Updated July 2026 · By Florian Smeritschnig, Former McKinsey Senior Consultant A referral for McKinsey, BCG, or Bain is an explicit endorsement from a current consultant submitted alongside (or in advance of) your application, telling the recruiting team this candidate is worth a closer look. A strong MBB referral lifts your screening odds by 2-4x,…
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Updated September 2026 · By Florian Smeritschnig, Former McKinsey Senior Consultant A consulting cover letter is a one-page, 250-to-400-word document that proves three things: you fit the consultant profile, you understand the specific firm, and you can write clearly under your own name. As of 2026, McKinsey and BCG make the cover letter optional for…
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By Florian Smeritschnig, former McKinsey Senior Consultant · Updated October 2026 The Bain SOVA test is Bain & Company’s online aptitude assessment: a screen you clear after the resume review and before the case interviews, used mainly in its European and Middle Eastern offices. Miss the mark and your application stops there, no matter how…
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By Florian Smeritschnig, former McKinsey Senior Consultant · Updated October 5, 2026 The BCG one-way video interview is a recorded, asynchronous screen, run on the Spark Hire platform, where you answer about three behavioral and motivation questions on camera, roughly three minutes each, with unlimited time to think but effectively one take. You opened an…
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By Florian Smeritschnig, former McKinsey Senior Consultant · Updated October 5, 2026 The BCG Pymetrics test is a roughly 25-minute online assessment of 12 short mini-games (now a Harver product) that measure cognitive and behavioral traits like risk tolerance, attention, and memory, not business knowledge. In 2026, BCG still uses it in some offices, but…
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Florian spent five years at McKinsey as a Senior Consultant and is a highly experienced consulting interviewer and problem-solving coach. Having conducted interviews with hundreds of candidates, he understands exactly what top-tier firms look for in successful applicants.
He founded StrategyCase.com to make top consulting careers more accessible by providing tailored, up-to-date insights into the recruiting process. Recognized as the most successful case and fit interview coach, Florian has helped his clients secure 700+ offers at MBB, Tier-2 firms, Big 4 consulting divisions, in-house consultancies, and boutique firms over the past four years.
He is the author of “The 1%: Conquer Your Consulting Case Interview,” “The 1%: Case Interview Workbook,” and “Consulting Career Secrets”, all available on Amazon.
