That’s an interesting question and I guess it depends what you’re practicing for. Maths comes up a lot during the consulting recruitment process but in different formats. For instance, it could be as part of pre-interview numerical/data reasoning test or in the case interview. Improving your general mental maths can be beneficial for all aspects of the interview process. However, I would recommend taking a more tailored approach for each type too.
For general mental maths:
There are many ways you can improve your mental maths. This will be beneficial both for the entrance tests and for case studies. Some of the methods I found to be most beneficial include:
- Using the Victor Cheng (CaseInterview.com) mental maths tool
- Integrate basic arithmetic into daily living e.g when shopping
- Doing a daily Sudoku puzzle
For entry tests:
Each company has their own style of test, it’s important to understand what the test is like before you start preparing for it.
- Research the type test your particular firm gives to candidates (use websites such as Glassdoor, Studentroom, Reddit, etc).
- Find suitable practice papers (websites such as assessmentday.com)
- Practice, practice, practice!
For case studies:
Case study math refers to the calculations you are likely to encounter during a case interview. In order to prepare, I recommend the following:
- Go through a case study book and complete all the math style questions. Case study math questions generally follow a similar style and as a result, with practice, it can easily be mastered (there are many case books available online but feel free to get in contact if you would like me to send over some material)
- Do market estimation/market sizing types case study questions. Market sizing case study questions are math heavy.
- Create a list of 10 sums per day such as 639 divided by 14 and solve them (make sure to work out the answer without a calculator and remember to round!)