Preparation timeline

That's a fantastic question, and honestly, worrying about momentum is exactly right—I see candidates totally derail their prep because they get the timeline wrong.

The truth is, you should absolutely reject the idea of a 1-year timeline. Recruiting preparation is not a marathon; it’s a high-intensity, focused sprint. For the vast majority of strong candidates, the sweet spot is 3 to 4 months of dedicated, relentless effort right before the target recruiting cycle opens.

If you stretch preparation over a year, you hit peak performance three months in, plateau for several months, and then experience classic burnout right when you need maximum mental acuity for the actual interviews. You’ll be tired of the cases, and your feedback will lose its edge. We advise candidates to treat 2-3 months as the absolute minimum to build fluency, but four months is ideal for embedding the structured thinking into muscle memory.

Focus less on the calendar time and more on the volume of high-quality reps. You need 70-100 cases total, with at least 25 of those delivered to partners who have real experience conducting MBB interviews. Define your goal (fluency, speed, poise) and hit that volume aggressively within that three to four-month window. Don't drift; sprint.

All the best!

There's no perfect timeline. It depends on where you're starting from and how much time you can dedicate daily.

That said, 2-3 months of focused prep is the sweet spot for most people. Here's why.

Too short and you won't build the skills. One or two weeks isn't enough unless you've done this before.

Too long and you lose momentum. Stretching prep over 6-12 months leads to burnout. You peak too early and start going through the motions.

A rough breakdown for 2-3 months:

Weeks 1-3: Learn the basics. Understand case types, build mental math habits, start reading business news daily. Do easy cases.

Weeks 4-6: Ramp up. Do 3-4 cases per week. Mix case types. Start practicing with partners. Prepare fit stories.

Weeks 7-9: Sharpen everything. Focus on weak areas. Do harder cases. Practice under timed conditions. Mock interviews simulating real pressure.

Final week: Light practice. Review key stories. Stay sharp but don't cram. Rest before interviews.

Daily time commitment matters more than total months. Someone doing 1-2 hours daily for 10 weeks will be better prepared than someone doing 30 minutes a week for a year.

A few things that help:

Mental math: 10-15 minutes every single day. Non-negotiable.

Cases: quality over quantity. 30-40 well-practiced cases with feedback beats 100 rushed ones.

Fit stories: start early. Refining them takes longer than people expect.

If you can dedicate 1-2 hours daily, 10-12 weeks is enough to go from zero to interview-ready. Any longer and you risk losing sharpness. Any shorter and you might not be polished enough.

Start with a date in mind and work backwards.

This is always the million dollar question. 
 

Let's dive into the variables

• How much time you can dedicate per week (are you working for example)
• How much foundation you have (math, formula, past casing experience etc.)
• How effectively you debrief your cases and study in between casing
• How much you need to polish your presentation/communication style
• If you hire a coach

Based on these factors I do think it is reasonable to say 1 year is too long. 2-3 months could be a nice sweet spot - depending on the above factors. I have worked with candidates who secured their MBB spot after ~2-3 months and those that have prepped for ~6 months while working. It all depends.

Happy to discuss further and more specific to you if helpful.
Merry Christmas!

Needless to say, it depends...

But as a gross average, it's 2-3 months for most candidates or about 100h of dedicated work (meaning a mix of individual practice, peer practice and coaching practice). 

It's great if you build the base over a longer period of time and then you accelerate in the 6 weeks or so before the interview. 

Feel free to reach out if you're planning your prep and I can provide some suggestions. You might also find this guide useful:

• Expert Guide: Build A Winning Application Strategy

Best,
Cristian

Usually 3-4 months high quality preparation would be enough. Stretching to 1 year requires more discipline on the candidate, as many would keep thinking they still have a long run way and would lose steam sometime in the middle of the process and only pick up again when it gets closer to the actual timeline. 

hey there :)

for most candidates, focused preparation over two to three months is ideal to reach ready status without losing momentum. A full year is usually too long unless you are building fundamentals from scratch, as intensity and feedback matter more than duration. With a clear plan, regular case practice and honest feedback, a few months of consistent prep is enough for strong performance. Feel free to reach out if you want help structuring your timeline.

best,
Alessa :)

Yes, 2-3 months is adequate.

But there's an advantage in early preparation. If you are aware of what you will have to prepare well in advance (and understand some of the concepts) that can help with your preparation (e..g being more aware of industry topics) and any relevant weaknesses that may require extra effort (E.g. quant skills).

Hi there,

I agree with the 2-3 months sentiment if you are a beginner with case interviews etc. You need to give yourself enough time to digest the feedback you receive and to be able to incorporate it in your casing approach. But if you have a time-horizon that is too long, there is typically no sense of urgency and and a risk of just dragging along without really hitting the spot.

Best

Hi there,

It really depends on your starting baseline and how fast you can improve. I've seen candidates prepare from anywhere 1-2 months to 4-6 months. I suggest you do one case with a coach and ask the coach to share their sense on how much you'd have to improve.