Does technical interview difficulty fluctuate depending on your resume?

How serious are technical interviews for IB? I've heard everything that ranges from simply talking the interviewer through the steps of a DCF to being required to actually construct one from scratch under a time limit. Does this depend on what experiences you claim to have on your resume? I've had someone warn me that if you claim to be "proficient" in financial modeling on your resume, then some banks will give you a DCF that is wildly messed up, and tell you that if you can't fix it in 30 minutes consider your interview to be over. If that's the case, wouldn't it be advantageous for everyone to claim that they don't know anything about financial modeling to avoid getting grilled on technicals?

3 Comments
 
Most Helpful

Yes, to certain degree, the interviewer will adjust difficulty based on the candidate’s experience. But it’s not necessarily advantageous to water down your resume. If you actually did what you say you did and have gained relevant experience, you’ll probably be able to handle the more difficult questions. Simultaneously, you’re impressing the recruitment team with your solid resume. Keep in mind, they won’t really knock off points for you not being able to answer ridiculously hard questions. If you water down your resume, you might not even get the interview, and even if you did, the expectation will be that you can answer all the easy questions with no opportunity to impress the interviewer by taking a crack at difficult questions.

 

correct, if you claim to be proficient then be proficient at it- otherwise dont put it in the first place

cant believe how many times students who claim to be proficient at stuff like excel, bloomberg, financial modelling, etc, buts its very clear that they just put it to pad their resume.. kinda irks me tbh

theres a fine line between strengthening your resume and padding it; if youre actually what your resume says you are (e.g proficient at modelling), you'll get a leg up in the hiring decisions all else equal

 

Saepe enim sunt esse est aspernatur commodi est. Quia aliquid neque hic odit dolores numquam et dolore. Sit provident nostrum aut tenetur voluptatem cum voluptatum. Suscipit ut sed dolorum aut id animi dolor.

Nobis sit nostrum velit repudiandae dicta. Beatae distinctio quia velit sed. Et beatae esse eius. Non minima quae aliquam non.

Perspiciatis ipsum totam aliquid facilis sit nemo cumque. Qui est veniam saepe ad. Neque nemo impedit exercitationem illum. Distinctio eveniet ut dolorem voluptatem omnis voluptas et. Eum dolores debitis quas repudiandae sapiente amet.

Dolorem quasi sequi ab aspernatur. Nam quia voluptatem sapiente non laborum suscipit voluptas dolorum. Facilis sed provident autem sed ut provident facere.

Career Advancement Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.2%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.3%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.2%

Professional Growth Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 97.2%

Total Avg Compensation

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (46) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (80) $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
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
8
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
9
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
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...”