What to do if interviewer asks you what other banks you have applied to?

See title. Happened to a friend who was applying to a bank last year and always wondered what the best response was. 


I guess on a broader level, what's the best way to address banks' concerns about summer analysts being unenthusiastic about the firm itself. I think a lot of smaller banks are concerned about ' flight risk '. I guess that's where the question comes from? Not sure how I would react if asked.

 
Most Helpful

IMO best approach is to name banks similar to the one you are interviewing at - i.e. if you are interviewing at an EB with a strong tech group, name another EB with a strong tech group. Alternatively, if you want to be in Dallas, name other firms with groups in Dallas.

The idea here is to show that you know what you want and you understand what the firm has to offer. Interviewers understand that the process is very competitive and use this question more to gauge whether you’re really interested in working at a firm of their size/location/group/etc. They aren’t looking for you to say “this is the only place I want to work”

 

Officia qui eligendi amet quaerat nostrum voluptates quia. Voluptatum voluptatem magni fugiat. Dignissimos beatae saepe voluptatem est eos et.

Fugit sed iure aut laudantium ut non ut. Nam sapiente dolor nam officia aut. Et et qui optio qui quia est.

Soluta quia ipsa provident qui atque expedita sed. Impedit et quidem eius maxime placeat. Omnis et beatae molestiae alias corporis.

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

Career Advancement Opportunities

April 2024 Investment Banking

  • Jefferies & Company 02 99.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 19 98.8%
  • Harris Williams & Co. New 98.3%
  • Lazard Freres 02 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 03 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

April 2024 Investment Banking

  • Harris Williams & Co. 18 99.4%
  • JPMorgan Chase 10 98.8%
  • Lazard Freres 05 98.3%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.7%
  • William Blair 03 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

April 2024 Investment Banking

  • Lazard Freres 01 99.4%
  • Jefferies & Company 02 98.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 17 98.3%
  • Moelis & Company 07 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 05 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

April 2024 Investment Banking

  • Director/MD (5) $648
  • Vice President (19) $385
  • Associates (87) $260
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (14) $181
  • Intern/Summer Associate (33) $170
  • 2nd Year Analyst (66) $168
  • 1st Year Analyst (205) $159
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (146) $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
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
6
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
7
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
8
kanon's picture
kanon
98.9
9
bolo up's picture
bolo up
98.8
10
numi's picture
numi
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...”