S&P Interview Questions & Reviews
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Updated Feb 10, 2012 – Interview questions and reviews posted anonymously by interview candidates.
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Difficulty Rating [?] Based on 33 ratings 
“Average” Interview
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Interview Experience [?] Based on 33 ratings
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| 1–10 of 33 S&P Interviews | Sort by |
Senior Applications Developer at S&P
Posted Feb 10, 2012
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3.0
Average Interview
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Overall Negative Experience
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Interviewed and No Offer
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Interviewed Dec 2010 in New York, NY (took 3 days)
I interviewed with S&P for a Sr. Application Developer position. For the most part, it was a negative, but also important experience. It was important because it was an experience like no other, and that in itself provided a valuable experience that I can take with me and learn from. I interviewed with 5 total people: recruiter, hiring manager, teammate 1, teammate 2, and hiring manager's boss. Of these 5 people, it was the recruiter and hiring manager whom I liked (and I think also liked me). The teammates 1 and 2 I thought did not respect my experience what-so-ever. They drilled me with irrelevant technical, pointed questions that only someone who spends their fridays and saturday nights at home would know. They expected rote memorization in my answers. That is something, I am proud to say, I do not endorse. Moreover, they didn't let me talk about my experiences and what I've done in my career. They kept drilling me with technical questions. The hiring manager's boss (the last guy I interviewed with), just seemed like a jerk. He's probably the one who gave the orders for the nature of the interview. Also, they gave me a 50+ question technical exam. This exam you cannot do well unless you do significant preparation on beforehand. I think conducting such an exam, once again, indicates they do not respect your experience and believe that using such metrics indicate someone's intelligence and ability level. They will use the exam as a bargaining tool at the end of the interview. It's kinda deceptive. In the end, even if I got a job offer from S&P, I would have declined it. I took the interview in the first place more as a primer for other interviews I had at different firms. No point in working for these kinds of people.
Interview Questions
Other Details
I Applied Online and the interview consisted of a Phone Interview, a 1:1 Interview and a Skills Test.
Helpful Interview?
Yes |
No
Inappropriate?
Human Resources at S&P
Posted Jan 19, 2012
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3.0
Average Interview
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Overall Neutral Experience
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Interviewed and No Offer
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Interviewed May 2011 in New York, NY (took 2 weeks)
I had applied online and within 2 days, received a phone call which turned into a very brief phone screen. It was being conducted by a coordinator, she sounded a bit green and was nervous with the questions. I met the minimum qualification and was invited for an onsite first round with the recruiter and senior director. The interview went well, pretty standard questions (ie. going through the resume, "why are you looking to leave?") and the recruiter was pleasant. She gave an overview of what the department is about and what she believes the position will be accountable for. However since this position reports to her senior, she could not confirm what the job entails to 100%. I was disappointed that at last minute my interview with the sr. director was canceled and will need to be rescheduled. Things happen, what can you do.
Another 2 days passed, I was rescheduled to return to meet with the sr. director. She was a bit all over the place, understanding the fast paced culture - assuming that's the "norm". Our interview was short, exactly 30mins. She asked a few questions and went into details of the job expectations, the organizational alignment. We ended the interview and she did confirm there are 2 other individuals she has to interview as part of the internal recruiting process. It was odd, since most companies would have completed the internal interviewing prior to going external. She mentioned they'll have a decision in the next week or so. I did the standard 'thank you letters' and reiterated my interest - - however after 4 weeks have passed, didn't hear back from the company, no e-mail, no rejection, not even a "thanks but no thanks" note, safe to assume it's filled. Oddly enough, ran into the recruiter at a job fair - she remembers me and awkwardly advised me the job was filled by an internal.
My experience with this company was fair, while I enjoyed networking however would have liked to get some type of feedback (positive or negative).
Interview Questions
Other Details
I Applied Online and the interview consisted of a Phone Interview and a 1:1 Interview.
Helpful Interview?
Yes |
No
Inappropriate?
Communications Intern at S&P
Posted Nov 5, 2011
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3.0
Average Interview
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Overall Positive Experience
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Interviewed and No Offer
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Interviewed Jun 2011 in London, England (United Kingdom) (took 2 days)
Upon applying to S&P online for an internship with their communications department, I received a phone call from human resources with preliminary questions concerning my education and background. About an hour later, I received another call from the same person offering me an in-person interview with the head of the press office at their Canary Wharf location.
On the day of the interview, I arrived about 15 minutes early. Instead of waiting that entire time, my interviewer came out early and was very friendly. We talked for about 15 or 20 minutes while he looked through my CV and asked me a series of questions about why I wanted the job, what my background was, and what I thought my strengths were. He then went to find a higher up, who came in and sat down with me individually as well. They were both very personable people and the interview never seemed contrived or awkward. The office was extremely nice and the environment was professional yet surprisingly calm.
I received a phone call a few days later from the same person at HR. He gave me great reviews on my interview, actually quoting a couple of the things the interviewers had said about the interview. He then gave me the interview statistics of how many people applied (over a hundred) and how many people were called in for an interview (less than 10). So I didn't get the position, but the experience was extremely positive and also provided me with helpful practice and feedback.
Interview Questions
Other Details
I Applied Online and the interview consisted of a Phone Interview and a 1:1 Interview.
Helpful Interview?
Yes |
No
Inappropriate?
Rating Specialist at S&P
Posted Nov 4, 2011
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3.0
Average Interview
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Overall Neutral Experience
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Received and Accepted Offer
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Interviewed Aug 2009 (took a day)
Relaxed and informal.
Interview Questions
Negotiation Details
Fast and effective
Other Details
The interview consisted of a 1:1 Interview.
Helpful Interview?
Yes |
No
Inappropriate?
Risk Solutions at S&P
Posted Oct 19, 2011
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3.0
Average Interview
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Overall Positive Experience
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Received and Accepted Offer
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Interviewed Sep 2011 in London, England (United Kingdom) (took 2+ weeks)
Be specific, know your thing very well and try to be a very communicative candidate.
Interview Questions
Other Details
I Applied Online and the interview consisted of a 1:1 Interview, a Group/Panel Interview, a Skills Test, a Personality Test and a Background Check.
Helpful Interview?
Yes |
No
Inappropriate?
Intern at S&P
Posted Oct 13, 2011
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2.0
Easy Interview
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Overall Neutral Experience
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Received and Accepted Offer
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Interviewed May 2011 in New York, NY (took 1 week)
Got a call from HR then scheduled an interview with the managers. Talked with 2 people and the interview lasted 1 hr. The questions were all general behavioral questions and some regarding your skills set.
Interview Questions
Negotiation Details
did not negotiate
Other Details
I Applied Online and the interview consisted of a Phone Interview and a Background Check.
Helpful Interview?
Yes |
No
Inappropriate?
Quantitative Analytics Intern at S&P
Posted Jul 20, 2011
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2.0
Easy Interview
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Overall Positive Experience
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Received and Accepted Offer
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Interviewed Oct 2010 in New York, NY (took 2 weeks)
phone reception not so good. they asked some statistical question, ie. comparison between normal distribution and student t distribution, ANOVA (analysis of variance), linear regression (like what does r square stand for, how it is calculated, what are the components of sum of squares, etc). also they asked what statistical software programs I have used, like Matlab, SAS and describe the command I used to manipulate data
Interview Questions
Other Details
I got the interview through a College or University and the interview consisted of a Phone Interview and a Group/Panel Interview.
Helpful Interview?
Yes |
No
Inappropriate?
Programmer at S&P
Posted May 11, 2011
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4.0
Difficult Interview
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Overall Neutral Experience
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Interviewed and No Offer
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Interviewed Apr 2011 in New York, NY (took 1 week)
The HR contacted me and called me in for an on-site interview. I spoke with the HR person for 30 minutes, then took a 1 hours analytical and programming written test, followed by 2 45-minute interviews with 2 managers
Interview Questions
Other Details
I got the interview through a Recruiter and the interview consisted of a Phone Interview, a 1:1 Interview, a Skills Test and a Background Check.
Helpful Interview?
Yes |
No
Inappropriate?
Structured Finance Ratings Intern at S&P
Posted Apr 30, 2011
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4.0
Difficult Interview
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Overall Positive Experience
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Received and Accepted Offer
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Interviewed Apr 2011 in New York, NY (took a day)
I had phone interview with the person from the structured finance department. I was well liked enough that I got the offer for a summer internship the next day. Talked about the economy and the future of it. Barely went over resume. He was testing my knowledge on current events.
Interview Questions
Other Details
I got the interview through an Employee Referral and the interview consisted of a Phone Interview and a Background Check.
Helpful Interview?
Yes |
No
Inappropriate?
Data Analyst at S&P
Posted Apr 13, 2011
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3.0
Average Interview
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Overall Positive Experience
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Interviewed and No Offer
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Interviewed Mar 2011 in London, England (United Kingdom) (took 2 weeks)
Applied online and got a call from HR 3 weeks later to arrange for an interview. The first interivew was with the hiring manager and her subordinate. The interview was very relaxed and they basically went through the CV and asked questions related to your previous work experience. I was contacted 1 week later to come back for second interview. This time with two managers from other departments and lasted for an hour. It's been more than 2 weeks since my second interview. Tried emailing HR for an update once and never got a reply. Followed up with a phone call and was told she has not heard anything from the hiring manager and will follow up and let me know. Few days later and I'm still waiting for an update.
Interview Questions
Other Details
The interview consisted of a Group/Panel Interview.
Helpful Interview?
Yes |
No
Inappropriate?
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