MM IBD vs. GS SLC IBD
Currently have two offers for FT:
1. MM IBD (think Piper, Cowen, RJ, Stifel)
2. Goldman Sachs SLC IBD
The MM IBD office is in a big U.S. city (SF, NY).
From what I understand, the GS SLC IBD program involves two years of working remotely in the SLC office for a team located in a major city, where you can then transfer at the end of your 2 years as long as your performance was strong.
Is taking the risk of not getting invited to a major GS office worth it? If it didn't work out, do you think GS SLC would have enough brand equity traction to recruit elsewhere (preferably a BB)? I would like to keep as many doors open as possible for potential buyside ops.
Would like to hear some thoughts on this.
Is this for a FT or SA?
"Currently have two offers for FT"
Shit, my bad.
Hi, congrats on the offers. when did you submit your hirevue for GS SLC and when was the superday?
interested as well
Hey,
So I know I'm not answering your question with this, but just a little more info for your treasure trove of knowledge: I've done a lot of informational interviews with GS SL analysts, and they've said the top analysts can transfer over in 18 months. Not only that, one told me that a guy who transferred to the NY office after 18 months was promoted to associate 6 months after arriving there, which is obviously phenomenal. However, more often then not, the ones who do make it out convert in as a third-year analyst, or worse, second year. Anyway, hopefully that helps a tiny bit with your decision. Congrats on the offers!
Thank you for the insight treeman, I really appreciate it.
Did the individuals you networked with ever mention the difficulty of receiving an offer from a larger office? Is this something that only the absolute top analysts received, or is it quite common?
Mmm, they weren't specific with the numbers of how many people make it, just the "top performers" and comments like that. Which could mean it's more grim than they want to believe, or maybe it means nothing. Overall, I think this one depends on what your medium term plans are. How long do you want to be in banking? If you go the GS SL route, you'll have a big name, but you will more than likely pay for it with an extra year as an analyst. Not a bad option, just something to be aware of.
I would definitely go with GS SLC. Have a friend there who will be transferring to the NY office in the next few months and the brand name alone will help you have a wider range of exit opps (even while he was in SLC, he has decent amount of good MM PE/top VC interviews). If you go to piper/RJ, you are pretty much committed to LMM PE unless you want to transfer out to a larger shop
That's really interesting to hear, and definitely a great point. Thank you for the input, I appreciate it.
Did your friend ever mention if his SLC colleagues also received interest from other firms (whether IB or PE), and what the actual odds are of individuals transferring to a larger office?
He mentioned that GS SLC allowed him to get a lot more looks for west coast IBD/PE firms. Internally transferring within GS to the NY office is difficult, but moving to other firms (BB, EBs) and getting interviews were pretty easy for both PE and IBD firms. He just emphasized culture and experience (GS SLC works on some pretty solid deals so exit opps are great despite the location).
IMO from friends at several of the MM firms you listed, RJ is growing but exit opps aren't that great yet, PJC is a sweatshop for no reason with LMM PE exit opps (would avoid if possible), Cowen is on the downfall and Stifel Tech SF is solid but not too sure about the other groups. Feel like for FT - GS SLC is your best bet and will open the most doors
The MM IBD offer could be much more compelling than GS SLC. GS SLC recruits heavily from my alma mater. I've heard more negatives than positives (pay, work experience, quality of life, ability to network from SLC, etc.). If the MM's group is particularly strong and in a city with a bigger finance community, it would be an easy call in my opinion, but without more details it is hard to say.
I'm in a similar situation as Gary except with Jefferies Finance (LevFin) NYC and GS IB Data Resource Group Analyst SLC, how do you feel about a decision either way in this situation?
Additionally, ideas on progression within firm/exit opps from each?
Take the actual IB job.
I think there's a lot of variation in the MM firms you've listed and within the groups at each of the groups within those firms. I can't speak to GS SLC but I spent my summer at a MM and have friends who also summered at the places you've listed. there are some groups at these MMs that have decent MM PE exits.
Make sure you understand the tradeoffs, as you'll make substantially less than NYC, while working the same hours with no guarantee of promotion/moving to NYC. Furthermore, SLC is definitely viewed as a second-class office at the firm, despite what mgmt says. That being said, SLC is a good city if you love the outdoors/skiing, though it lacks character, nightlife, and networking opportunities (unless you want to work for Zions, Utah Retirement System, or a local fund). Also there's the Mormon thing, which is hard to explain without having lived here for a year or so.
(I should note though that I'm in a different division here in SLC).
Thanks for the replies everyone, I truly appreciate it.
If anyone has any figures as to how many move on to other BBs/EBs/PE, or just transferring to a main GS office at all, I'd be super interested in knowing.
Any updates here? In a very similar position.
Kind of late, but my buddies who work in the Goldman SLC office get paid like 50k annually and work regular banking hours... Which is way low even for Utah.
How are the exit opps for your buddies ? Do they enjoy it there ?
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