Hedge fund interviews are un-structured with a majority (probably 95%) hiring on a “need” basis rather than a structured recruitment program.   HF recruitment dates and deadlines can happen all throughout the year.

 Step 1: Meeting with Headhunter Recruiters

First year bankers will start meeting with Headhunters about 7-8 months into their program.  Understanding the strength of each headhunter is very important, you don’t want to be unprepared.  Treat headhunter meeting just like real interviews: wear a suit and bring resumes.  Headhunter meetings are generally all behavioral but there are some that will ask technical questions.

You should be prepared to talk about:

• Your background
• Why you want to join a Hedge Fund
• What type of Hedge Fund do you want to join
• Examples of Hedge Funds you are interested in
• Pitch one long and one short stock
• Walk through your recent deal experience
• Click here for more information about Headhunter Interviews

You should also spend as much time as possible networking and finding leads to friends/family within the Hedge Fund community. Talk with close senior bankers within your group and get advice from bankers that have already made the jump.

Step 2: Preparing for the interview

Whether you get a first round from a Headhunter, Senior Banker, or family connection, you need to be fully prepared.  Hedge fund managers are hiring you for one reason: to make them money.  You need to have a real-time sense of what is going on in the market, news, and world events.  You need to demonstrate a passion for investing: why are you interested in the market? Why do you want to be a hedge fund analyst? Why do you want to work at this hedge fund?

Most important to your interview is being able to pitch both long and short ideas.   I can guarantee you will be asked to pitch at least 1 long and 1 short in every hedge fund interview.  Street of Walls has collected the best hedge fund case studies you can find, this is great for understanding how hedge fund analysts write-up investment ideas and also preparing for case studies of your own.

I have also spent a great deal of time building out the Hedge Fund Interview Guide.  This is a +50 page packet with everything you need to know to land a job at a hedge fund.  This guide is what I recommend as the best way of preparing for hedge fund interviews.