Cogent Partners Interview Questions

3 total interview insight submissions
Interview Experience (47%)

The Interview Experience is a score from 1 star (very negative) to 5 stars (very positive) generated based on the Interview Insights at this company.

The number you see in the middle of the doughnut pie chart is the simple average of these scores. If you hover over the various sections of the donut, you will see the % breakdown of each score given.

The percentile score in the title is calculated across the entire Company Database and uses an adjusted score based on Bayesian Estimates (to account for companies that have few interview insights). Simply put, as a company gets more reviews, the confidence of a "true score" increases so it is pulled closer to its simple average and away from the average of the entire dataset.

3.3
  • Very Negative
  • Negative
  • Neutral
  • Positive
  • Very Positive
Interview Difficulty (58%)

The Interview Difficulty is a score ranging from very difficult (red) to very easy (green) generated based on the Interview Insights at this company.

The number you see in the middle of the doughnut pie chart is the simple average of these scores. The higher the number, the more difficult the interviews on average. If you hover over the various sections of the doughnut, you will see the % breakdown of each score given.

The percentile score in the title is calculated across the entire Company Database and uses an adjusted score based on Bayesian Estimates (to account for companies that have few interview insights). Simply put, as a company gets more insights, the confidence of a "true score" increases so it is pulled closer to its simple average and away from the average of the entire data set.

2.7
  • Very Easy
  • Easy
  • Average
  • Difficult
  • Very Difficult
% Interns - FT Offers (16%)

The % of Interns Getting a Full Time Offer chart is meant to provide a realistic estimate of the hiring practices of the company based on the reviews at this company.

The number you see in the middle of the doughnut pie chart is the simple average of these scores. If you hover over the various sections of the doughnut, you will see the % breakdown of each score given.

The percentile score in the title is calculated across the entire Company Database and uses an adjusted score based on Bayesian Estimates (to account for companies that have few reviews). Simply put, as a company gets more reviews, the confidence of a "true score" increases so it is pulled closer to the simple company average and away from the average of the entire data set.

0%
  • 0%
  • 10%
  • 20%
  • 30%
  • 40%
  • 50%
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  • 90%
  • 100%

Interviews at Cogent Partners

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Filter by:
Year
Job Title
Group/Division
Location
Experience
Difficulty
Vice President
Year 2008
Job Title Vice President
Group/Division Investment Banking
Location Dallas
Experience
Positive
Difficulty
Easy
1st Year Analyst
Year 2012
Job Title 1st Year Analyst
Group/Division
Location Fort Worth
Experience
Negative
Difficulty
Average
Research Analyst
Year 2012
Job Title Research Analyst
Group/Division
Location New York
Experience
Positive
Difficulty
Average

Interview Questions & Answers - Cogent Partners Examples

Associate Interview - Investment Banking

Anonymous employee in Dallas
Interviewed: November 2008
Date Submitted: Jan 16, 2015
Outcome
Accepted Offer
Interview Source
In-person
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
Phone Interview
1 on 1 Interview
Group Interview
Personality Test
Background Check
Interview
Interview at associate level and above is 99% fit. Cogent is a small boutique firm focused on the secondary PE markets that tends to hire individuals with more traditional banking/consulting backgrounds. Presentation skills are crucial, and senior team members are very focused on "likability" factor to ensure candidate can interact effectively with clients, PE fund managers and as part of a small collegial team. Will need to have a great answer to "why Cogent" and "why Dallas" if you don't clear roots in the area.
Interview Questions
Why do you want to work for Cogent?
Why do you want to work in secondary PE and not more traditional PE/hedge route?
What motivates you as an individual?
if you have PE fund background:
what sectors do you view as most attractive going forward? (and as a follow-up - what fund/GP is best positioned in this sector?
How would you model a mature 2002 vintage buyout fund? What about a 2014 vintage venture fund?
Sample Answer

Investment Banking Analyst (FT) Interview -

Anonymous interview candidate in Fort Worth
Interviewed: October 2012
Date Submitted: Dec 14, 2012
Outcome
No Offer
Interview Source
College / University / On Campus Recruiting
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
1 on 1 Interview
Interview
Cogent Partners come to campus to interview. There was an info session to meet with the bankers and learn about the company. The process is very simple: they set up certain interview slots on the school’s career website and students drop resume to be considered. After the on campus round, they will invite candidates for the second round, or super day like any other bank. Full time candidates tend to receive their offers around late October, early November.
Interview Questions
If you have a million dollars and you can't use it to make any money, what would you do?
My response is that I would open a bar and a motorcycle shop, because both of them were my passions.
You come from a non-target school. Why should I choose you over students from Ivy League?
Because I put more effort into this process and because it's harder for me to get the job, I appreciate the job more than students from Harvard or Wharton.
Sample Answer

Research Analyst Interview -

Anonymous interview candidate in New York
Interviewed: 2012
Date Submitted: Oct 27, 2012
Outcome
Declined Offer
Interview Source
Applied Online
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
Phone Interview
1 on 1 Interview
Interview
Initial phone call followed by in person interview that lasted almost 1.5 hrs. First person asked to walk him through resume, and asked about how my skills may be relevant to role. second person was more aggressive asking questions and third person simply tested my language skills.
Interview Questions
I was unexpectedly asked: How much did it cost to manufacture the chair you are sitting in?

I started by estimating the number of hours of labor put into each chair. Cost of labor per hour. Asked if materials where Imported or fully manufactured in the country.
When testing Spanish skills, I was asked in Spanish, "What is demand?"

I answered the question and stumbled a bit as my business Spanish needs improvement. Nevertheless, felt confident about the answers provided to the other questions.
Sample Answer