BCG & consulting glossary: every term, in plain English.
A working reference for every term you'll meet across the BCG Online Assessment, the case interview, and consulting prep in general — Casey, Pymetrics, MECE, hypothesis tree, CCA, and more.
28 terms · updated as BCG's assessment vocabulary evolves.
"Cannot Say"
A correct verbal-reasoning answer when the passage doesn't support either True or False.
BCG Online Assessment
The umbrella name for BCG's pre-interview digital screen, combining Casey, Pymetrics, the cognitive test, and other modules depending on the office.
BCG Online Case
The full online case interview format BCG uses to screen candidates before live rounds.
BCG Potential Test
A legacy reasoning test BCG used before Casey/Pymetrics; still present in some offices.
Breakeven
The point at which revenue equals total cost.
CAGR
Compound Annual Growth Rate — the constant annual rate at which a value would grow from start to end.
Case math
Quantitative arithmetic done under time pressure during a case interview.
Casey
BCG's AI chatbot interviewer used to deliver online cases to candidates.
CCA (Casey Capacity Assessment)
BCG's timed assessment combining numerical, verbal, and logical question types.
Cognitive Test
A timed multiple-choice assessment of numerical, verbal, and logical reasoning.
Exhibit reading
Extracting the right insight from a chart or table under time pressure.
Framework
A reusable structure for tackling a class of business problems (profitability, market entry, M&A).
Hypothesis tree
A structured way to decompose a business question into testable sub-hypotheses.
Issue tree
A hierarchical decomposition of a problem into mutually exclusive components.
Logical reasoning
Pattern-recognition and inductive-reasoning questions, often with shapes or sequences.
Market entry
A case archetype evaluating whether a company should enter a new market.
Market sizing
A standard case archetype asking you to estimate the size of a market from first principles.
MECE
Mutually Exclusive, Collectively Exhaustive — the foundational principle of consulting issue trees.
Numerical reasoning
Multiple-choice questions testing speed and accuracy on percentages, ratios, and table interpretation.
Profitability tree
A canonical issue tree decomposing profit into revenue and cost branches.
Pymetrics
A suite of short behavioral and cognitive games used by BCG and other firms to measure cognitive and emotional traits.
Reaction time
Speed of response to a stimulus, measured in milliseconds.
Risk tolerance
A Pymetrics-measured trait reflecting willingness to take calculated risks.
Structuring
The skill of breaking a vague business question into a clear, exhaustive framework.
Sustained attention
A Pymetrics trait measuring vigilance over a repetitive task.
Trait profile
The output of Pymetrics: a vector of behavioural and cognitive traits compared to BCG benchmarks.
Verbal reasoning
Reading-comprehension questions with True / False / Cannot Say answer choices.
Working memory
Short-term storage and manipulation of information.
Frequently asked
MECE stands for Mutually Exclusive, Collectively Exhaustive — a structuring principle that says your buckets shouldn't overlap and should together cover the whole problem space. It's the single most-tested habit in the BCG online case.