IB Technical Interview Prep
Hey guys, so I'm about to start technical interview prep for IB, and I'm applying to SA positions. For technicals, my plan was to start with Rosenbaum to understand stuff in-depth and more conceptually, and then move on to Vault and then the M&I 400. However, I've heard that the WSO technical guide may be good, is it worth the money, and is it comprehensive on the technicals that could be asked? Could I replace the Vault and M&I with the WSO technical guide or nah? I'm confused on how to go about this and what books/resource to read in what order, etc, so let me know please. Thanks!
I recently finished recruiting for SA and for interview prep, I really only relied on the M&I 400 guide. For context, I had interviews with several top MM and in between banks. Technical wise, I was never asked anything beyond what was included in the 400 guide. This applied for phone screens and super days. The Rosenbaum guide is great for really understanding the industry but honestly, you can get that from talking to people, reading online, and watching Youtube videos (there are actually a couple channels that are really good). The Rosenbaum guide is a huge textbook and a massive time commitment that may or may not be worth it. You do not need advanced modeling experience, just an overall understanding of how the models work which is covered in the 400 guide. I don't have as much experience interviewing with EBs and BBs but I can't imagine them being so significantly different that going through multiple guides is necessarily worth it. Obviously, studying more can't hurt but don't let that inhibit your academic performance and networking (MOST IMPORTANT PART). Furthermore, technical knowledge is just a check mark - in other words, knowing them will not necessarily get you the job but not knowing them will hurt you. Behavioral and fit is what these people want to know the most because they will be working with you 80+ hours a week. Hope this helps!
I see, that makes sense! I'll def do the M&I 400 guide then instead.
What YouTube channels are you referring to? Can you share
What YouTube channels?
bump
I think so much of the guide have been WAY overstated. I personally don't think they are intended to be used as the sole source getting you through, instead they are used for people with some financial modeling background to get a better sense of what type of questions will be asked. The sheer time commitment to go through all of the things you just stated is tremendous and could be much better suited doing something else. I recommend you work on some real life modeling cases - try building out a DCF for any traditional SP500 industrials company for example. This will give you some stuff to talk about during the interviews and then going thru BIWS 400 will be a LOT easier. Again, these guides are useful, but I think you are looking at it the wrong way.
I see, so you recommend that I read the M&I 400 and do some modeling and that should be good for the technicals? Would you recommend purchasing the wso guides if you know about them?
I'm saying reading the M&I 400 won't do you any good (assuming you have very little IB background). If you know your accounting from accounting classes, go download a 10-K filing from the SEC website and start crunching out a model. I did like 4 when I first started learning finance, and it has taught me so much. From there I was able to blow through all the guides without every needing to memorize stuff.
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