Goldman Sachs · Investment banking analyst · Summer Analyst / Analyst

Finance fundamentals conversation

The technical seat of the banking superday: accounting, valuation and a DCF walk

What they actually ask

The question shapes this round uses. Larpy does not read these out. It builds each one from your own resume, because the generic version is the one you have already rehearsed.

“Walk me through the three financial statements and how they connect.”
“If depreciation goes up by 10, walk me through how that flows through all three statements (assume a 40 percent tax rate).”
“What is the difference between enterprise value and equity value?”
“What are the main valuation methodologies, and which one tends to give the highest value?”
“Walk me through a DCF.”

What this round is judged on

Accounting · the three statements and how a change flows through them
Valuation · comps, precedent transactions and DCF, and when each applies
DCF · a clean high-level walk (free cash flow, WACC, terminal value)
Commercial reasoning · stating assumptions and holding up under a changed one

How Larpy grades this

We score these the way an analyst would. Per topic, what a strong answer lands and the confidently-wrong answers Larpy catches.

ACCThree-statement flow of a depreciation change
Strong
nets the tax effect correctly (net income down 7.5, not 10); adds the full non-cash charge back on the cash flow statement; closes the balance sheet and states that it balances.
We flag
claims extra depreciation raises net income or cash (it lowers net income; cash rises only by the tax shield); forgets the tax rate and moves the full 10 through pre-tax to net income; leaves the balance sheet unbalanced.
VALWalk me through a DCF
Strong
uses UNLEVERED free cash flow discounted at WACC (not levered FCF or cost of equity); includes a terminal value and discounts it back; sums to enterprise value, then bridges to equity.
We flag
discounts unlevered cash flow at the cost of equity; omits terminal value (it is usually the majority of the value); forgets to subtract the change in working capital or capex.

Larpy builds a fresh question per topic from your resume and grades the full answer live. Start the mock for the worked model answer.

Where this round sits

Goldman Sachs’s published process. Lime marks the stage this round runs.

01
Application and resume screen
02
First-round video interview (about 30 minutes)
03
HackerRank assessment (engineering applicants)
04
Superday: behavioral and fit interview
05
Superday: technical interviewthis round
06
Superday: live coding interview (engineering applicants)
07
Decision and team match

What happens in each stage›

Application and resume screen: Online through the Goldman Sachs careers portal. Applications are evaluated throughout the recruiting season, so candidates hear back on different roles at different times, and campus pipelines open very early, often around a year ahead of the start date.
First-round video interview (about 30 minutes): Goldman's own students page states it: if your application is selected you are asked to participate in a video interview that takes approximately 30 minutes. The firm's next step then refers to it as your HireVue interview, so this is a recorded, one-way round rather than a live conversation. Banking and engineering applicants both sit it.
HackerRank assessment (engineering applicants): Goldman states that engineering applicants are also asked to take a HackerRank assessment. Timed and automated: coding problems plus multiple choice on CS fundamentals, math and probability. Investment banking analyst candidates do not sit this stage.
Superday: behavioral and fit interview: Goldman describes the superday as a series of final-round interviews, typically between two and five for campus hires depending on the division, where you meet a cross-section of people you could work with. This is the seat that reads motivation, teamwork and firm fit.
Superday: technical interview: The technical seat inside the same day. For engineering it is CS fundamentals with a Goldman-signature probability and estimation push. For investment banking analysts it is accounting, valuation and a DCF walk, spoken rather than modelled.
Superday: live coding interview (engineering applicants): A shared-editor coding seat inside the engineering superday. Banking analyst candidates do not sit this stage.
Decision and team match: Divisional review and team matching, then the offer.

Sources

Built from what Goldman Sachs publishes about its own process and from real interview data. No leaked question lists. The questions you get are generated against your own resume, so they are not from anyone else's interview.

companyGoldman Sachs Careersgoldmansachs.com
Stated values: partnership, client service, integrity, excellence; culture phrasing ('for those who insist on excellence, strive for performance, and thrive on opportunities to learn from the best') and the apprenticeship framing. Bot-blocked (403) to an identified crawler; a human can read it.
companyGoldman Sachs Careers, Studentsgoldmansachs.com
Official first-step phrasing: 'If you're selected to interview, your first step is a 30-minute video meeting.' Also the internship scale (2,500+ interns, 500+ schools represented). Bot-blocked (403) to an identified crawler.
companyGoldman Sachs Careers, Students: how to apply and preparegoldmansachs.com
The published six-step process. Step 5, First Interview: 'you will be asked to participate in a video interview, which will take approximately 30 minutes to complete. Engineering applicants will be asked to take a HackerRank assessment.' Step 6, Superday: 'If selected following your HireVue interview, you'll be invited to a series of final round interviews. Typically, we conduct between two and five interviews for campus hires, depending on the division.' Bot-blocked (403) to an identified crawler.
companyGoldman Sachs Careers, Investment Banking divisiongoldmansachs.com
How the division is organised (Classic Investment Banking by industry group, the Mergers & Acquisitions Group, the Financing Group) and the published 'Who We Look For': comfortable working with numbers, an analytical thinker, strong communication and interpersonal skills, and able to thrive where multitasking and time management are essential. Bot-blocked (403) to an identified crawler.
dataLevels.fyi, Goldman Sachs Investment Bankerlevels.fyi
Banking level ladder: Analyst, Associate, Vice President, Executive Director, Managing Director, with Analyst as the entry level. No interview-process content.

Sources last checked August 11, 2026. Hiring loops change, so this date is the honest limit on everything above.