Since roughly 66% of candidates fail to make the McKinsey PST cutoff, it is a good idea to practice with a McKinsey PST sample test. One of the reasons many applicants fail the McKinsey Problem Solving Test is because they underestimate the pressure generated by:

• the amount of (financial) data they have to parse
• the difficulty of the PST questions
• the 60 minute time limit (meaning only 2 minutes per question)
• the stakes at play (failing the PST means you’re out)

By making sure your skills are up to par and by knowing what you can expect, you can increase your odds of acing the McKinsey PST significantly.

 How can you practice the PST?

If you want to make sure that you make the cut, you have 2 options: train the underlying skills required and practice with a McKinsey PST sample. To be able to train, you need to know the two basic skills involved in doing the McKinssey Problem Solving Test. We’ll cover them below:

• (Business) reading: during the McKinsey PST you’ll be reading a lot of information on the cases, not all of which is relevant. Knowing what is important and what is not or being able to quickly determine this helps a great deal. Since you only have 2 minutes per question, you’ll also want to make sure that you “know your lingo” and have basic knowledge of all business & finance terms. Especially if you’re not from a Business or Finance background, it helps to do some background reading (start with Business Insider, the Financial Times or The Economist).
• Math: since calculators are not allowed, you’ll have to do all computations by hand. If you cannot calculate in your head quickly (and correctly), don’t fret: it’s a skill and can be trained easily. Being able to do basic calculations on paper will help, but will cost significantly more time than being able to do these in your head. Read up in this article on case interview math if you want some sources of practice material.

But the best way to train yourself for the McKinsey PST might be to practice with a McKinsey PST sample. Before you take the sample PST on the Mckinsey website however, make sure that you practice your skills first. When you’re confident you can ace the test, set a timer for 60 minutes and take the sample PST. We recommend practicing more however: in our experience it takes 2 to 3 practice PST’s to really get a confident feeling during the real McKinsey Problem Solving Test. If you want to practice with more McKinsey PST sample tests: we’ve got you covered.

McKinsey PST Sample

If you want to make sure you’re well prepared and confident that you can ace the McKinsey PST, these 2 sample tests will help you improve your performance. Nothing beats extra practice!

• The Key to the PST: a fully-fledged practice PST with 26 questions and an extensive answer guide. In addition, it also features tips on how to ace the McKinsey PST both when preparing and during the actual Problem Solving Test.
• The Second Key to the PST: an additional practice PST with a fresh set of cases and the same extensive answer guide.

The McKinsey Problem Solving Test or McKinsey PST is the second hurdle applicants to McKinsey have to face when interviewing for this top-tier strategy consulting firm.

Interviewing at McKinsey: consulting resume and cover letter

When you apply at McKinsey, you are asked to send along your resume and cover letter. Both of these documents will “travel with you” during the interview process: every interviewer will have a copy of them at his disposal, and every live interview will have questions based on information you provide in these documents. These questions might be to break the ice (“I’ve also ran the NY marathon, in 2013! What was your most memorable moment?”) or to zoom in on strengths or weaknesses you have in your curriculum (“You have a PhD in Physics, but could you give me an example where you exhibited exceptional leadership?”). Roughly two-thirds of candidates are rejected based on their resume and cover letter, so you want to make sure you have the best consulting resume and that your cover letter stands out. Only one third of all applicants are invited for the McKinsey PST.

The McKinsey PST

The McKinsey Problem Solving Test or PST is a written case interview, where your analytical and business skills are put to the test under a challenging time limit. While not everyone is invited to take the McKinsey PST (proven analytical skills such as a Math or Physics PhD, or prior consulting experience at a top-tier firm might exempt you), most candidates are asked to do the test. It features 4 business cases and 26 multiple choice questions that need to be answered in 60 minutes. Of the 60.000 candidates that take the test worldwide, 66% fail the McKinsey Problem Solving Test. How can you make sure you are invited to the first rounds of case interviews?

McKinsey Problem Solving Test Practice

Many candidates underestimate the difficulty of the PST and focus their preparations purely on the case interviews. Though the skills required to ace the McKinsey PST and subsequent case interviews largely overlap, the setting completely differs. Many candidates are surprised by the how little time they actually have and finish only part of the Test. Others misjudge the amount of calculations you have to make and forget to brush up their math skills.

Time limit

With only 60 minutes to answer 26 questions, you have roughly 2 minutes per question. This seems like plenty of time, but you get a lot of data to parse: both text and financial data. One way to make sure you’re not surprised by the 60 minute time limit is by practicing the McKinsey PST. Either using the practice PST from the www.mckinsey.com or by using one of the practice PST’s we’ve made available.

Math skills

The McKinsey PST requires you to do a lot of calculations in a short amount of time. To make sure you calculate quickly and correctly you should practice your quantitative skills. There are plenty of sites and apps to test your mathematical prowess, and we’ve listed some in our article on case interview math. Don’t be put off by your initial performance: your skill will improve rapidly with daily practice.

McKinsey PST cutoff score

Many applicants wonder what the “passing grade” for the McKinsey PST is and we’ve talked with many candidates who both passed the test and those who did not. Based on our experience with the PST itself and our interviews of candidates, we believe the McKinsey PST cutoff is roughly 20 questions. This means that you need to get roughly 75% of all questions correct. This has implications for how you fill in the McKinsey PST: it’s better to guess answers if you’re running out of time (there’s no penalty for wrong answers) than to leave them open. Even better is to practice with practice PST’s, so you know what to expect.

Practice the McKinsey PST

Luckily, you can increase your chances of making the cutoff score by practicing the PST. You can do this by brushing up on your math skills, but also by taking practice McKinsey PST tests provided by caseinterviewhq.com:

• The Key to the PST: a fully-fledged practice PST with 26 questions and an extensive answer guide. In addition, it also features tips on how to ace the McKinsey PST both when preparing and during the actual Problem Solving Test.
• The Second Key to the PST: an additional practice PST with a fresh set of cases and the same extensive answer guide.

The best preparation for the McKinsey PST: now updated

The best book for your McKinsey Problem Solving Test preparation has been online for only three months, and it’s already being updated. Why? Well, let me share a secret with you about how the ‘Key to the PST’ came to be…

A request from a friend

When I finished writing my other book (“Cracking the Case“) I had asked some friends and colleagues to proof-read the book and distribute it freely if they wanted to help other friends with their case preparation. I received great feedback on my book and made some important improvements as a result.

One of my friends came back to me with a different kind of question: he was preparing for the McKinsey PST and found the section in “Cracking the Case” really helpful. He asked me whether I could write a whole practice problem solving test, so he could practice for the real PST. Since I just completed “Cracking the Case”, I did not really feel like writing another book so soon, but he kept asking and finally I gave in.

The Key to the PST

I drafted some extra questions and let him practice with it. I walked him through the answers and he later aced the ‘real’ PST. He then kept pushing me to share this book with the rest of the world, so I decided to polish the draft a little and put it online on CaseInterviewHQ. It was an instant success and I felt a little scared: it proved to be a great practice together with me walking you through the answers, but what if I wasn’t there in person?

The response I get from my readers however is great: it really helps people finish the PST with more confidence, more time left to review answers and better results. There were still some rough edges and I got great feedback from many readers: thank you! This resulted in the new version of the Key to the PST being released so soon: version 1.1 is available for download right now. It features more clear answer guidelines and some improved formulation of the questions, resembling the real PST even closer.

Thanks a lot for your great feedback (keep it coming) and good luck with your problem solving test and case interviews!

Best,

Stephan.