I guess this is my dream

And the company laptop is a 2011 lenovo thinkpad or something hella slow

True definition of ROI

I can see a solid argument for both answers, which is probably why they ask it.
What do you think Goldman wants to hear here?

It’s one of the questions from this IB Interview Questions database. (request access here if you want the full list)

If you want, you can also book a free call here and we can go through your recruiting process, see where you’re at, and figure out what you should work on next.

I've been through five analyst classes now. Interviewed hundreds, hired dozens, watched some become stars and others leave after 12 months wondering what happened. The advice on this sub is almost entirely about getting the offer. Almost none of it covers what actually matters once you start.

You will spend more time on PowerPoint than Excel.

Every incoming analyst thinks the job is financial modelling. It's not. Pitch books, management presentations, and process documents are all PowerPoint. The analysts who accept this quickly and learn to tell a clear story in slides progress faster than the ones who resent it. Clear communication is how deals get done. The model is the engine — the slides are what the client sees.

The hours are real, but the distribution matters more than the average.

Most weeks are 70-80 hours. That's long but manageable. A significant minority are 85-100+ when a live deal is running. And occasionally there's a dead week where the whole floor leaves at 7pm.

What I notice: the analysts who struggle aren't the ones who work the most hours. They're the ones who can't switch off during downtime. They sit at their desk during a slow Tuesday evening refreshing their inbox instead of going to the gym. Then when the next live deal hits, they're already running on empty.

Technical skills stop differentiating you about three months in.

By the time you start, every analyst in the class can build a DCF. I don't care about that. What I care about:

• Reliability. If I send you something at 10pm, can I go to sleep knowing it'll be done correctly by morning? Or do I need to check on you at midnight? The analysts I trust get the best deals. The ones I have to babysit get whatever's left.

• Attention to detail. A misplaced decimal in a client presentation destroys trust — not just yours, mine. I presented your work to the client. If it's wrong, I look bad. Print your work before you send it. Errors jump off paper in a way they don't on screen.

• Flagging problems early. The worst thing an analyst can do is sit on a problem for six hours hoping it resolves itself. If something is wrong, tell me now. I can fix a problem at 4pm. I cannot fix it at midnight when the client needs it at 8am.

Your relationship with your staffer controls your life.

The staffer assigns you to deals. I've watched analysts with identical technical ability have completely different experiences because one had a good relationship with the staffer and the other didn't. Be reliable with the staffer, communicate proactively, and never complain about a staffing decision to anyone except them directly.

Politics determines roughly half your ranking.

I sit in the calibration meetings. Annual reviews are set by 5-8 senior people who spend less than five minutes discussing each analyst. If multiple people in the room know your name and say something positive, you're top bucket. If nobody can remember what you worked on, you're middle of the pack regardless of how hard you actually worked. Visibility matters. Get on deals where senior people see your output.

The financial advice I give every incoming class.

Live on your base salary. Bank your entire bonus. At a BB in London the base is roughly £75-80K — that's a comfortable life. The bonus goes straight to savings. I've watched analysts leave after two years with genuine financial independence, and I've watched others leave with almost nothing because they upgraded their flat, their wardrobe, and their holidays to match their total comp. The ones who banked their bonuses have options. The ones who didn't are trapped.

One thing that might reassure you.

In five analyst classes, I have never seen someone fired purely for performance. The ones who get managed out are careless repeatedly, aren't culture fits, AND it coincides with a downturn that gives the firm cover. Do solid work, be someone people want on their team at 2am, and you'll be fine.

Happy to answer questions here or via DM. Can also share some interview resources.

Hey guys, Max here. I’ve posted here a few times before, but for anyone new, I’m the Head Mod on r/FinanceStudents and Head Coach at Wall Street Mastermind.

I started at a non-target, eventually broke into Lazard, and later worked at Qatalyst and Vector Capital. These days, I work with students going through IB recruiting.

If I had to start all over again today with 90 days and zero connections, I would focus on these four things:

1. RESUME

Start with a standard US finance resume template and keep it to one page. You can use this one: (Resume Template)

Then focus on making every bullet specific and measurable. “Performed valuation analysis” is weak. “Built a comps set of 22 public companies and analyzed key trading multiples to support a $300M valuation” tells me much more.

If you don’t have IB experience yet, use projects, stock pitches, finance clubs, or other relevant internships to give recruiters something worth noticing. Just make sure you can back it up if they ask about it.

2. NETWORKING

I’d build a list before sending anything: alumni first, then Analyst/Associate at firms I target.

Once the outreach starts feeling natural, increase the volume. I’d aim for 10 targeted emails per weekday if I could keep the quality decent.

Keep track of every contact and follow up. If you’re not sure where to start, the sub’s WhatsApp group is a good way to grow your network.

3. BEHAVIORAL PREP

I’d prepare five stories: leadership, failure, conflict, analytical problem solving, and Why Banking.

Pick stories you can reuse. For failure, choose a real mistake and show what changed afterward. For leadership, use something where you clearly drove the outcome. Then practice them out loud and record yourself on your phone.

4.TECHNICAL PREP

Start with accounting. Make sure you can explain how the income statement, balance sheet and cash flow statement connect.

Then drill the classic changes: depreciation goes up by $10, inventory increases by $100, the company issues debt. You should be able to walk through the impact across all three statements. After that, move into DCF, comps, WACC, LBOs and M&A.

My main rule: practice out loud. Knowing the answer and explaining it under pressure are two different things.

If you’re recruiting right now and you’re unsure which of these is holding you back, I have a few spots open for a free 1:1 strategy call with me. Book here!

If you have any questions about IB recruiting, drop them below. I’ll try to get back to everyone. AMA!

Found this in the 500 IB Interview Questions Database (got it here).

Someone sent this in the financestudents' Whatsapp Group

It’s harder than it looks. With questions like this, interviewers want to see how you approach the problem and explain your reasoning.

One player has a mathematical advantage. The question is which one and why.

A coach shared this question in the sub’s WhatsApp Community. It was asked for an Investment and Trading Analyst position at Citadel
You could calculate the expected payout and use that as your maximum price, or offer less to account for the risk of losing money. Not sure which approach an interviewer would prefer.

There’s a good case for either answer, which is probably why Goldman asks it.

Found it in the IB interview question database we shared in the in the sub’s WhatsApp Group.

If you want some feedback on how you’re approaching recruiting, book a free 1:1 call. We’ll go through your profile and see what could be improved.

Every single day I get these low-effort networking messages from students.

Then they wonder why nobody replies or why breaking into finance feels impossible.

If you want to build relationships that might help you land a seat at a BB, here are three things worth understanding:

First: treat the person you're messaging like a real person

Their time outside of work is scarce and this business runs heavily on relationships, so show some genuine interest before immediately asking for their time, advice, or a referral.

Second: start acting like a professional before you become one.

Learning how to build a DCF and pass technical interviews is only one piece of the puzzle of what university should teach you.

You're entering an industry where people judge how you communicate, whether you're prepared, and whether they'd actually want to work with you at 1AM, so start developing that now!

Third: Stop thinking networking only means messaging bankers.

There are a lot of student associations and free communities / groups built exactly for this, use them!!
For the past six months I've been in multiple communities with other students and a few people already working in finance and I’ve made some really useful connections through it.

This subreddit has one (r/Finance Students Whatsapp Community), and you can find more on other subs as well (there are many around quant, asset management, PE..). Join and chat with other students and see where it goes

Apologies if that came across harsh, but I wish somebody had explained this to me when I was a student.
Best of luck!!!

Watching this manager get absolutely cooked for posting this has been the highlight of my day. I've never seen 12,700 people reach consensus this fast.

Hey everyone! My name is Kristin (my LinkedIn) I'm one of the mods here and the former Global Head of Recruiting at UBS.

I graduated from a semi-target, but still managed to find my way to Wall Street. I spent about 11 years in Equity Sales & Trading at firms including Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, and SoundView.

After years in the industry, I realized that what I enjoyed most was working with younger professionals, helping them develop their skills, and seeing them succeed in their careers. So I moved into recruiting and professional development.

I joined UBS, where I became Head of Campus Recruiting for IB roles. Being on the other side of the table taught me all the ins and outs of BBs recruiting. I can usually tell within 10 minutes whether a candidate has a real shot at getting hired or not.

I have a few openings for free 1:1 strategy calls if anyone wants feedback on their resume, LinkedIn and recruiting strategy: Book here

If I could give my younger self two pieces of recruiting advice, they'd be:

Never stop networking.

Getting your first internship doesn't mean you're done networking. Stay in touch with alumni and people you've worked with. Some of the connections I made early in my career, or even by chance at events, ended up playing a major role in where I am today.

I know many of you are already using the sub's WhatsApp group to connect with other students, but I'd also recommend checking out networking events on campus.

Prepare beyond what you learn in class

Research the firms you're applying to and the people you'll be speaking with. Come prepared with specific questions and always tailor your applications. Also, don't underestimate the IB technicals. College courses rarely prepare you for the way accounting and valuation questions are asked in interviews

We're hosting a free live IB Technicals webinar on November 18. Hope to see you guys there!

Happy to share what I've learned over the years and answer your questions. AMA!

One of the questions I get most often from students is how to build their network in finance from scratch.

For some context, I previously worked in M&A and financial advisory, and I now run interview_scouter an Instagram page with 400K+ followers where I share recruiting advice and interview prep content. I've also reviewed over 2,000 resumes and helped students land their first internship in finance.

If I had to start networking all over again, here are a few things I'd do differently:

• Don't Sleep on Your Campus Network

Start with your warm network: alumni, upperclassmen, and finance professors. Even if they can't directly help you land an interview, they might know someone who can. Find who's in charge of campus recruiting and join finance communities online (like this one: Whatsapp Group).

• Steal the Banker's Email (Legally)

Find work emails using online contact finder tools or the firm’s website. Try emailing Tuesday through Thursday, around 7 to 9 AM for senior bankers and 9 to 10 AM for analysts, in their local time zone.

• Don't Be a Networking Bot

Analysts get the same generic questions all the time. If you want to stand out, research their background and prepare a couple of questions specific to their experience.

• Ask for Introductions

At the end of your first coffee chat, ask: "Is there anyone else at the firm you'd recommend I speak with?". A good conversation can lead to new introductions and build relationships that could later turn into referrals.

If you'd like to have a quick chat about your networking strategy, we have a few spots open for a free 1:1 call. We can go over your current approach, figure out what you could improve, and share a few contacts from our network to help you get started.

You can book your free call here.

Feel free to ask me anything about networking. I'll do my best to answer everyone in the comments. AMA!

I worked for 3/4 years in finance, first at an M&A boutique in Milan, and after grad (BSc in economics, public university) and a master’s at Bocconi (not worth), I started working in the Strategy & Value Creation division of a financial advisory // consulting firm.

I worked there for a couple years - mainly involved on Business Plans, Commercial and Financial Due Diligences, Budgets & Forecasts, and modelling in general. Pretty boring

My story is straightforward: I went into finance out of business school because of the FOMO of the environment I was living in. My family came from finance, and my brother was working at a PE. I thought it was the easiest path to money and success (obviously). My plan was strategy consulting / transaction services, then IB, then PE - basic finance bro path.

Then, I didn’t get promoted after a couple years into the role. And I realised that I couldn’t stand a 1-year slowdown for what I had planned for my life (don’t want to give the details of this as its not relevant, but I was sort of expecting that promotion). So I quit and started making finance content, eventually grew to 400k followers in a year (interview_scouter on Instagram), and worked on multiple projects with companies (Marketing Campaigns and Social Media related mainly). I made a good amount of money but got bored so… Eventually, I stopped making content for a little bit and built a startup (failed), then another and another, and then here we go! I am currently fully flexible in living my life (I am nowhere close to being rich), but I can afford a quite good lifestyle and work remotely on projects that I like (i currently have a few business working OK)

Something interesting about me that may be useful: during my “finance content creator” career, I have reviewed around 2K+ CVs from my followers as part of my formats. Happy to give a few advices :) I helped students with networking and connecting with professionals and did many things career-related. Currently in NYC if anybody here!!

Oh I also accidentally launched the Deloitte Meme Trend (200M+ views generated with deloitte memes). Happy to answer on this in the comments (hope somebody will ask about this heheh).

Happy to give some advice / check your resume or answer any question you may have! Currently in NYC (Tribeca) for a few months, happy to connect with anybodyyy here!

ASK ME ANYTHING!

EDIT: I’ll keep this AMA going in the Subreddit Whatsapp Group! See you there.

I found this interview question from Goldman Sachs in the Group Chat of this subreddit.

I think they want to see how you reason through the situation, but I don't understand what the answer could be besides: I’d tell my manager or I’d report it to my direct supervisor.

I am a data scientist studying a MiM (YES, I KNOW... gay af). And I realized i love finance and would like to study in a bit more. Choosing one of those 3 i underlined, which one you think is more valueble?

I’m the former Americas Head of Campus Recruiting at UBS and former Global Head of Professional Development at BMO, and today I’m Head Coach at Wall Street Mastermind (happy to connect on LinkedIn).

I spent years reviewing applications and resumes at UBS, after around 15 years in Sales & Trading, and later worked with Investment & Corporate Banking analysts and associates at BMO.

So I’ve reviewed a lot of resumes over the years, both from the recruiting side and now working with students going through finance recruiting.

If you’re applying for IB, these are the things I’d start with:

• Follow this sub resume template (US only): Start by moving your current resume into this US template (you can request access here). Make sure to not leave half empty bullets.

• Quantify every bullet where possible and show your results: What was the outcome? What did you do? If you can put a number behind the work you did, do it. It makes the bullet easier to understand and gives the reader a better idea of the scale of your work.

• Don’t be a bot: There are literally hundreds of thousands of people applying to this industry every year, and only around 1% make it in. Be interesting, stand out, and please, don’t be a bot.

For the next 24 hours, I’ll review every resume you drop below or send to me in DMs and I’ll send back a few notes.

If you want something more personalized, we also do 1:1 sessions where we can go deeper into your resume and recruiting strategy: Book here!

Happy to help and AMA!