S&P Credit Analyst Interview

Hi,

I'm a junior at a semi/non target school (Tufts) and managed to land an interview for the credit analyst role at S&P. I have prior internship experience at a fund of funds where I did some financial modeling and at a private bank where I was working more on asset allocation, but have little to no experience in fixed income investing, let alone credit analytics.

I'm an Econ major, no big coding experience but I'm okay with Excel. I know most about the financial services industry, but don't know much about credit analytics. Can anyone with experience in this give me a better overview of what the job entails, the work culture of S&P, and general interview tips?

Just to note, I'm scheduled for two 30 minute interviews with MDs.

Thank you for your help!

16 Comments
 

If it's only 2 x 30min interviews, there won't be any technical case studies but I would definitely brush up on basic accounting concepts in case they decide to quiz you. Familiarize yourself with how the three statements are linked and what they are useful for showing. Know a few ratios (profitability, leverage, solvency etc), debt repayment and what the process is for determining a credit rating. There are a ton of info out there on general credit analysis, so do a quick search on google and investopedia and you should be off to a decent start. Also think about general macro events and how that could potentially affect the credit rating of a particular sector/region.

 

Hey,

I participated in the summer internship (first batch for that program). If its 2, 30 minutes with the MDs (as opposed to the analysts - which is the first round after video interview). It is mostly fit (no technicals).

That being said, I prepared for all types of questions. The more prep the better. Just show that you are interested (being well spoken is a plus as well as a lot of the work they do is via phone - which is why interviews are (typically) only via phone). Hopefully that helps. Good luck!

 

Thanks guys. I think I did well- they asked very basic technicals (what are the 3 financial statements) and the only one I kind of got messed up on was tell me different ratios that can be used to compare different characteristics of companies. I couldn't come up with a risk ratio on the spot (know I could have said debt to assets or something), but they said don't worry I don't really care, HR forces to ask us- you'll learn all of this through the program.

My interview was 2 weeks ago, still haven't gotten a response. They said HR would contact me- am I screwed? Emailed HR yesterday but they didn't reply...

 

Hi thanks for your sharing. I was wondering whether the video interview is a ore-recording interview and what kind of questions I can expect in that video in?

 
Best Response

My tip for final interview (apologies for being late) is showing an international / cross cultural type of vision/behaviour. Typically, the offices are very 'international' with huddles every morning for updates on what goes on in various teams around EMEA or US (if based there). Therefore, being able to communicate effectively with a diverse group is crucial.

In terms of the day to day, it really depends on what team you are in. In corporates, you are an operational/support member of the team. Works can include, putting aside the final presentation on an unrated company, reading through annual reports to write a business/financial outlook for the company (did this for several companies at different times). Spreading some annual reports on their programs (typically happens especially if fluent in another language -> this is more of an administrative type of process but gives a lot of insight in each line of the statements as you really need to understand what you are doing). Other tasks come on an ad hoc basis. For instance, I worked on commodities for a forecasting project on how prices were likely to fluctuate in the long run.

The big plus of the internship are; if given a chance to attend, the management meetings (very humbling) and a greater understanding of annual reports.

 

Cupiditate et autem et voluptatem sequi voluptatibus dolores. Eos ipsum quis qui et laboriosam. Sint modi et fugiat amet dolorem deleniti. Id laudantium maxime neque odit tenetur. Et necessitatibus consequatur sint omnis. Repudiandae nostrum illum velit deserunt nobis voluptatem. Eum laboriosam officia velit est.

Magnam ea repellendus voluptatem et magnam et neque. Eveniet est unde sed qui rerum iure totam. Quae amet adipisci et perspiciatis corrupti nam. Neque sint consectetur et quo qui quaerat. Doloribus omnis vitae amet excepturi eveniet molestiae commodi. Ipsum nihil sequi maxime accusantium et delectus vel. Iure voluptatem aut ex et maiores.

Dolorum adipisci nemo dolore et et quia est possimus. Consequatur laudantium odio non labore. Eveniet quo id quasi et corrupti quis voluptates. Laborum sint neque quos. Autem commodi qui voluptate odio quos nesciunt veniam. Veniam mollitia praesentium illum nihil. Modi in asperiores nihil veniam necessitatibus adipisci. Quia debitis praesentium alias et ut.

Laboriosam adipisci voluptatem accusantium rerum quos aut officiis sunt. Impedit voluptate qui rerum aut qui nostrum unde. Ratione inventore a enim qui ullam. Autem qui doloribus molestiae blanditiis quos ut velit. Voluptatem in exercitationem voluptas doloremque voluptas aut.

Career Advancement Opportunities

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Guggenheim Partners 02 97.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 97.4%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 99.0%
  • Evercore 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.9%
  • BMO Capital Markets 13 97.4%

Professional Growth Opportunities

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.9%
  • JPMorgan No 97.4%

Total Avg Compensation

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (57) $264
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (29) $183
  • Intern/Summer Associate (16) $161
  • 1st Year Analyst (84) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (77) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
3
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
6
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
7
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
8
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
9
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
10
Jamoldo's picture
Jamoldo
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”