OC&C case interview, round by round
OC&C's London postings for 2027 list a CV with your name removed, an online blended assessment, a short one-way video, then two 30-minute virtual case interviews with Consultants and Managers and two 45-minute in-person case interviews with Associate Partners and Partners. Its 2024 brochure shows other offices running similar case-heavy rounds, while US applications open mid-August and close at the end of September. Want to rehearse a retail or consumer case out loud? Soreno, an AI voice interview practice app for consulting, investment banking and other finance candidates, runs a free due diligence case with no sign-up.
Updated
- Four case interviews in London. Two virtual 30-minute cases, then two in-person 45-minute cases with Associate Partners and Partners.
- Tests and a video first. An online blended assessment of numerical and critical reasoning, then a short one-way video.
- Strategy and M&A work. Its London posting says it advises on where to play and how to win, not long implementation projects.
- Dates by office. The US Associate Consultant and internship roles open mid-August and close at the end of September.
- Free case workshops. OC&C has run virtual sessions on its case interview format with example cases. Both workshop pages we read are for past dates.
An OC&C-style case, worked: a pet store chain for a private equity buyer
OC&C's London posting names its sectors (retail, leisure and hospitality, consumer goods, technology and media, B2B, private equity) and a strategy and M&A focus. Below is a due diligence case we wrote in that space, solved out loud, then a weak and a strong answer.
Example case: should a fund back Paddock Pets' growth plan?Soreno's invented case
We wrote this case. Every figure comes from the facts in the prompt.
The prompt
From 120 stores to 200
A private equity fund may buy Paddock Pets, a UK chain of 120 pet stores with sales of about £1,600,000 a year each. Management's plan is 200 stores in 5 years. The fund asks: is the plan believable, and is it worth it?
Structure
Market, the stores, the plan
Is the market growing? Do new stores pay back, after the sales they take from Paddock's own stores? Can the chain's share rise as much as the plan needs? Then a view for the fund.
How to build an issue treeOne store
Payback 3.3 years, or 3.7 after cannibalization
A new store takes £1,500,000 at a 12% margin, so £180,000 a year on £600,000 of fit-out. But 10% of its sales come from nearby Paddock stores, so the real gain is £162,000 a year.
Free case math drillsThe whole plan
£12.96 million a year of profit for £48 million
80 new stores at £162,000 each add £12.96 million a year, for £48 million of fit-out spending.
Sense check
Share from 6.4% to 8.2%
Today Paddock takes £192 million of a £3 billion market, 6.4%. With 4% market growth a year, the market is about £3.65 billion in 5 years and Paddock's £300 million would be 8.2%. A real gain, but not an extreme one.
The answer to the fund: weak and strongTwo sample answers we wrote
OC&C's London posting asks for people who turn analysis into practical recommendations.
Weak answer
"The plan looks good"
"Each store makes £180,000 and pays back in 3.3 years, so opening 80 more is attractive." It ignores the sales new stores take from old ones and never checks the plan against the market.
Strong answer
Verdict, two numbers, the risk
"The plan is believable and worth backing. After cannibalization each new store pays back in about 3.7 years, and 80 stores add £12.96 million a year of profit. It only needs Paddock's share to move from 6.4% to 8.2%. The risk is the best sites going first, so I'd check how the last 20 stores opened compare with the first 20 before we bid."
Why it works
Answer first, tested against the market
It answers both questions the fund asked, uses the number after cannibalization and names the one check that could change the view.
See a real sample report
What OC&C says it looks for
Its London posting lists the traits below, and its Your Application page says how it judges CVs. It publishes no case rubric.
Creative, structured thinking
People who enjoy breaking down complex or ambiguous problems, challenging assumptions and exploring different ideas.
Logical and numerate
Able to interpret qualitative and quantitative information and draw meaningful insights from it.
Commercial curiosity
Identifying what matters most and turning analysis into practical recommendations. Commercial awareness is also one of its three CV criteria.
Clear, confident communication
Explaining your thinking logically, listening, challenging others constructively and adapting to the audience.
Collaboration
Team players who value different views and seek and respond to feedback. OC&C works in small teams.
Intellectual curiosity
Its first CV criterion, shown through consistent academic excellence. Extracurricular interests are the second.
From OC&C London posting and OC&C UK: your application.
OC&C's London process, step by step
The Associate Consultant 2027-28 and Summer Internship 2027 postings for London list the same five steps. Read October 31, 2026.
From its 2027 London postings
Step 1
CV, with your name removed
Remove your name and contact details. No cover letter. OC&C says an internally built AI tool supports CV screening and may make some screening decisions without individual human review, while final recruitment decisions are made by people.
From OC&C London posting.
Step 2
Online blended assessment
Numerical and critical reasoning questions combined with behavioral and motivational questions.
From OC&C London posting.
Step 3
One-way video
A short recorded assessment for candidates who pass the blended assessment.
From OC&C London posting.
Round 1
Two 30-minute virtual cases
Case study interviews with Consultants and Managers.
From OC&C London posting.
Round 2
Two 45-minute in-person cases
Case study interviews with Associate Partners and Partners.
From OC&C London posting.
Timing
Rolling review in London
London screens applications as they arrive. Its Associate Consultant 2027-28 posting closed November 1, 2026, and the 2027 internship advertises until January 4, 2027. London applicants may apply to only one Associate Consultant role, Strategy or Analytics.
From OC&C London posting and OC&C London internship posting.
Its London posting says a limited number of visa sponsorships are available for this graduate role. Other offices run their own steps (below).
12 OC&C practice questions
Our own questions, not OC&C's. Eight cases in the sectors its London posting names, then four for the behavioral and motivational questions in its blended assessment.
Strategy and due diligence cases8 questions
Where to play and how to win, with a number behind each claim.
A grocery chain's profits are down 20%. Why?
What a strong answer does
Revenue and costs, then the driver behind each, before any numbers. Practice it, see a model answer
A pet food maker wants to launch a premium line. Should it?
What a strong answer does
Size the premium segment, check who it would take sales from and whether its brand can carry the price. Practice it, see a model answer
A private equity fund is looking at a chain of dental clinics. What would you check?
What a strong answer does
Market growth, each clinic's economics, how easy new sites are and what the exit could look like. Practice it, see a model answer
A furniture retailer wants to sell online. Should it?
What a strong answer does
Who would buy online, what delivery and returns cost, and what happens to store sales. Practice it, see a model answer
A coffee chain wants to enter India. How would you decide?
What a strong answer does
Market size and growth, competitors, the right format and partner, then a go or no go with conditions. Practice it, see a model answer
A shampoo brand is losing market share. What would you look at?
What a strong answer does
Which segments and channels it is losing in, to whom and why. Then two moves with a reason. Practice it, see a model answer
A media company's streaming service is losing subscribers. What's happening?
What a strong answer does
Segment who leaves and when, then test price, content and rivals against the data. Practice it, see a model answer
A B2B software firm wants to add a paid feature. How should it price it?
What a strong answer does
The value to customers, what competitors charge and how many would upgrade. Give a price and a reason. Practice it, see a model answer
Motivation and experience4 questions
Its blended assessment includes behavioral and motivational questions.
Why OC&C, and why strategy rather than implementation consulting?
What a strong answer does
OC&C says it focuses on strategy and M&A rather than long implementation projects. Say why that suits you, with one example. Practice it, see a model answer
Why consulting?
What a strong answer does
One real reason tied to something you've done, and what you want to learn in the first two years. Practice it, see a model answer
Tell me about something commercial you've noticed recently.
What a strong answer does
A business move you followed, what drove it and whether you'd have done the same. OC&C screens CVs for commercial awareness. Practice it, see a model answer
Tell me about a time you worked well in a small team.
What a strong answer does
Your own part, how you helped others and the result. Practice it, see a model answer
More to prepare with
Mistakes to avoid at OC&C
Leaving your name on the CV
Its London postings ask you to remove your name and contact details before you submit.
Applying to both London roles
London accepts one Associate Consultant application, Strategy or Analytics. Email the recruitment team to switch.
Missing the US window
US Associate Consultant and internship roles open mid-August and close at the end of September, and US review starts after the close.
Analysis with no recommendation
OC&C asks for people who turn analysis into practical recommendations. End every case with a clear answer.
Losing its emails
Its London posting says candidates have missed emails that went to junk. Add OC&C to your safe senders list.
How to prepare for OC&C
OC&C's own resources first, then steps we suggest.
OC&C's resource
Join a case workshop
Its US workshop page (dated 2025) introduced the case format used for recruiting at OC&C with example cases, and its UK page (2024) a two-hour session on how to ace a case study interview. Both dates have passed, so watch OC&C's events pages for the next one.
From OC&C US: case workshop and OC&C UK: case study workshop.
OC&C's guidance
Build your CV around its three criteria
Intellectual curiosity, extracurricular interests and commercial awareness. Its US page says CVs should be 1 to 2 pages.
Our suggestion
Practice numerical reasoning
The blended assessment includes numerical and critical reasoning. Timed math practice helps.
Our suggestion
Rehearse 30-minute cases
Its first London round is two 30-minute cases. Practice reaching a recommendation inside that time.
Our suggestion
Record a 60-second why OC&C
OC&C doesn't publish what its one-way video asks, but a short, specific reason helps there and in the blended assessment's motivational questions. Play it back and cut anything generic.
Other offices, from OC&C's own pages
OC&C has no single global process. These rows come from its US Your Application page (read November 3, 2026) and OC&C's 2024 Global Graduate Brochure, whose dates are for the 2024-25 cycle, so check each office's current posting.
US (2024 brochure)Two rounds of case interviews
Stage 1: two 30-minute case interviews with Consultants and Managers. Stage 2: two 30-minute case interviews with Associate Partners and Partners. CV and cover letter, and the right to work in the US is required.
OC&C: 2024 global graduate brochure (PDF)US datesYour Application page
Associate Consultant and summer internship roles open mid-August and close at the end of September. US review is not rolling: feedback comes within 3 weeks of the closing date. MBA windows: September to October for full-time, October to January for internships.
OC&C US: your applicationAustralia (2024 brochure)Test, then three case interviews
An online test, two 45-minute case interviews with Managers, then one 45-minute case interview with Associate Partners or Partners.
OC&C: 2024 global graduate brochure (PDF)Warsaw (2024 brochure)Test, cases, HR, cases
For Associate Consultants: online testing, two 45-minute case interviews with Consultants and Managers, an interview with the HR team, then two 45-minute case interviews with Associate Partners and Partners.
OC&C: 2024 global graduate brochure (PDF)Thirty minutes, one clear answer
Soreno's AI interviewer runs strategy and due diligence cases out loud, checks your math as you say it and scores whether you reach a clear recommendation. Soreno is not affiliated with OC&C Strategy Consultants.
Questions people ask
What is the OC&C interview process?
Its London 2027 postings list a CV with your name removed, an online blended assessment, a short one-way video, two 30-minute virtual case interviews and two 45-minute in-person case interviews with Associate Partners and Partners.
How many case interviews does OC&C give?
Four in London, per its 2027 postings. Its 2024 brochure shows four in the US (two rounds of two) and three in Australia. Check your office's posting.
Does OC&C have an online test?
Yes, in London: an online blended assessment combining numerical and critical reasoning with behavioral and motivational questions, followed by a short one-way video for those who pass.
When does OC&C recruit?
It depends on the office. Its US page says Associate Consultant and internship roles open mid-August and close at the end of September. London reviews on a rolling basis.
Does OC&C sponsor visas?
Its London Associate Consultant posting says a limited number of visa sponsorships are available for that graduate role. Its 2024 brochure lists the right to work as required in the US.
Who can apply for the OC&C summer internship?
Students in the penultimate year of an undergraduate or postgraduate degree. OC&C says this excludes final-year students going on to a master's. The internship lasts 8 weeks.
Is Soreno affiliated with OC&C?
No. Soreno is independent of OC&C Strategy Consultants. We wrote the Paddock Pets case, the sample answers and the practice questions here.