Yes, I have seen this although, it tends to be the most qualified candidates that ultimately have the will power/financial resources to hold out and look for companies that are growing but not your typical startup company.

It’s also worth noting that while many may be opting out due to the negative cultural perception, many top quants/engineers/programmers who were previously lured into finance are now being offered a lot of money by these companies.

With Investment Banking not being quite as glamorous for to on campus recruiting, a startup or large silicon valley company, which has no problem attracting talent.

So, to answer your questions, yes I’ve definitely seen a rejection of the next generation of big Silicon Valley companies, but as with any high paying job, there seems to be a pretty good source of labor.

For example, everyone I knew at Penn’s engineering department was dying to work for Wall Street a few years back. Now many of these people couldn’t care less about a job that is perhaps even more detested than Silicon Valley.

But people are certainly aware of the disconnect from reality. I think they won’t last long if they do pursue these paths as they are doing so for money over experience/genuine interest. So I would guess this would lead to higher turnover.

There are definitely people opting out. I was one of them (picked to stay regional in DC vs. Silicon Valley) and I am happy with my choice. But then again, there is a robust job market here as well.

I’m not sure what top grads from middle America will do. The bicoastal duopoly of high paying but low satisfaction jobs is definitely make people question tech companies, finance, and government/politics altogether (Amazon being a prime example of all three), but money talks, and many of these holdouts seem to end up taking jobs in these fields. And tech certainly still looks great on a resume.

Thanks for reading, as always!