When preparing for a case interview, especially under time constraints, working with an experienced coach can significantly enhance your chances of success.
💡 Pro Tip: PrepLounge offers access to over 800 (former) management consultants from top firms like McKinsey, BCG, and Bain, who are ready to help you perfect your interview technique.
What Are the Key Advantages of Practicing With a Coach?
Personalized Feedback
One of the primary benefits of working with a case coach is receiving tailored feedback. Unlike general preparation methods, a coach can pinpoint your specific weaknesses and provide actionable advice to improve. This personalized approach ensures that your preparation is efficient and targeted, addressing your unique needs and challenges.
Realistic Simulation
Practicing with a coach allows you to experience a realistic interview setting. Coaches who have conducted numerous case interviews can replicate the pressure and dynamics of a real interview, helping you become more comfortable and confident. This experience is invaluable, as it prepares you to handle the stress and spontaneity of actual interviews.
Insider Knowledge
Experienced coaches often come from prestigious consulting backgrounds themselves. Their insider knowledge about what top firms are looking for can give you a significant edge. They can share insights about the interview process, common pitfalls, and the specific attributes that firms value, ensuring that you are well-prepared to meet these expectations.
Structured Approach
A coach can help you develop a structured approach to solving case problems. This structured thinking is crucial in case interviews, where clear, logical, and well-organized answers are highly valued. Coaches can teach you frameworks and methodologies that streamline your problem-solving process, making your responses more coherent and compelling.
Time Efficiency
For candidates with limited preparation time, coaching is a highly efficient way to get ready. Coaches can quickly identify areas that need improvement, helping you focus your efforts where they are most needed. This targeted preparation can save you time and help you progress faster than you would on your own.
Confidence Boost
Confidence plays a crucial role in interview performance. Regular practice with a coach can boost your confidence by familiarizing you with the interview format and helping you refine your answers. Knowing that you have prepared thoroughly with expert guidance can significantly reduce anxiety and improve your overall performance.
How PrepLounge Optimally Supports You With a Wide Range of Coaching Options
🚀 Flexibility and Convenience
PrepLounge offers a variety of coaching options to fit your needs and preferences. You can choose from individual sessions, CV reviews, or comprehensive coaching packages that include multiple sessions or focus on specific topics. Additionally, there are programs available that combine a premium membership with coaching credits, providing a cost-effective way to access top-notch coaching services.
📅 Workshops and Online Events
PrepLounge also regularly hosts workshops and online events led by experienced coaches. These sessions cover a range of topics and provide opportunities for interactive learning and direct feedback. Participating in these events can further enhance your preparation and keep you updated on the latest trends and techniques in case interviews.
How to Find the Perfect Coach to Suit Your Needs
To find the perfect coach for your case interview preparation, you can proceed in three steps within the coach overview:
Filtering: Begin by filtering the coaches based on your most important criteria, such as price per coaching session, or employer.
Selection: Choose up to 10 coaches whose profiles, ratings, Q&A contributions, and PrepLounge awards you wish to explore further.
Contacting: Reach out to 2-3 coaches to address any potential questions or concerns about their coaching approach. Feel free to ask if they offer a free intro call.
What Makes a Good Coach?
Good coaches are characterized by the following features:
Customization: they tailor the coaching to your specific needs.
Good rapport: They make you feel comfortable and work well with them.
Transparency: They offer you full transparency about the coaching process on PrepLounge.
Final Thoughts on Working With a Coach
Practicing with a coach is a strategic investment in your case interview preparation. The personalized feedback, realistic simulation, insider knowledge, and confidence boost that coaches provide can make a significant difference in your performance. With the expert guidance available on PrepLounge, you can ensure that you are thoroughly prepared and ready to excel in your case interviews.
By leveraging the expertise of experienced case coaches and taking advantage of the diverse coaching options and events available on PrepLounge, you can maximize your preparation efficiency, build your confidence, and increase your chances of securing a position at a top consulting firm.
Senior Manager deciding between Strategy& (PwC) and EY Advisory – looking for perspectives
1 hr
200+
5
Best answer by
Mauro
First of all, congrats! If I were making this decision, I would focus much less on the brand and much more on the type of work. At Senior Manager level, the question is no longer which logo looks better on my CV?, it's: "What expertise do I want to build over the next 5-10 years?" Personally, I think you're assessing the trade-off correctly. The EY path looks like the lower-risk option: you're already credible in FS strategy and transformation you'll ramp immediately partnership path is probably easier to visualize higher guaranteed compensation The Strategy& path looks like the more transformational move: DD and value creation are different muscles you'll build exposure to PE-backed situations you'll likely broaden your exit opportunities One thing I would challenge is the assumption that Strategy& automatically creates dramatically more optionality. It does create different optionality. PE diligence and value creation are very attractive skillsets, but they are most valuable if you genuinely want to stay in that ecosystem. If your long-term goal remains consulting leadership in FS, the incremental value may be smaller than you think. So the question I'd ask myself is: "Five years from now, would I rather be known as a top FS strategy/transformation expert or as someone with a strong PE/value creation toolkit?" Both are attractive profiles, but they're different. From the way you've written the post, I get the sense that EY is the more natural continuation of your trajectory, while Strategy& is the more intellectually exciting option. Neither is wrong. The decision depends on whether you optimize for: probability of success and continuity (EY) skill diversification and a potentially broader career set (Strategy&) And honestly, at your level, the quality of the partners you'll work with and the actual pipeline of projects matter more than the firm name itself. If possible, I'd spend some time validating what the last 12-18 months of actual project work looked like in both teams before deciding.
No, they definitely do not hire exclusively from American University of Beirut. That said, AUB is one of the strongest feeder schools for Strategy& in the Middle East, particularly for the Beirut office, so what you're observing is real. The reason is a combination of: strong historical recruiting relationships a large alumni base already inside the firm consistently strong candidates However, Middle East offices also hire plenty of people from: European target schools UK universities North American universities other top schools across the region I've worked in the GCC and can tell you that teams are generally quite international. What matters more than whether your university is "target" or "non-target" is: academic performance relevant experience ability to pass screening networking/referrals interview performance If you're coming from a non-target school outside the region, it may be slightly harder to get noticed initially, but it is absolutely not a deal breaker. In fact, many Middle East offices are accustomed to hiring people with diverse educational backgrounds, especially if they bring strong international exposure or relevant industry experience. So I wouldn't focus too much on competing with AUB graduates. I'd focus on making sure your profile clearly answers: "Why consulting?" and "Why the Middle East?" because those tend to matter a lot in the recruiting process.
Hi, An automatic screen-out usually happens when the profile is not solid enough, which does not seem to be your case here. A few things that might have happened instead: Still flagged from your past application. If it is closer to one year than two, this is a real possibility, especially as reapplying under a different email does not create a separate record. No openings, or constraints on the profile they can take right now. Depending on the office and the current context in the region, intake can be paused or very limited (work authorization can also come into it). A simple mistake, which is unlikely but might happen. In any case, the only people who can actually tell you what happened are the recruiting team, so I would encourage you to write to them as soon as possible and ask directly. Hope it helps, and feel free to DM me if you want to think through how to approach them. Best, Federico
Hi, In terms of preparation I'd recommend you to do 3 things: Start by building the theoretical foundation, then practise with peers, and use a coach for the fine tuning at the end. Do not jump straight into mock cases without the basics, but do not get stuck in the theory either. Get your CV and cover letter properly reviewed. Your story needs to be clear, and the move from Amazon to strategy consulting needs to look intentional. Prepare fit as seriously as case. Candidates coming from industry often over-index on the case and then lose points on a fit conversation they assumed would take care of itself. In terms of application, I'd strongly look to get an internal referral. Nothing else you do at the application stage moves your odds as much as a referral, especially if you are a lateral hire. Also, I'd assume your tenure gets roughly halved. Even with four years at Amazon, entering at the next step up (consultant level at BCG, for example) is not automatic, and you may well come in as an associate with experience. Overall your profile has real strengths. Even if you do not come from a target school, Amazon is a strong brand and you are playing at home in that market, so with the right preparation this move is definitely doable. Hope it helps and feel free to drop me a message if you think I could be useful along the way. Federico
Hi there, I would say it is a bit uncommon from my experience to get such a delay in getting a reply, especially given that as an experienced hire you would not be part of the structured recruiting process. That being said, not unheard of and I don't think it is any indication of the interview outcome. At this point I would try to wait another week, since you've already done a follow-up, and if still no reply until then you could send another email to the recruiter. The waiting period is really hard ... Hang on in there and hoping for a positive answer for you! Ariadna
Issue Tree vs. Action Plan in Case Interview Structure
13 hrs
< 100
5
Best answer by
Alessandro
my take: 1. Issue tree vs action plan Issue tree: each branch is a question or hypothesis. Output is understanding Action plan: each branch is a thing to do. Output is execution Your consultant is saying your structure reads as "things I will check" rather than "questions that decide the answer" 2. Your market entry is closer to an issue tree than you think The 4 buckets are diagnostic. The sub-branches are what sound like activities. Reframe them as questions: Weak: "segment customers, look at competitors" Strong: "is the customer base large and growing enough to justify entry" Same content, better framing 3. On the MECE overlap Cleaner split: Market: size, growth, structure, competitive intensity Company: product fit, capabilities, economics Competitor size sits in market, competitor products sit in company. One appearence each, different angle 4. On profitability, your consultant is right "Why is it down" and "how to fix it" are dependant because the fix follows the diagnosis. Better: Break profit into revenue and cost drivers Find which one moved Propose fixes tied to that driver "Strategies to bring profit up" is not a first-level branch, its the output of the diagnosis 5. Quick test If you had the data for this branch, would you know the answer to the case question? Yes = real issue. No = activity. Cut activities
Hey there, For Healthcare Consulting interviews, the main thing you should be familiar with is price-setting methodology. Different drugs or technologies can be priced in different ways: for example Quality of care (e.g., QALY-based ceilings), System Cost Saving (e.g., ROI or cost saving vs. equivalent therapeutic strategy), or Cross-Product/Cross-Country benchmarks (e.g., adjusting foreign prices to local wtp/budget). The absolute #1 case type for these interviews is a healthcare-specific market sizing: think of something like "Give me the market sizing for Ozempic in Germany". In these case, you have to think about a Price * Quantity, where Price depends on the methodology you use, typically among the ones defined above (the most technical thing to know) Quantity is generally a function of population cuts and drug usage (e.g., one pill a day vs. something else) I did a ton of work in healthcare while at McKinsey and I prepped a lot of folks for Healthcare Consulting roles -- both boutique and major firms, both Europe and US. Do not hesitate to reach out if you want some more details or want to book a dedicated session! In any case, good luck on your interview! Tom
Hi, I would not worry too much at this stage. It is very early, and a short delay is completely normal, especially if the two interviewers did not yet have time to debrief with HR and align before anyone gets back to you. Based on what you describe, I would be cautiously positive. The fit was good with both partners, and the two issues do not sound serious to me: running out of time before the final recommendation is not a problem if the structure and thinking were there, and one math mistake is not a big deal either, especially when you had the right approach and reached the same conclusion. Hope it helps and fingers crossed! Federico
How Can I Get Better at Structuring McKinsey Case Interviews?
18 hrs
< 100
4
Best answer by
Federico
Hi, Very good questions and something many candidates struggle with. My recommendation: On level of detail and length: give the interviewer the top level first, then go one layer down. Say the main areas you want to look at, then take each one and explain its sub-points and, briefly, why it matters. The test is whether the interviewer could follow your logic without seeing your notes. On number of buckets: three to four main ones, each with two or three sub-points. Something like: "I'd look at three things: A, B and C. Starting with A, I'd break it into A1, A2 and A3", and so on for B and C. Fewer than three looks thin, more than four gets hard to hold in your head and to walk through cleanly. On how to practise: drill structuring on its own, not full cases. Take one prompt after another, give yourself two minutes to build only the structure out loud, then stop. When you do it, make sure you build your branches from the specific objective in the case, not from a template in your head. That is what stops them coming out generic. Hope it helps and feel free to DM me if you want to run through a few structures together! Federico
Questions about market size are frequently asked in case interviews in consulting because they require a blend of logic, mathematics, and common sense. They can be asked as standalone questions or as part of a larger case. Applicants who are familiar with market sizing questions can really perform here.
Market entry cases are one of the key issues in the consulting industry and present consultants and firms with unique challenges and opportunities. These cases require deep analysis and strategic planning to successfully enter new markets.
Brainteasers are a type of problem that focuses on a single issue rather than complex business cases. They require out-of-the-box thinking, logic or math skills and can take the form of riddles, word problems or visual puzzles. These tasks are designed to test your problem-solving skills, analytical thinking and ability to remain calm under pressure.Typical problems cover everyday life's topics and might even include unrealistic assumptions. All necessary information is usually included in the question so that further assumptions are not necessary. This article explains in more detail why brainteasers are useful in case interview preparation and how to solve them.