SIG’s behavioral questions come in two places: the recruiter phone call (your resume, motivation, why SIG and what is happening in markets, plus a surprise probability question) and a 30-minute HR interview at Super Day. The questions asked most are why trading, why SIG, what your weaknesses are, and what your edge is over other traders. Software developer finals also include a behavioral segment alongside object-oriented design questions.
SIG’s about page lists six core values: Good Decision Making, Teamwork, Belonging, Growth Mindset, Expertise and Integrity. Its game theory page adds the decision-science ideas traders are trained on: avoiding confirmation bias, anchoring, availability bias and framing errors. The full loop is on the Susquehanna interview questions page, and candidate reports are on the Susquehanna interview experience page.
Where behavioral questions appear in the SIG loop
| Stage | What gets asked |
|---|---|
| Recruiter call | Resume walkthrough, why SIG, current markets, one probability or EV question without warning |
| Technical interview | CV discussion alongside probability |
| Super Day HR (30 min) | Why trading, why SIG, weaknesses, your edge |
| Software developer final | Behavioral questions next to OOP design; one candidate stressed communicating values clearly |
Common Susquehanna behavioral questions
1. Walk me through your resume
Framework: Two minutes, in order, with one decision-making example per line item. End with how you got interested in trading or in SIG’s technology.
2. Why trading?
Sample answer: “I like being scored quickly and honestly. In our university’s trading competition I made about 400 decisions over two days and could see within minutes which ones were good. I want a job where I keep improving a decision process against real feedback.”
3. Why SIG?
Sample answer: “SIG treats trading as decision-making under uncertainty and trains people with games, including poker and Wizard. I play bridge and I’ve spent years thinking about bidding with incomplete information. I also like that the firm is a large options market maker, because options pricing is where the math I enjoy meets real markets.”
4. What is your edge?
Sample answer: “Speed and honesty with numbers. I’m consistently above 45 on a two-minute mental arithmetic drill, and when I’m wrong I update fast: in our competition I cut a losing position within one update instead of waiting for it to come back.”
5. Tell me about a decision you made with incomplete information (Good Decision Making)
STAR sample: “Situation: Our team had to choose between two cloud setups for a project with a fixed budget. Task: Decide before usage data existed. Action: I estimated usage from a similar project, computed expected cost under low, medium and high cases, and picked the plan with the lower worst case even though its expected cost was 8% higher. Result: Usage came in high and we stayed in budget. I’d make the same choice even if usage had been low.”
6. Tell me about a good decision that had a bad outcome
Framework: This tests whether you judge decisions by process. Show the reasoning was sound, say what the result was, and explain why you would decide the same way again or what new information would change it.
7. Tell me about a time you worked as part of a team under pressure (Teamwork)
STAR sample: “During a 24-hour market-making simulation, our quoting bot crashed at hour 10. I took over manual quoting while a teammate fixed the bug and another tracked our position. We split roles in two minutes, kept spreads tight, and finished second of 30 teams.”
8. Tell me about a time you changed your mind (Growth Mindset)
Sample answer: “I was sure a rule-based strategy beat a simple mean-reversion one. I set up a fair backtest with the same costs, lost the argument by a clear margin and switched. Now I decide how I’ll test a belief before I argue for it.”
9. Tell me about a time you made someone feel included (Belonging)
Sample answer: “A new teammate on our club’s project was quiet in meetings. I asked her to own the data cleaning, which she knew best, and to present it. Her checks found two bad data feeds that would have ruined our results.”
10. Tell me about a situation that tested your integrity
Framework: Pick a real case: reporting your own mistake, refusing a shortcut that broke a rule, or correcting a result that flattered you. Say what it cost you and why you did it.
11. What is your biggest weakness?
Sample answer: “I anchor on my first estimate. In practice markets I’d move my quote too little after new information. Now I write down, before I quote, what information would move me and by how much, and I check myself against it.”
12. What is happening in markets right now?
Framework: Asked on the recruiter call. Pick one development you actually follow, such as a recent move in volatility or a policy decision, state what happened with a number, and say what it might mean for options prices.
13. Do you have questions for us?
- “How do new traders practice market making before they trade real risk?”
- “How do traders and developers work together on a new options product?”
- “What separates traders who do well in their first year?”
Answers that hurt at SIG
- Judging your past decisions only by how they turned out
- Claiming poker or game experience you can’t discuss in expected value terms
- A “why SIG” that would fit any trading firm
- Freezing or refusing a probability question because it came during a “behavioral” call
- Naming a value like “integrity” without a story that shows a cost you accepted
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