I know this is an aged topic but still want to ask ppl on Blind. I’m a new college grad that just got an offer from Meta and am also working on my startup project. For the first 5 years out of college, is it better to climb the ladder at a big tech or to work on a startup? I know this is a multivariate problem but would love to hear ppl’s perspective. TC: 0 still a student
Meta. Learn the politics. Apply that in your startup later.
Try both
Go to meta.
If you're starvin, meta Trust fund, do what u like
Startup will get you experience in various things and you’ll have much more responsibility. You will learn a lot, but you will likely also work quite hard. Financially, this rarely pays off, as equity compensation is just monopoly $ until a later stage that few startups reach. Big tech gives you a nice name for your cv which will make subsequent applications much easier. If it’s not Amazon, I would assume wlb is on average better. On the other hand, there will be much more politics and climbing the career ladder is much more difficult. Personally I would always go with big tech as I am 💰 driven, but if you are young, have no responsibilities and want to try yourself out, going to a startup is equally valid. Most people I know who have worked at startups remember this time fondly.
Big tech learn how things are done at scale and how things are built and climb that TC ladder while you're still young and can work 80 hrs a week. You won't get that same experience at startups. Startups will look to you to solve problems at scale and how to build things at the enterprise level; the skills/knowledge you should've acquired at big tech.
If your goal is learning as much as you can as quickly as possible srtartups is the way to go. If your goal is to make as much money as you can as quickly as possible faang is the way to go. There are happy mediums though, if you can find the right opportunity at a faang you can get the best of both worlds, just need to make sure you join a scrappy team. Having done both startups and big tech at this point I think early on in your career it’s good to join a big tech learn as much of the process as possible and build a financial cushion. Later on with the experience and financial freedom startups will actually be more fun. You should also never be scared to pull the plug early on in your career if you feel like you’re not growing enough, never be scared to look for other opportunities if the first one you try is not to your liking, I would say reassess your environment every 3-6 months in terms of if it’s right for your goals. Switching and making lots of career mistakes early on is a good thing. Hope this helps, good luck!
toss up