PIMCO

Asset Management

Est Annual Revenue:
$5bn+
AUM:
$100bn+
Website
Industry: Asset Management

PIMCO Interview Questions

18 total interview insight submissions

Interview Experience (99%)

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.

4.2
  • Very Negative
  • Negative
  • Neutral
  • Positive
  • Very Positive
Interview Difficulty (99%)

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.

3.6
  • Very Easy
  • Easy
  • Average
  • Difficult
  • Very Difficult
% Interns - FT Offers (44%)

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.

34%
  • 0%
  • 20%
  • 40%
  • 60%
  • 80%
  • 100%
  • 10%
  • 30%
  • 50%
  • 70%
  • 90%

Interviews at PIMCO

YearPositionLocationGroup/DivisionExperienceDifficulty
2023Intern, Alts: Credit & Private StrategiesLondonSpecial Situations GroupVery PositiveDifficult
2022product analystLos AngelesGeneralistPositiveAverage
2022Research analystLondonAsset ManagementVery PositiveDifficult
2020associatechicagoSales and TradingNeutralVery Difficult
2022Associate, Commercial Real EstTeLos AngelesInvestment BankingNeutralDifficult
2021Trading Desk AnalystLondonInvestmentsNeutralAverage
2022Portfolio AnalystSolana BeachN/AVery PositiveDifficult
2020Account AnalystLos AngelesN/AVery PositiveEasy
2021Portfolio AssociateLondonN/ANegativeAverage
2021Account AnalystTorontoInvestment Grade FinanceVery PositiveDifficult

Intern, Alts: Credit & Private Strategies Interview - Special Situations Group

Anonymous employee in London

Outcome

Accepted Offer

Interview Source

Applied Online

Length of Process

1-2 months
Interviewed: February 2023 Date Submitted: Apr 04, 2023

Application

Phone Interview
1 on 1 Interview

Interview

Completed online form, followed by HireVue 1 month later and Assessment Centre consisting of 4 interviews

Interview Questions

Walk me through a recent valuation that you have done. What did you do which was different/innovative?
Sample Answer

product analyst Interview - Generalist

Anonymous employee in Los Angeles

Outcome

Accepted Offer

Interview Source

Recruiter

Length of Process

1-2 months
Interviewed: September 2022 Date Submitted: Nov 02, 2022

Application

Phone Interview
1 on 1 Interview

Interview

video interview after superday, pretty standard questions on the market and quantitive understanding

Interview Questions

What's going on in the market?
Sample Answer

Research analyst Interview - Asset Management

Anonymous interview candidate in London

Outcome

No Offer

Interview Source

Applied Online

Length of Process

1-2 months
Interviewed: June 2022 Date Submitted: Oct 21, 2022

Application

Phone Interview
1 on 1 Interview
Skills Test

Interview

Met 9 members of the team across 1.5 months and a take home case study. Interview process was very enjoyable.

Interview Questions

How would you integrate factors in financial analysis
Sample Answer

associate Interview - Sales and Trading

Anonymous interview candidate in chicago

Outcome

No Offer

Interview Source

Recruiter

Length of Process

2-3 months
Interviewed: March 2020 Date Submitted: May 12, 2022

Application

Phone Interview
1 on 1 Interview
Group Interview
Skills Test
Personality Test

Interview

Multiple behavioral and technical rounds with a 3 statement modeling test, most interviews were relaxed some were very technical

Interview Questions

3 statement model done from complete scratch on a private company with limited financials in 3 hours
Sample Answer

Associate, Commercial Real EstTe Interview - Investment Banking

Anonymous interview candidate in Los Angeles

Outcome

No Offer

Interview Source

Applied Online

Length of Process

2-3 months
Interviewed: March 2022 Date Submitted: May 05, 2022

Application

Phone Interview
1 on 1 Interview

Interview

Recruiter screen, then one-on-ones with people on the team in Newport and New York. Each interview was one-on-one. I completed roughly 6 before I was told they woulnd't be moving forward. Some interviews are strictly behavior / get to know you, others are highly technical and you will need a calculator/pen/pencil.

Interview Questions

Mental math questions on IRR, cap rates, returns, and LP/GP payouts.
Sample Answer

Trading Desk Analyst Interview - Investments

Anonymous interview candidate in London

Outcome

Declined Offer

Interview Source

Applied Online

Length of Process

1-2 months
Interviewed: November 2021 Date Submitted: Apr 26, 2022

Application

1 on 1 Interview
Other

Interview

Applied online.

HireView Style Video Interview:

6 questions, mostly basic. Tell me the difference between a stock and a bond. If you had $1M how would you invest it? What are some risks associated with bonds? Tell me about a project where you had to learn a new skill. Can't remember the last one but was roughly behavioral/CV related.

Super Day:

6 rounds of interviews, 30 minutes each. 2 behavioral, 1 macroeconomic, 1 technical, 2 mix between behavioral/macroeconomic.

Macro was mainly focused about trends and expectations (read PIMCO report and was fine), general commercial awareness (what is inflation right now/interest rate/etc). Some stuff about unemployment and ESG. If you read the WSJ/FT/Economist with any frequency and study PIMCO's quarterly/yearly outlooks you should be fine.

Behavioral was standard questions about your resume, etc. Got along really well with my interviewers so we mainly skipped the script and talked about whatever. Very laid back and it was super chill. I think these are to see if you pass the "vibe check", ie. if you answer the first question well, the tone of the interviewer immediately changes to a much more informal one.

Technical was by far the hardest, not in the sense that the math was hard but it was concepts they hadn't warned me about in the slightest. I was asked the price an oil forward for a year from now, describe how one hedges against currency risk, and different investment ideas. Eg. if you thought the USD was going to depreciate, how would you make money off of it? Tell me what the convexity and duration of a bond is. How do you price a convertible bond?

I would recommend knowing about FX/Bonds/Commodities/OTC Products. I didn't get asked a single question about equities whatsoever. Macro super important as well.

Interview Questions

Price me an oil forward in a currency other than the USD for a year from now.
Sample Answer

Portfolio Analyst Interview

Anonymous interview candidate in Solana Beach

Outcome

No Offer

Interview Source

Applied Online

Length of Process

1-2 months
Interviewed: January 2022 Date Submitted: Apr 20, 2022

Application

Phone Interview
1 on 1 Interview
Background Check

Interview

Tax-advantaged strategies (i.e. municipals) in PIMCO's Solana Beach office. PIMCO also runs tax-advantaged strategies from primary Newport Beach office; Solana Beach office from Gurtin acquisition circa 2020. Solana Beach office primarily SMA-focused.

1. Recruiter 1-1
2. Associate 1-1
3. Superday w/ Associate, VP, SVP (all 1-1)
4. SVP 1-1

Interview Questions

You have a 3 gallon jug and 5 gallon bucket, how do you measure out exactly 4 gallons of water?
Sample Answer

Account Analyst Interview

Anonymous employee in Los Angeles

Outcome

Accepted Offer

Interview Source

College / University / On Campus Recruiting

Length of Process

1-2 months
Interviewed: December 2020 Date Submitted: Mar 02, 2022

Application

Phone Interview

Interview

Overall, not too difficult, but make sure to know the market really well. If you are able to strike a smart conversation about the markets, they will like you.

Interview Questions

Honestly, nothing much. Everything was expected.
Sample Answer

Portfolio Associate Interview

Anonymous interview candidate in London

Outcome

No Offer

Interview Source

Applied Online

Length of Process

1-2 months
Interviewed: December 2021 Date Submitted: Jan 25, 2022

Application

1 on 1 Interview
Group Interview

Interview

1st round with HR. Basic questions about your expectations regarding the role (incl. the compensation). They want to make sure that you understand it’s a support role.

2nd round with a senior associate. Questions on why the firm, why the role. They also wanted me to tell the about a time when and asked couple fairly basic technical questions about bond maths/risk & return.

3nd round same as the 2nd, only it was 2 v 1 this time around.

Interview Questions

They started throwing in concrete numbers so be prepared to work out particular examples rather than talk theoretically.
Sample Answer

Account Analyst Interview - Investment Grade Finance

Anonymous employee in Toronto

Outcome

Accepted Offer

Interview Source

Applied Online

Length of Process

2-3 months
Interviewed: November 2021 Date Submitted: Jan 17, 2022

Application

Group Interview

Interview

The interview was split into three components each with two interviewers. It's 2 hours all together including 15 or 30 minutes of break, depending on your schedule. Each interview is roughly 30 minutes.

The first interview they test your ability to discuss current events, economic events, and your understanding of bond markets. They asked me specifically what in the news is worth paying attention to, I said to watch the fed announcements on tapering the balance sheet. They then asked me my thoughts on the persistence of inflation and negative interest rates.

The second one is specific to you. They asked me about specific points on my resume, for example, some work in the areas of entreprenurship and politics. They asked me how I prepped for the interview. This interview had the President of PIMCO Canada on it, so be prepared to talk about yourself.

Last interview is all behavioural questions like spitfire. I found this one the hardest. Have examples of times you were a leader, follower, when you failed, and when you succeeded. Having these examples from your past will serve you well.

Got the call 2 hours after the interview ended.

Interview Questions

Behaviourals were plentiful and so you have to be quick to draw on your past experiences and be able to clearly articulate how those experiences relate to the question.
Sample Answer