SAMPLE INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
SAMPLE INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
If you’ve been invited for an interview, congratulations! You’re halfway towards securing the start of your Investment Banking career. The only thing in your way is a first round of interviews followed by an invitation-only “Superday” where employees of all levels, from analyst to MD, will question aspects of your qualifications, fit, and life in general. The interview questions are typically broken down into two main types – quantitative and qualitative:
Quantitative
Many of the technical questions you will get will be based on basic accounting and valuation such as:
- Walk me through the line items on the income statement.
- What is EBITDA? How do you calculate it?
- How do Investment Bankers value a company?
- How do you calculate Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC)?
- How are the financial statements linked together?
- How is the income statement related to the balance sheet?
- How can a company show positive cash flow but still be in trouble?
- How can a company show positive net income yet still go bankrupt?
- What is goodwill?
- How do you choose a discount rate for an unleveraged DCF analysis?
- How do you calculate the cost of equity?
- How do you calculate a company’s Beta?
- When should you value a company based on an EBITDA vs. a revenue multiple?
Qualitative
These types of questions are asked to establish whether you would be a good fit at the company and may include:
- Walk me through your resume (almost always asked).
- Why now, why Investment Banking, and why us?
- Why should we hire you?
- Why this division?
- What do Investment Banks do? How is it different from a commercial bank?
- What are the different arms of an Investment Bank?
- What does this division do?
- What does an analyst do?
- Why do you want to work in the front office?
- What qualities make a good Investment Banker?
- Tell me about a time you demonstrated leadership and initiative.
- Describe what your ideal teammate would be like.
Personal
These questions are asked to better understand your drivers and self-awareness:
- What motivates you?
- What are your strengths & weaknesses?
- What do you think you will be doing on a daily basis?
- Are you prepared to work 80 to 100 hours per week?
- Where else are you interviewing?
- Are you interviewing outside of Investment Banking?
- Why did you attend the school you’re coming from and choose your major?
- Tell me about a time you had to overcome adversity.
- What are you reading?
- What do you like to do for fun?
- How would your friends describe you?
- Do you have any questions for us?
These are the main questions that keep getting asked and you not only need to be prepared for them, you need to make your answers honest, to the point, and memorable so that you stand out from all other applicants. Clients on the Leverage, Security and Risk Management Packages all include mock interviews with at least one Wall Street veteran and a former Investment Banking recruiter.
We’ll tell you how best to answer all of these questions and more. You’ve only got one opportunity to make a first impression so make it count! To learn more about which service package is best for you, click below to visit our services page:
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