Should I correct an analyst?

This happened at one of my SA interviews during this spring.

I was talking to an analyst one-on-one and somehow the conversation drifted to PE and the latest goings on in that market. He was trying to feel out my knowledge of the space and asked a question about a major event that was being discussed in the media at the time. I responded after which he made a ludicrous claim about that same event, not really contradicting what I said, but just making a comment in passing. The comment was really stupid and I couldn't even tell whether he was shit-testing me or legitimately ill-informed. At that moment I felt that correcting him would be embarassing for us both and I just pretended to not have caught it. We moved on. In the end I didn't get an offer, but that might have happened due to several other reasons.

So, was he expecting me to correct him? What would you guys do in such a situation? Looking forward to your thoughts.

8 Comments
 

You can't really say. Social settings are tricky, it's a learned ability to see if someone's trying to test you, or if they're actually retarded. As you come across more of these situations, you'll end up picking stuff much faster. Learn from your mistake, and try to notice it more next time, and move on.

I think- therefore I fuck
 

Thank you for your input.

Yeah, I probably should have paid more attention to non-verbal communication. Guess, since I was unsure what to do for a moment, it was just easier to let it slide and move on. Might have been the wrong move. You're right though, I need to land more interviews in the first place.

 

Well, since it was an interview, the guy might have been testing me. But even now I can't tell for sure. If it was a test then a very subtle one. There's probably really no better solution to this than following your gut feeling.

 

My technique for dealing with this is to ask an open ended follow up question, and express a bit of surprise. Him: something crazy and/or wrong You: Really? I hadn't heard that/didn't know that. Could you tell me more?

There's only a few things that can happen next. They will expand on their thought and you'll learn something new, or they will back off their statement once they fully realize what they are saying. In your case, he could admit to testing you, or he would just move the conversation on. Either way, you don't look bad. You just can't sound sarcastic when you ask.

 

You could have just asked for clarification and then acted like you misread the piece or whatever that contained that specific bit of news.

ex: "Oh, really? I thought (blahblahblah) happened. I must have interpreted it incorrectly." If he still thinks he's right, he'll just move on and think nothing of it. If he's unsure, he'll ask you to elaborate which is then cue for you to say something intelligent.

But yeah, this is just basic social stuff. I wouldn't overthink it.

 

Inventore voluptatibus possimus ut at. Temporibus atque quisquam sit aut eos aut minus. Aut qui vero magni hic et ea.

Sunt doloribus voluptas repellendus ut rem. Consequuntur nemo eos voluptas. Eos necessitatibus accusamus molestiae quod fugiat quo quae. Quam labore alias fugit velit nihil eum. Facere nesciunt aut libero reprehenderit voluptatem libero et quae.

Quia doloribus qui sit ipsum minus perspiciatis quae. Et iusto eum corrupti minus aut facere magnam. Qui laudantium nam vero non culpa. Nihil nihil quo et facere magni et. Excepturi et aut harum.

Ea quidem doloribus nesciunt laborum autem vel eveniet adipisci. Quia modi dolor aut velit iusto sunt. Quasi corporis occaecati eius nobis dolore odit eligendi. Sint alias aliquam voluptatem qui ut et ratione. Aut odit ab consequatur debitis et dolores.

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
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
6
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
7
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
8
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
9
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
10
Mimbs's picture
Mimbs
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...”