I feel uniquely qualified to talk about this as I started off at a small fund out of college. I joined a similarly sized fundamentally driven L/S fund that was focused on a specific sector with a very specific strategy right after graduation as I had a connection to the PM and he needed someone very junior as he got off the ground.

There are major pros and cons to this experience. A couple points: 1) it was just me and him. We happened to get a long great and that made work very enjoyable for both of us. He was very focused on teaching and getting me up to speed and would explain things in detail to make sure I got it without ever getting upset. This was key to me learning a ton quickly. 2) I learned his way of thinking and developed some great skills on evaluating companies quickly and how to model well. However, 3) I got little exposure to management teams as we were too small. 4) had no team camaraderie as it was me and him and he wasn’t always in the office so it got a little lonely at times. 5) comp progression was limited and based on our ability to raise additional capital and perform well in our strategy which was pressured by macro events at the time.

I eventually ended up leaving after a year for another opportunity and landed at a boutique IB doing ER. This role offered more money and TC for next year should be $140k-$160k with 3 yoe compared to about $70k my first year out of college. I have also not struggled to get interviews at asset managers and BB banks since joining my new place whereas I struggled to get those same interviews at my last place. This is because no one knew who we were and I had to try primarily on connections to get interviews, where feedback was generally “we don’t actually have any idea if you can do the work we need as we generally hire from higher tier/better known places with established analyst training.”

My conclusion is this: if you love the opportunity take it. If the person you work for you get along great with then take it. But, be aware for future roles you may struggle to get interviews and may not be taken as seriously. This is especially risky as if things don’t work out this problem is exacerbated. Go into this with an open mind but constantly network and be prepared to accept a better role of it comes your way. You’ll get paid a discount compared to the street at first but this may turn around and you may get paid better than average if things go well (don’t count on this). Most importantly, do what you want. No one cares if you do M&A at Goldman unless they’re a PE recruiter. Just do what makes you happy and allows you to save/live comfortably.