Seems like one of those things that I'll wish I had.

Bottom line: MBB/IB/HF/PE are the tier 1 careers starts, but they require a ton of hours and/or travel and/or high COL cities. If you're ok with those things, I'd absolutely say to pursue those roles. FLDPs are the best entry level CF roles, and if you play your cards right can absolutely land you in high paying jobs without ever having to pull 80-100hr weeks along the way.