PFM Interview Questions

13 total interview insight submissions
Interview Experience (87%)

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.

3.8
  • Very Negative
  • Negative
  • Neutral
  • Positive
  • Very Positive
Interview Difficulty (75%)

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.

2.5
  • Very Easy
  • Easy
  • Average
  • Difficult
  • Very Difficult
% Interns - FT Offers (28%)

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.

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

Interviews at PFM

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Filter by:
Year
Job Title
Group/Division
Location
Experience
Difficulty
Incoming Analyst
Year 2023
Job Title Incoming Analyst
Group/Division Advisory
Location Philadelphia
Experience
Positive
Difficulty
Average
Student / Prospective Monkey
Year 2019
Job Title Student / Prospective Monkey
Group/Division Asset Management
Location San Francisco
Experience
Positive
Difficulty
Easy
Student / Prospective Monkey
Year 2019
Job Title Student / Prospective Monkey
Group/Division Debt Capital Markets
Location Los Angeles
Experience
Positive
Difficulty
Average
N/A
Year 2010
Job Title N/A
Group/Division Public Finance
Location San Francisco
Experience
Neutral
Difficulty
Average
1st Year Analyst
Year 2017
Job Title 1st Year Analyst
Group/Division Generalist
Location Wayzata
Experience
Positive
Difficulty
Average
1st Year Analyst
Year 2016
Job Title 1st Year Analyst
Group/Division Public Finance
Location Los Angeles
Experience
Neutral
Difficulty
Easy
Intern
Year 2014
Job Title Intern
Group/Division Generalist
Location Harrisburg
Experience
Positive
Difficulty
Average
Year 2015
Job Title
Group/Division Public Finance
Location Harrisburg
Experience
Positive
Difficulty
Average
Intern
Year 2014
Job Title Intern
Group/Division Public Finance
Location Arlington
Experience
Positive
Difficulty
Very Easy
1st Year Analyst
Year 2014
Job Title 1st Year Analyst
Group/Division Public Finance
Location Seattle
Experience
Negative
Difficulty
Easy

Interview Questions & Answers - PFM Examples

Financial Analyst Interview - Advisory

Anonymous employee in Philadelphia
Interviewed: June 2023
Date Submitted: Jun 19, 2023
Outcome
Accepted Offer
Interview Source
Applied Online
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
Phone Interview
1 on 1 Interview
Group Interview
Background Check
Interview
1 HR screen, 3 Behavioral Interviews. They were really fast and very responsive. I finished my 4 interviews in a span of two weeks.
Interview Questions
If someone were to look at your resume, what story would it tell? ;
Describe yourself in 3 words
Sample Answer

Analyst Interview - Asset Management

Anonymous interview candidate in San Francisco
Interviewed: October 2019
Date Submitted: Nov 06, 2019
Outcome
Declined Offer
Interview Source
College / University / On Campus Recruiting
Length of Process
2-3 months
Application
1 on 1 Interview
Skills Test
Personality Test
Interview
I applied through University recruiting and was selected for a first-round interview. he questions they asked were all standard behavioral questions. After my first interview, I was sent a link for a skills-based test with mostly math questions and some personality questions.
Interview Questions
The most difficult questions were "Where do you see yourself in 5 years?" and "What other companies are you applying for?" These are still pretty standard behavioral questions, so overall I'd say the questions that they asked were fairly simple. They also asked about past leadership experience and how I work in teams. Some of the questions that I answered were met with follow-up questions like "Why did you do that?", and those sometimes caught me off-guard. Still, it was a fairly simple interview.
Sample Answer

Analyst Interview - Debt Capital Markets

Anonymous employee in Los Angeles
Interviewed: May 2019
Date Submitted: May 19, 2019
Outcome
Accepted Offer
Interview Source
College / University / On Campus Recruiting
Length of Process
1 year +
Application
Phone Interview
1 on 1 Interview
Skills Test
Interview
First had informational interview with HQ HR lady in Philadelphia. Heard nothing, but wasn't fazed since I was only a sophomore. Finally applied to FT role in senior year. Interviewed with two men on-campus and had a great interview. Received a response to my thank-you email from an interviewer that signaled I'd be advancing to next round. Took a skills test online after interview. Heard nothing from HR, and checked back months later since I got caught up with school and applications to other firms. Finally got a call with a MD from SF, which went pretty well. Received a phone call from HR within the same week with an offer to join as an analyst.
Interview Questions
Why public finance? For most college students in Finance, this would be difficult since they're stereotyped as hunting prestigious jobs for high pay. However, I had interest an in government and even volunteered for my municipal government. This really seemed to catch the attention of the people interviewing me, especially since many of them are deeply attached to government matters and politics, so I think it gave me a huge edge in the interviewing process. Other than that, there were not any hard interview questions; it was mostly behavioral.
Sample Answer

Advisory Interview - Public Finance

Anonymous employee in San Francisco
Interviewed: October 2010
Date Submitted: Jan 03, 2019
Outcome
Accepted Offer
Interview Source
College / University / On Campus Recruiting
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
Phone Interview
1 on 1 Interview
Interview
I attended on-campus recruiting events, and I was also fortunate that I had close friends a year ahead of me already working at the firm.
Interview Questions
The behavioral portion of the interview was fairly standard with a handful of follow-ups to gather more detail. The technical portion was your standard fare from the BIWS guide. I received a few quirkier questions near the end:

1. What's something you want me to know that is not listed on your resume?
2. Teach me something.
3. I'm walking into the round table after this. What would you like me to mention?

I ended up doing a quick summary of who I was and what my strengths were to address the last question.
Sample Answer

Portfolio Analyst Interview - Generalist

Anonymous interview candidate in Wayzata
Interviewed: August 2017
Date Submitted: Jul 04, 2018
Outcome
Declined Offer
Interview Source
Applied Online
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
Phone Interview
Group Interview
Background Check
Interview
Phone interview was fairly easy. Mostly conversational/resume related. Group interviews were more intense and specifically related to the position.
Interview Questions
Pitch a stock including both its downsides and upsides. What would be the effects on the overall market if the Federal Reserve increased rates? How is the market doing and where do you see it going in the next six to twelve months? How would you break apart a portfolio? Can you explain strategic asset allocation and why it is important to long term investors? Whats your worst quality and what do you think needs to be done to improve? Structure a portfolio of different securities and what is the expected return on the portfolio?
Sample Answer

The PFM Group - Public Finance Analyst Interview - Public Finance

Anonymous interview candidate in Los Angeles
Interviewed: 2016
Date Submitted: Jan 19, 2017
Outcome
No Offer
Interview Source
College / University / On Campus Recruiting
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
Group Interview
Interview
Applied on my school's recruiting website by submitting a resume and cover letter, and was scheduled for an on-campus interview.
Interview Questions
The interview consisted of two interviewers asking me mainly behavioral/fit questions, not really any technicals besides asking about what public finance is and some general questions about the market.

Say I wanted a return of about 8% on my investment, what would you recommend I do?

What is the difference between public finance and corporate finance?

Why public finance for you specifically, as opposed to other areas of finance?

What question or questions do you wish we asked you? (At end of interview)
Sample Answer

Summer Intern Interview - Generalist

Anonymous interview candidate in Harrisburg
Interviewed: June 2014
Date Submitted: Dec 29, 2015
Outcome
No Offer
Interview Source
Other
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
Group Interview
Interview
Reached out to multiple MD's, was contacted by HR, led to in-person interview.. Interview lasted 1 hour and was group based.
Interview Questions
Very limited technical questions. Questions were almost all about getting to know me, but most importantly, why I wanted to do public finance. Given my background with options, why less risk averse now?
Sample Answer

Asset Management Interview - Public Finance

Anonymous employee in Harrisburg
Interviewed: November 2015
Date Submitted: Nov 17, 2015
Outcome
Accepted Offer
Interview Source
Recruiter
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
Phone Interview
Group Interview
Interview
Sent the recruiter an email with a cover letter and a resume. She responded within a week to set up a phone interview. After the phone interview, she sent my information to HR and I got a call the next week to come down to the office for an in person interview. The interview was a three on one.
Interview Questions
What is your greatest achievement? Describe a time when you lead a group and it failed? Tell me about yourself?
Sample Answer

Financial Advisory Intern Interview - Public Finance

Anonymous employee in Arlington
Interviewed: February 2014
Date Submitted: Jan 24, 2015
Outcome
Accepted Offer
Interview Source
College / University / On Campus Recruiting
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
Group Interview
Interview
OCR, 1 on 3 interview. Mainly behavioral, focused on your interests and why public finance in particular. Definitely have a good answer for Public Finance. Possibly research the case studies posted on the corporate website.
Interview Questions
Nothing incredibly unexpected. Why public finance was asked in various forms. Definitely have a good answer to that. I had a background in public service so I said it was a good way to mix my interest in public service and finance.
Financial Advisory or Asset Management? Know what each role would entail. I chose FA because I liked the client oriented and transaction based business model
Sample Answer

Financial Analyst Interview - Public Finance

Anonymous interview candidate in Seattle
Interviewed: December 2014
Date Submitted: Jan 09, 2015
Outcome
No Offer
Interview Source
Employee Referral
Length of Process
1-2 months
Application
Phone Interview
Skills Test
Interview
Sent my resume to a friend that used to work at PFM Seattle.
Months had gone by and once 3 analysts had left, my resume was finally received.
I received an email from a recruiter at PFM's HQ in Philadelphia stating that they are interested in setting up an interview.
They also wanted me to take a simple math test (Think of it as an SAT test).
Had a 20 minute phone interview with the recruiter from Philadelphia, passed, then proceeded to in-person panel interview in Seattle.
The panel interview consisted of 2 senior consultants and the managing director, which lasted 1 hour.
The following questions were asked: Why PFM? Do you know what we do here? Can you handle multiple tasks?
Followed up by another phone interview from PFM HQ asking my interest in public finance.
I had another phone interview with the managing director a day after my previous phone interview.
This followed up with another panel interview now including an additional senior consultant and analyst.
Interview Questions
Why PFM?
Why public finance?
Do you know what an analyst does at PFM?
Tell me about a time where you had to handle multiple projects.
If you were given 2 projects with similar deadlines and you can't finish them both, what will you do?
Sample Answer