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Joined: 22 Jul 2013
Status:Alumni and Career Coaches
Affiliations: MBB
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Re: Interview / case prep advice from McK and BCG alumns
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07 Aug 2013, 15:09
A common question that we hear is how important are the behavioral and case portions of the interview relative to one another?
First, let's start with an overview of a typical consulting interview format:
1. Intro, small talk: five minutes. This may include small talk or general questions about past experiences
2. Behavioral: ten minutes. This may include more specific, targeted questions about prior experiences
3. Case: twenty-five minutes. This is where the firms will rate your problem solving (and communication) skills
4. Q&A: five minutes. This is your opportunity to ask any questions, and strengthen the rapport with the interviewer
Now, let's adopt the mindset that I had while conducting interviews.
Each day typically has 8 interviews, with four in the morning and four in the afternoon, without any breaks. My first challenge was not rating the candidates, it was taking notes and remembering them! Assuming I accomplished that successfully, my next challenge was to rate them fairly and accurately. With this in mind, an applicant's biggest opportunity is to be memorable (in a good way), pithy, and well-organized throughout the entire interview. Their next challenge was to perform well on both the behavioral and case portions of the interview. While people tend to really focus on the case during their practice, both are equally important, with the behavioral often being the real differentiator.
Let's make an analogy to business school admissions. The case is the gmat, and the behavioral are the essays. You need as high of a gmat score as possible, but at the the end of the day, your essays - who you actually are - will get you in. Similarly, you need to perform well on the case, but we are looking for people, not robots. The case is par for the course, but the behavioral will get you the offer. In your practice, make sure that you are really preparing for both components of the interview and not just the case.
Feel free to post any questions!