moving to a big vs mid size firm

I’m faced with opportunities to move to a big (global) bank or a mid size firm that is starting a new fund/desk. The big bank would want me to do M&A/IB and the mid size firm is trying to start up an investing arm. I’ve weighted out the +s and -s and am interested in hearing your opininons. The positions are at a pre-mba level with 1-2 years until promotion/mba. Most of you would have heard of the big / global bank but few would have heard of the mid size bank other than people who are in the business or from the area. The main criteria that I’ve used to evaulate these ops so far are: 1) branding - can I use them to get a better job/mba down the line? 2) quality of work - obviously the big bank offers more structure and the mid bank gives you more flexibility and more potential rewards 3) teams - big bank should have larger and deeper teams but at the mid bank you work directly with the PM/head of dept I’m assuming that the pay is close. Thanks in advance.

there is a real difference between roles here…one is advisory (M&A) and the other is investing…which do you like better? obviously there are differences between companies but there is a VERY fundamental difference depending on which job you take. that being said, it seems almost certain to me that you should know this difference to begin with – i.e. the difference perhaps isn’t as big as getting into law school or medical school and trying to decide which path to go down, but it’s somewhat comparable – which is why i am confused by the purpose of your question