Research Interview - Excel Testing

brian.rossman@hotmail.com Thanks!

brianr Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > brian.rossman@hotmail.com > > Thanks! 4 posts???

hmm…Doostang thread?!

Me too please. zeck_376@hotmail.com

Thanks for ruining this thread eh people? Anyways, for anyone who wants to offer constructive advice… Ive made it to round 2 interviews with the head of research. Any clue what im in for now?

Did someone say Wharton Resume File®? Can you send me 3 copies? I’ll thank you after you send it.

128nigel Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Thanks for ruining this thread eh people? > > Anyways, for anyone who wants to offer > constructive advice… > > Ive made it to round 2 interviews with the head of > research. Any clue what im in for now? should be mostly behavioral, but they’ll want to make sure that your longer term goals (i.e. developing a career on the sell-side and having the opportunity to work with people that are, either rightfully are wrongfully, considered to be “experts” in their sector) are aligned with the company’s. also, you should come prepared with at least several insightful questions to ask – good questions would revolve around broader-scale issues related to their research division, the state of equity research in general, how the bank plans to further differentiate its research going forward, trying to understand what current challenges the department faces and how it plans to overcome that in the next couple years, etc… the whole point is that the more senior your interviewer is, the more likely they’ll be asking you stuff about the “big picture”…so don’t sweat the small stuff but do make sure you have a good understanding of why you want to do equity research, why you want the associate role, what the current equity research environment is like, and why you want to work in research because of/in spite of (most likely the latter) what’s been happening to sell-side research in recent years

When I was interviewing with Head of Research, he asked me to pitch him with a stock suggestion. So be ready for that - and trust me, they know every stock’s stories there are out there (even more so since you’re in Canada)

Thanks Numi and Alayle, good stuff. The analysts ive met with so far have emphasized that there is a lot of writing involved in being an associate. So im assuming this will be tested at some point. Does anyone have any insight into this? So far im just going over all the daily research updates I can find from various brokerages. Is this enough? perhaps there is a more effective exercise for improving writing skills to a level that would be useful to an analyst.

there’s definitely a lot of writing an an associate and you might be given an earnings transcript or press release and write a note on it…looking at daily research summaries is one way to see how it’s done; otherwise you can also look at the research notes that your potential boss has written. however, senior people like MD’s and department heads are really going to assess your fit and broader scale issues – they’re much more about just trying to figure out what type of person you are and what drives you, rather than focusing on mechanical things like writing and modeling (whose basics can be taught assuming you’re at least a somewhat intelligent person)

Numi is right, even if it sounds stupid, you will learn to write again if you get the job. Writing research reports and memos to your GF are totally different, but both need to get the point across. It also depends of the analyst you’d be working with. Some of them like to write 20-pages reports every couple of days, while others get one out every couple of weeks. Basically, the analyst will make your life heaven or hell.

That makes sense. I tried to get ahold of his reports just to see what im potentially in for - but it looks like they only provide research to institutional clients which makes it a bit hard to find snippets on the internet. Okay, now I have a stupid question. Ive asked several people and have got a 50% affirmative 50% negative response… What im wondering is: After an initial interview, one is supposed to send one’s interviewer a note thanking him for his time and what not. I understood to be a tactic to get them to remember you when it comes time to make picks for round 2. However, in my case, I was called back about 2 hours after my interview, so I havent written any such notice for fear of looking to desperate for the position. Is this a foolish move?

not foolish…in fact, you might just want to drop them a quick one- or two-liner and say something like this: “Dear Person A, Thank you for taking the time to meet with me today. I appreciated the opportunity to express my enthusiasm for the associate position, and enjoyed learning about your team’s initiatives and goals. I also look forward to meeting with Person B tomorrow - if you have any advice for me going forward, I would be much obliged. Regards, Nigel” p.s. it’s fine if you copy what i wrote…just make sure you cite the source. j/k

Thanks again numi… So I just got a voicemail from someone at the office saying that I will be doing a writing test as well as another interview and to prepare for it however I like… Very helpful indeed.

no problem, good luck

We’ll be working for a competing firm if you get the job … good luck hehe

I had a firm give me an Excel exam after the 1st interview for a RA position. It was a little beyond me as they were asking many things on Excel that were more computer programing than reserach associated. Needed to score a 7 or higher and I got a 6 as they only gave 1 hour to do the 10 questions. I figured out a couple of more after turning it in, but that was just testing my way to the answer. Kinda disappointing but I got a different better job shortly after anyway. I think I still have the exam that they provided, but I doubt that it would be any help because all companies look for something different that they are testing for.

Just had the interview. Bassically met 6 analyst in 2’s. Got taken into a computer room and given an MD&A. Asked my to summarize it in 30 minutes. Afterwards I was told they selected 3 of us to round 2, and that they will hire 1 or 2 of us after reviewing the test and comparing notes. Stressing…!!

can one of you please send me the excel test as well! Thanks birdstomach@hotmail.com

anyone?