OC&C Case Interview Practice: Free Case and Prep Resources
OC&C Strategy Consultants publishes no practice cases; its graduate brochure and vacancy pages list the interview steps office by office, usually an online test and then two rounds of case interviews, and it runs virtual case study workshops. Unlike L.E.K., which posts three practice cases on its interview page, OC&C leaves case practice to you.OC&C (opens in a new tab), read ; L.E.K. (opens in a new tab), read
Free, no signup: 1 worked case with model answers. Free, no card: your first full practice case with an AI interviewer. Paid: Pro $49/month for every case.
Updated ·By Esteban Ronsin·Founder · former Deloitte and Accenture Strategy consultant
Built and reviewed with former McKinsey, BCG and Bain consultants and interviewers.
Free OC&C interview prep resources
OC&C interview prep resources: what you get, whether it is free or paid, and the link
Resource
What you get
Free or paid
Link
OC&C graduate recruitment brochure
OC&C's own interview stages for each office (London, Milan, Germany, Paris, Rotterdam, Warsaw, Australia, Greater China, US): online test, case interviews with Consultants and Managers, then with Associate Partners and Partners
8 library cases matched to OC&C's case types, run out loud with an AI interviewer or step by step and scored on 7 skills; start with PeakFit Omnichannel Growth Plan
Free + paid. The case list and a worked excerpt are public; a free account includes 1 full AI-graded case in voice or guided mode; Pro ($49/month) adds every case
Bramblewood Garden Centers: turnaround case with answers Industry: Retail. Difficulty: medium.1 math question.
Why did a 30-store garden center chain swing from profit to a large loss, and what should it do in the next 12 months to satisfy its lender? 6 questions, 3 exhibits, a model answer for each
Free. The whole case and every model answer, no account; the practice button opens a live case like it
OC&C fit and behavioral questions answered out loud, with follow-up probes and structured feedback (choose OC&C on the page)
Free + paid. 1 behavioral or Learning Mode session with a free account; Behavioral Unlimited ($39/month, behavioral and PEI only) or any Pro plan adds more
Firm-style cases are practice cases written for Road to Offer or adapted from university consulting club casebooks, not the firm's own cases. Road to Offer is independent and not affiliated with OC&C.
Try a free OC&C-style case now: no card, no signup
An original practice case written by Road to Offer in an OC&C-style format, not OC&C's own case. Everything stays in your browser.
Strike Lane Growth: Where should a bowling and arcade chain grow?
A growth case in leisure, one of the sectors OC&C names, with an early piece of math. The full version is PeakFit Omnichannel Growth Plan, our library case on a premium fitness brand's growth mix, with four exhibits. OC&C (opens in a new tab), read
1Step 1: Read the case
Strike Lane runs sixty family bowling and arcade centres across the UK, owned by a private equity fund. The fund wants yearly earnings (EBITDA) to rise from 30 million pounds to 45 million pounds in four years. The CEO is weighing three routes: new centres, more food and drink sales per visit, and higher prices at peak times. How would you decide where to focus?
2Step 2: Ask clarifying questions
Open a question to hear the interviewer's answer.
Where does the revenue come from today?
Interviewer: About three fifths from lane and arcade play, the rest from food and drink. Birthday parties are the fastest growing part of play.
What does the owner expect from any new centre?
Interviewer: Payback inside three years. The fund will pay for growth but wants each route staged, not all at once.
How many new centres could be opened?
Interviewer: Up to fifteen, in towns that pass the fund's catchment screen.
Have prices moved recently?
Interviewer: Peak-time prices rose last year with no visible fall in visits. Weekday off-peak lanes are about a third empty.
Who are the competitors?
Interviewer: Independent bowling alleys, plus trampoline parks and escape rooms in some towns. There is no national rival.
3Step 3: Structure your answer
Take two minutes. Lay out how you would size the three routes against the fifteen million pound gap, and say which you would look at first and why.
2:00
Show what a strong structure covers
Plays the goal back: 15 million pounds more yearly EBITDA in four years, three candidate routes, payback inside three years on any new centre.
Starts from the gap and the economics of each route: extra earnings, the cost to get them, how long they take and how sure they are.
Splits new centres into the earnings of one mature centre, the year one and year two ramp, how many towns qualify and the investment per site.
Splits per-visit spend into visits, spend per visit and margin on food and drink, and asks whether upsell cannibalises play.
Treats price as a test, peak versus off-peak, with the last rise as evidence and the risk to birthday bookings.
States a first hypothesis (a mix, with new centres as the biggest lever) and names the first number that would change it.
4Step 4: The interviewer's next question
A mature new centre earns 1.2 million pounds a year. In year one it reaches half of that and in year two two thirds. If fifteen open at the start of year one, what do they earn in year two, and does that close the gap on its own?
Show what a strong answer does
Year two is 1.2 million times two thirds, or 0.8 million per centre, so 12 million for fifteen: 3 million short of the 15 million gap. A strong answer says that once all reach maturity they earn 18 million, which would clear the gap, so timing and the ramp matter, and it checks payback and the other two routes for the rest.
Flour costs rose 18% on a $4M flour bill, and prices went up 3% on $20M of sales. How much margin did Harbor lose?
Your answer
Flour went up by about $720K and the price rise brings in $600K, so the net hit is roughly $100K.
What worked
Split the change into a cost side and a price side before adding them up.
Could improve
$720K minus $600K is $120K, not $100K: state the exact net before rounding.
Model answer
Flour: 18% of $4M is $720K more cost. Price: 3% of $20M is $600K more revenue. Net margin loss: $120K.
Next time, say this
Cost is up $720K and price brings back $600K, so Harbor loses $120K of margin.
3
1
Choose a case
Cases matched to OC&C's case types.
2
Solve it out loud
An AI interviewer asks, listens and follows up.
3
Get answer feedback
Feedback on every answer: what worked, what to fix.
What makes OC&C interviews different
No published cases.
OC&C's careers pages and graduate brochure contain no practice case; the nearest thing it offers is a virtual case study workshop. Source: OC&C, read (opens in a new tab)
The number and length of cases differ: two 30-minute cases in the US, two 45-minute in Germany, two 60-minute in Paris, and a 90-minute written case in Rotterdam. Source: OC&C, read (opens in a new tab)
A numerical screen first.
OC&C's London vacancy puts an online assessment with numerical and critical reasoning questions before any interview, and its Rotterdam process starts with a numerical test. Source: OC&C, read (opens in a new tab)
Consumer, retail and leisure.
Three of OC&C's seven sectors are Consumer Goods, Leisure and Hospitality and Retail; it also lists private equity and value creation as practice areas. Source: OC&C, read (opens in a new tab)
Probed, by report.
Candidates describe cases they lead but that interviewers probe hard, with repeated why questions. Candidates report; not on the firm's pages
Each arrow opens the source: OC&C, read Nov 11, 2026.
Key facts from OC&C's own pages
Two hours on cases.
OC&C's virtual case study workshop in October 2025 was a two-hour skills session on how to ace a case study interview. Source: OC&C, read (opens in a new tab)
The brochure lists an online test for London, Germany, Paris, Warsaw, Australia and Greater China, and a numerical test for Rotterdam. Source: OC&C, read (opens in a new tab)
OC&C says to expect feedback within three weeks of the closing date, and does not review applications on a rolling basis. Source: OC&C, read (opens in a new tab)
Each arrow opens the source: OC&C, read Nov 11, 2026.
OC&C's recruitment pages and workshops, item by item
OC&C publishes no practice case, so this is everything it publishes about its interviews, each opened on 11 November 2026. Each line is our summary of the item's own page. Read on OC&C's site .
OC&C's recruitment pages and workshops, item by item: level, area and what each one is, linked to OC&C's page
The interview stages for each office: London, Milan, Germany, Paris, Rotterdam, Warsaw, Australia, Greater China and the US, with the number and length of case interviews, who runs them and which offices use an online test.
Six steps: CV, an online blended assessment (numerical and critical reasoning, behavioural and motivational), a one-way video, two virtual 30-minute cases, two in-person 45-minute cases, then an offer.
Online portal only, a CV of one to two pages, the three criteria, windows for internship, Associate Consultant Strategy and Analytics, MBA and experienced hire, and the note that some candidates get an online test before the vacancy closes.
US windows and eligibility, the online-portal rule, feedback within three weeks, and the skills it wants: an intuitive analytical mind, numerical skills and clear communication.
A two-hour virtual skills session on how to ace a case study interview, with OC&C's work and approach, a chance to meet consultants and what to expect from the recruitment process.
Consultants and partners on the work, including a note that most people focus heavily on preparing for case studies, and that projects usually last three to eight weeks.
How OC&C describes itself: its sectors, its values, its offices by country, and its approach of interrogating a problem until it finds the root.
What OC&C looks for, in its own words
Intellectual curiosity
OC&C's application page says “we need the most curious people to tackle the most difficult questions”, and judges your CV on intellectual curiosity first. Source: OC&C, read (opens in a new tab)
Case preparation is essential
A consultant on OC&C's careers site says most people applying focus heavily on preparing for case studies, which is essential, and that its teams value personalities as much as intelligence. Source: OC&C, read (opens in a new tab)
Numerical skills (US)
OC&C's US page asks for “an intuitive analytical mind and numerical skills” and clear written and oral communication for Associate Consultants. Source: OC&C, read (opens in a new tab)
Relentless in pursuit of the right answer
OC&C lists “We're relentless in pursuit of the right answer” among its values, and says it interrogates a problem until it finds its root. Source: OC&C, read (opens in a new tab)
Each arrow opens the source: OC&C, read Nov 11, 2026.
The OC&C interview process, and what trains each step
1
CV through the online portal
OC&C accepts applications only through its online portal, with a CV of one to two pages that it judges on intellectual curiosity, extracurricular interests and commercial awareness. Its London vacancy asks for no cover letter and strips your name; its brochure asks for a cover letter in some offices, so follow your office's vacancy.
OC&C's London vacancy describes an online blended assessment with numerical and critical reasoning questions plus behavioural and motivational questions, and its brochure lists an online test for Germany, Paris, Warsaw, Australia and Greater China, and a numerical test for Rotterdam. It lists none for the US. OC&C's application page says some candidates are sent the test link before the vacancy closes.
OC&C's London internship vacancy adds a short one-way video assessment for candidates who pass the online assessment. It gives no length or questions, so read your invitation.
OC&C's London vacancy lists two virtual case study interviews of 30 minutes each with Consultants and Managers. Its brochure gives two 45-minute cases in Germany, Warsaw and Australia, two 60-minute cases in Paris, and two 30-minute cases in the US. The pages do not say how the cases run or what they cover.
OC&C's brochure lists an informal HR conversation in Milan, an HR interview in Warsaw and a 45-minute motivational interview in Rotterdam. OC&C's careers page says its teams value personalities and human qualities as much as intelligence.
OC&C's brochure lists a 90-minute written case study interview with Associate Consultants in the Rotterdam entry-level process, alongside a 60-minute case. No other office lists a written case.
OC&C's London vacancy lists two in-person case study interviews of 45 minutes with Associate Partners and Partners, then an offer. Its brochure gives two 45-minute cases in Germany and Warsaw, two 60-minute cases in Paris, three 60-minute cases in Rotterdam, one 45-minute case in Australia and two 30-minute cases in the US.
Missing from OC&C's pages: what the cases cover, who leads them, how the online assessment is scored and timed, whether a calculator is allowed, which offices use the one-way video, any sample case or answers, and how long offers take.
11 OC&C-style interview questions
In our words, not OC&C's, grouped by OC&C's own steps (the online assessment, the two case rounds, Rotterdam's written case and the fit conversation), with what a strong answer does.
Online assessment
OC&C's London vacancy: numerical and critical reasoning questions, plus behavioural and motivational ones.
1A retailer's sales rose from 480 million pounds to 552 million pounds. What was the growth rate, with no calculator?
What a strong answer does: Takes the 72 million increase over 480, which is 15 percent, says it out loud and sanity-checks it against ten percent being 48.
2A table shows a chain's share of the market falling from 30 percent to 25 percent while the market grows from 8 billion to 11 billion pounds. Did the chain's sales fall?
What a strong answer does: Multiplies share by market size for both years (2.4 billion, then 2.75 billion) before answering that sales rose, instead of reading the share alone.
OC&C's vacancy: two virtual case study interviews. The pages say nothing about their content, so these follow its sectors.
3A national bakery chain wants to open in a new country. How do you decide whether and where?
What a strong answer does: Names the decision first, then splits the market (size, growth, competition), the economics of one shop and the ability to execute, and states a first hypothesis rather than a list.
4A grocery chain added prepared food, revenue grew and profit did not. What do you check first?
What a strong answer does: Splits profit by category before theorising, asks for the margin of the new line and tests unit economics, then proposes a pilot to fix or stop it.
5Estimate the yearly revenue of the UK bowling and arcade market. Lay out your route before any math.
What a strong answer does: Picks one route, such as visits per year times spend per visit by customer group, names a supply-side cross-check from the number of centres and says which assumption it will test first.
6A coffee chain's margin has fallen for two years while sales are flat. Where do you look?
What a strong answer does: Writes margin as price, mix and cost per cup, asks which moved, then tests each with a number and says what the chain would do if cost per cup is the cause.
Final-round cases (Associate Partners and Partners)
OC&C's vacancy: two in-person case study interviews. Candidates report heavy probing, so state a hypothesis early.
7A private equity fund is weighing a bid for a craft drinks brand. Should it buy at this price?
What a strong answer does: Answers yes or no first, gives the two facts that decide it (how fast the category grows and whether the plan is achievable), names the main downside and the price at which its answer would change.
8You told the interviewer the plan is achievable and she says your growth number looks high. What do you do?
What a strong answer does: Asks what she is seeing, changes that one input, recomputes out loud and says how the recommendation moves, without restarting or caving.
OC&C's brochure: a 90-minute written case study with Associate Consultants.
9You get a pack of slides on a furniture retailer and 90 minutes alone. How do you spend the time?
What a strong answer does: Reads the question first, spends the first fifth on a hypothesis, reads each exhibit for one number that matters and builds the recommendation as it goes, leaving time to write it up.
OC&C's brochure lists HR or motivational conversations in some offices; its application page weighs curiosity and commercial awareness.
10Why OC&C, and not a larger strategy firm?
What a strong answer does: Names something specific OC&C says about itself, such as its small teams or its consumer, retail and leisure sectors, and ties it to something you have done, in under a minute.
11Tell me about a time you challenged conventional thinking and made it work.
What a strong answer does: Tells one specific story with the conventional view, your evidence and a result with a number, and says what you would change.
OC&C publishes no practice case. Start from consumer and retail cases that run out loud and with numbers, and do not wait for an official one. Source: OC&C, read (opens in a new tab)
Treating the online test as a formality
OC&C puts a numerical and critical reasoning assessment before any interview. Drill percentages and chart reading by hand before the invitation arrives. Source: OC&C, read (opens in a new tab)
Preparing one format for every office
Case counts and lengths differ by office, from two 30-minute cases in the US to a 90-minute written case in Rotterdam. Read your office's stages. Source: OC&C, read (opens in a new tab)
A CV with no evidence of curiosity
OC&C judges the CV on intellectual curiosity, extracurricular interests and commercial awareness. Add one concrete result next to each. Source: OC&C, read (opens in a new tab)
Applying after the window
OC&C does not review applications on a rolling basis and sometimes sends the online test before the vacancy closes. Apply early. Source: OC&C, read (opens in a new tab)
Each arrow opens the source: OC&C, read Nov 11, 2026.
An OC&C prep plan, day by day
The order follows OC&C's own pages; the timing is our suggestion.
Days 1 and 2
Read OC&C's own pages for your office
Read the brochure's stages for your office and the vacancy's recruitment steps, and note the dates and which tests apply to you.
Start from OC&C's own pages, then train what they name: an online test, then two rounds of case interviews with consultants and then partners. OC&C publishes no practice case, so work consumer, retail and leisure cases out loud. On Road to Offer a free account includes 1 full AI-graded case, led by PeakFit, a consumer growth case with exhibits and math; add market sizing and case math drills daily, and a worked retail case with a model answer for every question. Firm-style cases are practice cases written for Road to Offer or adapted from university consulting club casebooks, not the firm's own cases.
Where can I practice OC&C-style case interviews for free?
On Road to Offer, run the browser sample case on this page with no account, then PeakFit as a full case with an AI interviewer: your first full case is free with a free account, no card. A worked retail turnaround case is free to read with a model answer for every question. OC&C itself publishes no practice case, so these are general consumer and retail practice cases, not OC&C's own.
What practice resources does OC&C publish for its case interviews?
OC&C publishes no practice case. Its own material is a graduate recruitment brochure that lists the interview stages office by office, careers pages that describe the application and the vacancy's recruitment steps, and virtual case study workshops: a two-hour session in October 2025 on how to ace a case study interview, and a US workshop in November 2025 that introduced the case format with example cases. Its events page listed no upcoming workshop on 11 November 2026, so check it before you apply.
Does OC&C have an online test?
In most offices. OC&C's London vacancy describes an online blended assessment with numerical and critical reasoning questions plus behavioural and motivational questions, and its brochure lists an online test in Germany, Paris, Warsaw, Australia and Greater China and a numerical test in Rotterdam. It lists none for the US. Candidates report a timed test without a calculator; OC&C's pages do not say, so check your invitation. Practise reading tables and charts and doing percentages by hand.
How many interview rounds does OC&C have?
Two rounds of case interviews in most offices. OC&C's London vacancy lists two virtual 30-minute cases with Consultants and Managers, then two in-person 45-minute cases with Associate Partners and Partners, then an offer, after an online assessment and a one-way video. Warsaw adds an HR interview, Rotterdam a motivational interview and a written case, and the US lists two rounds of two 30-minute cases.
Is the OC&C case interview candidate-led or interviewer-led?
OC&C's pages do not say. Candidates report cases that you lead, with an interviewer who probes every assumption, which can feel interviewer-led. Practise both: open with your own structure and a hypothesis, and answer one directed question at a time with a number.
How long is an OC&C case interview?
It depends on the office. OC&C's brochure lists 30 minutes in London's first round and in the US, 45 minutes in Germany, Warsaw, Milan and Australia, and 60 minutes in Paris and Rotterdam, with a 90-minute written case in Rotterdam. Its London vacancy lists 30-minute virtual cases first and 45-minute in-person cases in the final round.
Does OC&C have a written case or a one-way video?
Both, in some offices. OC&C's brochure lists a 90-minute written case study interview in Rotterdam, and its London internship vacancy adds a short one-way video assessment after the online assessment. No other office in the brochure lists a written case. OC&C gives no lengths or questions for the video, so read your invitation and rehearse timed answers out loud.
What sectors does OC&C work in, and how does that show in the cases?
OC&C lists seven sectors: Advanced Analytics and AI, B2B Services, Consumer Goods, Digital, Leisure and Hospitality, Retail, and TMT, and describes private equity and value creation as practice areas too. It publishes no case, so treat consumer, retail and leisure growth, margin and market entry cases, and private equity screens, as the likeliest to practise; the cases here follow that mix.
What does OC&C look for in an application?
Intellectual curiosity, extracurricular interests and commercial awareness, judged on a CV of one to two pages. OC&C's US page also asks for an intuitive analytical mind and numerical skills and clear written and oral communication. Put a number and a result next to each activity, and read the business press for the sectors above.
Can I apply to OC&C more than once, and when are applications open?
You can reapply when roles reopen the next year, and OC&C's global and US pages say applications are not reviewed on a rolling basis (its Paris and Milan offices do). OC&C's pages give windows that differ by role and office: for example the US lists mid-August to the end of September for undergraduate roles, and the London vacancy was advertised to 4 January 2027. Confirm your office's dates on its vacancy.
What does the OC&C fit interview cover?
OC&C's brochure lists HR or motivational conversations in some offices, and its careers pages say its teams value personalities and human qualities as much as intelligence. Prepare a specific Why OC&C answer and two or three stories with numbers; Road to Offer's OC&C fit practice asks the questions with follow-up probes, 1 session free with a free account.
