What are the pros and cons of working at a startup for grad?

Communities Entrepreneurship Enthusiasts
1

I’ve heard startups are great for internship experience but I haven’t heard of too many people going into them for grad. Is there a reason for this? What are the pros and cons of gradding at a startup?

1 Like
2

By startup I’m going to assume you mean an early stage startup i.e pre-seed or early seed (places like Canva are still considered startups but have very reputable grad programs).

Generally to my understanding here are the main pros and cons of working at a startup:

Pros:

  1. Learning opportunities - similar to internships, the pace of which you’ll learn will be significantly greater than that of an entry level role because of the increased breadth of tasks and responsibilities as well as the opportunity to work closely with the founder or senior management
  2. Culture - If you’re looking for a more casual and chill culture (similar to that of a tech firm) you’ll have better luck looking for it in startups than larger corporations. Work life balance depends startup to startup, so it might not necessarily be better
  3. Compensation - While the base salary might be a bit lower, I’ve heard stories where employee stock has skyrocketed in the value once the company makes a major breakthrough or IPO. This again depends on the startup, but stock options are a good way to link your work/effort to exponential monetary rewards

Cons:

  1. Potential instability - startups that don’t have sufficient cash might end up going down (what happened to milkrun earlier this year), leaving you without a job. However while you’re still young this is the best time to take risks
  2. Career Development - While progression in the company would be significantly faster, if you are looking to branch out into other industries later startups won’t look as attractive on a resume compared to an established and reputable firm (assuming you aren’t applying for other startups)
  3. Less structured - If you’re looking for a structured grad program you’ll be better off getting that experience from a company that has a reputable grad program which has been running for several years. These grad programs can be good for rotational experience around a firm and meeting peers your age
3

Pros:

  • You’ll make a real impact in a small team
  • The culture
  • Flexibility to work how and where you want.

Cons:

  • Pay might be a bit lower compared to big corporations
  • Job security?
4

This is super insightful thank you very much!

5

Good analysis. Thanks, mate