Fit
Why consulting, why this firm, your resume in two minutes.
- When
- Start of most rounds
- Listen for
- Reasons tied to work you have done
- Aim for
- About a minute each
Consulting interview questions, by type
A consulting interview asks two kinds of question. Fit questions are about you: why consulting, why this firm and one or two stories told in depth. Case questions are a client's business problem you solve out loud, often with a market sizing estimate or some quick math inside. Below are 38 of both, grouped the way the interview runs. To say your answers out loud, Soreno, an AI voice interview practice app for consulting, investment banking and other finance candidates, runs consulting fit and case interviews with follow-up questions and scored feedback.
Updated
- Two halves. Fit questions about you, then a case about a client's problem.
- Fit comes first. Why consulting, why this firm and your resume open most rounds.
- Stories get probed. Expect follow-ups on what you did and why, so pick true ones.
- Cases test reasoning. McKinsey, BCG, Bain and Deloitte say there is no single right answer.
- Each firm adds its own part. McKinsey's PEI and Solve, BCG's skills interview, Bain's why Bain.
The four kinds of consulting interview question
Most first and final rounds mix all four. The case takes most of the time, but a weak answer to why consulting can sink a strong case.
Behavioral stories
One real story about leading, a conflict, a failure or a hard call.
- Follow-ups
- Several, on what you did and why
- Listen for
- Your own role
- McKinsey
- Its own version, the PEI
Case
A client's business problem, solved out loud with the interviewer.
- Parts
- Structure, data, math, recommendation
- Right answer
- Not always a single one, BCG says
- Math
- Quick calculations
Market sizing
An estimate, inside a case or on its own: how many, how big.
- Listen for
- A clear method over a precise number
- Check
- Against something you know
- Aim for
- A few minutes
How a consulting interview usually runs4 parts
Firms vary, and your recruiter confirms the details. This is the common shape.
First minutes
Your background and why consulting
A short walk through your resume and why you want the job. Keep it to a couple of minutes and end on why this firm.
Practice why consulting out loudNext
One story in depth
A behavioral question, then follow-ups that go deeper into one moment. At McKinsey this is the personal experience interview.
McKinsey PEI questionsMost of the time
The case
A prompt, your structure, data when you ask for it, some math and a recommendation at the end.
What a case interview isLast minutes
Your questions for them
One or two questions you could not have answered from the firm's website, about the work or the person in front of you.
What the interviewer listens for
No firm publishes a scoring rubric. Their careers pages say this much.
A structure built for this client
McKinsey asks candidates to listen carefully and share tailored solutions rather than standard frameworks.
Reasoning you can follow
BCG says there isn't always a single right answer, and that how you approach the problem matters most. Deloitte says the same of its case and scenario interviews.
Your role in the story
McKinsey asks you to talk about your specific role and to lead with reasoning, not actions, in a conversation rather than a rehearsed story.
A real reason for this firm
Bain says that in every role it looks for people who can explain why they want to join Bain in particular.
From McKinsey: interviewing, BCG: case interview preparation, Deloitte: case and scenario tips and Bain: interviewing.
38 consulting interview questions, by type
In our words unless marked. Each note says what a strong answer does. Open the app to answer out loud and see a model answer.
Fit: you, consulting and the firm8 questions
Asked at the start of almost every round.
Why do you want to go into consulting?
What a strong answer does
Two reasons, each backed by something you have already done, and a line on what you want to learn in the job. Practice it, see a model answer
Why do you want to work at this firm?
What a strong answer does
Something you checked yourself, such as a person you spoke to or a kind of work the firm does, tied to your own goals. Practice it, see a model answer
Walk me through your resume.
What a strong answer does
About two minutes, in order, with the choices you made and why. End where the question started: why you are here. Practice it, see a model answer
Give me a quick overview of your background and what brought you to consulting.
What a strong answer does
The short version of your resume with one thread running through it, landing on consulting. Practice it, see a model answer
Why should we hire you?
What a strong answer does
Two strengths the job needs, each with proof from your past, said plainly. Practice it, see a model answer
What are your greatest strengths?
What a strong answer does
One or two, each shown in a short example rather than claimed. Practice it, see a model answer
What is your biggest weakness?
What a strong answer does
A real one that would matter in the job, what you are doing about it and how it has gone so far. Practice it, see a model answer
Where do you see yourself in five years?
What a strong answer does
An honest direction that this job helps with. Interviewers want to hear that you have thought about it. Practice it, see a model answer
Behavioral stories8 questions
One story, then follow-ups that test it.
Tell me about a time you led a group to a result that mattered.
What a strong answer does
Your own moves as the leader, how you got people to follow, and the result in numbers if you have them. Practice it, see a model answer
Tell me about a conflict you had with a teammate.
What a strong answer does
Their side stated fairly, what you did to resolve it and how you worked together afterward. Practice it, see a model answer
Tell me about a time you failed.
What a strong answer does
A real failure you caused, what you would do differently, and proof that you have since done it. Practice it, see a model answer
Tell me about a time you received tough feedback.
What a strong answer does
The feedback in the words you heard it, how it landed and the change you made. Practice it, see a model answer
Tell me about a time you had to make a decision without all the information you wanted.
What a strong answer does
What you knew, what you assumed, how you limited the risk and whether you were right. Practice it, see a model answer
Tell me about a time you had more work than you could finish on time.
What a strong answer does
How you chose what came first, who you told and what you let slip on purpose. Practice it, see a model answer
Tell me about a time you disagreed with your manager.
What a strong answer does
How you raised it, the evidence you used and how you behaved once the decision was made. Practice it, see a model answer
Tell me about a time you took the initiative without being asked.
What a strong answer does
What you noticed that others missed, why you acted and what changed because you did. Practice it, see a model answer
PEI-style: McKinsey's four areas5 questions
McKinsey suggests two stories for each of Connection, Drive, Leadership and Growth.
Explain a hard situation where you worked with someone who held the opposite opinion.
McKinsey's PEI preview question, paraphrased
What a strong answer does
Connection. Show you understood their view well enough to argue it, and how the two of you got to a decision. Practice it, see a model answer
Talk about a time you worked hard to achieve excellence in tough circumstances.
McKinsey's PEI preview question, paraphrased
What a strong answer does
Drive. The obstacle, the moment it could have stopped you and the choices that got you through. Practice it, see a model answer
Share an example where you worked well with people from different backgrounds despite challenges.
McKinsey's PEI preview question, paraphrased
What a strong answer does
Leadership. What made the group hard to lead and what you did so each person could do their best work.
Revisit a time when you had to learn something new quickly to tackle a hard situation.
McKinsey's PEI preview question, paraphrased
What a strong answer does
Growth. How you learned it, who you asked, and what you did with it under the deadline. Practice it, see a model answer
Tell me about a time you changed someone's mind.
What a strong answer does
A second Connection story. Start with why they disagreed. The evidence and the conversation matter more than the win. Practice it, see a model answer
Case questions9 questions
Clarify the goal, structure, then work it out loud.
A regional grocery chain's profits are down 20% in two years. How would you find out why?
What a strong answer does
Revenue and costs, each split one level down, then say which part you would check first and why. Practice it, see a model answer
A European e-bike maker wants to enter the US. How would you structure it?
What a strong answer does
Is the market worth it, can the client win, would it make money and how to get in, ending on yes or no. Practice it, see a model answer
How would you price a new analytics add-on for existing software customers?
What a strong answer does
The value to the customer, the cost and the competition, then a price you can defend in one line. Practice it, see a model answer
The client's main competitor just cut prices by 20%. How should the client respond?
What a strong answer does
Find out why they cut first, then weigh matching, holding and other moves on what each costs. Practice it, see a model answer
A large food company wants to buy a plant-based snack startup. Should it?
What a strong answer does
The market, the target, the fit with the buyer and the price, with the deal breaker named early. Practice it, see a model answer
A hospital's emergency room wait times have doubled in a year. How would you structure this?
What a strong answer does
Follow a patient through the visit, find the step that slowed, then ask what changed in demand and capacity. Practice it, see a model answer
How many cups a day does a new coffee shop need to sell to break even?
What a strong answer does
Fixed costs over the margin per cup, said out loud, then the answer as a decision. Practice it, see a model answer
Brainstorm ways a movie theater chain could grow its revenue.
What a strong answer does
Ideas in groups, such as more visits, more spent per visit and new uses of the space, then the best two. Practice it, see a model answer
The CEO walks in. What do you recommend?
What a strong answer does
The answer in one sentence, two or three reasons with numbers, the main risk and the next step. Practice it, see a model answer
Market sizing4 questions
A clear method beats a precise number.
How many gas stations are there in the United States?
What a strong answer does
Pick a route, cars and fill-ups or people and distance, round as you go and check the result. Practice it, see a model answer
Estimate the annual US market for electric scooters.
What a strong answer does
Say whether you size it top-down or bottom-up and why, then keep the segments few. Practice it, see a model answer
How many cups of coffee are sold in New York City each day?
What a strong answer does
Split the people who buy coffee by how often, and say which number you are least sure of. Practice it, see a model answer
Would you size a market top-down or bottom-up, and how do you choose?
What a strong answer does
Top-down when good totals exist, bottom-up when you can count buyers. Better still, do both and compare. Practice it, see a model answer
Firm questions and your questions4 questions
Each firm asks why it, and every round ends with your turn.
Why McKinsey and not another firm?
What a strong answer does
Name what you learned from someone at McKinsey or its own pages, and link it to a story you will tell in the PEI.
Why BCG?
What a strong answer does
BCG's skills interview asks about your motivation. Point to a kind of work or a person, not its ranking.
Why Bain, specifically?
What a strong answer does
Bain says it looks for people who can explain why Bain in particular. Say something you could only say about Bain.
Do you have any questions for me?
What a strong answer does
One question about the interviewer's own work or a recent project, never one the website answers. Practice it, see a model answer
Mistakes and how to prepare
Where consulting candidates slip
A why consulting that fits any job
Problem solving and learning fast are true of most jobs. Tie each reason to something you did and liked.
Stories with no "I" in them
Follow-ups dig into your own part. If the story is mostly what the team did, pick another one.
A memorized framework
Interviewers notice a structure that would fit any client. Build the branches from this client's question.
Math in silence
Say the approach before the numbers, so the interviewer can follow you and help if you slip.
No answer at the end
A case ends on a recommendation. Say yes or no first, then the reasons.
How to prepare for these questions
Our suggested order. Start with the stories, since they take longest.
Week 1
Write your fit answers and six stories
Why consulting, why each firm and your resume walk, then stories for leading, conflict, failure, a hard call, learning fast and working with different people.
Week 1 to 2
Say them out loud with follow-ups
A story that reads well can fall apart under the third question. Practice with someone who keeps asking why.
Week 2 to 4
Cases and math every day
Ten minutes of math by hand, then a full case out loud with someone who pushes back.
Free case math drillsFree sample caseAll case interview questions
Before each firm
Read the firm's own pages
Its process, its sample cases and one thing you can say about it that you could not say about a rival.
What each firm adds to the interview
From each firm's own careers pages. The rounds differ by role and office, and your recruiter confirms them.
McKinsey
- Test
- Solve, a problem-solving game
- Interviews
- PEI and problem-solving
- Calculator
- No, pen and paper
For most client-facing roles, personal experience interviews and problem-solving (case) interviews, after its Solve game for most consulting roles.
BCG
- First
- A skills interview
- Then
- Case and team interviews
- Right answer
- Isn't always a single one
An application, then a skills interview on your experience, skills and motivation. Client-facing roles add a case interview and a team interview.
Bain
- Questions
- The same for every candidate
- Consulting
- An assessment, then cases
- Looks for
- Why Bain in particular
Every candidate for a role gets the same questions, and in every role Bain looks for people who can explain why they want to join Bain in particular.
Deloitte
- Format
- Case or scenario
- Right answer
- Not expected
- Practice
- Its own case prep tools
Its cases are fictional examples of the kinds of client projects it works on. It doesn't expect the right answer. It wants your logic and thought process.
Answer them out loud, with follow-ups
Soreno's AI interviewer asks consulting fit questions and runs full cases, pushes back like a real interviewer and scores how you did. Start your free week.
Questions people ask
What questions are asked in a consulting interview?
Fit questions about you, such as why consulting, why this firm and your resume, one or two behavioral stories, and a case: a client's business problem you solve out loud, often with a market sizing estimate or quick math inside it.
How many questions are in a consulting interview?
No firm publishes a number. A round is often a few fit questions and one story, then one case made of several smaller questions, such as a structure, a chart and a calculation.
What is the McKinsey PEI?
McKinsey's personal experience interview: you discuss your own experiences in detail, focusing on your specific role. McKinsey suggests two stories for each of four areas, Connection, Drive, Leadership and Growth.
Are consulting interview questions the same at every firm?
The kinds are the same: fit, stories and a case. Each firm adds its own round, such as McKinsey's PEI and Solve or BCG's skills and team interviews, and Bain says every candidate for a role gets the same questions.
How should I answer why consulting?
With two reasons you can back with something you have already done, plus what you want to learn. Reasons that fit any job, like liking problem solving, sound rehearsed.
Can I use a calculator in a consulting case?
Usually not. McKinsey's careers FAQ says calculators are not allowed in its interviews, so practice the math by hand.
Keep going
- Case interview questions
- Consulting behavioral interview questions
- McKinsey interview
- McKinsey PEI questions
- BCG interview questions
- Bain interview questions
- Deloitte consulting interview questions
- Accenture consulting interview questions
- Oliver Wyman interview questions
- L.E.K. interview questions
- Kearney interview questions
- Roland Berger interview questions
- Strategy& interview questions
- Case interview preparation
- Market sizing interview questions
- Consulting resume
- MECE, with examples