The first round is a phone call interview and the recruiters will vet you for financial technical competency and also company fit. I cannot stress enough how important it is to be clear and concise and also avoid being too wordy in your responses. Don't rush through calculations, take your time and walk them through it. Be sure to have an idea of questions to ask them once the call ends
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Standard Technical questions were asked and also a lot of industry specific questions and valuation methodologies. Know the DCF inside and out and learn the relevant valuation multiples for whatever industry group you get into
I applied online. The process took 4 weeks. I interviewed at Barclays (Glasgow, Escocia) in Dec 2014
Interview
Online tests and questionnaire, telephone interview, and assessment day with 45 min interview, presentation and group exercise.
Presentation was a timed desk simulation, where you have to find information about a company decision from emails and articles which are emailed to you. Then you prepare a 5 minute presentation and answer questions. The most important thing is that you have reasons for you recommendations and can stand up to being questioned.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Tell me about a time you've stood up for you morals.
I applied online. The process took 6 weeks. I interviewed at Barclays (Singapur) in Dec 2014
Interview
Applied online for the summer internship in IBD with Barclays Singapore (coming from a semi-target US school). Within 2 weeks, got invited to one-on-one phone interviews with 3 people (1 analyst, associate, and assistance VP). The AVP gave some good behavioral questions. Coming from a non-finance/business/econ background, the other 2 interviewers pushed me with some difficult questions trying to see how much I knew. Got invited for a 'informational meetup' which is the 2nd round interview at a US office. This was a one-on-one interview with two different bankers from Asia who were visiting a US office. HR said there would be a final round interview at the New York office. Got an email that I didn't make it to the final round.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
What is goodwill? How do you calculate WACC? What is the cost of equity? If you were a CEO of a company that made apples and revenue went down 25%, what would you do?