How to prepare Bain's R2 (Written Case Interview) in 1 week?

Question

Hi guys, keen to learn from your advice / experience on this topic. I've passed Bain's R1 interview and have one week to prepare for R2 (written case interview). Specifically, I'm thinking whether I should continue to do more mock interviews with case partners, or should I spend time doing drills by myself & studying industry knowledge? What is the best way to utilize this week?

Another question that I have is, during Bain's case interview, is it possible that the interviewer would ask you to do either Market Sizing or Brainstorming? Or, would the written case interview be solely focused on discussing your assumptions and recommendations to the key question?

Answer 1

Hi there,

First, good luck!

I recommend the following:

Remember that most casing tips apply here (i.e. be very clear+focused on the objective, ruthlessly cut out information that doesn't help you meet this objective/question, make sure to thinking + communicate in a structured way, etc. etc.)
Practice/simulate this as much as possible beforehand...getting a coach to help you run through scenarios + how to react in inevitably challenging moments will do a world of good.

I have a number of written case I'd be more than happy to share with you! What I generally do with my candidates is, give them a written case x hours before our scheduled session (adjust # of hours based on the specific interview they're going to have), and then review their work during the session (as well as talk through tips+tricks to get better).

Other helpful Q&As

https://www.preplounge.com/en/consulting-forum/scenario-interview-presentation-prep-9325

https://www.preplounge.com/en/consulting-forum/how-to-practice-written-case-interviews-9199

https://www.preplounge.com/en/consulting-forum/case-interview-9228

https://www.preplounge.com/en/consulting-forum/how-to-practice-written-case-interviews-9199

Answer 2

Hello!

Written case interviews are indeed becoming very fashionable nowadays as a way to interview!

Remember that the skillset tested is the same than in the "usual" cases, hence, all the practice you may have done totally plays in your favor.

One important point to add is the need to be very 80-20, structured and to the point, since the prep time is very short, so we need discipline with the analysis to have enaugh time to prep the communication strategy.

There are many many entries in thsi same Q&A regarding written cases, hence, I would recommend you to look with the keywords "written case"

To your last question, usually they would stick to the content you have generated… but as we always say in these interviews, you need to be ready for anything!

Hope it helps!

Cheers,

Clara