Do sophomores get technical questions in IB interviews?

Yes, but at a fundamentals level: the three statements, a DCF, and enterprise versus equity value. You are judged more on clarity and effort than on depth.

How long should my answer to walk me through your resume be?

Under two minutes. Cover the choices that led you to banking, not every line on the page, and end on why this is the next step.

What if I do not know the answer to a technical question?

Say what you do know and reason toward an answer out loud. Do not guess with confidence. Interviewers forgive a gap far more easily than a made up answer.

Are LBO and accretion and dilution questions asked of sophomores?

Sometimes, mostly at a basic level and more often at superdays. Know why leverage raises returns and what makes a deal accretive, but put your time into the fundamentals first.

Where do the sample questions come from?

Each question in our bank carries its source: sourced from real interviews and public reports, reported by students who were asked it, or generated as a variation of those. The tag is shown next to each one.

Investment banking interview questions sophomores should know

Sophomore investment banking interviews ask four kinds of questions: behaviorals (walk me through your resume, why banking, why this bank), accounting (how the three statements link), valuation (how a DCF works, enterprise versus equity value), and basic deal questions. Behaviorals carry the most weight for sophomores, and the technical bar is the fundamentals, explained clearly, not advanced modeling.

Updated November 6, 2026. Live data checked against each firm's own careers site 1m ago.

What gets asked in a sophomore IB interview?

Interviewers know a sophomore has not worked in banking, so they test whether you understand the basics and whether you would be good to work with. Expect most of a first round to be about you and your reasons, with a few technical questions to check you did the reading.

Superdays go deeper. You may get harder technicals asked fast with follow ups, and more questions about the bank and its recent deals. The sample below comes from our question bank, each with its source.

1.Walk me through your resume.
2.A company buys 100 of PP&E with cash. Walk me through the statements on the day of purchase.
3.What is the PEG ratio and what does it tell you?
4.Would you rather buy a fast growing software company that burns cash or a slow growing industrial with steady cash flow in an LBO? Why?
5.Be ready to discuss Lazard's recent deals in a sector you follow.
6.A company's enterprise value is $200 today. If it buys a $100 factory in year four, how does the DCF change and what is the new enterprise value?

Drill these with answers

Which behavioral questions matter most?

Three questions come up in nearly every interview: walk me through your resume, why investment banking, and why this bank. Have each one down to under two minutes, in your own words, with real reasons you could defend if pushed.

The resume walk through is a story, not a list. Start with where you are from or what got you interested, move through two or three choices that led you here, and land on why banking is the next step. Why this bank needs something specific: a person you spoke with, a group, or a deal you read about.

1.Walk me through your resume.
2.Why leveraged finance?
3.Why J.P. Morgan over the other large banks?
4.What is one thing you would change about how you worked last semester?
5.What have you done with your time at university?
6.Boutiques often run very lean deal teams. Tell me about a time you owned more than your role required.

Drill these with answers

Which accounting questions should you know cold?

Accounting is the base everything else stands on, and it is the area where a sophomore can be fully prepared. If you can explain how a change flows through all three statements, you will handle most of what comes up.

Walk me through the three financial statements.
How do the three statements link together?
If depreciation goes up by a set amount, what happens on each statement?
What is working capital, and why does a change in it affect cash?
Which statement would you look at first to judge a company's health, and why?

Which valuation questions come up?

Valuation questions check that you understand why a company is worth what it is, not that you can build a full model. Know the three main methods, what each one says, and when each one is a poor fit.

What are the main ways to value a company?
Walk me through a DCF.
What is the difference between enterprise value and equity value?
Why might two companies in the same industry trade at different multiples?
How does a change in the discount rate move a DCF value?

How should you prepare, and in what order?

Prepare in the order interviewers weigh things for a sophomore: your story first, then accounting, then valuation, then deal basics. Answer out loud, not in your head, because the skill being tested is explaining clearly under mild pressure.

Write your resume walk through, why banking, and why this bank, then say each out loud until it is under two minutes.
Learn how the three statements link and drill what happens when one line changes.
Learn the DCF, enterprise versus equity value, and the main multiples.
Read the basics of M&A and LBOs: why companies buy others, and how leverage creates returns.
Pick two recent deals by banks you are interviewing with and be ready to talk about one.
Do mock interviews with a friend or a club, and drill the questions you miss until you stop missing them.

Questions students ask

Do sophomores get technical questions in IB interviews?: Yes, but at a fundamentals level: the three statements, a DCF, and enterprise versus equity value. You are judged more on clarity and effort than on depth.
How long should my answer to walk me through your resume be?: Under two minutes. Cover the choices that led you to banking, not every line on the page, and end on why this is the next step.
What if I do not know the answer to a technical question?: Say what you do know and reason toward an answer out loud. Do not guess with confidence. Interviewers forgive a gap far more easily than a made up answer.
Are LBO and accretion and dilution questions asked of sophomores?: Sometimes, mostly at a basic level and more often at superdays. Know why leverage raises returns and what makes a deal accretive, but put your time into the fundamentals first.
Where do the sample questions come from?: Each question in our bank carries its source: sourced from real interviews and public reports, reported by students who were asked it, or generated as a variation of those. The tag is shown next to each one.

Investment banking interview questions sophomores should know

Updated November 6, 2026. Live data checked against each firm's own careers site 1m ago.

What gets asked in a sophomore IB interview?

1.Walk me through your resume.
2.A company buys 100 of PP&E with cash. Walk me through the statements on the day of purchase.
3.What is the PEG ratio and what does it tell you?
4.Would you rather buy a fast growing software company that burns cash or a slow growing industrial with steady cash flow in an LBO? Why?
5.Be ready to discuss Lazard's recent deals in a sector you follow.
6.A company's enterprise value is $200 today. If it buys a $100 factory in year four, how does the DCF change and what is the new enterprise value?

Drill these with answers

Which behavioral questions matter most?

1.Walk me through your resume.
2.Why leveraged finance?
3.Why J.P. Morgan over the other large banks?
4.What is one thing you would change about how you worked last semester?
5.What have you done with your time at university?
6.Boutiques often run very lean deal teams. Tell me about a time you owned more than your role required.

Drill these with answers

Which accounting questions should you know cold?

Walk me through the three financial statements.
How do the three statements link together?
If depreciation goes up by a set amount, what happens on each statement?
What is working capital, and why does a change in it affect cash?
Which statement would you look at first to judge a company's health, and why?

Which valuation questions come up?

Valuation questions check that you understand why a company is worth what it is, not that you can build a full model. Know the three main methods, what each one says, and when each one is a poor fit.

What are the main ways to value a company?
Walk me through a DCF.
What is the difference between enterprise value and equity value?
Why might two companies in the same industry trade at different multiples?
How does a change in the discount rate move a DCF value?

How should you prepare, and in what order?

Write your resume walk through, why banking, and why this bank, then say each out loud until it is under two minutes.
Learn how the three statements link and drill what happens when one line changes.
Learn the DCF, enterprise versus equity value, and the main multiples.
Read the basics of M&A and LBOs: why companies buy others, and how leverage creates returns.
Pick two recent deals by banks you are interviewing with and be ready to talk about one.
Do mock interviews with a friend or a club, and drill the questions you miss until you stop missing them.

Questions students ask

Do sophomores get technical questions in IB interviews?: Yes, but at a fundamentals level: the three statements, a DCF, and enterprise versus equity value. You are judged more on clarity and effort than on depth.
How long should my answer to walk me through your resume be?: Under two minutes. Cover the choices that led you to banking, not every line on the page, and end on why this is the next step.
What if I do not know the answer to a technical question?: Say what you do know and reason toward an answer out loud. Do not guess with confidence. Interviewers forgive a gap far more easily than a made up answer.
Are LBO and accretion and dilution questions asked of sophomores?: Sometimes, mostly at a basic level and more often at superdays. Know why leverage raises returns and what makes a deal accretive, but put your time into the fundamentals first.
Where do the sample questions come from?: Each question in our bank carries its source: sourced from real interviews and public reports, reported by students who were asked it, or generated as a variation of those. The tag is shown next to each one.