Anyone experienced Goldman PWM final round interview?
Hello,
I am getting a final round interview from Goldman Sachs PWM. Could anyone tell me what kind of questions they will probably ask? Is it likely that Goldman PWM will ask many technical questions ?
PWM was not my first choice when I applied for GS. So I actually dont know what exactly PWM is. After reading some posts here, it seems to me that PWM is not a good place to start career. A lot of ppl said PWM is boring and useless for the future career path :(
Can anybody give me some advice regarding PWM, especially Goldman PWM? Thank you!
I would say PWM isn't a good place to start a career except at Goldman.
They're unique in that as an analyst you do no cold-calling (you may spend some of your time prospecting for the PWAs to cold call , but this isn't a majority of the work). You spend a lot of your time doing the analytics on client portfolios to be used in client meetings, trading on behalf of clients, speaking with clients first-hand about the markets and their portfolios, and researching investment opportunities.
Goldman is also looking to increase the number of Financial Analysts that stay in PWM and become PWAs. So there is a good chance of upward mobility in PWM as well as networking in general within the firm (I've heard it's hard to move to IBD, but not other divisions and I have heard of a few FAs or FIPs moving to hedge funds).
As far as the interview, it will depend mostly on what office you are interviewing with. The NY office is very much fit focused although they tend to want interns who have an interest in the markets so it may become more technical if you appear to know nothing. Have a few investment ideas on hand and obviously know what's happening in the world. It's fairly low-stress otherwise.
Good Luck.
Thank you sooooooooooo much UndermyhandQuarter!!! Ur advice is sooooooo helpful!!!
I guessed that most questions will be fit questions in PWM. But I'm worried that if the technical questions will be like those in IBD interviews such as DCF, WACC, ect.???? I am not that familiar with DCF, NPV ect. That worries me. Aside from that, I guess some questions about current market will definitely come up.
Well, my situation is very weird and unique. I applied for the position in one of the offices in Asia Pacific, but I will be interviewed in London through conference call from the States. So I assume the interviews' style will be like the interviews in NYC, what do u think?
Tian_Chen
Hi! I went through the first round of PWM for Singapore SA too.lookslike i didnt get through to the next :( did you speak to jason moo and andy yuen in the first round too??
when did they inform ou of the final?
I just realized that our interviewers are different. I think it's totally random. I got the e-mail abt 3 days after the interview.
You will not be asked about DCF, WACC, etc.
As far as more "technical" questions you may be asked, I would be prepared to have a few investment ideas or specific stock picks. Also, they might ask how you would allocate a client’s portfolio right now (i.e. 25% in high dividend equities, 40% in core fixed income, etc). Just know about what is going on in the economy and the markets and be able to talk passionately and intelligently about it.
Hey tan86, any possibility to be asked about accounting?
Thank you, tan86. You answered my questions.
About allocating the clients' portfolio. It sounds like a similar question to' If you were given a million dollars to invest today, what would you invest in', rit?
Yup, same question.
.
just wondering how much would a PWA get paid at GS? How long does it take to get there? Could you easily exit to a HF?
Good question! I wanna know as well. Who can tell me?
For pay see last post.
From FA (right out of undergrad) it could take as little as 5 or way more, depends on the person and their abilities. 5 isn't totally unreasonable though, but very few likely actually make it as a PWA starting as a 27 year old with no MBA.
FAs can exit to a HF. I'm sure PWAs could as well. For both networking will be important and it is unlikely they'd end up at a megafund or a fund with high initial modeling expectations, but all the proper licensing should already be there and I think a unique angle to talk about in interviews is the extensive client (ultra high net worth) experience (I personally believe more at a younger age than in IBD). This inter personal ability is useful for funds.
hey what do u mean by ' as little as 5'?also, what currency are u referring to? dollars?
and regarding the the unique angle. r u talking abt the interviews for PWM, or the interviews for funds?
hey does Goldman pay for the internship?
As far as pay is concerned at GS it's eat what you kill (like at most investment management places). In other words you get paid based on your AUM and how well those investments are performing (even to some degree what is being invested in). PWAs start in six figures, but the sky is the limit for how high this could go. That being said I understand there are certain targets PWAs are required to hit at specific intervals.
No accounting. They are not going to ask you anything that isn't related to the actual job you're doing. Make sure you understand what someone in the position your interviewing for actually does. Accounting, DCF, WACC are totally unrelated. I think for IMD academic information and formulas is way less important than showing you have an understanding of today's markets and, probably more significant, a reasonable opinion/viewpoint regarding the market and the direction of different investment opportunities.
Hey thanks, yea I heard some guys making a couple of million there
At the associate level, questions for the final round superday were the same as the first round
hey how was your pwm interview..!!
Goldman PWM Final Round (Originally Posted: 02/25/2011)
First round was fit/behavioral, what is the dow/s&p/nasdaq trading at, what is GS stock at, compare culture of firm you've previously worked at to what you expect goldman's culture to be, tell me about an industry/company you like, what do you enjoy as hobbies etc.
How will second round differ and what should I expect? Any tips would be appreciated.
Is this for SA?
Yes, it's for SA
First round was 2, 2 on 1 interviews back-to-back so I'm expecting the same. In terms of mind teasers, do you have specific examples from your BAML interview?
how would you be able to count the amount of traffic lights in manhattan?
if you were given a pie cut into 3 equal pieces ( like a piece sign). how would you divide them into 8 equal pieces?
They arent looking for the actual answers, but more on how you would go through figuring out the answer. both of these questions are commonly used during interviews, so you can find that answer online. i suggest you try to figure it out yourself instead of just reading the answer. they can easily tell if you just memorized an answer.
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