JPMorgan Chase & Co. Junior Analyst Interview Questions, Process, and Tips

Topics to prepare for JPMorgan Chase & Co. Junior Analyst interview:

• Financial Accounting
• Financial Analysis
• Aptitude
• Communication Skills

Interview preparation tips for other job seekers - Do some courses on financial accounting/financial analysis/excel from Coursera and udemy

Round: Resume Shortlist
Experience: Around 50 odd resumes will be shortlisted. They shortlist people with good finance background

Round: Test
Experience: There were totally 3 questions
1) Why Finance
2) Changes in educational system or something (Not sure of this)
3) How far do you think Machine Learning can go.

First one is compulsory and there is a choice between the 2nd and the 3rd question. I chose the third one. So I don't remember the exact qn

Round: Technical + HR Interview
Experience: Technical questions will be based on what you have done till now. The interview is very intense. Your finance knowledge will be tested
Tips: If you have done some finance courses be thorough with that

Round: Technical + HR Interview
Experience: Similar to the Round 3. This round will be more tech intense

Skills: Finance, Knowledge On Current Affairs, Knowledge Of Your Resume Points, Communication, Passion
College Name: IIT Madras

Round: Technical Interview
Experience: I had done a couple of finance projects, one internship in a VC firm and published a paper at IIM Calcutta. All this excited the interviewer and he started grilling me about various questions related to the course projects, generally about basic terms in finance and about my internship. These answers I had well prepared and hence were smooth to answer. But what was unexpected is where it would lead to once you answer the initial set of questions. I was asked to explain Eurozone debt crisis in simple language. I had also given CFA and FRM level 1 exams and there were a few questions related to risk management and portfolio investment.

PS: Please note that since I had done so many things related to the core work at JP Morgan I was asked a lot of questions in core finance. IT IS NOT AT ALL NECESSARY that you will be asked the same questions.
Tips: Know the basics really well. It goes a long way if you know the concepts crystal clear. You can watch a few videos that explain the various crises and why they happened on Youtube. ( I have put up the links in the preparation material section). Be confident and if you don't know the answer, be straightforward to tell that you are not aware of that or maybe even have forgotten at the moment. Honesty helps! The interviewer can always guide you if you are stuck somewhere so ensure you attempt to answer or atleast get closer to the answer. Many a times they want to look into or analyze your thought process rather than getting the correct exact answer itself!

Round: Problem Statement
Experience: It should be easy if your fundamentals are really clear. The case as such does not matter much since the positives and negatives of different valuation models are pretty much well known. I showed on how i arrived at the number using the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) Valuation model and Comparative Comparison Valuation model. They also wanted to check on how well you write and are able to put out on paper as this was a Junior Analyst interview for a Equity Research Analyst role.
Tips: Revise the various types of valuation models well and know the assumptions correctly. Models could get really complex sometimes but you should be clear with how you get at the final number and be able to explain it easily. Conceptually this is very interesting. This pretty much forms the basics of a lot of concepts in finance.

Round: HR Interview
Experience: This was a simple round. Usually you know the HR round questions already and hence you know how you could answer and even manipulate and steer the interview in your favour. Ensure you are clear with basic questions about how you got interested in this field and why you would like to pursue finance as a career option and not your core field (in my case it was civil engineering). A clear and simple story with facts shows that you have prepared well for the interview and have something concrete to say. So do prepare for these kind of questions and don't take them lightly.
Tips: Practice out loud alone and with your friends and take feedback. Most of the times you would yourself realize that you have not answered in the best way possible. But at the same time do not push yourself so much that you get confused at the end moment. Keep a good balance. Try writing down points on a piece of paper and then frame them accordingly on the spot. It always better to know the important points instead of "mugging up an answer". A good interviewer can always tell the difference.
Preparation for this round actually helps you connect with your inner self and you start to ask yourself why you think you deserve this job and why this is a very good bet as a career option. Hence do go through this exercise atleast a few times! :)

General Tips: In my case I had prepared a lot from various resources. I have put it out in detail in the previous section section.
CFA and FRM exams helped a lot for building a strong foundation but more importantly you actually need to be passionate about financial markets, how investment banks function, know the work details about your job profile and be excited about finance in general.
Do not try and put things in resume that you think will "look" very good but you wouldn't be able to explain it thoroughly. The job is very demanding and requires long working hours, so be prepared for it. Know some basic numbers like GDP of top economies, population, interest rates, valuations, etc so that even if you guess things it should sound reasonable.
Skill Tips: The best way to prepare would be actually building financial models, doing an internship in a financial services firm and getting a first hand experience of all the above. Theory part can be understood through CFA or FRM Level 1 books which pretty much cover the basics of finance.
Skills: Financial Modeling, Valuations, Mergers & Acquisitions, Basics of stock market, Portfolio Management, Risk Management
College Name: IIT MADRAS
Motivation: I was very keen to work at an Investment Bank. I had given CFA and FRM Level 1 and it had got me very excited about financial markets in general. I was trading part time and thoroughly enjoyed it. JP Morgan being one of the largest and most reputed Investment Banks I thought would give me exposure to various facets of equity research and thus improve my knowledge and understanding about markets. Also I was referred by my senior Kartheek Konanki who was an alum of IIT-Madras and the idea of having working with a lot of colleagues from various IITs excited me.
Funny Moments: I was asked a lot of questions about the movies I had seen like Wall Street, Boiler room and was asked to explain what happened to which character and why ? and that was not expected :P But they did make me comfortable and referred me other movies and books that would make learning all the more interesting. Net-net I think the interview had its fair share of ups and downs :D

Round: Test
Experience: It was a pen & paper test. There were 4 sections, 20 questions and 20 minutes for each section. You cannot switch between the sections as they take the question paper after a particular section is timed out.

1. Verbal- Comprehension and basic grammatical sentence structuring. I solved the latter part first. It wasn't very difficult

.2. Logic- Find the next number in series, next figure stuff. This was the simplest section.

3. Quants- Not that easy, but manageable.

4. Programming- Very difficult. Questions were majorly of the type:



a) Get the output (Almost all the codes had complexity n^2.)

b) Which of the following options is the correct algorithm for  c) Output of flowchart (Honestly, I don’t even remember seeing the flowcharts.)

d) One or two theory questions.



I solved around 7-8, made logical guesses for the rest.There was no negative marking, so I made sure I attempted all the questions. Also, I marked the answers with pencil, so that if I get time at the end of any section, I can change an answer after cross checking. After the aptitude test, we were given a chance to interact with the managers of the company. It was not a very formal session. Make sure you make the most of this opportunity, as no other company gives you such a chance. Get all your doubts about the company cleared in these 20-30 minutes. I gained some interesting insights about the company in this session. This was not an elimination round.
Tips: All of us struggled with this section. My suggestion would be to scan the paper for the theory questions first, then type a) questions and then type b). I doubt you’ll get time for type c). Another key point is to not get stuck on a particular question for a long time. If you are finding it difficult, there’s a possibility that others are also struggling with that question. So it would be wise to utilize that time to solve a few simple questions rather than one tough question. After all, weightage for each question is the same. ;)
Duration: 80 minutes

Round: HR Interview
Experience: Any questions for me? (I asked him about one of their products. )They look for many things apart from your technical skills.

General Tips: Always dress properly. Even if you are told that 'semi-formals' are allowed,wear formals.Read about the company and be thorough with the job they're offering. Sit for the company only if it interests you. I sat only for those companies whose job profiles aligned with my job preference.Eat your breakfast/lunch. Fruits preferably. Interview day can be stressful sometimes and you need energy to look lively in your interview.Don’t forget your manners. Ask for permission to enter the room, greet them and thank them after your interview.If you are rejected for a company, don't lose hope. Instead, accept the decision and analyze where you went wrong. Work on it and make sure you never repeat that mistake again.Come talk to me if you aren't able to cope up with rejections.Even I faced rejections, but every rejection taught me something that eventually helped me on 22nd September, in one way or the other. :)
College Name: IIT MADRAS

Round: HR Interview
Experience: Basic HR questions

Round: Technical Interview
Experience: Basic finance questions

College Name: IIT Madras

Round: Resume Shortlist
Experience: This was the first round. Around 120 people were selected after this. The company had asked for filling in a google form to mention all the finance courses/internships/projects/certifications. I think they shortlisted people with some finance knowledge or good CG or good Positions of Responsibility.
Tips: I would suggest everybody to spend the starting of the semester in preparing their resume. And ask for as much reviews from seniors as possible. A good resume is the first step towards your selection. If you are not able to show how talented you are, then its your fault. So, do spend a lot of time in editing and reviewing resume.

Round: Test
Experience: All the 120 people were asked to write 2 short essays in 30 min time. The topics were:
1. Why Finance?
2. What is the importance of "Digital India" in taking India forward?

The 2nd question had 2 choices (I don't remember the 2nd choice). We had to write these answers in one A4 size page in MS Word, and then mail it to company.
Tips: Do prepare for the "Why Finance?" question.
For the 2nd question, be thorough with the recent economic and business news (national and global). You should know how to connect different events in the world to everything.
Also, you need to have good writing and English skills to ace this round.
Duration: 30 min minutes

Round: Technical Interview
Experience: This was a pure technical (finance) interview. They asked me questions from the finance competitions i had participated in. They also asked questions from Macro-economics, valuation multiples etc.
1. How will interest rate cut affect inflation and economic growth?
2. What is DCF? How do you calculate it?
3. Why is D&A added back again in DCF?
4. What are the different Valuation Multiples?
5. Which multiple P/E or EV/EBITDA is more useful from Investor point of view?
6. Tell me about yourself?
7. Higher P/E is better or Lower? same question for EV/EBITDA?
8. Do you follow markets?
9. Do you follow any stock?
10. Why didn't you give CFA?
Tips: I think there is not much needed to prepare for this if you already know what is there is your resume and you have finance knowledge.
For all the other people who don't know finance, this is not the company for you. Because they are going to grill you on anything and everything you say. So be prepared for question from your internships (if you had done any in finance).

Round: HR Interview
Experience: This round was very peaceful. The interviewer asked me basic questions like
1. Why this position?
2. Where do you see yourself in 5 years.
3. Are you thinking of doing MBA?
and basic stuff like that.
Tips: You need to be thorough with the profile you are applying for, why you are applying for it and all the other basic HR questions like why this company etc.

Skills: Analyzing And Problem Solving Skills, Verbal Communication Skills, Writing Skills, Finance
College Name: IIT Kharagpur

College Name: IIT Madras

Round: Resume Shortlist
Experience: Resume shortlist based on exposure to finance field.
Tips: Exposure to finance will be beneficial.

Round: Test
Experience: Essay test. Timing 1 hr. 2 essays on general topics. Q1. Why Finance? (Compulsory to answer)Q2. What India needs to do to become a superpower by 2020? (optional 1 out of 2 questions).
Tips: English skills, grammar and essay writing skills will be beneficial.

Round: HR Interview
Experience: 2 rounds.Starts with general HR questions like: Tell me about yourself.
Then a thorough review of my resume and detailed question on finance courses and internship. Questions on the basis of my answers to this question were asked. So make sure you know what you are talking about.
Current events questions. Take on market as in where to invest and where not to with proper reasoning.Some simple puzzles and behavioral questions.
Then they let us ask if we have any questions.
Tips: Be confident and have logics to your answer and a certain finance inclination.
HR is very important in Non-core. People sort of leave it at last minute and then they sound like scripted in interview. SO give yourself some time at least 10-15 days for getting your HR answers look right and real. Speak in front of friends or mirror.

General Tips: 1st and 2nd year: 
Just explore different options to figure out your interests. Don’t restrict yourself and try every opportunity you get in any field.

3rd year: 
Polish you selected area of interest. Talk to seniors and figure out best way forward for you.

4th year: 
keep learning and make sure you have direction in your interest and not do anything and everything that comes your way in an interest field. Your resume should tell a “ I figured my interest out” like story.
College Name: IIT MADRAS