I've been teaching Mathematical Finance for over a decade and always
have students ask for advice on how to be successful when interviewing
for a job.
There are many sources of interview questions available. These are
usually written by people who were unable to answer the questions they
were asked when interviewing, and tend to go out of date quickly in our
fast-paced world.
Here is some general advice that never goes out of date that I wish I had
gotten when I was first starting out my career:
Be on time.
Dress appropriately.
Stand up straight.
Hold your shoulders back, but be relaxed.
Smile, but not too much.
Make eye contact, but not too much.
Get a good night's sleep before the interview.
You have spent years preparing and there is no way to cram the night before.
Use search tools to familiarize yourself with the company.
Bring paper copies of your resume printed on high quality stock.
## While Interviewing
Every employer wants to hire smart people who can get along with other people in their company.
All you need to do is show them you can add value and work well with others.
Listen to your interviewer.
Be responsive to what they say.
If you don't know the answer to a question just say so.
Tell them how you would approach finding a solution if you don't know the answer.
- Don't tell them you would use Google/Stack Overflow. Everyone uses those.
- Identify what the input data and output data should be.
- Suggest tests that would verify the solution is correct.
- Often that will be a good clue to the solution.
Never get flustered, but that is easier said than done.
## Ask Questions
After the interview they will probably ask if you have questions.
If they don't, that is a warning bell.
Don't be shy about asking question even if they don't solicit them.
Ask future colleagues about their work.
- What technical environment do you use? (Operating system/Software)
- What is your typical day like?
- If there is one thing you could change, what would it be?
- Don't ask about salary and benefits until they bring it up.
## Final Advice
Sometimes you will find you don't actually want the job.
Walk away and find an employer that is a better fit for you.
## Credits
Thanks to Scott Dorsey, Grant Edwards, B. Elijah Griffin, Stephen Harris,
Ted Heise, Dallman Ross, Bradley K. Sherman, and James Wetterau for
excellent feedback. Any errors or omissions are entirely on me.
