BlackRock HireVue Interview Questions and How to Answer Them
BlackRock asks campus applicants to record answers to a few questions straight after applying. These are the questions candidates report, grouped by type, with how to answer them.
Your first session is free with a free account. After that, Interview Access is £5 once for up to 20 sessions, with no subscription.
How the BlackRock HireVue works
BlackRock HireVue questions candidates report
9 questions from BlackRock HireVue interviews. Prepare a story for each type rather than a script for each question.
Motivation and fit
Why BlackRock?
Why this position?
Why this team?
What are you passionate about?
Spring Week
Problem solving and decisions
How do you solve problems?
Tell me about a data-driven decision you made.
BlackRock news and current affairs
Describe any recent BlackRock news that you found interesting.
What’s a current affairs topic that interests you, and how does it affect BlackRock?
Engineering
Solve the Happy Number coding problem, then record a two-minute video explaining your thought process.
Software Engineering intern
How to answer BlackRock HireVue questions
Anchor “Why BlackRock” in a principle
BlackRock publishes five principles: we are a fiduciary to our clients, we are One BlackRock, we are passionate about performance, we take emotional ownership, and we are committed to a better future. The first adds “Our clients’ interests come first.” Pick the one that fits you best, and back it with something you have done rather than repeating the wording.
Answer “why this position” for your function
The questions are set for the programme you applied to, so “why this position” and “why this team” mean that function. Say what the team does, who it serves and what you would work on in your first year, then link one part of it to your degree, a project or a job.
Have one BlackRock story ready
Two reported questions ask about recent BlackRock news and a current affairs topic that affects the firm. Prepare one story you can tell in three steps: what happened, what it means for BlackRock and its clients, and what you think. The same story can cover both questions, so pick one you understand well.
Show the evidence in a data-driven decision
“We are passionate about performance” says the firm is “relentless about finding better ways to serve our clients and improve our firm.” For the data-driven decision and problem-solving questions, name the data you used, the choice it led to and what improved, with a number if you have one.
Show One BlackRock in team answers
BlackRock describes One BlackRock as working “collaboratively, without silos and without turf”. In any team example, say what you did yourself, then how you helped people outside your own part of the work.
Engineering: explain your code out loud
Engineering candidates report two coding questions, then a two-minute video on their thought process. Cover the approach, why you chose it over the obvious alternative, its time and space cost, and the edge cases you tested.
Tips for recording your answers
- Do the assessment as soon as you apply. BlackRock does not consider an application until it is complete.
- Check your camera, sound and light before you start. Candidates report no retakes once an answer is submitted.
- Use the thinking time for three notes: your point, your example and the result. Do not try to write the answer out.
- Aim to finish in about 75 seconds so the 90-second limit does not cut you off.
- Look at the lens, not your own picture, with the camera at eye level.
- Engineering: practise talking through a solved problem in two minutes before the real one.
Frequently asked questions
How many questions are in the BlackRock HireVue?
BlackRock does not publish a number. Candidates report two or three, set for the programme you applied to, and the whole assessment taking under 10 minutes.
How long do you get to answer BlackRock HireVue questions?
Candidates report up to 90 seconds per answer, with between 30 seconds and three minutes to think first.
Can you retake answers in the BlackRock HireVue?
Candidates report no retakes once an answer is submitted, so check your set-up before you begin.
Does the BlackRock HireVue have coding questions?
For Software Engineering and Analytics and Modeling, yes: BlackRock adds a coding challenge. Engineering candidates report two coding questions and a two-minute video explaining their approach.
What happens after the BlackRock HireVue?
If you are selected, you interview with people from the function you chose. BlackRock says this may include a group exercise, presentation or case study.
Practise for the BlackRock HireVue
Our AI interview practice uses the same one-way format: five questions on screen, 60 seconds to prepare, then up to a minute to answer on camera. Choose the finance focus and the questions lean towards finance, with feedback on relevance, clarity and structure and on what finance assessors look for, such as commercial awareness and integrity. You also get a model answer to your weakest question.
The questions are ours, not BlackRock’s. Start answering before the 60 seconds are up to match a shorter thinking time, and since practice lets you re-record, do one session in a single take.
Your first session is free with a free account. After that, Interview Access is £5 once for up to 20 sessions, with no subscription.