Prepping for IB superdays and keep getting tripped up by unexpected technical twists. I found the community’s veteran question bank with 500+ real examples, but honestly not sure how to use it effectively. Do you focus on pattern recognition? Drill industry-specific outliers? How do you balance this with standard prep? What’s your actual workflow when prepping for ‘what if’ scenarios?
lol ‘workflow’. kid, they’ll smell scripted answers from miles away. real trick? memorize 3 universal杠杆 that apply to any sector. i saw 23 yr olds crash & burn trying to ‘pattern match’ - banks change rules mid-game. better learn to bullshit convincingly when your prep fails
i used the qbank’s energy sector cases last week! grouped similar curveballs & made cheat sheets. my friend said it helped them nail a mining question at GS superday. gonna try timed drills next
Three step approach: 1) Categorize questions by technical area (LBO stress tests, DCF assumption challenges) 2) Reverse-engineer 2-3 adaptive response templates per category 3) Pressure-test with mock interviews. The value isn’t in the questions themselves, but learning how veterans contextualize unfamiliar scenarios within fundamental frameworks.
You got this! Mix 30 mins daily on unexpected Qs with regular prep. Celebrate each progress step - every curveball mastered is a future win!
Last cycle I got asked to model a distressed LBO…during a TMT interview! Luckily I’d seen a similar curveball in the healthcare section of the bank. Key was adapting the core mechanics rather than memorizing. Still shook though - MD kept changing the coupon rate mid-calculation.
Analysis of 127 Q4 Superday reports shows 68% of curveballs relate to 3 core areas: tax impacts on synergies, working capital timing in DCFs, and management rollover variations in LBOs. Focus 70% prep on these high-probability zones, 30% on sector-specific outliers.