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Bain online assessment

Hey everyone, 

I was rejected after the Bain Online assessment test last year. 

They told me my score was below the threshold that is why I was rejected. However, I am not sure that was the actual reason or my CV was also weak. 

Can anybody shed some light on how the actual process works at Bain?

How much weight does the online assessment hold? I know they do not give the online assessment test to everybody so would love to know how the process actually works in the backend. 

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Top answer
Florian
Coach
on Sep 13, 2021
1400 5-star reviews across platforms | 600+ offers | Highest-rated case book on Amazon | Uni lecturer in US, Asia, EU

Hey there,


The full SOVA tests three different reasoning skills as well as your personality.

Verbal reasoning

Verbal Reasoningevaluates your skill to understand complex information under time pressure. In this format, you have to read one or more paragraphs to answer a multiple-choice question.

Logical reasoning

Logical Reasoning. Bain recruiting focuses on inductive reasoning and deductive reasoning. Inductive reasoning looks at how you handle abstract concepts and unfamiliar information. For example, you might be asked to continue a logical sequence (figures, numbers, etc.).

Numerical reasoning/ math

Numerical Reasoning questions focus on your ability to handle complex quantitative data. They use tables and other exhibits to present data and ask you to elicit specific information and facts in a multiple-choice style question.

Personality traits

The most common format that is reported is based on the SOVA Personality Test, conducted via two types of questions:

  • Traditional personality test: Read a number of sentences and decide how much this is true for you based on a scale of: Least Like Me, Little Like Me, Neutral, Somewhat Like Me, Most Like Me
  • Situational judgement test: You are seeing a video or statements related to a workplace situation and have to rank responses from Last favourable to Most favourable

You can find more details here: https://www.preplounge.com/en/consulting-forum/bain-londononline-assessment-test-9538

Cheers,
Florian

on Sep 13, 2021
McKinsey | NASA | top 10 FT MBA professor for consulting interviews | 6+ years of coaching

Hi,
it depends on the office. Most of them are using the SOVA standard, similar to SHL (quantitative and verbal reasoning). I have a dedicated session to prepare it, feel free to text me to discuss it.

Best,
Antonello

Agrim
Coach
on Sep 13, 2021
Top Awarded Coach | BCG Dubai Project Leader | Master Casing in only 3 Hours | 10y in Consulting | Free Intro Call

Short answer: It depends. You got to take what you get.

Long answer: Depending on your profile, your CV, referral or not, office rules etc. etc. - you will be given a specific path. You will need to go with it. The processes keep changing from time to time and location to location, so you cannot predict what will happen with you.

If they say that your score in the assessment is the reason - then that is the reason. If your CV was weak, they most likely would not have screened you for the test in the first place.

Ian
Coach
on Sep 13, 2021
Top US BCG / MBB Coach - 5,000 sessions |Tech, Platinion, Big 4 | 9/9 personal interviews passed | 95% candidate success

Hi there,

If they told you your score was below the threshold, then your score was below the threshold!

It's possible that a stronger CV and a referral would have “raised” the threshold, or made them more lenient (after all, your candidacy is always a hollistic assessment), however, clearly you didn't do well enough on the test itself!

Moving forward, you should work to improve all areas regardless of feedback. That is:

  1. Resume (both content and formatting/display)
  2. Networking
  3. Online Assessment
Deleted user
on Sep 13, 2021

Hello,

It depends on office, but generally the online assessment is used as a screening tool in deciding who to invite for an interview (though your scores will be added to your file and also considered in later steps if you do advance to the interview process). There is a certain threshold you are expected to meet to pass the online assessment, but beyond that it won't weigh heavily on an application. So if you were rejected after the online assessment stage, the issue could have been the assessment, your resume, or both. I would take their feedback to hand and work on improving the skillset most relevant for the assessment, and also take some time to review and polish up your CV.

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