Bain Written Case Interview: 90-Minute Format & How to Prepare
The Bain written case interview gives you a packet of business documents and asks for a short written deliverable — usually a slide deck — within a tight time limit, historically around 90 minutes in many Bain offices. There's no interviewer guiding you. You read, analyse, structure and write alone, and Bain judges only the slides you hand in.
What the Bain Written Case Interview Is
The written case typically appears in later rounds, and it catches people off guard because it's nothing like the case interviews they've practised. You receive a packet — exhibits, charts, interview notes, financial data — and a prompt asking for a recommendation. Your job: synthesise the data and write it up as a small number of executive-ready slides with a clear storyline. The Bain written case interview tests what consultants actually do every day: turn messy information into a crisp, client-ready output under a deadline.
What the Bain Written Case Assesses
Bain is scoring four things. Structuring under pressure: can you find the 3–4 key issues in a pile of data without an interviewer pointing at them? Analytical rigour: do your numbers hold up, and did you use the exhibits instead of guessing? Written communication: are your slide titles action-oriented — stating the insight, not just "Market Analysis"? And judgement: does your recommendation actually follow from the evidence, with risks acknowledged? The written case is brutal because every weakness shows on the page. There's no charm, no steering, no second chance to clarify.
How to Prepare for the Bain Written Case Interview
You prepare by writing, not by reading about writing. Get your hands on real Bain written-case-style packets and do full timed runs: read fast, decide your structure in the first 15 minutes, and force yourself to finish slides with action titles. Learn the standard slide architecture — situation, complication, key findings, recommendation, risks and next steps — until you can build it in your sleep. Practise chart reading specifically: written cases bury the decisive insight in an exhibit most candidates skim. And get your work critiqued: the gap between "I think this is clear" and "a partner finds this clear" is where candidates fail. The people who pass the Bain written case interview aren't better analysts — they're the ones who've already done it ten times before the real thing.
One unprepared slide deck can end a whole recruiting season. Make sure yours isn't the one.
FAQ
What is the Bain written case interview? A written exercise where you analyse a business data packet and produce executive-style slides with a recommendation, under a tight time limit — historically around 90 minutes in many offices.
When does the Bain written case appear? Usually in later interview rounds, often the final round. Check Bain's careers page for the current 2027 intake process in your office.
How is the written case different from a normal case interview? No interviewer, no dialogue, no hints. You work alone and your written output is the entire evaluation — which is why spoken-case practice doesn't transfer.
What do interviewers look for in written case slides? Clear structure, action-titled slides, numbers that tie to the exhibits, a recommendation grounded in evidence, and honest treatment of risks.
Preparing for Bain's written case interview? Our 2027 Bain Online Assessment and Written Case Exact Questions and Answers has the exact questions and answers — $79 one-time, instant download.
