EXCELbeginner
Trade Blotter Completion
Complete booking fields — side, quantity, price, fees and status — then flag rows that fail validation.
Trading Operations~30 min
Quant · Trading · Trading Operations
Practise the work, not just the questions.
DeskPrep turns finance interview prep into work simulation. Downloadable Python, Excel, SQL, Linux and C++ tasks — plus questions, cases and mark schemes — built around the quant, trading and operations desks you are interviewing for.
One-time purchase · no subscription · download and keep every task
[EXCEL]Recon break matching[PYTHON]Vol surface analysis[EXCEL]Daily PnL attribution[PYTHON]Pandas trade data task[EXCEL]Options Greeks worksheet[PYTHON]VaR backtest starter[SQL]Trade settlement query set[LINUX]Failed trades log parsing[PYTHON]Black-Scholes pricer[EXCEL]Trade blotter completion[SQL]Counterparty exposure query[CPP]Binomial tree skeleton[PYTHON]Order book feature extraction[EXCEL]Hedging scenario matrix[LINUX]Trade file summary script
3
role tracks
5
file formats
100%
tasks with mark schemes
£0
recurring — one-time only
role tracks
Pick your track
Each pack is a self-contained library of exercises and mark schemes for one hiring track — buy only what maps to your interviews.
[QR]£49
Quant Research & Quant Trading
Probability, derivatives and signal work in the exact file formats quant desks hand out.
- Probability & Statistics
- Options & Derivatives
- Volatility
- Python Exercises
- Market Microstructure
- +4 more
.py.ipynb.sql.sh.cpp.xlsx
[TR]£49
Trading & Execution
Mental maths, market making and desk cases that mirror live trading assessments.
- Mental Maths Drills
- Market Making
- Options Intuition
- Risk/Reward Reasoning
- Trading Desk Cases
- +1 more
.xlsx.py
[TO]£39
Trading Operations & Middle Office
Trade lifecycle, reconciliations and blotter work as they appear in ops take-homes.
- Trade Lifecycle
- Excel Exercises
- SQL Exercises
- Python Exercises
- Linux/Shell Exercises
- +1 more
.xlsx.sql.py.sh
downloadable take-home tasks
Not a question bank. A desk simulation.
Most prep gives you questions and answers. DeskPrep gives you incomplete files and asks you to finish the work — then shows you the model solution and the rubric it is marked against.
- Starter files with deliberate gaps to complete
- Mark schemes that explain the reasoning, not just the output
- Worked solutions with common mistakes flagged
- Role-matched tasks so every exercise is relevant
bs_pricer_starter.py
# DeskPrep — complete the pricer
import numpy as np
from scipy.stats import norm
def bs_call(S, K, T, r, sigma):
# TODO: compute d1, d2
d1 = ___
d2 = ___
return (S * norm.cdf(d1) - K * np.exp(-r * T) * norm.cdf(d2))
# mark scheme unlocks after your attempt
████████████████████████████how it works
Three steps, per exercise
01
Download the brief and starter file
Open a README written like a desk task: what you are given, what to deliver, and the constraints to apply.
02
Complete it as you would on the job
Work in the real format — a spreadsheet, a Python script, a SQL query or a shell pipeline — under a realistic time estimate.
03
Mark your work against the scheme
Compare against the model answer and points rubric. See the common mistakes and what separates a weak answer from a strong one.
exercise library
Real files, every format a desk uses
Download the starter file, work offline, then unlock the mark scheme and model solution. A representative sample below.
Python
Pricers, pandas tasks, backtests
Excel
Blotters, PnL, reconciliation
SQL
Trade, settlement, exposure queries
Linux / Shell
Log parsing, file processing
C++
Pricing skeletons, data structures
PYTHONbeginner
Black-Scholes Pricer
Finish a European option pricer, derive d1/d2 and return the Greeks for a given parameter set.
Quant Research~40 min
EXCELintermediate
Daily PnL Attribution
Decompose desk PnL across price move, FX, fees and carry, and reconcile to the reported total.
Trading & Execution~60 min
SQLintermediate
Counterparty Exposure Query
Write a query set that aggregates net exposure by counterparty and surfaces limit breaches.
Trading Operations~45 min
PYTHONadvanced
Vol Surface Analysis
Clean a quotes file, build an implied-vol surface and comment on skew and term structure.
Quant Trading~90 min
LINUXintermediate
Failed Trades Log Parsing
Parse settlement logs with shell tooling to extract failed trades and summarise failure reasons.
Trading Operations~50 min
pricing
Simple, one-time pricing
Buy a single track from £39, or bundle for full coverage across quant, trading and operations. No subscriptions, ever.
pack
Quant Pack
Quant research & quant trading take-homes.
£49one-time
- Probability, derivatives, volatility and microstructure tasks
- Python, SQL, shell and C++ starter files
- Full mark scheme for every exercise
pack
Trading Pack
Trading & execution desk assessments.
£49one-time
- Mental maths and market-making drills
- Excel and Python desk cases
- Full mark scheme for every exercise
pack
Trading Ops Pack
Trade lifecycle & middle office tasks.
£39one-time
- Trade lifecycle and reconciliation exercises
- Excel, SQL, Python and shell starter files
- Full mark scheme for every exercise
best value
bundle
Quant + Trading Bundle
Both desk tracks for candidates hedging quant and trading.
£89one-time
- Everything in the Quant Pack
- Everything in the Trading Pack
- Save £9 versus buying separately
bundle
All Three Bundle
Every track — the full DeskPrep library.
£119one-time
- All three packs included
- Quant, trading and operations coverage
- Save £18 versus buying separately
faq
Frequently asked questions
Is this a question bank or a subscription?
Neither. DeskPrep sells downloadable take-home exercises with mark schemes. Every purchase is a one-time payment with no recurring billing.
What file formats do the exercises use?
Tasks come in the formats desks actually use: Python (.py and .ipynb), Excel (.xlsx), SQL (.sql), shell scripts (.sh) and C++ (.cpp), depending on the track.
Who are the packs for?
Candidates preparing for quant research and quant trading roles, execution and market-making trading roles, and trading operations or middle office roles.
Do I need to buy everything?
No. Buy a single track for £39–£49, or save with the Quant + Trading bundle (£89) or the all-three bundle (£119).