Asset Management vs IB Summer Analyst

I realize this has been posted before, but a lot of the really helpful and detailed posts are 5+ years old. I'm currently a junior at a top liberal arts school and am seeking advice on my offers. I have an offer for an AM firm with around $350b AUM and two offers from investment banks - one with a top middle market public finance group and another with an elite boutique corporate advisory group and will potentially be getting an offer from an MM energy group.

Everyone at my college always goes IB and later shifts to AM, which I assumed would be my path too; however, since I got the offer for an AM should I skip the IB phase? Or is there an important skillset gained from doing the IB analyst stint and then moving to the buy side? Also, what is the future of AM looking like with the growing presence of passive management? Finally, other forums haven't really shown consensus on the compensation differences between larger AM funds and IB. At the analyst level, is the pay relatively similar or is IB significantly higher?

Thanks for the help!

Thanks for the help!

27 Comments
 

Everyone shifts fom IB to AM because AM is the exit opp, you've attained the exit opp without having to go through two years of 80-100 weeks. At a $350B shop no less. Unless you want to eventually go into PE I'd take the AM offer.

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I guess I'm not overly sure what my longterm goals are, PE or HF. I understand AM leads much more into HF if I want to change, but is it very difficult to go from AM to PE?

 

If you're doing traditional equity or fixed income investing it will be extremely difficult to get into PE. It is the most cookie cutter exit as far as background goes. They want to see IB deal experience otherwise you've got almost no chance.

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I'm assuming he's referring to a research role. If so, the pay could be higher or lower depending on the shop and how well they do from a returns perspective. In any case, the hours will surely be better.

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Best Response

You're discussing the very top of the market. AM pays roughly 100k-120k all in for 1st year, and that is the BB banks. From what I hear the buyside shops can pay more. Bonus is significantly variable based on fund performance though. In any case this shouldn't be about the short-term as AM has a higher pay upside than banking, if this dude wants to be an investor for a buy-side shop (AM or HF like yourself) he'd be mistaken not to take this offer. These jobs are much more difficult to attain than IB due to the combination of pay and lifestyle.

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I mean.. if you're going to be in RE PE.. you've already made it. Especially with GS. Why screw around with IB?

"There are three ways to make a living in this business: be first, be smarter, or cheat."
 
SandhurstI mean.. if you're going to be in RE PE.. you've already made it. Especially with GS. Why screw around with IB?
There is some truth to this but I bet it's a little harder to go from RE acquisitions to IBD than the other way around, so you have to make sure you definitely want to be in real estate.
 

GSAM is a real REPE firm. They're one of the biggest in the world. Very respectable.

"There are three ways to make a living in this business: be first, be smarter, or cheat."
 
HarvardOrBust
SandhurstGSAM is a real REPE firm. They're one of the biggest in the world. Very respectable.
Um... REPE is in their Merchant Banking Division under REPIA.

From: http://www.goldmansachs.com/gsam/institutions/products/institutional-st…

"Private Real Estate Clients have the opportunity to invest in real estate and real estate-related assets that we source, acquire, manage and harvest on a global basis."

Sounds like RE PE to me...

"There are three ways to make a living in this business: be first, be smarter, or cheat."
 

I would say IBD because thats going to be way more general experience and you will be able to translate that into many areas if you aren't exactly sure of what you would like to get into yet.

XX
 

yeah i agree IBD experience is more broad and easier to transition a lot of places but this bank is pretty regional and isn't in the league of say Baird, Harris Williams, or Jefferies. So in my mind an SA position at a big name bank in AM would be similar to one in IBD at a regional MM bank in that they are both harder to transition into different areas than IBD at a well known bank. And i realize AM is generally not similar at all but in this case at least RE acquisitions has a strong deal focus instead of investing in securities like equities or FI.

SandhurstGSAM is a real REPE firm. They're one of the biggest in the world. Very respectable.

Sandhurst, so would the value-add/opportunistic real estate AM arms of JPM and MS also be considered REPE?

Lastly, what would top B-Schools think of BB Real Estate AM?

 

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