Bain & Company Interview Questions & Reviews
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Updated Feb 9, 2012 – Interview questions and reviews posted anonymously by interview candidates.
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Difficulty Rating [?] Based on 112 ratings 
“Difficult” Interview
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Interview Experience [?] Based on 112 ratings
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| 11–20 of 112 Bain & Company Interviews | Sort by |
Associate Consultant at Bain & Company
Posted Nov 6, 2011 — 1 of 1 people found this helpful
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3.0
Average Interview
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Overall Positive Experience
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Interviewed and No Offer
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Interviewed Sep 2011 in San Francisco, CA (took 2 weeks)
Applied to college recruiting. Got first round interview. It consists of 2 45-minutes case interview. The first case is a bit shorter and I spent the first 10 minutes answering behavioral questions. The 2nd case took the entire 45 minutes. There were some numbers to calculate and market size estimation questions. Mostly it's interviewer led.
Interview Questions
Other Details
I got the interview through a College or University and the interview consisted of a 1:1 Interview.
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Helpful Interview?
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Business Analyst at Bain & Company
Posted Nov 5, 2011 — 1 of 1 people found this helpful
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4.0
Difficult Interview
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Overall Positive Experience
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Interviewed and No Offer
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Interviewed Oct 2011 (took a day)
My interview was a first round interview which took place on campus. The interview was separated into two 30 minute interviews with consultants who had been with the company for a few years. There was no fit questions, and very little breaking the ice, basically just sat down and they game me a case. The cases were moderately difficult and the interviewers did a lot of guidance through them. The interviews ended with a time to ask questions and that was it.
Interview Questions
Other Details
The interview consisted of a 1:1 Interview.
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Consultant at Bain & Company
Posted Nov 4, 2011
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2.0
Easy Interview
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Overall Positive Experience
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Received and Declined Offer
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Interviewed Sep 2011 in Los Angeles, CA (took 4+ weeks)
Standard consulting intervew. First round was way easier than on this board. KNOW HOW TO DO PERCENTAGES quickly e.g. 15 percent of a number. Stupid question on two cars with different intial costs and MPG, find breakeven point.
Gets trickier in later rounds. Zero stress tests, Bain is a nice company.
Interview Questions
Reason for Declining
Better offer elsewhere
Other Details
The interview consisted of a 1:1 Interview and a Group/Panel Interview.
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Business Analyst at Bain & Company
Posted Nov 3, 2011
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3.0
Average Interview
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Overall Neutral Experience
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Interviewed and No Offer
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Interviewed Oct 2011 in New York, NY (took 2 weeks)
two back-to-back, one-on-one interview with an analyst from the boston office and new york office respectively.
they interviewed a lot of people on the same day, so don't expect they will give you the time of the day to either explain their own backgrounds/ listen to your story
went straight ahead for two case interviews, each 30-35mins, and 5 mins for q and a
one case on whether or not to purchase a shop from a friend, and another one about a manufacturer.
honestly, cases were not difficult, but the attitudes of the interviewer could sway the entire mood / flow of the interview. i had a wonderful flow with the first guy, but the second girl was simply awful. mainly because she seemed disinterested to interview you in the first place, looked around while conversing with you, and second of all, she threw a case out from her head - meaning, i did not even know whether she was playing around with me or... she just knew the case SO well.
Interview Questions
Other Details
The interview consisted of a 1:1 Interview.
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Consultant at Bain & Company
Posted Oct 31, 2011
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4.0
Difficult Interview
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Overall Neutral Experience
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Interviewed and No Offer
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Interviewed Oct 2011 in Johannesburg (South Africa) (took a day)
Received the interview after applying through the on-campus interview process at my B-school. I had indicated Joburg as one of several international locations, and provided some justification in my cover letter. I received the invitation to interview through email, separately from the on-campus process. The process consisted of two roughly 30-minute interviews. The fit portion of each was much more shallow than my experience with any other firm. Quick and dirty, why consulting, why Bain, why Joburg. One case was very ambiguous, more of a conversation, and nothing I was able to write much about (although that could be why I didn't do so well). Other case was more traditional. Received phone call (ding!) within 45 minutes, but I could tell it was coming.
Interview Questions
Other Details
I got the interview through a College or University and the interview consisted of a 1:1 Interview.
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Consultant at Bain & Company
Posted Oct 30, 2011
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4.0
Difficult Interview
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Overall Positive Experience
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Interviewed and No Offer
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Interviewed Oct 2011 in Dallas, TX (took a day)
The interview was 2 Back to Back interviews. Each interview had about 10-15 minutes of "Fit" and a 30 min Case.
One Case was a question about a Broadcasting Company (TV). The goal or objective was to drive short term profits. And the interview focused more on the cost side of things.
Another Case was a Gas Station/Convenience Store located in a local neighborhood. The case involved assessing whether to open a new store. Part of this was market sizing. Part was figuring out the key drivers, and how/why the market structure was a particular way.
Both interviews involved typical case questions about background, why consulting, why Bain. Examples of leadership, and dealing with persuasion in a difficult situation.
Interview Questions
Other Details
I got the interview through a College or University and the interview consisted of a 1:1 Interview.
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Helpful Interview?
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Associate at Bain & Company
Posted Oct 24, 2011
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3.0
Average Interview
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Overall Neutral Experience
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Interviewed and No Offer
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Interviewed Oct 2011 in Los Angeles, CA (took a day)
Bain & Company rarely interviews PhD candidates for associate positions, so I was surprised and flattered to land this interview at all. I attribute my success mainly to meeting a partner from Bain & Company for coffee who was one of the first PhD hires ever at Bain and also an alumnus at the institute where I am pursuing graduate studies. This partner was so impressed with me that she/he told me I had to apply.
The interview was standard consulting fare. There were two back-to-back case interviews. The first one with with an engagement-manger level associate, and the second one was with a principal level consultant. I had great rapport with my first interviewer; he even told me about the time half the office dressed up like vikings and "pillaged" the other employers with plastic weaponry. My first interviewer even remarked that I was not their typical interviewee, but he noted that the partner I met had recommended me.
From the start, my second interviewer seemed disinterested in me in general. He gave me a case, but he preceding it by telling me it would not very serious or structured. He delivered on his promise and the case was pretty open-ended. He didn't even ask me to sum up my findings when it was over. We had some pleasant Q&A after the case, but I could sense that he was just clearly not interested in hiring me.
The nicest thing about Bain & Company is that they call you right away. They don't leave you hanging in any sense; I got the rejection call that same evening--I was expecting a rejection of course. My first interviewer made the call--no doubt since he actually like me. He told me it was great to meet me, but that I wasn't "at the level they needed me to be at" for a call-back to interview for round two. I'm not sure that feedback was particularly helpful, but I did appreciate the quick phone call.
Interview Questions
Other Details
The interview consisted of a 1:1 Interview.
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Helpful Interview?
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Associate Consultant at Bain & Company
Posted Oct 20, 2011
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3.0
Average Interview
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Overall Neutral Experience
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Interviewed and No Offer
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Interviewed Oct 2011 (took 2 days)
I applied online by submitting a standard resume and cover letter. Bain & Co. then came to my school to interview the top applicants. The first round interview consisted of two thirty minute interviews, each of which consisted primarily of a case study discussion (about 20 minutes) with some limited introductions (about five minutes) and closing questions (about five minutes). The case studies weren't overly difficult, but communication and articulation were key. The interviewers were generally nice but sometimes testing (as they should be; however, this sometimes led to seeming unhelpful if you felt you needed more information to properly address the study). There was a second round of call-back interviews the following day.
Interview Questions
Other Details
I Applied Online and the interview consisted of a 1:1 Interview.
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Helpful Interview?
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Summer Associate at Bain & Company
Posted Oct 18, 2011
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3.0
Average Interview
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Overall Positive Experience
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Received and Accepted Offer
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Interviewed May 2011 (took a day)
got an phone call, caught me in surprise as the time was different than what we scheduled. But the conversation was smooth, talked about fit, why consulting, and so on. Then asked me to compare one industry that showed differences between US and China.
Interview Questions
Other Details
I got the interview through an Employee Referral and the interview consisted of a Phone Interview.
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No
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Associate Consultant at Bain & Company
Posted Oct 6, 2011
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4.0
Difficult Interview
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Overall Positive Experience
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Interviewed and No Offer
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Interviewed Oct 2011 (took a day)
Pre-interview reception the night before gave a good opportunity to meet interviewers before early morning interviews. Interview was standard 1:1 case interviews with a very short time up front for fit. Both cases involved some market sizing (in my case for non-US markets which was a bit difficult). Some time at the end for questions but mostly just cases.
Interview Questions
Other Details
I got the interview through a College or University and the interview consisted of a 1:1 Interview.
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Helpful Interview?
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