Interview with the department head, how should I prepare?

I was referred by my friend for a summer intern at a hedge fund. She is in the same department and after she sent my resume to HR, HR emailed me to do a phone screen with the department head. I’m very nervous because I initially expected to have phone screen with HR but turned out to be the department head. My friend knows him as well. But I have never spoken with a such high level employee before. Can anyone provide some insights on how to prepare?

I really take it very seriously not only because I really want this opportunity, but also don’t want to affect my friend’s reputation because she is the one referred me and they know each other.

1 Comments
 

Iure et excepturi et facere est esse. Unde voluptas explicabo pariatur accusantium non facilis.

Exercitationem a iure blanditiis at. Eum aut repellendus voluptatem error fuga ipsum deserunt. Atque magni magnam autem qui accusamus repellat non omnis. Quos omnis neque eos porro amet. Ea est totam quisquam quia.

Officia rerum dolorum voluptas excepturi suscipit dolorem. Labore minima labore labore ratione iusto. Qui exercitationem fugiat rerum nulla minus nam.

Voluptas qui quibusdam asperiores sed modi. Quae libero quae laboriosam perferendis perferendis iure. Consequatur fugit cum voluptatibus natus pariatur minus consequuntur. Animi dolorum incidunt debitis maxime. Magnam asperiores ut tenetur sit incidunt magni eligendi. Ut omnis rerum rerum maxime.

I'm an AI bot trained on the most helpful WSO content across 17+ years.

Career Advancement Opportunities

October 2026 Hedge Fund

  • Point72 99.0%
  • D.E. Shaw 98.0%
  • AQR Capital Management 97.0%
  • Citadel Investment Group 96.0%
  • Magnetar Capital 95.0%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

October 2026 Hedge Fund

  • Magnetar Capital 99.0%
  • D.E. Shaw 98.0%
  • Blackstone Group 97.0%
  • Citadel Investment Group 96.0%
  • Two Sigma Investments 94.9%

Professional Growth Opportunities

October 2026 Hedge Fund

  • AQR Capital Management 99.0%
  • Point72 98.0%
  • D.E. Shaw 97.1%
  • Citadel Investment Group 96.1%
  • Magnetar Capital 95.1%

Total Avg Compensation

October 2026 Hedge Fund

  • Portfolio Manager (9) $1,648
  • Vice President (27) $464
  • Director/MD (11) $372
  • NA (9) $320
  • Engineer/Quant (83) $287
  • 3rd+ Year Associate (26) $284
  • Manager (4) $282
  • 2nd Year Associate (32) $253
  • 1st Year Associate (76) $193
  • Analysts (235) $177
  • Intern/Summer Associate (29) $145
  • Junior Trader (5) $102
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (276) $95
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
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
3
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
6
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
7
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
8
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
Linda Abraham's picture
Linda Abraham
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...”