I’m currently a New Grad Software Engineer who joined Fidelity very recently working from home!! I got an offer from Capital One as a New Grad Software Engineer. Fidelity SWE: 1). My team is awesome 2). WLB is the best of the best 3). Manager is cool and actually cares about me 4). TC: 75K - 85K (depends on bonus) 5). Very interesting problem I’m working 6). Working Remotely until later in the year 7). 401K benefits Capital One SWE: 1). Don’t know team yet 2). WLB might be okay contingent upon team 3). Don’t know manager yet 4). 95K - 105K (depends on bonus) 5). Don’t know what I will be working on 6). Will need to move to Virginia Questions: 1). Should I resign from Fidelity to go to Capital One for only a 20K to 25K Increase in total compensation?? I personally don’t think 20K to 25K will be worth the risk to go to Capital One because I can EASILY make tens of thousands of dollars in a year by day-trading (and I have already - got lucky with Tesla/Bitcoin last year) and swing trading stocks and cryptocurrency! I really enjoy Fidelity’s WLB and the team culture is excellent. I heard Capital One also has high expectations and can fire very quickly unlike Fidelity. Fidelity also seems more stable to me in the event of a recession or major market crash because people will always need retirement and money management solutions which Fidelity provides and does best in the industry. (My opinion) Please provide your opinions and advice below! Thanks in advance.
C1 has one of the best WLB and will open doors for FAANG.
I actually interned at FB MPK before and I will never work there because engineers on my team were doing 60-70 hours a week + weekends. I wouldn’t even work at FB if they paid me 6 figures. I will happily take my low compensation at Fidelity than a 6 figure at FAANG.
I think Fidelity has restrictions on trading since they are a finance company. You should check this before making a decision.
It’s for certain employees, not all, not me, not my team.
I wouldn’t leave for just 25k more. You only leave a good job and WLB for 50 to 100% more money imho. You need to jump a tax bracket (or two) to leave a good job.
Why? Can you please elaborate??
If you have a good situation (fun or easy work, making good money, etc.) and the WLB is good—why leave that? If you had an offer of like 150k or more then, yeah—you should leave and make more money. But 25k is not worth the disruption, starting over, etc. That is not enough to move to another location imho.
tell us more about your stonks trading
How is the breakfast in fidelity?
Sounds like you are in a good place to start. People early in their career should be seeking best learning environments to hone your craft and try different areas. TC will come in time. Blind is too obsessed with TC.
C1 is great for new grads since they value their TDPs more than their senior engineers for the cheap SWE labor. I see alot of new grads work at C1 for 2-3 years and then move on to FAANG
You’re looking at a 25-33% bump. Of the Cap1 Virginia locations, Richmond has the lower cost of living- it’s considered to be at the national average from a col perspective. Other option is McLean). Salary differential between the two is 10%. Benefits are similar for the two companies.The main differences I see are Cap1 401k matches 7.5% if you contribute 4.5%. First 3% do not require contributions on your part, and vest immediately. The remaining match does require contributions and is subject to two year vesting. Cap1 provides cash bonus vs fidelity profit share match that goes into the 401k. Fidelity has some sort of student loan help; no such creature at Cap1 Cap1 offers free $ toward flexible health care spending account/dependent care - I think $1000 if you contribute $2500. Cap1 does have free medical clinics on campus - both Richmond and McLean - that you can use for free. Also nominal cost gym - I think $15/month with two free personal trainer sessions a week. Monetarily, you will come out ahead at Cap1 - esp if in Richmond (lower COL). Richmond and McLean area have different vibes but both are good IMHO. WLB is generally quite good, so I don’t really think that should be a consideration for you. You are right - you won’t know what team you are on or who your manager is or what specifically you will work on. So there is a crap shoot element there. But the TDP program is decently organized (not perfect, but what is??). They do make a strong effort to build a community so that you have plenty of opportunities to interact with other TDPs throughout the company. Not sure what this years TDP class size is, but 500+ would be a very conservative guess. You will rotate to a new team at the one year point. You are given the opportunity to rank your preferences, and they try to honor them (but it is not guaranteed). At the end of the two year program, you can stay with your current team or internal transfer to another one. I can guarantee you will be asked to earn your CSSE and AWS solutions architect associate certification. You will have opportunities to study during working hours (one Friday a month is designated “invest in yourself” day), but I would expect it will take more than just 8 hrs a month if you want to finish in a reasonable time frame (probably 30-40 hrs for the AWS cert). Expect to put that AWS knowledge to use. There are plenty of options for on demand technical courses in just amount any area you can think of (acloudguru, LinkedIn learning, plural sight, O’Reilly - am probably forgetting some. The highest performers self-identify opportunities to make things better, and take action to bring them to life. There is a lot of freedom IMHO in that respect - much more so than in other companies I have experienced. It’s not cut throat here, but you will feel challenged if at the higher end of the performance bar. You can expect to be assigned a mentor your first year who is not in your reporting chain. Hope that helps a little.
Don’t underestimate benefits in TC. Idk what Fidelity offers but taking advantage of basic retirement and investing benefits at C1 can be like an automatic 10% raise
Haha. Can you please elaborate why C1 ain’t worth it?
How is the WLB and stress management at Uber?