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November 30, 2026
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some places do, some places don't. However most have basic starting lines laid out for you (income statement + BS line items). Most have you project future years and build out CF/debt schedule.
Totally firm-dependent. Some were blank sheets of excel but the instructions gave you all the assumptions you needed, others had a template but you had to read through some research pieces to come up with assumptions yourself, and others still were somewhere in between.
Of the megafunds, KKR has a modeling test from scratch, TPG, Warburg, and Apax use templates, Bain and Apollo don't have modeling tests, not sure about Blackstone or Carlyle
Thanks for the feedback!
As mentioned, it varies widely. I always figured most were template-based too so I had a pretty big "oh shit" moment when I got handed a redacted CIM and a blank excel sheet.
Another question:
How in depth are the case studies? I've read anywhere from simple 3 statement and LBO to beyond that with valuation, etc.
I can do the valuation portion, just curious though. I'm mainly debt oriented, so that's why I wonder.
Pull a random CIM off the drive - can you come up with a rough valuation of the company? What's the trxn structure look like and why? How do you incorporate various merits and risks? Can you present a coherent and logical case for investment (or alternatively, why you'd turn it down) in a few minutes? I think that covers the bulk of most case studies.
Carlyle is group specific. And for the templated ones named above... its a spectrum, varying from a blank excel with a couple of rows of financials pre-entered for you to basically a fully build model lacking some of the pertinent connecting aspects that would demonstrate you know how to build a model.
While it may seem less stressful to use a template, it is in fact actually more stressful IMO. First off, they give you substantially less time. And second, atleast if you practice building a model from scratch over and over you have the muscle memory and layout and mechanics drilled into your brain. When you have semi-pre-assembled model in another format, you effectively gave up your home court advantage and have to build it according to how they have it laid out and wired. Doesn't seem that significant, but when you're in the heat of the moment... it makes a huge difference when you can just drop into auto-pilot and don't have the anxiety of the unknown.
That being said... many of the templated modeling tests are floating around most of the banks.
no, i don't think so
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