Optiver

Role: Quantitative Trading Summer Internship

College: Not Specified

Interview Date: Not Specified (content seems recent and detailed)

Interview Type: Internship

Result: Not Specified

Difficulty: Very Tough

Rounds: 4 (2 rounds of Online Tests, 1st Round Interview, 2nd Round Interview)

Topics Asked: Mental Maths (80 in 8), Identifying Sequences, Personality Test, Zap-N (Gamified Assessment), SHL General Ability (percentages, graph interpretation), Behavioral (Why degree, Why trading, Why Optiver, Communication, Teamwork, Failures, Skills, Hobbies), Options Theory (Call/Put, Greeks, Delta, Vega), Market Making Games, Estimation.

Experience:

The overall impression of the interview process for this Quantitative Trading Summer Internship was that it was very tough, especially the mental maths and second-round interview, requiring quick thinking and decision-making under pressure. However, it was considered a fair process.

Online Tests (Round 1):
Optiver heavily emphasizes quick numerical decisions. This round included:

• "80 in 8" mental maths test (80 questions in 8 minutes).
• Identifying sequences test.

These results were manually reviewed by HR.

Online Tests (Round 2):
If successful in the first round, a second round of online tests was sent:

• Personality-based test (stated not to influence interview progression, only context for behavioral interview).
• Zap-N: A "gamified assessment" with about 10 mini-games (e.g., remembering number strings, reaction time tests). Similar to Pymetrics.
• SHL "General Ability" test: Questions on simple percentages, reading data from graphs, and interpreting information.

The first round of online tests was considered harder than the second, and where most candidates drop out, making mental maths practice crucial.

1st Round Interview:
This was with someone from the campus recruiting team, described as casual and conversational. Communication was heavily emphasized. Questions included:

• Short introductions.
• Why the chosen degree?
• Why a career in trading, specifically?
• Why Optiver (over other market-making firms)?
• Top skills for a good trader (beyond quantitative/technical).
• A time working in a team.
• Why communication is important.
• Biggest failure.
• Hobbies not on the CV.
• Strongest skill that makes the candidate stand out.
• Weakest skill.

2nd Round Interview:
This interview was with a trader, and no pen-and-paper or calculator was allowed. Two market-making games were played, one at the start and one near the end, to check if feedback from the first game was applied. The game involved giving a bid and ask price with a fixed spread, with the interviewer buying or selling. The candidate had to move bids and asks based on new information. Additional questions included:

• Estimation questions, requiring an initial estimate and confidence intervals (50% and 90%).
• What are call and put options?
• Name a few of the Greeks.
• Explain Delta (positive/negative for call/put) and Vega (positive/negative for call/put).