Called to interview....for far more advanced job??

sports_brah

sports_brah

sports_brah

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As per the title, I received a phone call today from a really big company offering me an interview tomorrow. I applied for their graduate program, but this is a clear step above it.

I've got a rough knowledge of the topic, and I'm certainly willing to learn, but I'm panicking at blowing my chance of the graduate programme.

Is it normal to get called to another interview which is of a far higher ranking and how can I best prepare? (It's for a financial position with a very strong emphasis on certain instruments of which I've only really touched upon in my Masters).

Should I try and blag it (without lying obviously), or should I be upfront about my current levels, but temper it with a strong desire to work?

Thanks
 
Be honest but confident in your abilities.

Explain your ambitions and what that you are eager to progress.
 
“If somebody offers you an amazing opportunity but you are not sure you can do it, say yes – then learn how to do it later!”

Richard Branson.
 
LordSplodge said:
“If somebody offers you an amazing opportunity but you are not sure you can do it, say yes – then learn how to do it later!”

Richard Branson.
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This, but don't exaggerate too much. They should have read your CV anyway, so they'll know the level of your experience.
 
You shouldn't need to blag anything... you likely won't be able to blag this sort of thing anyway. They will already know you've not got too much experience going by your CV... if you're a student then they won't necessarily be expecting you to be an expert in a particular area. You might have an issue if you've put a bunch of things down on your CV which you only really have a shallow amount of knowledge of - I think you posted a few threads recently regarding some rather diverse topics where you basically just wanted an overview. Just be careful as you can potentially be asked on anything on your CV so if you've say put down 'machine learning' but in reality it was just a small section of that business intelligence exam or whatever it was you posted the thread about then you may well be asked questions you can't answer very well. If you've just stuck to mentioning things you're happy to discuss with them then there shouldn't be an issue. Either way its still good interview practice regardless.
 
dowie said:
You shouldn't need to blag anything... you likely won't be able to blag this sort of thing anyway. They will already know you've not got too much experience going by your CV... if you're a student then they won't necessarily be expecting you to be an expert in a particular area. You might have an issue if you've put a bunch of things down on your CV which you only really have a shallow amount of knowledge of - I think you posted a few threads recently regarding some rather diverse topics where you basically just wanted an overview. Just be careful as you can potentially be asked on anything on your CV so if you've say put down 'machine learning' but in reality it was just a small section of that business intelligence exam or whatever it was you posted the thread about then you may well be asked questions you can't answer very well. If you've just stuck to mentioning things you're happy to discuss with them then there shouldn't be an issue. Either way its still good interview practice regardless.
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This is a valid point. My CV has been fairly brief (my degree and masters are summarised merely by module titles) so in that respect I think I'm grand. The job seems to demand a very very high level of excel (derivatives) and a high level of maths.

I'm capable, but I'm not sure I'm capable enough.


Still like you said, its good interview practice.
 
sports_brah said:
I'm capable, but I'm not sure I'm capable enough.
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That is for them to decide, not you. After all, they know exactly what the job entails. Tell them exactly what you can do, tell them it is exactly the type of opportunity you dreamed of, and that, with the right guidance you believe you would be able to excel in the position.

How did the machine learning exam go, btw ?
 
Tuppy_Glossop said:
That is for them to decide, not you. After all, they know exactly what the job entails. Tell them exactly what you can do, tell them it is exactly the type of opportunity you dreamed of, and that, with the right guidance you believe you would be able to excel in the position.

How did the machine learning exam go, btw ?
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Yup, I'm sure this forum can continue to provide you with all the answers to the questions your new career poses!
 
Tuppy_Glossop said:
That is for them to decide, not you. After all, they know exactly what the job entails. Tell them exactly what you can do, tell them it is exactly the type of opportunity you dreamed of, and that, with the right guidance you believe you would be able to excel in the position.

How did the machine learning exam go, btw ?
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Good advice thanks. I'm just conscious of the fact that the job market is so damn tough, that slip ups cannot be tolerated!

The BI exam went grand, I had a good understanding of the questions that came up. Scored highly in my coursework as well so I'm confident for that module. :)
 
sports_brah said:
This is a valid point. My CV has been fairly brief (my degree and masters are summarised merely by module titles) so in that respect I think I'm grand. The job seems to demand a very very high level of excel (derivatives) and a high level of maths.

I'm capable, but I'm not sure I'm capable enough.


Still like you said, its good interview practice.
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So is it something along the lines of you've applied for a bank's grad scheme to join as an analyst and they've decided to interview you for an associate position? Presumably because you're doing a relevant masters of some sort?
 
dowie said:
So is it something along the lines of you've applied for a bank's grad scheme to join as an analyst and they've decided to interview you for an associate position? Presumably because you're doing a relevant masters of some sort?
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Something like that yep. The associate thing seems to be above a dude who has just done his degree+masters with no experience.
 
sports_brah said:
Something like that yep. The associate thing seems to be above a dude who has just done his degree+masters with no experience.
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Yup would usually require an MBA at a bank... but 'something like that' indicates this isn't a role at a bank... They wouldn't ask to interview you if the qualifications weren't enough for the position they've got on offer and they can't expect too much if they're happy to offer the role to someone with no experience. Also be aware that some employers do oversell positions, especially in finance, it might turn out its really not quite as demanding as first anticipated.
 
dowie said:
Yup would usually require an MBA at a bank... but 'something like that' indicates this isn't a role at a bank... They wouldn't ask to interview you if the qualifications weren't enough for the position they've got on offer and they can't expect too much if they're happy to offer the role to someone with no experience. Also be aware that some employers do oversell positions, especially in finance, it might turn out its really not quite as demanding as first anticipated.
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Its a very large company one of the largest financial service players. Don't want to say on thread.

Your comments mirror my own fears, hopefully you're right and they are overselling.

Would you mind if I send you an email later with the job spec for your opinion? You seem pretty damn knowledgeable!
 
You work fast, 2 weeks from asking how to quickly learn accountancy for an exam to an interview offer for an advanced job in a bank :eek: :p
 
I'm not sure how much help I'd be, probably not my area - I wouldn't have any experience of asset managers, accountancy firms, consultancies etc... I currently work at a fintech firm and the clients I work with are large banks. Aside from going through the Hull & Wilmott books you could probably take a look at this coursera course:

https://www.coursera.org/course/fe1
https://www.coursera.org/course/fe2

As for how much they've hyped up the role you can normally use some common sense there - for example IT roles they might try and make sound appealing by emphasizing how much exposure to the front office you'll have etc... simply asking where you/the team will be sitting could be revealing there.
 
[TW]Fox;26336965 said:
You work fast, 2 weeks from asking how to quickly learn accountancy for an exam to an interview offer for an advanced job in a bank :eek: :p
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Now you know why I'm questioning it. :p

(I get what you are insinuating, if it satisfies you I'll post proof after interview :p)



dowie said:
I'm not sure how much help I'd be, probably not my area - I wouldn't have any experience of asset managers, accountancy firms, consultancies etc... I currently work at a fintech firm and the clients I work with are large banks. Aside from going through the Hull & Wilmott books you could probably take a look at this coursera course:

https://www.coursera.org/course/fe1
https://www.coursera.org/course/fe2

As for how much they've hyped up the role you can normally use some common sense there - for example IT roles they might try and make sound appealing by emphasizing how much exposure to the front office you'll have etc... simply asking where you/the team will be sitting could be revealing there.
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Here's an example

edited out
 
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