The interview process is unconventional, but after initially applying on their website they send straightforward instructions and everyone is very helpful and friendly. The first thing they will send is instructions for a small analysis exercise. They emphasize it should take no longer than 1 hour to complete, but it took me substantially longer (though within the time limit they gave, and it was very clear I had a good answer once I got it). Along with your reply to the initial exercise you will answer several brief application questions, including providing GPA and standardized test scores if you took them. If you pass the initial exercise you will receive a link to a recording of an hour-long information session that describes YipitData’s business model, the company’s organization into various teams, skills learned during training, salary, advancement possibilities, and culture. While this information is very helpful, it may not cover applicants’ specific questions traditionally answerable during a preliminary interview with a recruiter. I assume YipitData requires applicants to complete the lengthy take-home exercise before interviews so they have a manageable number of people, and I wouldn’t be surprised if the recruiters would be happy to answer applicants’ questions by email before sending the exercise given how responsive they are. Still, it would be good to have an opportunity to ask additional questions built into the interview process before doing the take-home assignment. The take-home assignment is due one week after you receive it. They send both written and video instructions, along with a specific template document for submitting answers. Prior knowledge of investing will come in handy, as will good exploratory data analysis/visualization capabilities, but far from demanding sophisticated modeling capabilities, it only requires descriptive statistics to complete. You can reach out to the grader if you have questions, and they will likely reach out to you with follow-up questions if you left out details or made redeemable mistakes. The assignment should be enjoyable if you wish to continue the interview process, but it also requires a lot of free time, especially if you get a lengthy list of follow-up questions. Thus people who for whatever reason don’t have much free time to spare may find it harder to succeed at this part than people who do. The fact that prior experience or knowing specific software is not required opens the Data Specialist position to a wider pool of qualified applicants; I suspect that for some of them, the time demanded up-front closes it. You also should have a fairly good idea you want this job before making all that effort, something that is harder to know without asking questions. If you do complete and pass the take-home exercise, the next step is a quick video interview with the recruiter asking typical behavioral interview questions. The recruiter will tell you what to expect for the subsequent video interviews with members of the Product and Revenue teams. You can schedule these interviews to be all at once or separate. If you don’t run out of time you will finally have designated opportunities to ask specific questions and if you do run out, everyone’s very approachable so they will be happy to answer them by email. They might even schedule another interview to answer questions or assess cultural fit, as they did for me. The final step after interviews is providing 3 references, at least one of which must have worked as your supervisor. I applied in late December, finished required interviews mid-February, and got an offer early March. The lengthy process and the fact there are set start dates for training purposes means that you may not start until a few months after you applied, so be prepared for that possibility. Between the exercises and interviews I learned a lot about the position, the process was very smooth except for some technology hiccups during video interviews, everyone is friendly, open and honest, and I got a good sense of my fit with the work and the culture. It took a lot to get there though, and having more opportunities to ask questions earlier would help everyone decide whether it’s worth going for it.

The interview process was very structured and conducted in a professional manner. First there was a talk with HR, and after that I had to a take-home assignment to assess some analytical skills. After it was approved, I went through a technical interview with a case study, and after that I went through two more interviews to assess soft skills and talk about my prior experiences in more detail.