Pros: Great co-workers, a great place to learn, a great environment, great benefits, and overall lots of fun day to day. There are also lots of good outings.

Cons: Terrible bureaucracy, lack of pay, and respect for their employees' long-term careers. So much transition benefits them short-term but is deceiving for long-term benefits to the company.

Pros: Cisco is great, period. You will work with the best engineers and managers the world has to offer. Cisco brings several classes to their campuses, which gives employees a great opportunity to develop breadth and depth of their skills. As an engineer, they provided free Python training at three different levels. The work is tough but rewarding; you will create thought-leading products that will be used worldwide. Cisco is a prestigious company, and you will continue to improve yourself during your tenure. Drink the Kool-Aid, and you will go far! You can achieve decent salary and bonus increases without making lateral transitions. I do recommend switching business units every few years.

Cons: Tough, but not impossible, work-life balance. As an engineer, you need to stay agile and at the top of your rank to avoid layoffs. However, good work will get you far!

Pros: Peers who treat you as one among them. Everybody loves to teach an intern about current technology. Lots of time to learn and pick up pace. Lots of intern benefits.

Cons: Moving up the ladder might be a slow process in a huge company like Cisco. The location was a bit too remote.