National Bank of Canada Interview Questions

15 total interview insight submissions
Interview Experience (90%)

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.

3.9
  • Very Negative
  • Negative
  • Neutral
  • Positive
  • Very Positive
Interview Difficulty (85%)

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 (87%)

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.

70%
  • 0%
  • 10%
  • 20%
  • 30%
  • 40%
  • 50%
  • 60%
  • 70%
  • 80%
  • 90%
  • 100%

Interviews at National Bank of Canada

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Filter by:
Year
Job Title
Group/Division
Location
Experience
Difficulty
Intern
Year 2022
Job Title Intern
Group/Division Generalist
Location Toronto
Experience
Very Positive
Difficulty
Average
Intern
Year 2020
Job Title Intern
Group/Division Investment Banking
Location montreal
Experience
Very Positive
Difficulty
Average
Student / Prospective Monkey
Year 2020
Job Title Student / Prospective Monkey
Group/Division Investment Banking
Location Vancouver
Experience
Neutral
Difficulty
Average
Intern
Year 2018
Job Title Intern
Group/Division Investment Banking
Location Toronto, ON, Canada
Experience
Positive
Difficulty
Average
1st Year Analyst
Year 2017
Job Title 1st Year Analyst
Group/Division N/A
Location Montreal
Experience
Neutral
Difficulty
Average
Student / Prospective Monkey
Year 2017
Job Title Student / Prospective Monkey
Group/Division Generalist
Location Toronto
Experience
Neutral
Difficulty
Average
Summer Associate Intern
Year 2017
Job Title Summer Associate Intern
Group/Division Sales and Trading
Location Toronto
Experience
Very Positive
Difficulty
Average
Summer Associate Intern
Year 2015
Job Title Summer Associate Intern
Group/Division Investment Banking
Location Montreal
Experience
Positive
Difficulty
Easy
Intern
Year 2015
Job Title Intern
Group/Division Investment Banking
Location Toronto
Experience
Very Positive
Difficulty
Very Easy
Incoming Analyst
Year 2015
Job Title Incoming Analyst
Group/Division Investment Banking
Location Toronto
Experience
Positive
Difficulty
Average

Interview Questions & Answers - National Bank of Canada Examples

Investment Banking Summer Analyst Interview - Generalist

Anonymous interview candidate in Toronto
Interviewed: August 2022
Date Submitted: Sep 28, 2022
Outcome
No Offer
Interview Source
Employee Referral
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
1 on 1 Interview
Interview
The questions are fair. Got asked basic IB questions such as why National, why IB. Pitched a stock, and also discussed the industry that I'm interested in.
Interview Questions
1. What is the industry that you are most interested in?
Sample Answer

Summer Intern Interview - Investment Banking

Anonymous employee in montreal
Interviewed: September 2020
Date Submitted: Aug 05, 2021
Outcome
Accepted Offer
Interview Source
College / University / On Campus Recruiting
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
Group Interview
Interview
Company reached out through our school's resume book. Had 2 rounds, the second round a super day consisted of 4 interviews with the seniors.
Interview Questions
Specific questions on your resume, since they really dig into your experience, and you will have to answer them well.
Sample Answer

Summer Analyst Interview - Investment Banking

Anonymous interview candidate in Vancouver
Interviewed: June 2020
Date Submitted: Jun 18, 2020
Outcome
No Offer
Interview Source
College / University / On Campus Recruiting
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
Phone Interview
Skills Test
Personality Test
Interview
Submit resume, cover letter. Invited to participate in a online skills and personality test. Invited for first round interviews over the phone.
Interview Questions
Mostly just make sure to research the company's core values and match them. For the personality test, make sure you answer the questions with the core values in mind! Phone interview questions were straight forward: why National Bank, why Investment Banking, asked about current affairs relating to the world and the company, and also asked a few basic technical questions. Everything was straight forward, nothing you can't google if I'm being honest. Be sure to be genuine and friendly as the hours are long and they know they will be working with you closely.
Sample Answer

Investment Banking Summer Analyst Interview - Investment Banking

Anonymous interview candidate in Toronto, ON, Canada
Interviewed: October 2018
Date Submitted: May 11, 2019
Outcome
No Offer
Interview Source
College / University / On Campus Recruiting
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
1 on 1 Interview
Group Interview
Interview
The company posted a posting for their Investment Banking Summer Analyst position on my University career website. I applied with my resume/coverletter/transcript and got a phone call for an interview within 3 days. Within a week of the application I had my first round of interviews with 1 Analyst and 1 VP. After that I got a call for a superday in the evening that was held the following week.
Interview Questions
Nothing was really difficult. All the questions were straightforward about valuations and my previous work experience.
The most weird one was specifically regarding a construction company and how you would use a Sum-Of-Parts valuation to derive its value. With that question I had to answer how to value infrastructure businesses (highway toll), using company comparable and book value to arrive the valuation of the entire company. I was also asked regarding recent infrastructure deals (A-25 highway purchase in Montreal).
Sample Answer

Summer program Interview

Anonymous interview candidate in Montreal
Interviewed: February 2017
Date Submitted: Jun 20, 2018
Outcome
No Offer
Interview Source
College / University / On Campus Recruiting
Length of Process
1-2 months
Application
Group Interview
Interview
You first submitted your application online, and recruiter contacted you for interviews, approxiamtely 4 rounds.
Interview Questions
Asked about the transactions the bank has done, and more follow up questions on multiples, leverage. It is not really hard if you fully prepare and understand. Overall, I didn't expect that many follow up questions after the transaction, and certainly, you need to have more time to prepare for that. Overall, I think that you should plan out the interview, and prepare to look into all the details in the resume. I personally think that it is a fair interview process, and know about the transactions are very important, and it is important to also understand about lots of details of the transaction, such as multiples, leverage, comparable, rationales.
Sample Answer

Investment Banking Summer Analyst Interview - Generalist

Anonymous interview candidate in Toronto
Interviewed: October 2017
Date Submitted: Apr 23, 2018
Outcome
No Offer
Interview Source
College / University / On Campus Recruiting
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
1 on 1 Interview
Interview
1st round in person on campus for 30 minutes or so, second round was superday in Toronto consisting of a few interviews
Interview Questions
Tell me about yourself
Asked what division I wanted to apply for, as there were positions in sales & trading and other ones
Why investment banking
Why do you want to work at our firm's investment banking division
What separates our firm from other's
Where else are you interviewing
What are the different ways to value a company
Rank the three main ways of valuing companies in order from highest valuation to lowest
Walk me through a discounted cash flow analysis
what is WACC
Pitch me a stock
Then asked if I had any questions at the end
Sample Answer

Financial Markets Rotation Program Interview - Sales and Trading

Anonymous interview candidate in Toronto
Interviewed: November 2017
Date Submitted: Dec 07, 2017
Outcome
No Offer
Interview Source
Applied Online
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
Phone Interview
Interview
Applied online. Got contacted by National bank recruiter over email indicating I had been selected for a skype interview (first round). The initial interview was supposed to take place over skype. However, after multiple technical difficulties the interviewers chose to call me instead. I was interviewed 2 individuals an associate formerly in the rotational program and currently a corporate banking associate. Also, a director on one of the trade desks was part of the interviewers. The people interviewing me were quite nice, seemed honest enough when I asked questions regarding their experience at the Bank. The interview process was short about 40 minutes for for questions. Specifically it was mostly behavioral questions centered around leadership, teamwork and conflict resolution. I also got asked if I would prefer IB or S&T, as a follow up to that I got asked what desk I would like to be on and to give a description of what happens at that desk.

My advice would be to be ready for any behavioral question as also why you want to work at National bank.
Interview Questions
Walk me through your resume
The most difficult question was "Describe to me what happens on an equities desk".
Describe to me a time when you were in a group and had to deal with somebody who wasn't contributing.
It was mostly leadership, teamwork and conflict resolution based questions
Describe a time when you had to work in a team based environment and what were the outcomes. What did you learn from.
What would you prefer Investment Banking or Sales and Trading.
No real technical questions
Sample Answer

Investment Banking Summer Analyst Interview - Investment Banking

Anonymous interview candidate in Montreal
Interviewed: January 2015
Date Submitted: Jul 21, 2016
Outcome
No Offer
Interview Source
Applied Online
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
Group Interview
Interview
Fairly easy interview process, fit questions with light technicals, extremely easy mental math questions (Basic arithmetic)
Interview Questions
No difficult or unexpected question.

Walk me through your CV,
Tell me about your past experience.
Why National Bank?
Which office would you rather go to?
Sample Answer

Summer Analyst Interview - Investment Banking

Anonymous interview candidate in Toronto
Interviewed: 2015
Date Submitted: Jan 26, 2016
Outcome
No Offer
Interview Source
In-person
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
Group Interview
Interview
Very qualitative. Would recommend to review new stories, companies, and have solid fit with the company.
Interview Questions
Why should we choose you as a second year over a third year?
What is the impact of the oil crisis on Canadian Capital Markets?
How is life, how is the weather?
Can you describe your life to me?
How do you know person x, y, z?
Why do you want to do investment banking?
What are your top three choices in Capital Markets?
Why national bank?
What is your value proposition?
What are your greatest strengths and how they apply to banking?
Can you tell me about your leadership opportunities?
Can you work in a team?
Sample Answer

Summer Analyst Interview - Investment Banking

Anonymous interview candidate in Toronto
Interviewed: January 2015
Date Submitted: Aug 17, 2015
Outcome
No Offer
Interview Source
Applied Online
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
Other
Interview
3 Skype Interviews with a mix of HR people and bankers (MDs). First interview was with two bankers (one senior and one junior), second interview was with two people from HR and two senior bankers (I spoke with the HR first, then the bankers), and the final interview was with two bankers.
Interview Questions
Question from an MD: tell me something interesting about the biotech industry and where you think things are heading here in Canada.
Question from an MD: you have no experience - why should he hire you?

This is a very valid question, because I had no finance experience at all, yet I was interviewing for a finance job. Also, I was asked this at the second round of interviews.
Question from an MD: are you a team player?

I talked about I had to work a lot in teams at work and that as a science student, I am used to doing a lot of group projects.
Sample Answer