Houlihan Lokey Interview Questions: Full Prep Guide

Houlihan Lokey interview questions center on restructuring and middle-market technicals, because the firm is the world's largest restructuring advisory practice and the number one restructuring advisor globally by deal count for over a decade, per Superday AI. Expect the standard screen (walk through a DCF, an LBO, the three statements) plus restructuring-specific prompts on distressed valuation, Chapter 7 versus Chapter 11, and recovery waterfalls across the capital structure. Fit weighs heavily too: interviewers probe "why Houlihan Lokey versus a bulge bracket" and "why this specific office," since HL runs eight regional offices rather than one New York hub. This guide covers the process, the technical and restructuring question set, and how to answer the office-fit question.

What is the Houlihan Lokey interview process?

Houlihan Lokey is a global investment bank founded in 1972 and headquartered in Los Angeles, specializing in restructuring, middle-market M&A, valuation, and transaction opinions, per Superday AI. It focuses on deals between $100 million and $2 billion in value, which differentiates it from mega-deal-focused elite boutiques, and it runs an analyst class of roughly 100-120 globally.

The process runs a first round followed by a superday, taking 2-3 weeks end to end with an acceptance rate near 3-4 percent, per Superday AI. The first round is a 30-45 minute virtual interview covering standard DCF mechanics, accretion-dilution, and basic LBO intuition. The superday adds 4-5 interviews on the final day. For restructuring-specific recruiting, Mergers & Inquisitions describes a longer path: two 30-minute phone screens followed by a superday of up to eight 30-minute rounds, split across behavioral, technical, and a brain-teaser round, with candidates meeting over half the group.

What technical questions does Houlihan Lokey ask?

Lead with the core M&A technicals, since every candidate faces them regardless of group. Superday AI reports the recurring prompts as walk me through a DCF analysis, walk me through an LBO model, what makes a good LBO candidate, and walk me through the three financial statements.

Beyond those fundamentals, Mergers & Inquisitions notes candidates should also expect debt versus equity analysis and credit questions layered on top of the standard bank. Because Houlihan Lokey screens heavily on valuation and restructuring competency, know cold how to build the investment banking technical interview question bank, work through our valuation interview questions and LBO interview questions hubs and be fluent in coverage ratio versus leverage ratio math, since credit ratios show up whether or not you applied to restructuring.

How does Houlihan Lokey test restructuring knowledge?

Restructuring interviewers at HL probe distressed valuation, creditor priority, and debt-for-equity exchange mechanics, per Superday AI, and candidates are expected to have read the firm's well-known internal case study, "The Troubled Company," per Mergers & Inquisitions. This is restructuring investment banking applied to the specific case work HL is known for.

Reported prompts from RestructuringInterviews include: what are the characteristics of a distressed company (the answer centers on lack of liquidity and an approaching maturity wall, not just a debt downgrade); how do you reflect $100 of PIK interest through the three statements, assuming a 40 percent tax rate; what are the two sides of a restructuring and who does HL typically advise (roughly 50/50 between debtor and creditor mandates by fees); and a recovery waterfall problem. Given EBITDA of $30, a multiple of 5x, a Term Loan A of $100, and Senior Notes of $100, walk through the recovery. Enterprise value comes to $150, which fully covers the Term Loan A and leaves $50 for the Senior Notes, a 50 percent recovery.

EV = EBITDA x Multiple = $30 x 5 = $150

Wall Street Oasis lists similar prompts, including how valuing a distressed company differs from valuing a healthy one and which industries are most exposed to distress in the current cycle, so have an industry view ready, not just the mechanics.

How do you answer "why Houlihan Lokey" and "why this office"?

Answer with the middle market and the office, not just the brand. Superday AI reports interviewers directly probe "why Houlihan Lokey versus a bulge bracket" and "why this specific office," and candidates who articulate genuine interest in middle-market dynamics outperform those who present HL as a fallback choice.

The office question carries real weight because HL runs major offices in New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, London, Frankfurt, Paris, Hong Kong, Tokyo, and Sydney rather than centralizing in one city, per Superday AI. Regional interviewers assess whether you genuinely understand and want that specific office's culture, so tailor your answer to the local deal team and industry focus rather than reusing a generic New York pitch.

What behavioral questions come up at Houlihan Lokey?

Behavioral rounds at Houlihan Lokey screen heavily for collegiality, work ethic, and authentic interest in the middle market, per Superday AI, and the firm's own interviewer archetypes matter: restructuring specialists probe Chapter 11 process and creditor priority, middle-market generalists value clear thinking over technical flash, and regional interviewers test cultural fit for the specific office.

Standard fit questions still apply: walk me through your resume, tell me about a time you worked through a difficult team dynamic, and why investment banking. Superday AI flags that HL's superday, per Wall Street Oasis reporting on the restructuring track, weighs personality fit more heavily relative to technical drilling than many peer banks. Since credit and capital-structure math still gates the technical rounds, know how the investment banking superday format works end to end, and compare against how a similarly restructuring-heavy shop structures its process.

Sources

• Superday AI: Houlihan Lokey Interview Guide (checked July 2026)
• RestructuringInterviews: Houlihan Lokey Restructuring Interview Questions (checked July 2026)
• Mergers & Inquisitions: Restructuring Investment Banking Group (checked July 2026)
• Wall Street Oasis: Houlihan Lokey Interview Questions (checked July 2026)