Worked solutions · Timed papers · Firm-style rounds
Quant interview prep
500 questions of the kind asked in trading and research interviews, each with a worked answer. Browse them by topic, or run 30 against the clock and review every answer at the end.
Start a timed quiz Browse all 500
- 500
- questions
- 7
- topics
- 30
- per timed round
Try it: pick an answer.
Pick a topic
Probability
Expected value, conditioning, random walks, order statistics and the classic puzzles.
24 easy · 72 medium · 51 hard Jane Street · Citadel · Hudson River Trading · Two SigmaBrainteasers
Counting, pigeonhole, weighing and logic puzzles, with the short argument that cracks each.
28 easy · 59 medium · 27 hard Jane Street · SIG · DRW · Five RingsStochastic calculus
Brownian motion, Itô’s lemma, martingales, Girsanov and Black–Scholes.
15 easy · 19 medium · 4 hard Citadel · Goldman Sachs · Morgan Stanley · J.P. MorganStochastic differential equations
Geometric Brownian motion, Ornstein–Uhlenbeck and CIR, hitting times, Fokker–Planck, simulation schemes and Girsanov.
1 easy · 32 medium · 17 hard Goldman Sachs · Morgan Stanley · J.P. Morgan · CitadelStatistics & machine learning
Regression, regularisation, classification metrics, estimation and backtest pitfalls.
26 easy · 17 medium · 0 hard Two Sigma · Citadel · D. E. Shaw · MillenniumExpected value & market making
Fair value, betting and Kelly, options intuition and quoting against informed flow.
19 easy · 22 medium · 1 hard SIG · Optiver · IMC · Jane StreetMental arithmetic
The fast, exact arithmetic trading interviews test under time pressure.
36 easy · 25 medium · 5 hard Optiver · Flow Traders · IMC · Akuna CapitalTimed tests, firm guides and the coding round
The banks teach the ideas. These put them under the conditions you will actually meet. Firm guides: Jane Street · Optiver · Citadel · IMC · Five Rings · Two Sigma · D. E. Shaw · DRW · HRT · SIG · G-Research · Flow Traders.
Common questions
What questions are asked in quant interviews?
Trading firms such as Jane Street, Optiver and SIG lean on probability, expected value, brainteasers, market-making games and fast mental arithmetic. Research roles at firms such as Citadel and Two Sigma add statistics, machine learning and, for derivatives roles, stochastic calculus. The specific questions rotate every season; the types stay the same.
How should I practise quant interview questions?
Out loud, and before looking at the answer. Say how you are setting the problem up, give a rough estimate, then solve it. Once the types feel familiar, practise against the clock: the timed quiz gives 30 questions per round with a full review at the end.
Is mental arithmetic really tested in trading interviews?
Yes. Optiver, Flow Traders, IMC and Akuna are known for timed arithmetic tests: candidates describe about 80 questions in 8 minutes at Optiver, and Flow Traders states 75 in 10 for its graduate traders. It is also the most trainable part of the process: a few minutes a day for several weeks makes a clear difference.
Do I need stochastic calculus for a quant interview?
For trading roles, rarely. For quant research and derivatives roles, expect Brownian motion, Itô's lemma, martingales, change of measure and Black–Scholes. The stochastic calculus bank covers exactly that level.
PDF · Edition 2 · £79
The Quant Careers Report
These questions are what the interviews contain. The report covers the rest: each firm’s process, the pay it states, and the graduation dates it accepts.
Have a live process?
Questions on a page only go so far. The rest is doing them out loud with someone who interrupts, pushes back and asks the follow-up. I work as a high-frequency trading quant and run these sessions one to one.