How to prepare for market-related interview questions
Interviewers at (insert your favourite investment bank or asset manager):" You said you are passionate about capital markets. What's your view on the current S&P 500 valuation and how would you allocate a $1 million portfolio across different asset classes?"
90% of finance job seekers be like: "...hmm...I think...hmm..."
This interview question will quickly reveal three things:
Do you have a genuine interest in the markets?
Do you follow the market news regularly?
Do you have an opinion backed by data and facts?
Not sure where to start? Below is what I did when I was seeking an analyst role in capital markets.
Read market news daily: CNBC, Bloomberg, Financial Post, Wall Street Breakfast by Seeking Alpha are my favourites
Read great investors' writing: Ben Graham, Warren Buffett, Howard Marks, Stan Druckenmiller, Ray Dalio etc.)
Start investing, ideally with real money. Why? You want some skin in the game. (Got $100? You can get started today with WealthSimple and trade stocks commission-free)
Form your opinion backed by relevant data points and facts. Better yet, show interviewers the holdings in your trading account and their performance
Bonus point: Want to nail the interview and stand out from the 1,000+ candidates? Start reading Nassim Taleb's Incerto (10x more useful than my CFA education and 100x more useful than my CPA education - this is coming from the mouth of a CFA & CPA)
-Shawn
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