What is the Goldman Sachs HireVue interview like?
Goldman Sachs sends a HireVue link to most campus and early-career applicants after the resume screen. Candidates report 3 to 6 questions with about 30 seconds to think and up to 2 minutes to answer each, and the recording cuts off at the limit. Reports on retakes conflict, from none to two optional, so record each answer as if it is the only take.
The bank runs the same screen for every applicant to a program so the answers can be compared. The questions below are what candidates report from recent cycles, with the competency each one is testing, plus one worked answer timed to the clock.
| Questions | 3 to 6 |
|---|---|
| Time to think | 30 seconds |
| Time to answer | 90 seconds to 2 minutes |
| Retakes | no confirmed rule, with reports running from none to 2 optional and a re-record deleting the earlier take |
| When it comes | after the online application and before any live interview; engineering and technology tracks add a separate HackerRank or CoderPad coding assessment |
| Who gets it | summer analyst, new analyst, and some associate programs |
What candidates report for early-career screens. Goldman Sachs can change the bank by role and by year.
Want a run-through first? HireVue practice gives you the same timed format with your answers scored, free.
The clock and the format are the same HireVue product every employer uses. The timing guide covers what happens when the timer runs out, and how HireVue scoring works covers what the recording is scored on.
What does Goldman Sachs look for in a HireVue interview?
Goldman publishes four core values: partnership, client service, integrity, and excellence, alongside its 14 Business Principles. Its HireVue questions map onto the values almost one to one, so build one story for each.
- Teamwork. A story where you made a group better, including the version where a teammate was not pulling their weight.
- Motivation for the firm. A reason for Goldman and the division that is about the work, backed by something you read or did.
- Resilience under pressure. A hard stretch, what you decided, and what happened after.
- Integrity. A moment you did the right thing when it cost you something.
- Market awareness. A headline or deal you follow, what actually moved, and a view on it.
Build one story for each line above. Every question below is asking for one of them.
What questions does Goldman Sachs ask on HireVue?
These are the questions candidates report from recent Goldman Sachs screens, with the competency each one is built to test. Your set will be a mix of these and close variants.
- Why Goldman Sachs, and why this division? (Motivation, research)
- Walk me through your resume. (Communication, career logic)
- If you had to describe yourself in three words, what would they be? (Self-awareness)
- What would you do if a teammate was not pulling their weight? (Teamwork, accountability)
- Tell me about a time you had to turn down a project because of other deadlines. (Prioritization, judgment)
- What is a recent headline or deal you have followed, and what is your view on it? (Market awareness, communication)
- Tell me about a time you changed your decision based on new information. (Judgment, flexibility)
- Describe a time you received tough feedback. What did you change? (Coachability)
Answer question 1 out loud, then see your score for clarity, structure, filler words, and pacing, and the one thing to say better. No signup.
For the shape of each answer type, see HireVue interview questions by format. For the answer structure itself, the STAR method guide has worked examples.
What does a strong Goldman Sachs HireVue answer sound like?
Question: "Why Goldman Sachs, and why this division?"
"Two reasons. First, the work. I want to be in a seat where I build the model and sit in the room when the client asks about it, and the analyst program here puts first-years on live deals from the start. I followed the firm's work on a mid-cap industrials sale last spring and read the coverage, and the way the team framed the buyer list is the kind of thinking I want to learn. Second, how the firm works. Every person I spoke with at the campus event described the same thing: small deal teams, direct feedback, and a lot of trust early. I did best in school when the feedback was fast and specific. That is the environment I want for my first job."
Why it scores: It names a specific piece of work, shows research without reciting a press release, and gives a reason that is about how the person learns. About 65 seconds spoken.
How do you prepare for the Goldman Sachs HireVue in three days?
Specific to Goldman Sachs:
- Have one market view ready. Pick a recent headline or a deal from the last month, know what actually moved and why, and hold a position on it. A headline summary with no view reads as unresearched.
- Know the division. "Investment banking" is not an answer. Name the group and why its work fits you, and keep the reason consistent with what you wrote in the application.
- Keep the teamwork story about a failure or a conflict, not a success. Goldman asks for the hard version.
- Engineering and technology candidates also complete a separate HackerRank or CoderPad coding assessment alongside the HireVue. It is a different tool with its own prep.
For any HireVue:
- Day 1. Write one story per competency in the list above. Two or three sentences each: the situation, what you decided, what happened.
- Day 2. Say each story out loud on a two-minute timer. Most people run long the first time. Cut until each one ends on the result with time to spare.
- Day 3. Run the reported questions cold, in one sitting, no notes. Then set up the room: quiet, camera at eye level, light on your face, wired internet if you have it.
The full setup checklist and a five-day version of this plan are in the free HireVue practice guide.
After you submit, results often take a week or more. Here is how to follow up after an interview if the window passes, and a salary negotiation email for when the offer comes. Applying for a move up where you already work? See promotion interview questions.
Other companies that use HireVue
Company guides in this series, each with the reported questions and a worked answer:
- JPMorgan Chase HireVue (investment banking)
- Morgan Stanley HireVue (investment banking)
- Citi HireVue (banking)
- Bank of America HireVue (banking)
- Barclays HireVue (banking)
- Deutsche Bank HireVue (banking)
- Bain & Company HireVue (consulting)
- Boston Consulting Group HireVue (consulting)
- Deloitte HireVue (consulting and professional services)
- EY HireVue (professional services)
- Unilever HireVue (consumer goods)
- PepsiCo HireVue (consumer goods)
- Amazon HireVue (technology and operations)
- IBM HireVue (technology)
- Boeing HireVue (aerospace and engineering)
- Hilton HireVue (hospitality)
- Delta Air Lines HireVue (airlines)
- McDonald's HireVue (restaurants)
- Shell HireVue (energy)
- PwC HireVue (accounting and professional services)
- Accenture HireVue (consulting and technology services)
- Vodafone HireVue (telecommunications)
- Kraft Heinz HireVue (consumer packaged goods)
- Wells Fargo HireVue (banking)
- BlackRock HireVue (asset management)
- UBS HireVue (banking)
- United Airlines HireVue (airlines)
- Emirates HireVue (airlines)
- Marriott HireVue (hospitality)
- Johnson & Johnson HireVue (health care)
- PNC HireVue (banking)
- Kaiser Permanente HireVue (health care)
- KKR HireVue (private equity)
- Keurig Dr Pepper HireVue (consumer goods)
- Target HireVue (retail)
- Walmart HireVue (retail)
- Nike HireVue (sportswear)
- Macy's HireVue (retail)
- Citizens HireVue (banking)