I applied online. The process took 3 weeks. I interviewed at Northwestern Mutual (Chicago, IL) in Jun 2020
Interview
It was a typical interview where they ask basic questions like “what are 3 words that describe you”. After that it gets sketchy. They want you to sell to friends and family which, for me, is morally wrong to sell something you don’t necessarily believe in. They’ll sell you the story of the 1 of 1000 advisors that makes boat loads of money but won’t talk about failures. They mention how you won’t only be an insurance salesman and a bunch of other stuff. Felt disingenuous but the interview itself was straight forward.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
What three words would you use to describe yourself?
Very professional and provide a deep background and understanding of the company. The recruiters are very friendly and help guide you through the interview process. Is a multi-step interview process including surveys and questionaries.
I applied online. I interviewed at Northwestern Mutual (San Diego, CA) in Jun 2026
Interview
The interview process is smooth, they get back to you relatively quickly. I completed the first 3 rounds within a week but they did reschedule my 4th interview after confirming. Nothing bad to say yet honestly.
I went through three rounds. You have an initial screening, a one hour interview with an advisor, then meet with a partner in-person if possible. Very detailed, and they bring up cultural test results and financial projections.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Who is someone in your current network that could benefit from this?
Financial Advisor applicants have rated the interview process at Northwestern Mutual with 2.4 out of 5 (where 5 is the highest level of difficulty) and assessed their interview experience as 55% positive. To compare, the company-average is 56.8% positive. This is according to Glassdoor user ratings.
Candidates applying for Financial Advisor roles take an average of 17 days to get hired, when considering 729 user submitted interviews for this role. To compare, the hiring process at Northwestern Mutual overall takes an average of 20 days.
Common stages of the interview process at Northwestern Mutual as a Financial Advisor according to 729 Glassdoor interviews include:
One on one interview: 24%
Phone interview: 19%
Personality test: 11%
Background check: 9%
IQ intelligence test: 9%
Skills test: 7%
Presentation: 7%
Drug test: 6%
Group panel interview: 5%
Other: 3%
Here are the most commonly searched roles for interview reports -