In the technology division of Goldman, they have racked up tremendous technical debt. That debt needs to be repayed and the current work reflects that. Plan on spending a lot of time doing technical support and learning a lot of code that is not well-documented. Plan on fixing bugs and doing a lot of "uplift" work. If you are lucky, you may get to do some new development - but probably not for a few years.
Goldman technology has had a lot of attrition the past 2 or 3 years - people getting fed up with the status quo. Management doesn't appear to be doing much about it. Their new strategy seems to be to drive their senior engineers out of the organization and replace them with younger, low-cost engineers that they can work to death and hold a work visa over their heads.
Goldman hasn't had a really good year income-wise, since 2009. When you are interviewing, they will sell the "bonus" as a significant part of your total compensation. But, the bonus is directly related to the firms earnings for the year and less related to the great work you did that year. You could be a super hero engineer one year, but if the firm did badly that year, plan on a small bonus. On the other hand, you could have a less than stellar year with the firm performing well, and get a good bonus. My experience was that I got a good bonus a couple of years and a less-than-inspiring bonus on the other years.
They talk a good talk about work-life balance, making you believe that is part of the corporate culture. Don't believe it. Once you get to the VP level and above, you will need to sell your soul to GS to continue to move up the corporate ladder. If you don't care about having a life outside of work and your family is a low priority, you will do very well at GS. Also be sure that you have very good skills playing "corporate games" and politics as you move up the ladder. Those skills become very important. If you are a good smoozer, you will do well. If not, plan on being treated badly enough that you will choose to leave on your own.
Goldman rarely fires people. Their strategy is to level off your salary and stop paying you bonuses, until you leave on your own. It's a lot cleaner that way. No lawsuits to worry about for wrongful firing. GS is always looking to "manage risk", even when it comes to their people.
Finally, the most important thing. Make sure you have a great relationshsip with your direct manager. GS does a "360 degree review", but 350 of those degrees are the opinion of your direct manager. Even if 15 of your peers think you are a superstar, you will not got a good ranking, if your direct manager thinks you are lacking. By the way, a poor ranking against your peers translates into getting passed over for a bonus.
Summary - Join GS right out of college, work 4 or 5 years, get trained, get some experience, get GS on your resume and get out. A smart strategy for the smart engineer.
