How to Prepare for Case Interviews Without a Coach or Partner

Question

I'm sorry if this question has already been asked.

I'd like to practice and prepare for case interviews, but I unfortunately don't have the budget for a coach, nor do I have any classmates or peers to practice with (I've already graduated). What are some good alternatives?

I've been considering using ChatGPT to run through some case examples. Alternatively, I could follow along with case interview videos on YouTube and pause to answer as if I were in a real interview. I've also thought about purchasing something like the Crafting Cases structuring course to get a few more reps in.

What other suggestions would you have? And more specifically, what would you say is the most effective way to prepare if coaching is not an option?

More specifically, I’m trying to improve three things:

My structuring ability (building clear, MECE frameworks under time pressure)
Clear and concise communication – both asking the right clarifying questions and communicating top-down when synthesizing
The quantitative side of casing – doing the math quickly and accurately, and reading and interpreting charts, graphs, and tables

Answer 1

Starting case prep solo is incredibly challenging, and your struggle to find partners after graduation is a common hurdle. You absolutely can make significant progress without paying for coaching, but you have to be highly structured and disciplined to compensate for the missing feedback loop.

Here is the reality of solo prep: The core value of a human partner isn't just solving the case; it's forcing real-time verbal discipline and synthesis. Your goal must be to design mechanisms that force you to communicate clearly under pressure and catch your own sloppy habits before they solidify.

To improve your three specific areas, divide your preparation into distinct, focused tasks:

1. Structuring Ability (MECE Frameworks): Do not spend your early hours running full, long cases. Instead, focus on timed, high-volume written drills. Take a list of 50 different case prompts ("Client A wants to enter Market X," "Client B is losing profitability," etc.) and force yourself to write out a full, unique, MECE framework structure for each in under five minutes. This builds the muscle memory needed to generate logic under immediate pressure without stumbling.

2. Communication & Synthesis (Top-Down): This is where you need to rely heavily on self-assessment. Run through cases (using YouTube videos that provide the interviewer script) and record yourself answering every single prompt, from clarifying questions to final synthesis. Reviewing the tape is your substitute for partner feedback. Are you stating the conclusion first? Are you using filler words? Are your transitions clunky? Brutal self-critique of the video footage is the most effective way to eliminate the performance flaws a partner would immediately flag.

3. Quantitative Side: Separate this entirely from casing initially. Quantitative casing failure is usually due to weak, slow calculation ability, not interpretation. Use dedicated mental math apps or spreadsheets to drill percentages, growth rates, and large number multiplication until the computation is almost automatic. Only then should you integrate graph and chart interpretation into your recorded case practice.

Hope this helps you structure your attack plan. All the best!

Answer 2

Hi there,

1. Solo casing with ChatGPT
Use this more as a drill tool rather than a full case.

2. YouTube cases + pause method
Great for building muscle memory. Pause before every answer and force yourself to verbalize your structure or math out loud. It builds clarity fast.

3. Crafting Cases / Victor Cheng
Worth it if you want structured frameworks. The Crafting Cases structuring course is solid for MECE thinking in particular.

4. Math drills
Do 10–15 minutes a day of quick mental math (Market Sizing, profitability equations, % changes). It compounds really quickly.

5. Reading charts on autopilot
Grab reports from McKinsey/Bain/BCG/Statista and practice summarizing each chart in one sentence: trend + implication. That helps the synthesis part a lot.

6. Connecting with peers online

No matter how much practice you do, if you don't do live cases then your progress would be exponentially slower. I suggest you try and connect with other peers online who are also preparing for cases.

Answer 3

You can get strong on your own - but only if you train deliberately. Break prep into focused drills instead of running endless full cases.

1. Structuring (MECE, speed, clarity)

Best solo drill:

Grab 30–50 prompts
Build a structure in ≤5 minutes
Speak it out loud, record it, and check: Is it MECE? Prioritised? Aligned to the objective?

This builds the fast, clean thinking that interviewers expect.

2. Communication & Synthesis (top-down)

Your phone camera becomes your coach.
Daily 10–15 minutes:

Clarifying questions
Explaining your structure
30–45 sec synthesis

Record → Watch → Fix.
Most candidates skip this, which is why their communication plateaus.

3. Quantitative Skills (math, charts, accuracy)

Simple, consistent drills:

10 minutes of mental math
Summarise 5–10 charts using a one-sentence “trend + implication”
Do 3–5 timed case calculations

This builds speed so math doesn’t drain your mental bandwidth during cases.

4. Weekly routine (high-impact, no partner needed)

3 days: structure + math + chart drills
2 days: recorded mini-cases
1 day: full mock (YouTube pause method or AI)
1 day: review your own recordings

This replicates >70% of the benefit of partner practice.

But here’s the truth:

A good coach collapses your prep time by 50% and can increase your success rate dramatically because they give:

personalised, targeted feedback
correction of blind spots you cannot see in self-review
interviewer-level pressure
benchmarking vs. real candidates

Going solo works - but coaching accelerates everything.

If you can’t afford recurring coaching, even 1-2 focused sessions can shift your trajectory.

AI Case Coach Option

If you want something between “solo practice” and “live coaching,” you can use an AI-based case interviewer that gives structure, math, and synthesis feedback:

👉 AI Case Coach: https://www.beingconsultant.com/aicoach
Great for unlimited reps, timed drills, and interviewer-style pushback.

Bottom line

If you’re preparing without partners:
High-volume structuring + speaking on camera + consistent math + AI mock interviews is the fastest, most effective path.
Add a coach when possible to eliminate blind spots and shortcut months of trial-and-error.