Interview Case level MBBs: entry-level vs internships

Hi there,

I would be happy to share my thoughts on your question:

• First of all, while the case studies will most likely not differ, the expectations will. However, the level of difficulty in full-time entry-level interviews normally is only marginally higher than in internship interviews.
• Moreover, the full-time interview process typically includes more interviews and interview rounds, depending on the specific firm and location.
• Lastly, despite the potential increase in difficulty, the core structure and principles remain the same. As such, I would highly advise you to continue with your preparation as you have been, focusing on key competencies, practicing with various types of cases, and receiving feedback from peers or an experienced coach.

You can find more on the topic of final interview rounds here: How to succeed in the final interview round.

If you would like a more detailed discussion on how to best prepare for your upcoming interviews, please don't hesitate to contact me directly.

Best,

Hagen

Hi there!

The cases are the same.

What changes are two things:

1. The standard / expectations that the interviewer has from you. They are looking for vastly different things between somebody applying for an intern role and somebody applying for an engagement manager role.

2. How much they help you along. The more senior the role, the more they expect you to lead the discussion and ‘find’ your own way. 

If you're early in the recruitment process, I'd recommend you leverage this as much as you can:

• Free Guide: Build A Winning Application Strategy

Best,
Cristian

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Practicing for interviews? Check out my latest case based on a first-round MBB interview >>> SoyTechnologies  

Hi,

A similar question on this was asked recently. From an interviewers POV (I was an interviewer for 5 years at BCG), I will still give the same case to an intern or research analyst versus a Project Leader. The difference lies in more in the expectations of the level of your performance:

• Ability to drive through to the answer independently
• Depth of insights and perspectives
• Ability to show higher order strategic thinking, especially at more senior levels like Project Leader / Manager
• Amount of challenging and the depth of challenging from me

However, the same fundamentals are being tested no matter what level.

All the best!

Hi there,

Q: I was wondering if the level of cases in full-time interviews is harder than the internship.

The level of cases is usually the same. However you could have fewer interviews when you apply for an internship. Additionally, they might be more forgiving if you make mistakes.

Good luck!

Francesco

Hello,

The cases tend to be of the same difficulty, but they will probably evaluate you more rigorously for a full-time position than for an internship. That goes holistically for your application as a whole (behavioral, case, resume, cover letter), not just the case though.

Exactly the same thing.

The “threshold” of performance might be slightly different. The cases will be the same difficulty level.

Hi there,

“Technically” no, but in reality yes. The higher up you go, the more you pull away from them guiding/pushing you forward. As in, you need more case leadership.

They also expect you to generally have more business acumen and to be able to understand business concepts/logic/industries at a better letter.

Regardless, none of this should “matter” in terms of your prep. Push yourself to be the best you can be, regardless of this answer!

Here's some reading to help you get there:

https://www.preplounge.com/en/articles/pitfalls-case-interview-preparation

https://www.preplounge.com/en/articles/dos-and-donts-in-a-case-interview

https://www.preplounge.com/en/articles/candidate-led-cases-what-to-expect-and-example-cases

Hi there,

in short - the difficulty of the cases won't really differ, but the expectations of the interviewers will. 

For a full-time role, you'll be expected to have a bit professional higher maturity, especially in terms of business judgment and comms / case management, while the differences between those levels are still subtle, to be honest. 

Hope this helps.

Regards, Andi  

Hi,
I confirm cases will be the same. Expectations and number of interviews are usually lower, depending on the geography.

Best,
Antonello