Difference in interview case study levels between Experienced Hire and Entry Level (MBB)?

Question

Hi,

How significant is the difference in case study complexity and required knowledge between entry-level and experienced hire positions at MBB? I'm finding varying levels of difficulty in online resources, which is a bit confusing. What depth of business understanding and types of case studies should I expect for an entry-level role?

I'm currently using Prep Lounge and reading "Case in Point" for my preparation. Any general advice on using these resources effectively for entry-level case studies, given the range of depth and difficulty I'm encountering online?

Answer 1

Hi there,

The cases are exactly the same for entry-levels and experienced hires.

The difference comes from the expectations of the interviewers.

As an experienced hire, interviewers expect more business sense and judgment, structure, insight generation during the case and more responsibilities, leadership, and impact during the fit interview.

The way you prepare is the same for both.

However, please check out the top post in this thread about CIP: https://www.preplounge.com/en/consulting-forum/how-goodrelevant-is-the-case-in-point-book-for-case-prep-1984

It summarizes its usefulness nicely.

All the best,

Florian

Answer 2

Agree with Florian's response; some additions in case useful for others:

Senior level experienced hire (PL / EM+) interviews will be given by people in the particular industry or functional practice area to which someone is applying
There's therefore greater likelihood that the case addresses those topics (given that interviewers, at least at BCG, always write their own cases)
However, those cases would not necessarily be more complex or actually require specialised knowledge
Unlike in entry level interviews however, the fit component of senior experienced hire interviews is quite likely to include expertise-based questions

Answer 3

Hi there,

I would be happy to share my thoughts on your question:

First of all, are you an experienced-hire candidate or an entry-level candidate? I would advise you to focus on the concrete expectations of you as opposed to the difference between the two candidate groups.
Moreover, experienced-hire candidates, as the name suggests, are expected to bring in some of their work experience in the sense of business judgment and business knowledge, while entry-level candidates are only assessed based on their business judgement. Overall, however, difficulty doesn’t significantly differ.
Lastly, I would advise you to mostly ignore “Case in Point” (and any other theoretical resources) and start early practicing case studies. PrepLounge, on the other hand, is a great resource, independent of what you’re looking for.

You can find more on this topic here: How to succeed in the final interview round.

If you would like a more detailed discussion on how to best prepare for your upcoming interviews, please don't hesitate to contact me directly.

Best,

Hagen

Answer 4

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Answer 5

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Answer 6

Hi Tara, It’s exciting to see a candidate use PrepLounge to find offline case preparation partners! I think it’s a gr... (read entire answer)

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