The hours are gruesome; I worked regularly from 7am to midnight in Investment Management, some people in other divisions (Investment Management, Sales & Trading, etc.) will usually work less. Investment Banking usually worked from 8am to midnight.

When at Goldman you will most likely meet many motivated and smart people, that is, as long as you are not in the Private Wealth Management Division. Here, most analysts do not enjoy their job. The work is unchallenging as you deal with rich peoples' money. It's very different than working in strict I-banking. The average hours per day are around 7-8 and are not bad and the dress is casual. However, there is little room for career advancement or growth. After 2-3 years they will write you a good recommendation when applying for your MBA and then kick you out. No one from this division has been promoted to associate when I worked there.

Due to the large size of the firm, your degree of freedom in your work is mostly limited to your specific area of expertise.