Summit Partners Interview Questions

13 total interview insight submissions
Interview Experience (84%)

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.

3.7
  • Very Negative
  • Negative
  • Neutral
  • Positive
  • Very Positive
Interview Difficulty (89%)

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.

2.9
  • Very Easy
  • Easy
  • Average
  • Difficult
  • Very Difficult
% Interns - FT Offers (17%)

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%
  • 60%
  • 70%
  • 80%
  • 90%
  • 100%

Interviews at Summit Partners

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Filter by:
Year
Job Title
Group/Division
Location
Experience
Difficulty
Intern
Year 2021
Job Title Intern
Group/Division Consumer - Retail
Location New York
Experience
Neutral
Difficulty
Average
Student / Prospective Monkey
Year 2020
Job Title Student / Prospective Monkey
Group/Division Private Equity
Location Boston
Experience
Very Positive
Difficulty
Average
1st Year Analyst
Year 2019
Job Title 1st Year Analyst
Group/Division Generalist
Location Palo Alto
Experience
Neutral
Difficulty
Average
Student / Prospective Monkey
Year 2020
Job Title Student / Prospective Monkey
Group/Division N/A
Location Boston
Experience
Neutral
Difficulty
Easy
Intern
Year 2019
Job Title Intern
Group/Division Technology, Media and Telecom (TMT)
Location Boston
Experience
Neutral
Difficulty
Average
1st Year Associate
Year 2015
Job Title 1st Year Associate
Group/Division Generalist
Location Boston
Experience
Positive
Difficulty
Average
1st Year Associate
Year 2016
Job Title 1st Year Associate
Group/Division Technology
Location Boston
Experience
Positive
Difficulty
Easy
N/A
Year 2015
Job Title N/A
Group/Division N/A
Location Boston
Experience
Very Positive
Difficulty
Average
Intern
Year 2014
Job Title Intern
Group/Division Operations
Location Boston
Experience
Positive
Difficulty
Average
1st Year Associate
Year 2013
Job Title 1st Year Associate
Group/Division Growth Equity
Location Boston
Experience
Neutral
Difficulty
Average

Interview Questions & Answers - Summit Partners Examples

Intern Interview - Consumer - Retail

Anonymous interview candidate in New York
Interviewed: September 2021
Date Submitted: Jun 29, 2022
Outcome
No Offer
Interview Source
Applied Online
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
Phone Interview
1 on 1 Interview
Presentation
Interview
Applied online, had an expedited process with exploding offer so I had a first round interview followed by a second case presentation
Interview Questions
Not really many difficult questions, mostly behavioural for first round and second round case presentation was mostly just questions about my case
Sample Answer

Summer Analyst Interview - Private Equity

Anonymous interview candidate in Boston
Interviewed: September 2020
Date Submitted: Jun 09, 2021
Outcome
No Offer
Interview Source
College / University / On Campus Recruiting
Length of Process
1-2 months
Application
Phone Interview
1 on 1 Interview
Presentation
Personality Test
Interview
Started with a preliminary phone screen which was super casual. Next was a more formalized conversation, but still conversational. Questions asked were why growth equity? why Summit? Talk about a portco.

Last was a two-part Superday
Part 1: Behavioral / Technical
Part 2: Case Study Presentation
Interview Questions
Talk about a port co that you don't like.
Sample Answer

Analyst Interview - Generalist

Anonymous interview candidate in Palo Alto
Interviewed: August 2019
Date Submitted: Mar 26, 2021
Outcome
Declined Offer
Interview Source
College / University / On Campus Recruiting
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
Phone Interview
1 on 1 Interview
Presentation
Skills Test
Personality Test
Interview
The final round interview involves multiple rounds with MDs and analysts at the firm. They focus on technical questions.
Interview Questions
Technical due diligence questions
Sample Answer

Summer Intern Interview

Anonymous interview candidate in Boston
Interviewed: August 2020
Date Submitted: Sep 12, 2020
Outcome
No Offer
Interview Source
Applied Online
Length of Process
2-3 months
Application
Phone Interview
IQ / Intelligence Test
Other
Interview
First applied online, heard back a couple of months later about a Hirevue. Completed the first HireVue and then had to complete the CCAT test and another 1-question HV. Then had first-round interview, followed by a case-study super day for those that made it (I did not).
Interview Questions
For HireVue:
How would you explain growth equity?
What is an area you are interested in and why?
When did you display grit?

In Interview:
Feedback from managers this summer?
What is a Summit investment you like and why?
Sample Answer

summer analyst Interview - Technology, Media and Telecom (TMT)

Anonymous interview candidate in Boston
Interviewed: January 2019
Date Submitted: Aug 05, 2019
Outcome
No Offer
Interview Source
College / University / On Campus Recruiting
Length of Process
1-2 months
Application
Phone Interview
1 on 1 Interview
Skills Test
IQ / Intelligence Test
Interview
multiple phone interviews followed by superday in office with multiple 1v1 interviews - quitee long and not transparent
Interview Questions
initial phone calls are mostly behavioural so not too bad- make sure to know what summit does (venture capital and growth equity), why you want to do it, and just basic info on the investment strategy. Their website has some useful case studies on portfolio companies so mkae sure you know that.

Superday had a case study with a Partner (similar to consulting case studies) and also a cold call drill checking to see how you would act when cold contacting a potential business.

All in all, very little finance technicals but looking for a self-starter
Sample Answer

Associate Interview - Generalist

Anonymous interview candidate in Boston
Interviewed: February 2015
Date Submitted: May 24, 2016
Outcome
No Offer
Interview Source
Recruiter
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
Phone Interview
1 on 1 Interview
Group Interview
Skills Test
Interview
Consisted of an initial phone screen, investment recommendation, financial model, and in-person interview.
Interview Questions
"If I put a gun to your head right now and made you decide, would you choose to go to business school?"
Sample Answer

Associate Interview - Technology

Anonymous employee in Boston
Interviewed: 2016
Date Submitted: Jan 27, 2016
Outcome
Accepted Offer
Interview Source
Recruiter
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
Phone Interview
1 on 1 Interview
Presentation
Other
Interview
Was contacted by recruiter and then had an initial phone screening. Invited for an afternoon of interviews where I spoke to 5+ individuals ranging from associates to partners.
Interview Questions
I was frequently asked about my five and 10 year plan (basically what I wanted to do after Summit) Also asked a lot about technology companies I was interested in, how I felt about sourcing, my family, where I was from, why I moved to certain cities, and if I had ever cold called before. There was a case interview sent prior to the interview that had to be completed.

During the interview we talked briefly about it and why I would or wouldn't invest in the company and key diligence questions I would ask.
Sample Answer

Associate Interview

Anonymous interview candidate in Boston
Interviewed: September 2015
Date Submitted: Nov 08, 2015
Outcome
No Offer
Interview Source
College / University / On Campus Recruiting
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
1 on 1 Interview
Interview
On campus 2 on 1 interview with simple case. Everyone involved was very pleasant and nothing about it was too intimidating once you get past the 2v1 setup.
Interview Questions
Case was mental math heavy, but very simple. They direct you to the correct answer as long as you start asking the right questions.
Sample Answer

Financial Analyst Interview - Operations

Anonymous employee in Boston
Interviewed: 2014
Date Submitted: Oct 15, 2014
Outcome
Accepted Offer
Interview Source
College / University / On Campus Recruiting
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
1 on 1 Interview
Group Interview
Personality Test
Background Check
Interview
I received an email from the head of HR requesting to come in for an interview. I went in and met with 7 different people (15-30 minute each) for a total of 2hours of interviewing. After meeting with all of the people, i got an offer for a part time position. They ran a background check and started one week later.
Interview Questions
They asked behavioral questions, and wanted me to talk about my previous experience at my other internship.
Sample Answer

Associate Interview - Growth Equity

Anonymous interview candidate in Boston
Interviewed: February 2013
Date Submitted: Oct 25, 2013
Outcome
No Offer
Interview Source
College / University / On Campus Recruiting
Length of Process
Less than 1 month
Application
Phone Interview
Interview
Dropped my resume on the school's career board, got a phone interview with them. Overall the interview was pleasant, a few high level technicals, but more focused on my previous summer experience. I think it was very much focused on how I sounded on the phone and how well spoken I was as opposed to seeing where my financial knowledge was, since this was a sourcing associate role.
Interview Questions
What company would you suggest we invest in next?

Pro-Tip: Summit generally makes minority investments, so don't bother looking at huge buyouts - it's not going to be particularly relevant to their core focus areas and it'll make you look like you don't know what they actually do other than "PE"
Sample Answer