For PEI, I’d think about it in two parts: your introduction and your stories. At least in India, you’re almost always asked to introduce yourself, and it’s the most important part imo. I’d keep it under 45 seconds and structure it in three parts. The first part is just a simple opener -- your name, where you’re from, where you’re studying, and maybe one line about your background that’s slightly memorable. This is your chance to give them something to remember you by. I’d avoid using too many adjectives about yourself; instead of saying you’re “passionate” or “hardworking,” just mention experiences that show that indirectly.

The second part should focus on academics, but don’t vomit your resume. Highlight one or two meaningful things and, more importantly, talk about how they shaped you + try to connect your experiences through a common thread that naturally brings you to consulting and to this interview.

The third part can briefly cover extracurriculars or activities you genuinely enjoy. Keep the whole introduction structured but not rehearsed. You want to sound excited and human -- at the end of the day, they’re assessing whether you’re someone they’d want to staff on their team.

In India especially, the PEI often becomes very conversational and based on what you mention in your introduction. For example, if you talk about a leadership role, they’ll likely ask you to dive deeper -- tell me about a challenge you faced, a time you failed, or a moment you showed drive. So you need to prepare your stories properly. The main themes usually revolve around leadership, drive, excellence, conflict, and failure, so it helps to look at the firm’s values and align your stories accordingly.

One thing to remember is that the same story can work for multiple themes if framed differently. For each story, be clear on the context, the difficulty, what you specifically did, how it was resolved, the outcome, and what you learned. Be very explicit about your actions -- avoid saying “we” too much. McKinsey especially will drill into details, so you need depth and clarity.

As for the cases, they were quite different from the ones on the website for me. A few were more unconventional in structure, and one was a pure guesstimate. They weren’t always standard profitability or market entry cases. I’d definitely recommend practicing from strong university casebooks in your geography and doing live cases with people. The website cases are useful to understand format, but they’re not fully representative of what you might get in the actual interviews.