Goldman Sachs: public research and practice themes
Global investment bank. This independent page organizes general study themes alongside public background information; it is not an employer-endorsed interview guide.
About Goldman Sachs
Goldman Sachs is a global investment bank and financial services firm headquartered in New York. Its investment banking division advises corporations, financial sponsors, and governments on mergers and acquisitions, financings, and other strategic transactions.
Analysts join across industry coverage groups and product groups, including M&A, leveraged finance, equity and debt capital markets, and financial sponsors. Coverage teams own the client relationship within a sector, while product teams bring transaction expertise across sectors.
For interview prep, that structure matters more than the brand. The technicals you should emphasize depend on the group you are actually talking to, and the fundamentals below cover the common ground every group expects.
What to emphasize in your prep
Valuationemphasis 3 of 3
Be fluent in trading comparables and precedent transactions, and be ready to explain how you would pick and defend a multiple. Valuation questions test judgment as much as mechanics.
M&Aemphasis 3 of 3
Be ready to walk through how a merger gets evaluated and modeled, including the accretion and dilution math, and to explain the strategic logic in your own words. That connects directly to Goldman Sachs's work in M&A advisory.
Accountingemphasis 2 of 3
Make sure the three financial statements, and how they connect to each other, are automatic. Interviewers use accounting questions to check whether you can reason quickly under pressure, not just recite a definition. That applies to Goldman Sachs as a global investment bank, whichever group you talk to.
DCFemphasis 2 of 3
Practice building a discounted cash flow out loud, from unlevered free cash flow through to a defensible valuation range. Be ready to explain every assumption, not just the formula.
LBOemphasis 2 of 3
Know how a leveraged buyout comes together: sources and uses, a basic debt schedule, and how leverage, cash flow, and multiple change drive the return. That connects directly to Goldman Sachs's work in Leveraged finance.
Marketsemphasis 2 of 3
Stay current on where rates, credit spreads, and major indices sit, and be ready to connect that backdrop to financing conditions and deal activity in plain terms. That connects directly to Goldman Sachs's work in Equity capital markets.
Practice questions
How to talk about Goldman Sachs
- Be specific about the group. A bank this size recruits into many teams at once, so anchor your answer in the coverage or product group you are interviewing with, not the firm in the abstract.
- Read how the firm describes its own advisory business on its site and in its annual letter, then connect one theme to your story in your own words.
- Ground your interest in the kinds of transactions the groups work on (mergers, financings, IPOs) rather than name-dropping specific deals you cannot discuss in depth.
What to expect from the process
Recruiting at large banks like Goldman Sachs generally runs through a structured, campus-driven process: an application, one or more resume or video screens, then a superday of several back-to-back interviews in a single day. You typically meet analysts and associates from the group you applied to, sometimes joined by a VP or MD in later rounds, with a mix of technical and fit questions in most rounds. Processes vary by group, office, and recruiting cycle.
Frequently asked questions
More firms to prepare for
Prepping for Goldman Sachs? Get the full question bank as a PDF.
General educational practice prompts with study explanations for offline review. They are not firm-provided questions.
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