Initially, people are thrilled by the opportunity and dazzle and everything seems wonderful. However, very quickly, things start becoming drab and politics is what you need to be good at in order to survive (unless you don't mind being a subdued minion) - especially if you are in a technical field. In some divisions, technology is very aged (read 'decades behind') and the employees that you work with are old-fashioned in their manner of thinking and essentially 'stuck in time' (especially those in the Midwest).
Be wary about sticking it out for more than a couple of years (if you are in engineering). There is generally a large influx of young nationals and non-nationals that are here to work come hell or high water in order to quickly 'settle down/build a life' in the former case or to gain their permanent residency (in the US) in the latter. If you fall into one of these buckets and plan on giving it your all in smalltown America and at the first job you get out of school (without necessarily exploring your options or thinking about the future) by all means, stick around. However, if you plan on striking it out on your own and joining a top company to actually advance your career, you'll rudely and sadly realize that you've been 'stuck in a well' and have spent most your time politicking rather than building your engineering skills. With all due respect, the 'engineering' done in certain divisions is so far below industry-standard that it's impossible for you to bridge the gap once you're out in the 'real world'. Don't let all the hype that you're around 'super stars' fool you. It doesn't help that most managers are not technical and that they hardly understand - let alone appreciate good engineering.
