Pros
I promised myself I wouldn't write a review until I'd worked somewhere post-Epic for long enough to have a broader perspective--so here it goes. The first 6 months are a ton of fun. It feels like freshman year of college as you make friends with your new-hire colleagues, have minimal work responsibilities, and finally make adult money. Epic's new hire onboarding makes it easy to make friends, and I'm happy to say I've met a few lifelong friends because of Epic. That said, Epic's high turnover means that many of these friendships will be bittersweet, as you'll lose about 40% of your new hire class (50% for project managers) after two years. And when people leave Epic, they usually leave Madison too, as the job was the only thing tying them to the area. As you'll read in other reviews, the food is great, your coworkers are friendly and competent, and Madison is a great mid-sized city with amazing summers. And even if the technical skills don't translate to your next job, the soft skills and professionalism will. You'll be a good fit for the job if the below applies to you. See the 'Cons' section for why you wouldn't be a good fit. Good fit: - This is your only corporate offer. - You value money more than your free time. - You have family nearby - You put a high value on stability and job security - You want to feel that your work is a net-good to society
Cons
After the first 6 months, things start to go downhill. The time from 6-24 months is very stressful because you'll have a full workload yet still be slow with your work, which is to be expected for anyone learning something for the first time. Most roles average 45-50 hrs but project managers are higher at 50-60 hrs. I could mostly handle the 45-50 hr weeks, but what no one talks about is the living choice you have to make: live downtown and commute an hour roundtrip, or live in the suburbs closer to work? Downtown is what makes Madison fun--it's walkable, tons of food and cultural amenities, and great lake activities in the summer. But driving every day for over an hour really took a toll on me--it turns a 9.5 hr work day into 10.5 or 11 hrs. The alternative is living in the suburbs where you have a higher quality of life during the work week, but feel like you're wasting your 20s in suburbia. As you'll read in other posts, cons include lack of remote flexibility, below-average vacation and holidays (forget sabbatical, only 1/3 of people make it to that) and high stress. Two things that people often forget to mention: 1) The pay is no longer that great compared to cost of living--Madison rent has increased very quickly over the past 4-5 years. 2) The lack of vacation / remote flexibility wears on transplants the most. I'm lucky to be a Midwesterner, but for people who don't have family locally, they were often the first to leave Epic, often citing homesickness. Just my opinion, but I don't think this job is worth moving across the country for unless you're a developer. Reasons you shouldn't take this job: - You have another corporate offer in a bigger city or closer to home - You value time over money - You have kids or want to have kids (no remote flexibility and below-avg parental leave) - You don't want to choose between suburbia and a long commute