shr30 wrote:
My outside in view from a lot of MC friends who either went to IB/PE/B-school @ H is that PE = Dollars and a lot of respect for MC/IB.
VC respects Startup experience or product management experience a lot more than IB/MC
I'm looking to go VC only (and not PE unless it's the internal consulting group @ Carlyle / Blackstone) in my "ideal" world.
Let's see how the apps and THEN the damn applications for jobs pan out.
Cheers
jbharris88 wrote:
curiousapplicant wrote:
If in an ideal world you had an option for either VC or PE to internship in, as a career switcher, which would you choose and why?
Wouldn't mind hearing others inputs on this.
I know you are all wondering why an admissions consultant is chiming in here, but I've been career coaching a LOT of PE/VC wannabes. I worked on Wall St out of HBS -- a while ago -- and many of my friends and classmates who ended up at in either PE or VC or hedge funds took some pretty traditional paths. I live in the Bay Area and know a lot of VC types, an they are really very different from the PE crowd.
1. Many I know who are PE barons came out of IB at a top M&A shop. If you are really going for the premier PE names, then a brand name, M&A firm is a good bet.
2. VC doesn't hire much right out of b-school. You won't see them recruiting on campus. If you really are interested in that path, it's a good idea to do the pro-bono internship somewhere along the way to get inside and to get connected. Sure the PE world is small, but the VC world is clubbier in its own way. You just want to be open and learn as much as you can.
3. One of the important things about the PE vs VC debate is your background. VC firms like a strong tech background. Sure, you see some CPG type investments, but many VC porfolio companies have some tech component, and you want to be able to understand that part of it. PE certainly requires some business knowledge, but the big shops have analyst>MBA>associate career paths , while VC firms do not.
4. Yes, Bain Capital has a number of ex-Bainies, for obvious reasons. Management consulting is not necessarily the easiest path to PE, but it can get you there.
Things do change (remember 2009?), and nothing is set in cement. But if you are thinking hard about going to business school because you want a career in this field, you probably want to find out what current students and recent alums are saying. I wrote a blog post with some tips about networking to get some of your questions answered:
http://masteradmissions.com/wp/2012/01/ ... n-finance/It may be a little generic for most of the posters on this thread, but even if it gives you one idea to make one connection, why not?
Thanks for reading,
_________________
Betsy Massar
Founder
Master Admissions
www.masteradmissions.com
Author of Admitted: An Interactive Workbook for Getting into a Top MBA Program
www.admittedmba.com
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