How to Prep IB Technicals in 2 Weeks: A 14-Day Crash Plan

Two weeks is enough time to get technicals interview-ready if you sequence the material correctly and drill every day. It is not enough time to read a 400-page guide cover to cover, take leisurely notes, and hope it sticks. The plan below is built around two rules: learn topics in dependency order (accounting first, LBO last), and spend more time answering questions out loud than reading answers.

Budget two to four focused hours per day. Every day ends the same way: a short recall session on everything you have covered so far, not just today's topic. That daily loop is what keeps week-one material alive in week two.

Before day one: set up your reps

Pick one primary question bank and one place to track what you keep missing. You want a system that resurfaces old questions automatically, because your biggest risk in a 14-day sprint is forgetting accounting by the time you reach LBOs. A spaced-repetition tool like WACC Buddy's Daily 10 handles the resurfacing for you; a spreadsheet of missed questions works too if you actually revisit it.

• One question bank you will finish, not three you will skim
• A daily recall ritual: 20 to 30 mixed questions, answered out loud
• Two mock interview slots booked in advance (day 9 and day 13) with a friend, classmate, or mentor
• A one-page formula sheet you build yourself as you go

Days 1-3: accounting

Accounting is the foundation for everything else, which is why it comes first. Master the three statements, how they link, and the classic change walkthroughs (depreciation, inventory write-downs, changes in working capital). If you cannot trace a 10 dollar depreciation charge through all three statements with the tax effect handled correctly, stop and fix that before moving on.

By the end of day 3 you should be able to answer, without notes: walk me through the three statements, how do they link, walk me through 10 dollars of depreciation, and why can net income and cash flow move in opposite directions.

1. 01Day 1: income statement and balance sheet mechanics; what each line item is and where it lives
2. 02Day 2: cash flow statement and the links between all three statements
3. 03Day 3: change walkthroughs (depreciation, write-downs, working capital swings) plus a 30-question accounting drill

Days 4-6: EV vs equity value, then valuation

Enterprise value vs equity value is short but non-negotiable, and it gates everything in valuation. Spend day 4 on the bridge (equity value plus debt and preferred and noncontrolling interests, minus cash, under the standard convention), why cash is subtracted, and which numerator pairs with which denominator in multiples.

Days 5 and 6 cover the three main methodologies: comparable companies, precedent transactions, and the DCF at a conceptual level. Focus on why multiples differ across peers, which methodology tends to produce higher or lower values and why, and how you would pick a peer set.

Days 7-9: DCF, then your first mock

The DCF is the most commonly requested walkthrough after accounting. Learn the unlevered free cash flow build (EBIT times one minus the tax rate, plus D&A, minus capex, minus the increase in net working capital), WACC piece by piece, and both terminal value methods (Gordon growth and exit multiple). Practice saying the full walkthrough in under two minutes.

Day 9 is your first mock. Do it even though you have not covered M&A or LBO yet; tell your interviewer to stick to accounting, valuation, and DCF. The point is to find the gap between knowing an answer and delivering it. Spend the rest of day 9 fixing whatever broke.

Days 10-12: M&A and LBO

M&A questions center on accretion/dilution logic, sources of synergies, and purchase accounting basics like goodwill. LBO questions center on the intuition (why leverage amplifies equity returns), what makes a good LBO candidate, and the paper LBO. These topics lean on everything before them, which is why they come last.

Day 12 should include at least one full paper LBO done on actual paper with no calculator. If your target group does not interview with paper LBOs, still do one; it is the best single exercise for tying EBITDA, debt, and equity value together.

1. 01Day 10: accretion/dilution rules of thumb, deal structures, synergies
2. 02Day 11: purchase accounting, goodwill, and a mixed M&A drill
3. 03Day 12: LBO mechanics, ideal candidate traits, one full paper LBO

Days 13-14: second mock, weak spots, taper

Day 13 is a full mock covering everything, behavioral questions included. Grade yourself harshly on delivery: hesitations, rambling, and missing structure cost offers as often as wrong answers do. Then spend the remaining hours only on your three weakest topics.

Day 14 is a taper, not a cram. Do one light mixed drill, reread your one-page formula sheet, rehearse your story and your why-banking answer, and stop early. Walking in rested beats walking in with one more hour of LBO review.

The daily rep structure that makes it work

Whatever the day's topic, the daily skeleton stays the same. Reading feels productive; retrieval is what actually builds interview performance.

• 20 to 30 minutes: mixed recall drill on all prior topics, out loud
• 60 to 120 minutes: new material for the day, taking notes onto your formula sheet
• 30 to 60 minutes: question drill on the new topic
• 10 minutes: log every miss and schedule it for tomorrow's recall

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