Preparing a switch between BCG to Bain

Question

Hi all, I’d appreciate your advice on preparing for a switch from BCG to Bain.

I’m currently at the consultant level with about 1.5 years of experience. I’ve gotten a bit rusty on casing, so I’m planning to brush up ahead of interviews. Specifically, I’d love your thoughts on:

Given that I’m working full-time, what would be a reasonable preparation timeline, and how should I structure it? This will affect when I schedule interviews. I was considering interviewing in ~2 weeks and doing 4–5 cases plus some targeted drills given the limited time—does that sound realistic?
How should I adjust my preparation as an experienced consultant moving to Bain? For example, should I prioritize certain areas (e.g., structuring, business judgment, behavioral questions)? Also, are there any notable differences in Bain’s case style compared to BCG that I should be aware of?

P.S. Looking for coaches from Bain who has been Bain's interviewer and is familiar with Bain's case styles, including Bain's "written case".

Thanks so much in advance!

Answer 1

Hi,

Moving from one MBB to another is always a bit delicate; you need to be very sharp on your “why switch” and show credible mid-term commitment. I’ve coached a few candidates in similar moves (McK → Bain, Bain → BCG, McK → BCG), and all of them were a bit rusty on casing, so that’s completely normal; real project work is quite different from interview casing.

My main question about your prepr plan is: why limit yourself to 2 weeks? If there’s no hard constraint, I’d stretch it to 4 weeks; it’s much more comfortable. That said, 4–5 cases per week is already quite solid and probably close to the max if you’re fully staffed.

In terms of approach:

I’d start with one coaching session early to quickly remove rust and avoid reinforcing bad habits
Then focus on full cases rather than too many isolated drills, unless clear gaps emerge

From experience, the main gap for experienced hires is often structuring, not math, not business judgement.

On BCG vs Bain differences: they’re generally minimal. If anything, Bain tends to place a bit more emphasis on chart interpretation, but nothing that should materially change your prep strategy.

Hope this helps, and good luck
Franco