HSBC Group Associate Analyst Interview Questions and Answers

Round: Resume Shortlist
Experience: Most people with CGPA more than 7.5 made it to the test shortlist.

Round: Test
Experience: Not very different from the aptitude tests of most other companies. Technical test was also like an aptitude test but involved more questions from probability.
Duration: 1 hour

Round: Technical Interview
Experience: I had course relating to multivariate data analysis and applied time series. The interviewer mostly checked how comfortable I am with thise topics. Following this he asked a probability question. How many times do you have to toss a coin until you get 2 heads in a row?
After this he asked about my project where I had mathematically solved partial differential equations. He asked more about the methods that I used and so on.

Round: HR Interview
Experience: A long interview with 2 panelists. It is very important to come well prepared for this rpund. It is okay if the technical round wasnt as good as expected but HR interview is critical.

College Name: IIT Madras

Round: Test
Experience: It was an aptitude test including basic quantitative aptitude, logical reasoning data interpretation, reading comprehension and finance section( this section was there only in HSBC it included few concepts which we learn in Engineering Economics and some basic idea of bond and stocks can be useful) but even if you don't do that well in this section you can still clear the test as I did rather most of us did.

Round: Group Discussion
Experience: 2nd round( Group Discussion):- 50 students were shortlisted after round 1 for GD. Other Topics were:- 1) Rupee devaluation pro's and con's 2) FDI

Round: HR Interview
Experience: It can revolve around banking stuff if you know it or else it can be simple H.R round also in which they might ask you about your internship even if you have done it in core or they can give you some case study and be prepared with all puzzles.

Round: HR Interview
Experience: It was more or less the same as 3rd round it was taken because the panel was bit confused about whom they should reject

General Tips: The overall experience was very good the panel was quite friendly it became tiring because I finished my 3rd round at 2:30 am and had my 4th round 8:00 am in morning so be prepared for such hectic schedule and do not let it affect your performance.
Skill Tips: Just read "THE HINDU" daily. Read properly about recent reforms which can affect the corporate world (e.g land acquisition bill was reformed just before my interview so I used it in my case study so anything can be useful) Try to be unique in your answers for questions like, why you want this company?, why we should recruit you?
College Name: NIT SURATHKAL

Round: PPT
Experience: Attend the PPT if you aim to get into HSBC. The team tends to notice your presence and absence, and the questions you ask. It makes a good first impression. If your pointer is on the lower end, be sure to do this - it shows interest, and they really do appreciate you taking the effort.

Round: Test
Experience: Written Aptitude test: Consisted of 3 sections - Quantitative Aptitude & Data Interpretation (important), Verbal & Logical Reasoning (important), and lastly, Economics and Finance Questions. There was negative marking, and as far as we were told - sectional cut-offs as well! The finance and economic section is not that important - but it does have some questions from the PPT.

Round: Group Discussion
Experience: Super simple. Format is 10 people in a GD, starting with a round robin introduction, a 20-minute discussion, and then round robin conclusion. Selections were based on the points people made, and how they interacted with others.
Duration: 20 minutes

Round: Other Interview
Experience: Interview: Entirely based on your resume - they go quite in depth. Some questions you will be asked for sure: about your internships, projects, and academics, your motivation to join analytics, motivation to join HSBC, location preferences, your career objectives, your interests. They also randomly stopped me mid-sentence and asked me my GRE score. I hadn't written GRE, but I hear some people who did fell for the ploy. Be careful I guess.

General Tips: The interview process was informal - the team is really nice! I think that helped me be a lot calmer and represent myself better.
Skill Tips: Have a well-formatted one-page resume. Make sure everything on your resume is 100% true, especially your interests. Be genuine.
Skills: Apti questions.
College Name: NIT SURATHKAL

Round: Test
Experience: It was a basic Apti test through which they shortlisted around 40-50 students.

Round: Group Discussion
Experience: So, be prepared with current affairs, slightly on the financial side, for this company, as they also expect you to reason out your decision.

Round: Other Interview
Experience: The next round was Personal Interview. It was a very casual interaction where I told them about my projects and enquired about the job profile and growth.

General Tips: It was rewarding. The process is not only about getting a job, but learning about certain life skills which help you through the process. Patience and determination are the key.
Skill Tips: As far as the Apti is concerned, speed and accuracy is very important and only regular practice can get you there. And take Apti very seriously because it is an elimination process and you have to fight your way in. GDs require a sound knowledge of current affairs and most importantly you should have anopinion about most of the issues. Newspapers, most importantly the editorial section which has experts offering their views on issues will help you develop your opinion. Personal interview is a round where you can steer the whole conversation to your advantage by taking them only through your positives and strengths. Be confident, show that you are genuinely flexible and speak with conviction.
College Name: NIT SURATHKAL