| Topic Name: |
Summer internship in investment banking |
| Message Name: |
Lunch Interviews |
| Date Posted: |
01/20/2000 |
| In Reply To: |
Well - then why don't you tell me what to do, brainy Michael!? And we'll see if it's gonna be smart or if you just got a chip on your shoulder.
I sure wish you could get into the school I'm at, you could then make some real money and buy yourself a life. |
| Message: |
To answer MBA's original question:
Lunch interviews are generally not something about which to worry. The common advice of "be yourself" applies. Lunch interviews frequently feature multiple candidates with multiple bankers on hand. The idea is to provide you with an informal setting to understand more about the firm/job, as people are generally less conformtable asking what they really want to know (i.e. how many hours do you work) from behind a desk. However, it is also an opportunity to see how you interact in an unstructured enviornment.
If you are placed with other candidates, they are looking to see who is the chatterbox who never lets anyone else speak and who is the quite type that never talks. You are not supposed to treat this as a competitive situation where your ability to make notworthy comments is pitted against others. Instead, its a chance to interact with you as a person, rather than as an interviewee.
Should your interview be alone, with just a couple of bankers, the same rules apply. Here, however, you are expected to have questions and be able to carry a coversation (remember, both sides need to talk) for an hour-and-a-half.
Contrary to popular opinion, these lunches are not there to test if you can use the correct fork with each course. I know of plenty of senior bankers with absolutely awful table manners. Just don't do anything stupid and you'll be OK.
The one thing to look for, though, is getting in a situation in which the other candidates are all from another school (not yours) and at least one banker is an alumni of said school. This places you at a significant disadvantage, since you cannot talk about how the football team is doing or the renovations on the new business building. My advice in these situations is to keep your mouth shut. Its very easy to say something stupid or get snide looks from the others. The conversation is bound to pass, so just go with the flow. The same advice applies to any conversation in which you are not comfortable commenting. If two people are talking about art, don't interject with a comment that demonstrates your ignorance.
A lunch is important, but not nearly as critical as the "regular" interviews that preceed or follow it.
THL
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