I joined a large investment firm out of college and am considering whether or not I should do banking for a year.
Background: I interned at a bulge bracket bank for three summers (senior year of high school, sophomore year, and junior year) and went to a target school. I lack family connections in the industry and recognize that I got very lucky along the way. I made the jump to the buyside for my full-time job given the exposure and learning experience I foreshadowed getting.
While the firm makes traditional PE investments, our sourcing mechanism has not benefited my team and I have been mostly staffed on business-building, fund investing, and co-investments since joining. Realizing this, I took part in the 2018 recruiting cycle with my peers in banking and accepted an offer at a middle market fund I am happy with. The start date is in summer of 2018.
Will I be at a disadvantage when compared to the bankers in my start class? What can I be doing in my current role to compensate? I have considered leaving my current firm to do a year of banking (granted, I realize this is easier said than done), which I would have to start recruiting for in the next couple of weeks.
I appreciate everyone's insight in advance!