I interviewed for an Equity Analyst position with Bloomberg in Princeton, NJ a couple of weeks ago. I was told by the 5 different hiring managers who interviewed me that unlike everyone else interviewing for the job I was able to deduce that the Equity Analyst position was ultimately a sales job despite its research and analysis appearance. In fact most everything about the job is automated. The only research and analysis component is going through an exception queue to review items that get caught up in middle ware. This brings into question why anyone with an MBA, CFA, Masters in Financial Engineering, or Masters in Financial Mathematics would want to perform tasks this mundane in nature. What’s more interesting is that the compensation range ($60,000-$75,000) for this position is well below market and what someone with a Masters Degree or CFA designation would or should consider. Sure the company benefits are good, but they don’t make up for the fact that the prospects for a financial return on an investment in education are limited for someone with these over-qualifications. The interview went well despite the fact that the HR Person decided not to be in the office that day and that he either directly or indirectly misled me about expectations. I was at their offices for 3.5 hours instead of anticipated 1 hour, I met with 5 hiring managers not 1 hiring manager, and I took a surprise 45 minute accounting test that should have been administered to a 5th grader. I left their offices with a relatively good feeling but knew that I would have to decline further discussion based on salary range and lack of legitimate comparable offers. I received a call from the HR person the following Monday, he was very polite and cordial when he informed that they would not be proceeding with me for the next round. Oh yea, I forgot to mention that Bloomberg planned to conduct multiple rounds. Not the usual 1-2 rounds, but a prolonged 3-4 rounds.