Most consulting candidates who cross-apply into banking treat the HireVue like a camera audition. They obsess over eye contact, background blur, and whether they smiled enough. That is the wrong optimization.
HireVue itself published, in 2021, that its AI scores the content of what you say after speech-to-text, not your face, and not tone or pauses. Banks that run one-way videos still capture footage for humans to watch later, so lighting and delivery are not irrelevant. But the thing that decides whether a transcript looks like an investment banking hire, or like a polished generalist who never opened a deal tombstone, is the words.
This guide is for that cross-apply. It covers which banks name HireVue-style one-way video on their own campus pages, what HireVue says is and is not scored, the IB question families with two fully worked 90-second spoken answers, and a recording setup that serves both the transcript and the human reviewer. Consulting HireVue is covered separately in the HireVue interview guide.
Which banks publish HireVue-style one-way video
Firms do not all brand the vendor the same way. Some name HireVue. Others say "on-demand" or "pre-recorded video." Treat the invitation email as the authority for your cycle. What follows is what the banks publish on their own careers pages as of the sources checked for this piece.
| Bank | What the firm publishes | Link |
|---|---|---|
| Goldman Sachs | Campus prepare page: selected applicants complete a ~30-minute video interview; the same page then refers to "your HireVue interview" before Superday. Scam advisory: GS says it interviews only via HireVue or a GS Zoom account. | Prepare, Recruiting scams |
| JPMorgan Chase | How-we-hire FAQ: some roles use an on-demand/recorded video interview; you get a window to record responses to set questions on a device with camera and mic; business attire and a quiet space recommended. | How we hire FAQ |
| Morgan Stanley | Campus article: more NA and Asia roles now require video (live or recorded) in application/screening; recruiters advise reading platform rules on time limits and re-records, and keeping answers short. | 10 tips for video interviews |
| Deutsche Bank | Early careers prepare page: for some UK, German, and APAC roles, stage 4 is a pre-recorded video interview; other regions may use a live virtual meeting. | Your application |
That table is narrower than prep folklore. Other bulge brackets often appear in candidate reports; their public pages may describe a recorded screen without naming the vendor. Do not treat Glassdoor as a primary source. If your invite says HireVue, Modern Hire, or a bank-branded portal, the prep below still applies.
HireVue's candidate FAQ says most video assessments take under 20 to 30 minutes; set aside about 45. Goldman publishes roughly 30 minutes for the campus video step. Expect five to eight prompts in HireVue's generic guidance; banks often run shorter IB sets. Prep windows and retakes are invite-specific.
What HireVue says is scored, and what is not
In early 2021 HireVue announced it had removed visual analysis from new pre-hire models after research found language predicted performance better than facial or body-language features for most roles. In September 2021, Chief Data Scientist Lindsey Zuloaga published the follow-on: AI scores only what the candidate says, and speech inputs such as tone and pauses were being removed from new models. Videos remain for human review. When a bank turns AI on, the automated path is transcript first.
HireVue's 2024 AI explainability statement repeats that boundary: speech-to-text, then competency scoring; no facial expressions, body language, background, or tone of voice.
| Signal | HireVue AI (per firm, post-2021) | Human reviewer watching the video |
|---|---|---|
| Words and structure of the answer | Scored | Heard |
| Facial expressions / body language | Not used in AI models | Seen |
| Tone, pauses, "energy" | Not used in new AI models | Heard |
| Lighting, background, attire | Not scored by AI | Seen; can distract or reassure |
| Accent / fluency as content clarity | Affects transcript quality | Affects comprehension |
Two implications. Stop budgeting half your prep for "looking natural"; budget it for a specific bank, deal, and result in under 90 seconds. Still treat the video as something a recruiter may watch: a dark silhouette will not tank an AI transcript, but it can cost a Superday slot.
Ned's rule. Prep the transcript you want a tired second-year to skim at 11 p.m.: one claim, one number, one close. If that paragraph would not survive without the smile, rewrite it.
Banks choose AI scoring, human review, or both. CoachNed is not affiliated with HireVue or any bank named here; no outsider can certify a desk's current stack. Optimize for speech that a human and a transcript both reward.
The three IB question families
Banking one-ways differ from consulting screens. Consulting leans fit and case-adjacent judgment; IB leans motivation, commercial awareness, and light technical literacy.
| Family | What the sheet is listening for | Example prompts |
|---|---|---|
| Motivation / fit | Why banking, why this bank, why this group, teamwork under pressure | Why investment banking? Why us over a peer? Tell me about a conflict on a team. |
| Markets / deals | You follow live markets and can narrate one transaction without hand-waving | A deal you have followed. A macro event that moves a sector. What interested you in a recent announcement. |
| Light technical | You did the reading; you can define, not lecture | Walk through the three statements. What is WACC? How does a DCF work at a high level? |
Build one story bank, not seven bank-specific scripts. Swap the firm name and one coverage fact from the bank's site; keep the same deal and conflict story. Deeper inventory: IB behavioral questions and IB accounting questions.
Two 90-second spoken answers (original)
Drafted to be spoken in about 90 seconds (~130 to 150 words). Record yourself once. Do not paste them into a real HireVue; invent your own deal and story with the same skeleton.
Example A: "Tell me about a recent deal you have followed."
"I have been following [Northwind Foods]'s sale of its frozen-aisle brand to [Summit Retail Partners], announced last quarter at about $1.2 billion enterprise value. What interested me was the structure, not the headline. Summit is paying roughly 9 times trailing EBITDA for a brand that had been stuck at mid-single-digit growth inside a larger parent. The press release and 8-K pointed to carve-out costs and a transition services agreement lasting 18 months, which is where an IB associate actually lives: working capital pegs, stranded costs, and who owns the brand licenses during TSA. If Summit can get organic growth to high single digits with dedicated sales force spend, the multiple looks cheaper than peers trading at 11 to 12 times. I care about that deal because it is a classic carve-out where the model and the diligence list matter more than the press photo."
Reviewer and transcript both get: named parties, a number, a structural point (TSA / carve-out), and a view.
Example B: "Why investment banking, coming from consulting?"
"I want investment banking because I want to sit on the transaction side of decisions I have only advised on. In consulting I spent last year on a cost and footprint project for a mid-market industrials client: we recommended closing two plants and consolidating SKUs. The client accepted the recommendation, then hired a bank to run the plant sales. I watched the CIM get built and realized my work stopped at the slide; the live questions were about purchase agreements, reps and warranties, and buyer lists. Banking is where that work continues under a clock with real capital at risk. I am targeting coverage and M&A because I already like structuring messy operating stories into a clean set of options. The hours are not a surprise; I want the craft of getting a deal signed, not another strategy deck that never hits a closing call."
What the sheet rewards: a specific consulting anecdote that ends in a banking job, not "I like finance and working with smart people."
Recording setup that actually helps
Morgan Stanley advises practice runs, reading time-limit and re-record rules, and short answers. JPMorgan asks for camera, mic, attire, and a quiet space. HireVue adds front lighting, strong Wi-Fi, and a practice question.
Checklist for transcript plus human review:
- Wired or strong Wi-Fi; close other tabs that eat bandwidth.
- Camera at eye level, face lit from the front; plain wall behind you.
- Hardwired or quality laptop mic; mute notifications; lock the door.
- Business professional top; same standard you would wear to a first-round Zoom.
- One index card with bullet nouns only (deal name, multiple, bank fact). No full script in frame.
- Speak to the lens for the human; enunciate for the transcript. If you trail off, stop and use a retake if the invite allows one.
Timing drill: 30 seconds silent prep, 90 seconds record, watch once, cut 20 words, repeat on five prompts. Content without the clock still fails.
Practice this before the invite lands
Invites often arrive with a 48- to 72-hour deadline. Today: record one motivation and one markets prompt under that stopwatch, then push the same stories through CoachNed's behavioral practice for live follow-ups HireVue will not ask. Keep consulting reps at /start or /interview while you cross-apply. Everything is open for seven days, no card; then $120 for a recruiting season or $49 a month.
Frequently asked questions
Do Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, and Morgan Stanley all use HireVue?
Goldman Sachs names HireVue on its campus prepare and scam-advisory pages. JPMorgan Chase describes on-demand/recorded video interviews without always naming the vendor on the FAQ. Morgan Stanley publishes guidance for recorded and live video screens. Read your invitation for the exact platform.
Does HireVue still analyze my face?
HireVue states that visual analysis was removed from new assessment models (announced around early 2021 based on 2020 research), and that AI scoring uses the content of spoken answers via transcription, not facial expressions or body language. Humans may still watch the video.
How long do I get to answer each question?
Employer configs differ. HireVue's candidate materials describe several minutes per response in a typical video assessment and advise setting aside about 45 minutes for the whole session. Many banking invites use shorter windows (often on the order of 90 seconds to three minutes). Trust the timer on your screen.
Are technical questions part of an IB HireVue?
Often lightly, yes: statement linkages, WACC, or a high-level DCF. They are a literacy check, not a modeling test. Save depth for later rounds and the IB accounting question set.
Is this the same as a consulting HireVue?
No. Question mix and commercial content differ. Use this piece for banking; use the HireVue interview guide for consulting tracks.
Sources
- Goldman Sachs — Prepare (students) — campus video interview (~30 minutes) and HireVue naming before Superday. Checked 2026-09-24.
- Goldman Sachs — Recruiting scams alert — firm states interviews only via HireVue or a GS Zoom account. Checked 2026-09-24.
- JPMorgan Chase — How we hire FAQ — on-demand/recorded video interview definition and setup guidance. Checked 2026-09-24.
- Morgan Stanley — 10 tips for a successful video interview — recorded video in screening; time limits, re-records, concise answers. Checked 2026-09-24.
- Deutsche Bank — Early careers: your application — pre-recorded video interview for some UK, German, and APAC roles. Checked 2026-09-24.
- HireVue — Industry leadership: decision on visual analysis — removal of visual analysis from new assessment models. Checked 2026-09-24.
- HireVue — The latest leap in HireVue's assessment technology (Sep 30, 2021) — AI scores what is said; speech inputs (tone, pauses) removed from new models; videos retained for human review. Checked 2026-09-24.
- HireVue — Candidate FAQ — typical session length and question count guidance for candidates. Checked 2026-09-24.
- HireVue — 2024 AI Explainability Statement (PDF) — transcription-then-score pipeline; no facial, body-language, background, or tone scoring. Checked 2026-09-24.