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Agree. Sellside associate for a couple years, then move laterally or to buyside. Like you said, it isn’t rocket science, but it is a science that you need to learn and do to build that foundation. It’s also more of an art, and that comes with experience. Doing the work is one thing, but having the experience, gut instinct and feel for what makes securities move, how trading can give insight, what cycles look like, and identifying the true catalysts are all things that research analysts have to use together with the finance skills.
The most important thing for an analyst in my opinion is the mentor figure that you work under. S/he will shape your career, thinking, and breadth immensely. You should be interviewing the senior analyst carefully as well.