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Ace the Case: How to Flex Your Intellect in a Case Interview

Case interviews are great opportunities to showcase your smarts. They’re designed to assess your ability to deal with complex problems, to approach an issue strategically and thoughtfully, and to reach intelligent conclusions with the available facts — in a short amount of time.

In other words, they’re checking out your judgment, intellect and quick thinking. And those are pretty important skills, so it’s wise to prepare yourself thoroughly for this kind of test.

With that in mind, here are some practical tips for a successful case interview. 

1. Listen Carefully

Maybe this sounds obvious, but it’s absolutely critical: listen very carefully to the problem or case. And make sure that you respond directly to the problem at hand, rather than a side issue. One of the biggest mistakes made in case interviews is misunderstanding the question or answering the wrong one. Try to stay focused.

To avoid any confusion, take the time to repeat the question back to your interviewer. This not only demonstrates your excellent listening abilities to your interviewer, but also ensures that you understand what they’re asking you to do.   

And during the case interview, listen closely for any extra information they give you. Chances are these are helpful clues — so pay attention!

2. Outline your Thought Process and establish a Logical Structure  

Case interviews, as we mentioned, highlight your thought processes. The hiring manager wants to see that you follow a rational, structured approach to problem-solving.

How do you do this? Outline four to five major issues that need to be examined upfront before you can address the big issue. And then describe your overall problem-solving approach to your interviewer. This demonstrates to your interviewer that you can take a complex problem and break it down into manageable components.   

The natural conclusion for your interviewer? That you’re logical, thorough, and mentally organized.

As part of your explanation, share why you are addressing each point, and convey where it fits into the overall problem at hand. If any part of your approach is wrong or missing something, the interviewer has a chance to redirect you at that point.

 

 

3. Ask for More Information

 

If you find yourself needing more information — relax — it’s perfectly acceptable to ask for clarification. In fact, most interviewers expect you to ask for it. Most of them want you to ask for it.

 

 

 

But, again, make sure you understand where each question fits into the overall picture. Don’t make the mistake of firing off a bunch of questions without understanding where they fit into the bigger picture, or without explaining to the interviewer why you need the information.

 

 

4. Talk it out

 

And this is why you need to talk it out: because the employer is far more interested in your thought process than the actual solution. So do your best to verbalize your mental journey, to walk your interviewer through your problem-solving process.

In some cases, you’ll run out of time before you even have the opportunity to present your conclusion. In these situations, it’s even more important to talk through your reasoning out loud.

 

 

5. Step back and Summarize from Time to Time

 

Take time to step back periodically and summarize the conclusions you have been able to form so far and what the implications may be.

 

 

This is especially helpful when you don’t have the time to talk through all the key issues or the entire case. The summary demonstrates to your interviewer early on in the case that you can synthesize information and draw conclusions.

 

 

And remember that the whole point of the case interview is to understand your ability to think and reason logically — so don’t get hung up on solving the mystery. Rather, pour your energy into demonstrating a logical thought process.

 

 

Expert Advice Brought to you by The Resume Girl

 

 

Like these tips? Want more?

 

I’m here to help you with résumés, cover letters and professional interview coaching.

Visit www.theresumegirl.com 

 

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