Goldman Sachs's campus hiring process has three main steps: an online application, a first-round video interview on HireVue, and a Superday of final-round interviews. Engineering applicants also take a HackerRank assessment. Goldman doesn't publish its interview questions, so the questions below are the kinds to prepare for, built from its stated values and the skills it says it looks for.
The process details come from Goldman Sachs's student preparation page, its guide to the HackerRank assessment and its purpose and values page. Where Goldman doesn't say something, we say so.
The Goldman Sachs hiring process at a glance
| Stage | What happens | What Goldman Sachs says about timing |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Application | Apply online for a programme, division and location. Goldman encourages you to learn about all its divisions first. | Applications are reviewed throughout the recruiting season |
| 2. HackerRank (engineering) | Engineering applicants complete a HackerRank assessment as part of the application. | An update from campus recruiting within three weeks of finishing it |
| 3. First interview | A video interview on HireVue. | About 30 minutes to complete |
| 4. Superday | A series of final-round interviews with a cross-section of people you could work with. | Typically two to five interviews for campus hires, depending on the division |
| 5. Decision | Goldman updates you on your application. | At least three updates: on receipt, during the season and at the end of the season |
What is the Goldman Sachs hiring process?
You apply online, complete a first-round video interview (and a HackerRank assessment if you're applying to engineering), then attend a Superday if you're selected. This is the process Goldman describes for students and graduates. Its student programmes range from one-week spring internships to full-time analyst and associate roles.
Goldman doesn't publish a process for experienced hires. Its programmes for professionals cover a returnship, a neurodiversity hiring initiative and a veterans integration programme, but not the interview steps. If you're applying as an experienced hire, ask your recruiter what to expect.
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How does the Goldman Sachs application work?
You apply through Goldman's campus portal after choosing the programme, division and location that fit your skills. Goldman points out that the same skills can transfer between divisions, so it suggests reading about all of them before you decide. Its divisions range from Investment Banking, FICC and Equities, and Asset Management to Engineering, Risk, Operations and Compliance.
Before you apply, Goldman suggests registering for My GS Events, its virtual and in-person information sessions, workshops and networking events. Your careers office can also connect you with Goldman alumni. For application help, Goldman points you to its FAQs or careersfeedback@gs.com.
After you apply, Goldman says it evaluates applications throughout the recruiting season. You can check your status at any time in the application portal.
What is the Goldman Sachs HireVue interview?
It's the first interview: a video interview of about 30 minutes, run on HireVue. Goldman's student page calls it "a 30-minute video meeting" and the first step if you're selected to interview. It doesn't say what the questions cover, how many there are or how long you get for each answer.
HireVue runs both recorded (on-demand) and live interviews, so read your invitation carefully to see which you have. Our guides to HireVue interview questions and one-way video interviews explain how the format works and how to answer on camera.
Does Goldman Sachs have an online assessment?
Yes, for engineering. Goldman says engineering applicants take a HackerRank assessment, and its Engineering Campus Recruiting team describes it in a guide published in August 2026. You're assigned challenges based on your role preferences:
| Challenge | Who takes it | What it covers | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Software Fundamentals | All candidates taking the assessment | Data structures and algorithms problems, in the programming language of your choice | 30 minutes |
| Software Diagnostics | Engineering roles | Diagnosing and fixing issues in an existing application built with Django (Python), Node.js (JavaScript) or Spring Boot (Java) | 45 minutes |
| Math | Quantitative Strategist roles | Multiple-choice questions on probability, statistics, calculus and linear algebra | 22 minutes |
In the Software Diagnostics challenge you get a built-in, "limited" AI assistant. Goldman says it won't give you the full solution but can help with navigating the interface, syntax or understanding the problem. Its advice is to use it as you would on the job, while applying your own judgement to check the final solution.
Goldman says your results are evaluated with the rest of your application, and you should hear from campus recruiting within three weeks. It doesn't publish a pass mark. Goldman doesn't describe an online assessment for other divisions.
Our guide to HackerRank tests explains how the platform works and how coding answers are checked.
What happens at the Goldman Sachs Superday?
The Superday is the final round: a series of interviews, typically two to five for campus hires, depending on the division. Goldman says you'll meet a cross-section of people you could end up working with. It doesn't publish what the interviews cover, how long each one lasts or whether they're in person or virtual, so ask your recruiter when you're invited.
For engineering, Goldman says it looks for strong fundamentals in distributed systems and databases, the design and analysis of algorithms, and the implementation of programming languages and run-time systems, with knowledge of finance and financial models as an added advantage.
What happens after the Goldman Sachs interviews?
Goldman says you'll hear from it whether or not it offers you an interview: shortly after you apply to confirm receipt, later in the season with a status update, and at the end of the season. Because it reviews applications on a rolling basis, you may hear about different roles at different times. It doesn't publish how long an offer takes after a Superday.
What does Goldman Sachs look for?
Goldman names four values: partnership, client service, integrity and excellence. Its 14 Business Principles, first written in 1979, add detail you can use in interviews: clients' interests come first, teamwork matters more than individual credit, confidential information must never be misused, and integrity and honesty are "at the heart of our business". One principle covers hiring directly: Goldman says it makes "an unusual effort" to find the best person for every job.
For engineering, Goldman says it looks for "creative collaborators" who adapt to change and do well in a fast-paced global environment.
Common Goldman Sachs interview questions and how to answer them
Goldman doesn't publish a question list. The questions below are types to prepare for, built from its values, its Business Principles and the skills it lists. Use the STAR method (situation, task, action, result) for the "tell me about a time" questions.
1. Why Goldman Sachs?
Be specific. Name the division you applied to, what it does and why that work suits you. Goldman encourages applicants to attend its events and talk to alumni, so mention what you learned from someone you spoke to or an event you attended.
2. Why this division?
Show you've read how the division works. Investment Banking serves corporations, financial institutions and governments; Global Investment Research produces research on economies, markets and stocks; Engineering builds and deploys the firm's technology. Connect the division's work to something you've already done.
3. Walk me through your resume.
Keep it short. Goldman says skills can transfer between divisions, so pick the two or three experiences that show skills the division needs, say what you did and what came of it, and finish on why that division fits.
4. Tell me about a time you worked on a team to reach a goal.
Partnership is the first of Goldman's values, and one Business Principle says the firm has "no room" for people who put their own interests ahead of the team's. Choose an example where you helped others succeed, and be clear about your own part.
5. Tell me about a time you went beyond what someone expected of you.
This tests client service, which Goldman describes as understanding someone's goals and overdelivering on them. Use an example with a customer, client or stakeholder, and say how you found out what they really needed.
6. Describe a situation where you had to do the right thing under pressure.
Integrity is a core Goldman value, and its Business Principles say breaching a confidence would be "unthinkable". Pick a real example where you held to a standard when cutting a corner would have been easier, and say what it cost you.
7. Tell me about your proudest achievement.
This speaks to excellence, which Goldman defines as striving for exceptional performance. Choose something you worked hard for, explain the standard you set yourself, and show the result with specifics.
8. Tell me about a time you failed.
Goldman describes a culture of feedback and apprenticeship. Pick a real setback, own your part in it, and spend most of your answer on what you learned and what you now do differently.
9. Tell me about a time you had to learn something quickly.
Goldman's student pages describe an apprenticeship culture where you learn by doing. Show how you got up to speed, who you asked for help and how quickly you were contributing.
10. What's a market or business development you've been following?
For roles in banking, markets and research, expect to talk about the wider world. Pick one story you understand well, explain what happened and why it matters, and say what you'd watch next. Depth beats breadth.
11. Solve this data structures or algorithms problem.
For engineering, the HackerRank Software Fundamentals challenge tests data structures and algorithms, and Goldman lists algorithms among the skills it looks for. Clarify the problem, talk through your approach, write working code, then discuss its time and space complexity.
12. Here's some unfamiliar code with a bug. How would you find it?
Goldman's Software Diagnostics challenge is about working in an existing codebase. Read before you change anything, reproduce the problem, make a targeted fix and test it. Explain how you'd check any suggestion from an AI tool.
13. Do you have any questions for us?
Ask the interviewer about their own work, how their team collaborates with others, or what new joiners learn in their first months. Avoid questions you could answer from Goldman's careers site.
How to prepare for the Goldman Sachs interview
- Choose your division carefully. Read Goldman's division descriptions and pick the ones where your experience fits.
- Attend a Goldman event through My GS Events, or talk to alumni through your careers office, so you can answer "Why Goldman Sachs?" from experience.
- Prepare five or six STAR stories that cover teamwork, client service, integrity, a high standard you set yourself, a failure and fast learning.
- Practise answering on camera before the HireVue interview, ideally with a timer and someone who'll give you honest feedback.
- For engineering, take a HackerRank practice assessment, review data structures, algorithms and complexity, and practise debugging code you didn't write. For Quantitative Strategist roles, review probability, statistics, calculus and linear algebra.
- Follow one or two business stories in depth if you're applying to banking, markets or research.
- Do a mock interview before your Superday, so a run of back-to-back interviews doesn't feel unfamiliar.
For another bank's process, see our JPMorgan hiring process guide.
Practising realistic work tasks
Goldman's interviews look for people who can do the work and work well with others, and both improve with practice on realistic tasks. Cohesyve, which publishes this guide, runs practice job simulations for your role, with a scored report on where you lost marks. It isn't affiliated with Goldman Sachs and doesn't use Goldman Sachs's interview questions or assessments.
FAQs
How long does the Goldman Sachs hiring process take?
Goldman doesn't publish a total. It reviews applications throughout the recruiting season and updates you on receipt, during the season and at the end of the season. Engineering applicants should hear back within three weeks of finishing the HackerRank assessment.
How long is the Goldman Sachs HireVue interview?
Goldman says the first-round video interview takes about 30 minutes. It doesn't publish how many questions there are or how long you get to answer each one.
How many interviews are in a Goldman Sachs Superday?
Typically two to five for campus hires, depending on the division. You'll meet a cross-section of people you could work with.
Does Goldman Sachs use HackerRank?
Yes, for engineering applicants. All candidates taking it complete a 30-minute Software Fundamentals challenge; Engineering roles add a 45-minute Software Diagnostics challenge, and Quantitative Strategist roles add a 22-minute maths challenge.
Can I use AI in the Goldman Sachs HackerRank?
Only the built-in, limited AI assistant in the Software Diagnostics challenge, which Goldman provides. It helps with navigation, syntax and understanding the problem but won't give you the solution.
Do I need a finance background to work at Goldman Sachs?
Goldman says it recruits from all academic backgrounds into its university programmes and entry-level roles. For engineering, it calls knowledge of finance "an added advantage".
Sources
Goldman Sachs's own pages, checked 27 October 2026:
- goldmansachs.com: Students: prepare
- goldmansachs.com: Students
- goldmansachs.com: Your Guide to HackerRank Success (13 August 2026)
- goldmansachs.com: Careers in Engineering
- goldmansachs.com: Explore our firm
- goldmansachs.com: Our purpose and values
- goldmansachs.com: Programs for professionals