A man claims that Goldman Sachs subjected him to 39 one-on-one interviews, and the decisive conversation lasted less than a minute.
Sharran Srivatsaa, the president of Acquisition.com and a former wealth manager at Goldman Sachs, talked about how he managed to get hired at Goldman Sachs – a process that seemingly required 39 one – on – one interviews, including one that lasted less than a minute but provided insights into what it takes to land a job at a prestigious Wall Street bank.
The entrepreneur, who has been recognized as a four – time entrepreneur, recalled the unconventional interview experience that took place during his post – MBA job search. According to Srivatsaa’s account, one particular interview involved a managing director who immediately presented him with an unusual test.
“He arrives all flustered. He places this large leather binder on the desk and says, ‘You’re a high – flyer. I see high – flyers come through here all the time. See if you can arrange a meeting for me,’” Srivatsaa said. The binder contained contact information, such as names and phone numbers.
The unexpected part came in Srivatsaa’s response. Unlike previous candidates, who apparently tried to show off their sales skills by making cold calls right away, Srivatsaa asked a simple question that changed everything: “I’m glad to call her. Do you have a script or something? Because I just want to represent you well.” The managing director immediately gathered his things, shook Srivatsaa’s hand, and left after what he said was about 46 seconds.
Srivatsaa, who worked in investment management at Goldman Sachs, said he later saw his interviewer at a cocktail party and learned why their one – on – one was so short. “You’re the first person who didn’t just pick up the phone and try to prove to me that they’re a high – flyer,” the interviewer told him. “You asked me, ‘Hey, can you give me some guidance on what to do here?’ Because that made me think that you’re trainable.”
To be clear, it is well – known that getting a job at Goldman Sachs is extremely difficult. The investment bank’s recruitment process is widely considered one of the most competitive in finance, with acceptance rates that make getting into Harvard University seem easy by comparison. Goldman Sachs says more than 360,000 applicants applied for its 2025 internship program, but only 2,500 candidates were selected, resulting in an acceptance rate of around 0.7%. In contrast, [the relevant acceptance rate] stands at 4.2%. Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon said [the relevant statement] by the company.
[The recruitment process] typically involves multiple consecutive interviews conducted over one or two days, with candidates facing anywhere from three to six different interviewers. The process can include a combination of technical questions, behavioral evaluations, and case studies, all designed to assess both technical ability and cultural fit. However, Srivatsaa’s experience of 39 individual interviews seems to be exceptionally extensive, even by Goldman’s strict standards.
Goldman Sachs did not immediately respond to ’s request for comment.
[The bank looks for candidates] who show “grit and determination” and the ability to “get back up and keep going” when they face setbacks. The bank actively recruits from a wide range of schools around the world and especially values candidates with STEM backgrounds, given that Goldman employs over 10,000 engineers.
The investment bank’s competitive hiring environment reflects broader trends in elite finance recruitment, where major firms like [the relevant firms] have acceptance rates of around 0.8% for their internship programs. This intense competition has made networking and demonstrating trainability increasingly important factors for candidates trying to enter investment banking careers.
For Srivatsaa, the Goldman Sachs experience ultimately prepared him for his entrepreneurial career, where he went on to help grow the Real Brokerage into what the company describes as the fastest – growing publicly traded real estate brokerage in the world. His current role at Acquisition.com, the investment firm co – founded by Alex and Leila Hormozi, puts him on the other side of the evaluation process, where the lessons learned from his own long interview experience continue to influence his approach to identifying trainable talent.
You can watch [the relevant content] below:
Can you give me a script? 3 reasons that question wins: • Admits you don’t know it all • Shows you’ll follow direction • Gives you confidence before you call Coachable beats cocky.
For this story, [the relevant party] used generative AI to assist with an initial draft. An editor verified the accuracy of the information before publishing.
A version of this story was published on [the relevant platform] on October 7, 2025.
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