Walk Me Through Your Resume

The proven framework is chronological with three beats. (1) The spark / origin — a brief setup of where your interest in finance began (a class, a club, a first internship, a personal experience) in one or two sentences; don't start at birth. (2) The build — walk forward through your most relevant experiences (internships, leadership, coursework), and for each, explain not just what you did but the decision and takeaway that pushed you toward banking. This is where you show progression and increasing commitment. (3) The now — land on why investment banking specifically, why this firm, and why now, transitioning smoothly into the rest of the interview. Keep it forward-moving: each step should feel like a logical consequence of the last.

Aim for 90 seconds to 2.5 minutes — long enough to tell a real story, short enough to respect that this is the warm-up. Bankers are assessing three things: communication (can you be clear and concise under mild pressure — a proxy for client-readiness), motivation (does the story genuinely point to IB or does it feel reverse-engineered), and 'fit/coachability' (do you come across as someone they'd want in the bullpen at 2am). Deliver it conversationally, not memorized-robotic; eye contact and energy matter. Critically, seed hooks — mention a deal or experience you want them to ask about, because your walk-through directs where the conversation goes next.

Tailor the emphasis to the role and group: a coverage group cares about your interest in an industry; a product group (M&A, LFG) cares about transaction interest. Avoid the big traps: don't read your bullets verbatim, don't go chronological-but-aimless (every step must connect to the thread), don't badmouth a prior employer, and don't make the story so polished it sounds fake. If you're a non-traditional or career-switcher candidate, the walk-through is even more important — you must explicitly bridge the gap and turn the 'why the switch' question into a strength. End with momentum into 'why IB' and 'why this firm,' which are the natural follow-ups.