The process took 1+ week. I interviewed at Cornerstone Research
Interview
I applied online. Shortly after that got a phone screen invitation and called with consultants in different offices. Interviewers were very nice but the guidance from the first interviewer was not very relevant. For people with finance background, pls expect financial cases. I spent much time on econometrics for preparation, but the cases were about M&A and derivatives. And be sure to think in-depth before you answer. Think about the details and be very specific. Not invited for 2nd round.
I interviewed at Cornerstone Research (New York, NY)
Interview
The first interview was via Zoom, and the second (final) interview was on-site. The first interview consisted of two sessions with different associates. Each session lasted about 30 minutes. The second interview had the same format but just had more sessions throughout the day. I was asked how to go about defending clients' cases given some descriptions of the cases.
I applied through an employee referral. The process took 3 weeks. I interviewed at Cornerstone Research (New York, NY) in Nov 2025
Interview
I was invited for the first round of the selection process. This involved two one-on-one interviews, each 45 minutes long. There were two types of questions. One about my research and the other was a case study. In both, successive questions built up on previous questions.
I applied online. The process took 2 weeks. I interviewed at Cornerstone Research (Chicago, IL) in May 2025
Interview
There was first a chat with the interviewers with getting to know you questions, and then a case study based on real cases- you need to know your antitrust, merger and industrial organization knowledge.
Associate applicants have rated the interview process at Cornerstone Research with 3.3 out of 5 (where 5 is the highest level of difficulty) and assessed their interview experience as 58% positive. To compare, the company-average is 69.2% positive. This is according to Glassdoor user ratings.
Candidates applying for Associate roles take an average of 24 days to get hired, when considering 66 user submitted interviews for this role. To compare, the hiring process at Cornerstone Research overall takes an average of 17 days.
Common stages of the interview process at Cornerstone Research as a Associate according to 66 Glassdoor interviews include:
One on one interview: 36%
Phone interview: 19%
Presentation: 11%
Skills test: 11%
Background check: 9%
Group panel interview: 8%
Other: 2%
IQ intelligence test: 2%
Personality test: 1%
Drug test: 1%
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