I’m getting to the point in my IB career where I need to start thinking seriously about what’s next. Everyone talks about PE, VC, and product as the natural exits, but they’re wildly different and I have no idea which one I’d actually be good at or if I’d be happy there.
The problem is, most conversations with people in those spaces feel like they’re selling me on it. Like, of course the VC guy loves VC, and the PE guy thinks PE is the best move. They’re not going to tell me the parts that suck or the reality of what the day-to-day is actually like.
I want to talk to people who can give me the real picture—what’s the lifestyle actually like after banking? How much of the appeal is just the idea of it versus the actual work? Are you really making more money, or is that a myth? And what did they wish they’d known before making the jump?
Also, I’m wondering if there’s actually a “wrong” choice here, or if the exit choice matters less than people think compared to just picking something and going all-in.
For those of you who’ve made exits to different spaces, what questions do you actually wish someone had asked you before you decided?
everyone’s gonna tell you their path is the best. here’s reality: pe is banking on steroids, vc is networking + pattern matching, product is solving puzzles. three totally different things. the money conversation is bs—you make more in pe, break even or slightly more in vc, way less initially in product. but you’re asking the wrong question. ask them ‘did you have an exit plan before jumping or did you just jump?’ and ‘what surprised you most?’ that tells you if they’re bs’ing.
lifestyle is also bs. yes, pe is better hours than banking. vc is better hours than pe. product depends. but you’re replacing banking stress with deal stress, fundraising stress, or feature/metric stress. it’s just different. ask them what they miss about banking vs what they don’t. that’s more useful.
wait so like none of them are actually better, just different types of stressful? kinda depressing to hear lol
so should i be picking based on what kind of work i like or just what looks best for my resume?
thanks for the honesty this helps frame it differently
ill def ask those specific questions abt whether they planned ahead or just jumped
Exit decisions are genuinely important and deserve thoughtful analysis. When talking to people in each space, listen for specifics about decision frameworks and work patterns. In PE, understand what happens post-acquisition—how much time do you actually spend on strategy versus operational firefighting? In VC, ask about portfolio company success rates and how much of the role is actually selecting winners versus managing underperforming positions. In product, understand the unit economics obsession and what happens when your feature tanks metrics.
One framework: Identify what aspects of banking you dislike most. If it’s client dependency and selling, PE suits you better. If it’s short timelines and constant deals, VC has appeal. If it’s financial engineering and you want to build or solve problems differently, product makes sense. The exit choice matters moderately—you can be successful in any of them. What matters more is honest self-awareness about what motivates you and what burns you out.
You’re overthinking this in the best way. Any of these moves is going to open doors. You’re going to crush it wherever you land!
What I wish I’d done: spent more time actually shadowing people in each space instead of assuming the path. Like, I’d grab lunch with PE guys and product people but I wasn’t asking the right questions about day-to-day life. I was asking big picture career stuff when I should’ve been asking ‘what did you do yesterday?’ and ‘what frustrated you?’
The exit choice matters less than you think if you’re good at learning and adapting. but it matters a lot if you hate the underlying work. I’m glad I’m in PE, but someone else would’ve been miserable. Pick based on what kind of work actually energizes you, not what sounds best
Comparative data on post-IB exits shows roughly 50-55% of bankers choose PE, 20-25% pursue VC, 15-20% move to product, and 5-10% select other paths. Compensation data: PE offers average cash + carry that can reach 2-3x banking by year 5 if deals perform (median closer to 1.5x), VC typically pays 1-1.2x banking base with equity upside, product at tier-one tech pays 1.1-1.4x banking with RSU grants. Satisfaction data shows roughly 70% of all three categories report satisfaction, suggesting fit and personal preference matter more than path itself.
Hours data: PE associates work 55-65 hours per week (lower than banking but depends heavily on deal activity). VC associates work 50-60 hours weekly. Product managers at tech work 50-55 hours weekly. The perception that exits are significantly easier is partially accurate—they involve less client-facing and deal-closing pressure, though project and performance pressure substitutes in different forms.
Success in any path correlates strongest with prior PE/VC/product exposure (internships, projects) and clear motivation articulation. Candidates without prior experience in the target space show roughly 40% lower interview success rates. When evaluating this decision, understand that preparation and interest signal matter at least as much as the path choice itself. The wrong path entered seriously outperforms the right path entered halfheartedly.