Venture Capital Firm First Round Interview

Today, I will write about my experience passing the first round interview of a venture capital firm. This venture capital firm predominantly invests in technological companies. A huge reason why I was able to get the first round interview was due to the fact that I had some start up experience that they felt were relatively interesting. The first round interview was done by phone and was fairly informal, with several exchanges of ideas of the tech industry in general towards the end of the interview.

Without further ado, I will list some questions that I was asked. The questions were fairly usual, and more based on "fit" rather than technical expertise or advanced financial modelling skills like using comparables to value a private firm.

Questions:

1. Tell me more about yourself
2. Tell me more about your start up experience
3. What was the biggest challenge and success of your start up experience
4. Which of our portfolio companies do you think are viable and why

The questions asked were short and sweet, but usually involved several interactions with the interviewer digging more into most of the things that I said. At the end of the interview, I asked some questions and it lasted for another 10 minutes. The questions I asked were mainly based on things that I wanted to know like the general trend in the industry, how the tech industry is evolving and professional views on the tech sphere.

At the end of the interview, I was told that I have passed and proceeded to a 2nd round interview with another analyst earlier this week. I am still waiting for the response on my 2nd round interview but I personally felt that I did alright, and was glad that I did not felt the nervousness that I first experienced during my disastrous bulge bracket interview. I really hope that I will get an offer from this firm.

I just have a simple tip for my readers and that is to always send a thank you note to the interviewer after the interview. Do root for me in getting a solid internship during summer this year!