Experts agree on many of the fine points for approaching case interviews:
Practice extensively before undergoing a case interview. Use books and Web sites
in our resources section for practice cases. Some companies that use case interviews
provide good information on their own Web sites. Boston Consulting Group, for example,
provides an interactive case you can work through for practice, as well as additional cases
you can rehearse with friends. Vault.com, which has some of the best resources on the Internet
regarding case interviewing, suggests starting out by practicing explaining something like how
to change a tire. Move on to assessing a situation for friends or family members, such as which
bank they should choose for a checking account. In all cases, try to avoid "um's" and other filler
words. Practice summarizing in a minute or less, advises Vault.com.
Boston Consulting Group notes that Harvard Business School produces numerous case
studies that can be used for practice; the studies are likely available in your business-school
or career-services library. Other experts suggest talking to alumni from your school or others
who've been through a case interview, as well as reading business magazines and periodicals
such as the Wall Street Journal to get a sense of how companies deal with the kinds of issues
likely to be asked about in case interviews. Some universities offer case interview workshops.
Listen carefully to the question. Paraphrase it back to the interviewer to ensure your understanding.
As the now-defunct Web site StudentAdvantage.com put it, "Listening is the most important skill
a consultant has. The case isn't about you or the consultant; it's about the client." You may also want
to take notes; in most cases the interviewer will allow you to do so. Vault.com suggests bringing
not only a pad of paper but a pad of graph paper in case you want to create a graph as part of your conclusion.
Silence -- but not too much of it -- is golden. The interviewer expects you to take a minute or so to
collect your thoughts, so don't be afraid of silence. It's a nice idea, however, to ask the interviewer if it's
OK to take a moment to ponder the case. And don't take too much time. Experts agree that five minutes
would be excessive.
Remember that rarely is there one "right" answer for analyzing a case. Your process for reaching
your conclusions is equally important to the interviewer as is the conclusion itself. In fact, the interviewer
wants to observe as much of that process as possible, so it's important -- once you've taken the time to gather your thoughts -- to "think out loud" as you're working through the case. Although there is probably not one right answer, the McKinsey representative who spoke at Columbia warns against "wrong approaches," including "ignoring or forgetting important facts, defending impossible ideas, and force-fitting the wrong structure onto a problem."
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