The Investment Banking CV Guide: How to Write a CV That Lands IB Interviews
The complete guide to writing an investment banking CV — the one-page structure, how to write quantified bullets, the keywords recruiters scan for, and the mistakes that get you binned.
An investment banking CV is not a general CV with some finance words added. It is a specific document, judged against a specific rubric, in a specific amount of time — six to eight seconds on the first pass. This guide walks through exactly how to build one that survives that pass and gets you into the interview.
The one-page rule and the right structure
If you are a student or recent graduate, your IB CV is one page. This is not a stylistic preference — it is a hard filter. A two-page student CV tells a recruiter you cannot distinguish what matters from what does not, which is the core skill of the job.
The order, for a student, is fixed:
- Education — university, degree, predicted or achieved classification, A-levels.
- Experience — internships and work experience, most recent first.
- Extracurriculars — finance societies, competitions, positions of responsibility.
- Skills & Interests — specific tools, languages, certifications.
The anatomy of a strong IB bullet
Every experience bullet should follow one structure: [strong action verb] → [specific task] → [quantified outcome]. Recruiters read the opening verb first, so weak verbs like “assisted with” or “responsible for” lose you the bullet immediately.
Weak
Responsible for helping the team with financial analysis on a transaction.
Strong
Built the comparable companies analysis for a £340m acquisition, screening 14 peers to derive an EV/EBITDA valuation range presented to the client.
Notice what changed: a strong verb (“Built”), a specific task (comparable companies analysis), and quantification (£340m, 14 peers). The work was the same — the second version simply presents it as evidence rather than as a description of being present.
Quantify everything
Quantification is the single biggest differentiator on a finance CV, and the most common failure. A bullet without a number is an unverifiable claim. Deal sizes, percentages, team sizes, rankings, revenue impact, time saved — if it can be measured, measure it. If you genuinely cannot quantify a bullet, it may not belong on the page.
The keywords IB recruiters scan for
Before a human reads your CV, an applicant tracking system often scores it for relevance. For investment banking, that means transaction vocabulary: DCF, LBO, comparable companies, precedent transactions, enterprise value, accretion/dilution. Weave these into your experience naturally — never as a keyword list. For the full mechanics of beating the screen, see how to get your finance CV past the ATS.
The education section
State your university, degree, and predicted or achieved classification unambiguously. Include A-levels (or IB / equivalent) — at this stage they are a genuine differentiator. List relevant modules if you have strong quantitative coursework, and highlight any scholarships or prizes: they are third-party proof of ability.
Common mistakes that bin a CV
- A generic personal statement (“a highly motivated individual seeking...”). Cut it.
- Inconsistent date formatting. Pick one format and right-align it.
- A photo or headshot — never on a finance CV.
- Listing “Microsoft Office” instead of specific tools (Excel financial modelling, Bloomberg, PowerPoint for pitchbooks).
- Bullets longer than two lines — they dilute impact.
The pattern: a strong IB CV reads as a tight series of quantified, transaction-flavoured achievements on a single page. Most rejected CVs contain a strong candidate — the packaging just buries them.
For the recruiter’s-eye view of what separates a yes from a no, read what Goldman Sachs recruiters actually look for — and when your draft is ready, get a free CV score against the same rubric before you apply.