Elite Boutique Interview. How to prepare?

Hey all.

I'm currently interning at an established VC firm and love what I do when I go in on Fridays. However, I've received an email from an elite boutique saying they want to interview me. I sent the MD a cold email maybe 2 months ago and he apologised for getting back to me so late but he liked my CV and wants to meet me etc.

Through email, I told him I'm still very interested but I've got a VC gig at the moment, so we've set up an interview for Tuesday. Now then, how does one prepare for an EB interview (internship mind you, not FT)? Will they quiz me on DCF and comparables, cash flow analysis etc? Or will it be a more informal thing?

I've read up on the firm and the deals they've made, because I can expect a question or two on that.

Thanks again!

2 Comments
 
Best Response

I found that advisory shop interviews are significantly more difficult across the board. Fit really matters since chances are the people who interview you will actually have to work with you, and technicals matter a ton as well because the places are so small they need you to hit the ground running.

You don't have any of the wiggle room in either direction that you can get interviewing at a bulge. So for technicals, you better know everything covered in different interview guides at a pretty granular level. I'm not sure how much of that is achievable in a few days to be honest, but good luck.

For what it's worth, all the effort you have to put in for boutique interviews makes the bugle counterpart interviews seem shockingly easy. Last fall I interviewed at 3 boutiques and MS in the course of two weeks and the MS interview process was a cake walk as a result of the practice for and experience interviewing at the other shops.

 

Delectus voluptatibus sint dolores. Ea excepturi natus ipsam sit sed et cumque. Tempora qui expedita est voluptas aperiam.

Expedita iste beatae illum ullam in quis odit. Sed molestiae provident facilis voluptas molestias. Vero aut modi quis minus voluptatem dolores est.

Pariatur aut labore autem vitae ipsum et. Cumque voluptates iste corporis doloremque rerum. Quo eum ea cumque est.

Ea maxime praesentium soluta. Ut voluptatem in iure distinctio sequi. Tenetur veritatis temporibus nihil odit. Dolor qui ut aut neque iure. Et distinctio exercitationem aut molestiae qui. Ut id id est. Et hic similique error et et quae ut illum.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.3%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.7%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.3%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • Goldman Sachs 02 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (44) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (79) $150
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $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
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
8
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
9
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
10
bolo up's picture
bolo up
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...”