Pros
If you are with the right manager and in the right project, you have a good chance to grow in your career.
Cons
1. Few managers doesn't care at all for the growth of their employees and senior management is doing nothing about it. 2. Since there is high attrition rate of FTEs, consultants who are not competent are also being converted to FTEs and this is bringing down the standard of Morgan Stanley talent pool. 3. The New York counterparts doesn't make any adjustment to have an overlap with its Asia counterparts. Very few of them does that. 4. The culture and values for which the company stood for is now being diluted. 5. VPs and above are called Officers and they get preference for everything within the company. 6. Grads (that's how they are referred in Morgan Stanley) are the campus recruits. They are given preference over lateral hires. They are promoted to the next levels even if they are an average performer. Just be a Grad in Morgan Stanley and you will be taken care. No respect for lateral hires who brings in so much industry experience. The Grads live in their own bubble without any exposure of how the industry works outisde and they are the ones who gets promoted over laterals. In 6-8 years, all Grads who are an average performer will be become VP. That's a trend.