First Round Interview at Bain- Prep?!

I'm a liberal arts female student at a large SEC school in south with first round interviews for Bain coming up next week. Any tips on preparation? (I have limited experience with case studies and will be spending most of my time reviewing past cases!) 

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I assume this is for the ACI role since AC interviews are this week so they aren't expecting you to nail everything, especially from a non-business undergrad.

A few things that I found useful:

  • Understand the types of cases and how to generally approach them (Market Sizing, Profitability, Market Study, M&A) 
  • Make sure your case is easy to follow/explain. Having a messy paper or forgetting different pieces of information will always make for a bad case.
  • "Smart Math" For example: How would one find 15% of 2700 without a calculator?
    • Divide the 15% into a 10% and a 5%
    • 10% of 2700 = 270
    • 5% is 270/2 (Your 10%/2) = 135
    • 270 + 135 = 405
  • Add some creativity that shows you actually are thinking about the case. 
  • Above All: Practice with someone. Find people that went into consulting at your school whether it's seniors, professors, career coaches, consulting clubs, etc. You will find people very willing to give cases either online at WSO/Reddit or on campus

One last note is that it's still a fit interview. Enjoy the people you're interviewing with and connect with them. A lot of people get too caught up in the case and act like total robots. Don't stress, have fun, and good luck.

 

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