What a Private Equity Case Study Looks Like (With 2 Free Examples)

Updated June 2026 · 11 min read

The case study is the part of private equity recruiting that catches the most candidates off guard. You can be fluent in paper LBOs and rehearsed on fit questions, then get handed a 30-page company overview and a blank Excel file and realize you have never actually done the thing the job is. The case study is the closest a firm can get to watching you do the work before they hire you — which is exactly why it carries so much weight.

This guide explains what a PE case study actually is, the formats you will encounter, what firms are really evaluating, and how to prepare. At the end there are two free, full case study examples you can download and build from scratch.

What Is a Private Equity Case Study?

A private equity case study is a take-home or in-office exercise where you are given materials about a real or anonymized company and asked to evaluate it as a potential investment. In most cases that means building an LBO model and forming a view on whether the firm should buy the business, at what price, and why.

It is different from the modeling test in emphasis. A pure modeling test is about whether you can build a clean, functional LBO in Excel under time pressure. A case study layers judgment on top of the mechanics: you have to read a CIM, decide which assumptions matter, defend a valuation, and articulate an investment thesis. Many firms blur the two — a "case study" often is a modeling test plus a discussion.

The Three Formats You Will See

Almost every PE case study falls into one of three buckets. Knowing which one you are walking into changes how you prepare and how you spend your time.

1. The Full 3-Statement LBO

You are given a company overview and a list of assumptions — sometimes with a template, sometimes a blank sheet — and asked to build a complete income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statement, plus a debt schedule and returns. These often run 2.5 to 3 hours and frequently include complications like a tiered excess-cash-flow sweep, PIK interest, seller rollover equity, or a management option waterfall. The bar is technical accuracy and clean architecture: the model has to balance and flex when inputs change.

2. The Simple-Form LBO

A shorter, timed exercise (often 60–90 minutes) where you build a streamlined LBO — an income statement and free-cash-flow bridge rather than a full balance sheet. The point is speed and good model architecture. These commonly test things like a margin-based EBITDA build, drifting working-capital assumptions, original-issue discount (OID) on the debt, and multiple sensitivity tables. A clean simple-form model that flexes correctly beats a half-finished full model.

3. The Investment Memo

Sometimes the deliverable is mostly written: a 2–3 page memo (or a few slides) laying out the investment merits, the key risks, the diligence questions you would prioritize, and a clear recommendation. A simple supporting model is usually expected, but the real test is judgment and communication. Memos are common at larger funds, in growth equity, and in take-home formats. Some cases combine a model and a memo.

What Firms Are Actually Evaluating

It is easy to assume the case study is graded on getting "the right number." It is not — especially because there often isn't one. What associates and VPs are looking for is more specific:

Common Mistakes That Sink Candidates

How to Prepare

1. Build reps, not theory. The single best preparation is building full LBOs end to end until the structure is muscle memory. Candidates who have built 10+ walk in calm; candidates who have built two spend half the clock figuring out where the debt schedule goes.
2. Practice under a timer. A model you can build in unlimited time is not the same skill as one you can build in 90 minutes. Simulate the real constraint.
3. Practice the discussion, not just the model. Out loud, answer: what should we pay, what drives returns, what are the top risks, would you do it? This is half the evaluation.
4. Work across formats and sectors. A consumer brand, an industrial manufacturer, a staffing business, and a distributor all behave differently. Exposure to several makes any new prompt feel familiar.

2 Free PE Case Study Examples

Below are two complete, anonymized case study packets — the same style of materials firms hand out in recruiting. Each one includes a full business overview, end markets and customers, historical financials, and every transaction, operating, and working-capital assumption you need to build the model yourself in Excel. There is no answer key, on purpose: real cases do not come with one, and the skill that earns the offer is building the model and forming a view, not matching a number.

These are 2 of the 7 cases in the PEPath Case Study Vault. The full set spans full LBOs, simple-form LBOs, investment memos, and co-investment cases across consumer, industrial, staffing, distribution, food, and beauty — each with frameworks, "what a strong answer looks like," common mistakes, and discussion questions to self-assess.

The case study rewards preparation more than raw talent. The candidates who clear it are not necessarily the smartest in the room — they are the ones who have built enough models that the mechanics are automatic, freeing their attention for the judgment the interviewer is really testing.