Interview Prep

Walk me through your CV in two minutes.

Testing: Whether you can tell a structured, relevant story under time pressure.

Past, present, future: end on why this firm and this division are the logical next step.

Why investment banking, and why not consulting or asset management?

Testing: That you understand what the job actually involves day to day.

Name specifics: live deals, valuation work, the pace. Show you compared alternatives honestly.

Why this bank specifically over its direct competitors?

Testing: Research depth and genuine interest in the firm.

Cite a recent deal the bank advised on, its sector strengths, or people you have spoken to.

What is in a pitch book, and what would you actually be doing as an intern?

Testing: Realistic expectations of the analyst job.

Company profiles, comps, credentials pages. Show you know the job is detail work and you still want it.

What differentiates the divisions you could join here: M&A, ECM, DCM, coverage?

Testing: Whether you understand the bank's structure before asking to join it.

One line each: advice on deals, raising equity, raising debt, owning the client relationship by sector.

You have three offers from banks with similar prestige. How do you decide?

Testing: Self-knowledge and honesty; there is no trick answer.

People, sector strength and deal flow in the team, not the logo. Interviewers respect candid criteria.

Walk me through a DCF valuation.

Testing: Core valuation mechanics and whether you understand each step, not just the recipe.

Forecast free cash flows, discount at WACC, add a terminal value, then bridge enterprise to equity value.

How do the three financial statements link together?

Testing: Accounting fluency, the most common IB screen.

Trace net income into retained earnings and the cash flow statement, and cash back to the balance sheet.

If depreciation increases by 10, what happens to each of the three statements? Assume a 25 percent tax rate.

Testing: Whether you can apply statement links under pressure.

Net income falls 7.5, cash flow rises 2.5 from the tax shield, PP&E and equity both fall.

Which valuation method tends to give the highest value, and why?

Testing: Judgement about methods, not just the ability to list them.

Usually precedent transactions because of the control premium; explain why context can change that.

What is EBITDA and why do bankers use it so much?

Testing: Whether you understand the metric behind most multiples, not just the acronym.

A rough proxy for operating cash generation that ignores capital structure, tax and D&A, which makes companies comparable. Know its blind spots: capex and working capital.

Walk me through how you get from enterprise value to equity value.

Testing: The bridge every valuation answer eventually crosses.

Subtract net debt, minority interests and preferred equity. Be ready to explain why cash is netted off.

Company A buys Company B entirely with debt. Is the deal accretive or dilutive?

Testing: Accretion/dilution intuition without a model in front of you.

Compare B's earnings yield with the after-tax cost of debt. If earnings yield is higher, accretive.

Why might a company choose to IPO rather than sell to a private buyer?

Testing: Understanding of exit routes and their trade-offs.

Liquidity, currency for acquisitions, profile, partial exit for founders, versus certainty and speed of a sale.

Tell me about a recent deal or market story that interested you.

Testing: Commercial awareness and genuine market interest.

Pick one story, know the numbers, and have a view on what happens next.

Where do you think interest rates go from here, and how does that affect deal activity?

Testing: A view on the macro environment connected to the bank's business.

Have a view either way, then link it: cheaper debt lifts M&A and LBO volumes, expensive debt slows them.

Tell me about a time you worked under a tight deadline with a team.

Testing: How you behave in the exact conditions of the job.

Use STAR and quantify the result. Choose a story where you personally drove the outcome.

Tell me about a time you received harsh feedback. What did you do next?

Testing: Coachability: analysts get corrected constantly.

Pick real criticism, not a humblebrag. Show the specific change you made and that it stuck.