Bain First Round—Advice?
Title says it all. I have a Bain first round for the ACI position later this week and just wanted to hear anyone's advice on the process. What do they look for? What should I expect?
Title says it all. I have a Bain first round for the ACI position later this week and just wanted to hear anyone's advice on the process. What do they look for? What should I expect?
Career Resources
WSO Virtual Bootcamps
Career Advancement Opportunities
November 2026 Consulting
Overall Employee Satisfaction
November 2026 Consulting
Professional Growth Opportunities
November 2026 Consulting
Total Avg Compensation
November 2026 Consulting
“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”
Leaderboard
| 1 | 99.2 | |
| 2 | 99.0 | |
| 3 | 99.0 | |
| 4 | 99.0 | |
| 5 | 98.9 | |
| 6 | 98.9 | |
| 7 | 98.9 | |
| 8 | 98.9 | |
| 9 | 98.9 | |
| 10 | 98.8 |
“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”
Get instant access to lessons taught by experienced private equity pros and bulge bracket investment bankers including financial statement modeling, DCF, M&A, LBO, Comps and Excel Modeling.
Just had mine last week. My advice would be to be calm and do the case with a smile on your face. There are no personal questions in round 1 so do your best to seem like a pleasant human, and if you finish your case with a minute to spare, ask a really good question - I think they'd appreciate it. Also, it was much less "interviewee led" than I expected, but maybe that is just how they are doing it over zoom this year.
Thank you for sharing your experience! I have a couple of questions:
Good luck!!
1. Yes
2. No
Example of a really good question? Always struggle asking questions that don't sound too generic or too specific
Just make it conversational, ask them what they like about their work, how they got to where they are, anything like that
Bain indexes super heavily, perhaps too much, on the case -- especially in the first round. Be nice, say thanks and please, smile. Practice market sizing and profitability cases. I guarantee you'll get one of those in the first round. They're not hard cases at all.
I would be sure to mention Joseph Smith as often as possible.
I believe Bain is moving toward a more interviewer-led style. So let the interviewer direct you and definitely be coachable - it is a criterion they assess. With that, you should also show you are driving to an answer so do lead the case but allow the interviewer to help you out when they chime in. You will also definitely get data at some point or have to work through some math so be able to do that comfortably. The best advice is to always give 2nd and 3rd level insights on the numbers without being asked - that will set you apart. Good luck
Quo ipsum iste eaque pariatur beatae eius. Excepturi non doloremque ut velit exercitationem animi doloremque. Illum ducimus nihil est consequuntur nemo veniam id voluptatem. Nostrum sint ad iste et rerum. Sunt dolores tenetur quidem voluptatem. Maxime dolores non porro aliquam.
Nihil quia voluptas veritatis illo veniam voluptatem et. Praesentium doloremque veritatis amet distinctio. Molestiae veniam velit esse vero. Placeat autem quia necessitatibus nemo aut optio.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...