HiWhat sort of package can a PhD + 1 year financial services experience expect to get at a Venture Capital fund?How risky would such a move coming from a relatively stable environment be?

I can't imagine it would be easy to secure a role in VC (at least not a good one with large asset base) with only 1 year experience.Perhaps I'm wrong an you've done it?Sorry can't help on VC salaries, would be interested to know myself. Extremely high variance is likely though.

I can give you one real example:Background: Cambridge maths PhD + 2 yrs niche strategy consultingEntry-point to VC: Analyst at 3iRemuneration: £35k base + £10k total bonusTenure: 1.25 yrs before made redundant at beginning of this year

wow. that low can't be the norm can it?

That's the norm for starting out. The major returns in PE come to partners and investors.

PE and VC pay differntly and are not interchangeable terms; VC is far less lucrative than PE even at entry level. A PE firm would usually expect to peg you entry salary to the bulge bracket plus a little extra, and unless you are exceptionally talented you would need to be a 3rd year analyst to make the move buyside. PE firms vary in practice - some allocate a standard bonus, others will offer a (small) take of carry, although given that this is the carry on the fund not the transaction and it takes 7 years for a fund to mature, you need to be in it for the long haul and confident you can last. VC pays more in line with industry corp fin, i.e less than IB and PE as it is essentially a corp dev role - softer hours, usually normal industry hours rather than MC let alone IB hours. A good choice if you want the work of PE without the hours, but you won;t make the money either.The example cited by eg however looks too low even for VC.VC will lead you to corp dev or an internal accounting role; if you want the big bucks, the models and bottles, you need to be in PE and the only way to get there is through BB IB or MBB.

Mars,Is VC as competitive to get into as IB/Consulting/PE with your post in mind?

VC is on a par with MC, so more competitive than IB at entry but less so than PE; for any PE or VC role they will want you to demonstrate private valuation modelling, and a good understanding of the mechanics of LBO - not really interested in standard M&A stuff much. Unless you can sit down with senior bankers and take an LBO apart piece by piece it's a non-starter.

I should qualify my previous post with one point however; VC and PE firms will relate to and value MC experience far more than a mainstream IB will. Although the selection process is tougher, you will find the cross over much more apparent - just brush on your modelling theory!

Thanks Mars,Assume the experience the value is purely strategy consulting work at the top firms?

Big 4 experience is just as valuable for a move into VC/PE.