Bain & Company Associate Consultant Interview Questions | Glassdoor
Bain & Company Interviews
Interviews
  • Jobs
  • Companies
  • Salaries
  • Interviews

    Bain & Company Associate Consultant Interview Questions

    Interviews at Bain & Company

    524 Interview Reviews

    Experience

    Experience
    79%
    17%
    4%

    Getting an Interview

    Getting an Interview
    51%
    39%
    6%
    2
    1
    1
    0

    Difficulty

    3.7
    Average

    Difficulty

    Hard
    Average
    Easy

    Interviews for Top Jobs at Bain & Company

    More

    Helpful (5)  

    Associate Consultant Interview

    Anonymous Interview Candidate
    No Offer

    Application

    I applied through college or university. I interviewed at Bain & Company.

    Interview

    I was asked to explain why Google wanted to make a self-driving car. They were looking for more of my thought process than my actual answer, however, I think I stumbled at first as I was so prepared to do a case interview. Oh well.

    Interview Questions

    • What is Google's motivation for the self-driving car?   2 Answers

    Other Interview Reviews for Bain & Company

    1. Helpful (5)  

      Associate Consultant Interview

      Anonymous Employee in Los Angeles, CA
      Accepted Offer
      Positive Experience
      Difficult Interview

      Application

      I applied through college or university. I interviewed at Bain & Company (Los Angeles, CA) in September 2013.

      Interview

      There were multiple rounds of interviews. 2 shorter interviews in one block for the first round (~30 minutes) with 3 interviews in the second round (~45 minutes). The first round emphasizes quantitative skills and ability to do the case a bit more while the second round places a bit more emphasis on candidate fit.

      Interview Questions

      • Just run of the mill business cases. Nothing especially difficult or tricky.   Answer Question

    2.  

      Associate Consultant Interview

      Anonymous Interview Candidate in Los Angeles, CA
      No Offer
      Neutral Experience
      Difficult Interview

      Application

      I applied online. The process took a week. I interviewed at Bain & Company (Los Angeles, CA) in January 2014.

      Interview

      Initial communication was through email to set up the first round of interviews. This process was very smooth and the recruiting coordinator was very helpful in answering any questions. Once in the office, they will provide you with a description of the interviewers along with their backgrounds. The interviewers themselves were friendly but became really stoic during the actual interview.

      Interview Questions

      • Interview was 1.5 hours long with 2 cases lasting 45 minutes each. Both cases were drawn from the same industry - U.S. airlines   Answer Question
      3. Join the Bain & Company team
      See Our Latest Jobs

    3. Helpful (2)  

      Associate Consultant Interview

      Anonymous Employee in Dallas, TX
      Accepted Offer
      Positive Experience
      Difficult Interview

      Application

      I interviewed at Bain & Company (Dallas, TX) in June 2010.

      Interview

      Two back-to-back on campus interviews in the career center. Heavy case interviews emphasizing quantitative and logic. Two Bain Manager/CTL level people came to do the interviews. They selected 10 applicants to interview out of about 100 applications. They usually hire 1 or 2 people from the ones they interview.

      Interview Questions

      • What is the exact angle formed by the hands on a clock when the time reads 9:30?   15 Answers

    4.  

      Associate Consultant Interview

      Anonymous Interview Candidate in Chicago, IL
      No Offer
      Positive Experience
      Difficult Interview

      Application

      I applied through college or university. The process took 4+ weeks. I interviewed at Bain & Company (Chicago, IL) in October 2013.

      Interview

      The interview process was standard for the consulting industry. First round was an on-campus interview consisting of two cases that were fairly easy. The final round was an office visit with three cases (more difficult) and a fit interview. Overall all the people in the company were very nice and helpful in terms of providing feedback.

      Interview Questions

      • The cases in the final round were more difficult and I'm sure are different year to year.   Answer Question

    5.  

      Associate Consultant Interview

      Anonymous Interview Candidate
      No Offer
      Positive Experience
      Difficult Interview

      Application

      I applied through college or university. I interviewed at Bain & Company.

      Interview

      I gave my resume at a career fair. First interview was 2 cases with some behavioral mixed in. One case was strictly quantitative and the other was half quantitative, half creativity (ideas about the business). Nothing terribly hard. Very high standards for them nonetheless. They are looking for more than the typical answers. More depth is needed. I didn't do well enough in that area to advance.

      Interview Questions

    6. Helpful (4)  

      Associate Consultant Interview

      Anonymous Interview Candidate
      No Offer
      Positive Experience
      Difficult Interview

      Application

      I applied online. The process took 2 weeks. I interviewed at Bain & Company in September 2014.

      Interview

      Initially I submitted online, and through the school. They emailed to notify us of first round interviews. The interviews consisted of 2 case interviews with 2 different people. Each case interview was fairly straightforward seeming, but it was important to look at the big picture, what the numbers mean. It was important not to get flustered when the interviewer pointed out mistakes or missed aspects.

      Interview Questions

      • A case about implementation of ATMs showed that one option provided a higher profit, but it was important also to consider the risks involved with that option before recommending implementation.   Answer Question

    7.  

      Associate Consultant Interview

      Anonymous Interview Candidate in New York, NY
      No Offer
      Positive Experience
      Difficult Interview

      Application

      I applied through an employee referral. The process took 2 weeks. I interviewed at Bain & Company (New York, NY) in October 2014.

      Interview

      I networked with a couple of people at Bain and got the interview through an employee referral. Since I applied through my school, however, I interviewed at the same time as many other candidates in my school, so I did not participate in the off-cycle hiring process, which is supposedly harder.

      When I arrived in the office, I received a folder with the backgrounds of the consultants that would interview me. It's important to read through them as you'll know who you'd be approaching. Also, both my interviewers gave me cases that they had worked on.

      The first round consisted of two 30-min one-on-one case interviews in the office. We started with a few typical fit questions like "Why Bain, why consulting, tell me about this experience on your resume, why make the transition from your background (life sciences) to consulting, etc."

      Then we moved on to the case. The first one was about non-profit work that the consultant had done and would not fit any frameworks. It started with an estimation question and was followed by some qualitative questions. I think I did hit on all important points and built a great rapport with the interviewer, who was a young AC and pretty cool.

      The second interview was with a more senior consultant and started with similar fit questions. He asked me about my office choices. Then we worked on a case study about a pet food supplier in which the consultant had been involved. It fit a profitability framework and I did not have much trouble finding the problem driving down revenues and profits. I did struggle with the last part of the case which was proposing a solution to the client. Since the consultant had actually worked on that project there was one specific solution he was looking for and it took me some time and some hints from him to get to it.

      I interviewed today and haven't heard back yet obviously, but I'm not sure if I'll be invited to a second round given my hesitancy with the second case. I would bet that they're looking at outstanding performances as that the cases were not unusually hard. I hope that they account for the fact that the solution to the second case was not obvious after analysis and it was a bit more about guessing. Let's see.

      Overall I had a great experience and a good impression about the company and the people working there. They were all very professional and friendly. I even got the opportunity to have a mock interview in the office the day before the actual interview without even asking for it.

      Interview Questions

      • The first case about a non-profit did not follow any traditional structures. The first question was "Try to narrow down all the jobs that our target population could be eligible for".   1 Answer

    8.  

      Associate Consultant Interview

      Anonymous Interview Candidate
      No Offer
      Positive Experience
      Difficult Interview

      Application

      I applied through college or university. The process took 2 weeks. I interviewed at Bain & Company.

      Interview

      Received first round interview on campus. Two back to back cases, no graphs/charts, which I had been expecting. One vague case and then one straightforward private equity investment case. If you don't completely crush both cases, you will not get offered a 2nd round interview.

      Interview Questions

      • Must be able to understand what they're asking for. Nothing stood out as unexpected though.   Answer Question

    9. Helpful (2)  

      Associate Consultant Interview

      Anonymous Interview Candidate
      No Offer
      Neutral Experience
      Difficult Interview

      Application

      I applied through college or university. The process took 1+ week. I interviewed at Bain & Company.

      Interview

      On campus recruiting. First round and then final round interview. Both rounds were quite similar except first round had more market sizing. Second round one case had a chart.

      Interview Questions

      • Difficult private equity case without much information to work with.   Answer Question
    Don't Miss Out On a Job You Love
    Upload a resume to easily apply to jobs from anywhere. It's simple to set up.