Technical interviews can be challenging, especially if you're unsure about how to approach them. With the right attitude and preparation, you can excel in a technical interview and secure the role.
If you are struggling with your technical interviews and want a first-hand guide to prepare for them, here’s all you need to know. Each point will give you plenty of insight into how to go about your preparations and what you should expect during the hiring process.
4 Types of Technical Interview Formats
These days, technical interviews aren’t as straightforward as they used to be. In short, employers want to put in considerable time and effort to ensure hiring the right candidate. To achieve this, you must understand the expected interview format and prepare accordingly.
1. Telephonic Interview
An employer conducts a telephone interview initially to understand your qualifications, past work experience, and whether your skill sets match the position you have applied for. The telephonic round is conducted by HR or a person from the hiring team to ensure you are a good fit and can be taken to the next round.
2. Coding Challenge
If you are applying for a technical role, you may have to undertake a coding challenge or two. Simply put, an employer wants to test your knowledge of the required technical skills and whether you meet the qualifications you have advertised in your resume.
The coding challenges can be a written coding assignment, a case study, or a set of questions you must answer to make it to the next round.
3. Coding Questions In-Person
You can expect a series of technical coding questions during the next round or the in-person interview. While this round is optional and not necessarily conducted by every organization, you should still prepare for any unforeseen surprises from this interview round.
Companies usually ask such questions to ensure you have an excellent working knowledge of the required programming languages and skill sets, which will ease you into the work from day one.
4. In-Person Interview
A face-to-face interview can be conducted over Zoom or any other web meeting. You may be asked to attend an in-person discussion if you are in the same city.
During such discussions, the employer may ask questions to understand some of your previous experiences, which will revolve around how you tackle certain work situations and what skills you bring to the table in the form of experiences.
If you are a fresher, your interview questions might be more straightforward. However, if you are already experienced and are applying for a new position, you should be prepared with all possible questions. Make sure to avoid common interview mistakes on the day of the interview.
This is not an explicitly set format for every organization. Interview formats can vary depending on the organization.
How to Prepare for a Technical Interview
Technical interviews are daunting, especially when you are trying to tackle it at short notice. However, with the right preparation, you can tackle it swiftly and confidently in one go. Here are a few things to remember to ensure your chances of success are doubled.
1. Do Your Research on the Position
Whether you are applying for an internal or external position, researching the job requirements will go a long way. There are two benefits of studying the role at hand:
- You get relevant information you can use while answering your interview questions. Employers like well-prepared people who try to know more about the role before coming in for an interview.
- By researching the requirements, you get an approximate idea of where you stand and can identify opportunity areas you need to address before the interview.
Both steps work in your favor and can become a stepping stone for your interview success.
2. Prepare Situational Answers/Competency Based Answers
If you have cleared the coding challenges and are waiting for the final round, take your time with the questions. While the problematic part (coding questions) is out of the way, the final round will consist of many competency-based questions you must answer succinctly to be selected for the role.
To ensure you have the gist of the questions, you must understand the required skill sets and the related questions. These questions may or may be different from the ones you answered previously.
Employers like to ask competency-based questions based on your previous experience, which will prompt you to think on your feet and give an inkling of the work you have done before.
For example, an employer can ask about difficult conversations with your manager and how you solve the issues. Such questions don't have a right or a wrong answer.
However, to impress the employer, you must back your explanation with substantial examples supporting your answer. Such an approach proves you know how to think on your feet and that you pull inspiration from your environment.
Some interviewers might ask a series of difficult interview questions; if you don't know the answer immediately, don't fret and try to answer them to the best of your knowledge.
3. Review Commonly Asked Questions With Answers
There are many websites that provide insight into common interview questions and answers asked during interviews. For instance, resources like Google's Interview Warmup can serve as a guide to kickstart your preparation.
During your research phase, keep an eye out for such information, as it can help you formulate a good structure for your responses during the interview.
While there is no right or wrong answer, it's always best to use personalized examples from your past work experiences so that the employer understands your problem-solving skills and your ability to think on the fly.
4. Practice Technical Assignments Beforehand
When appearing for a technical interview, you must have your basics right. Technical questions are mostly related to how you solve a data-related problem programmatically.
For example, if you are appearing for a data scientist position, the employer can ask you questions about training a data model and the steps involved in the task. Similarly, employers often require candidates to complete a comprehensive technical assessment, which you must pass before moving forward.
Such questions usually go on the internet as sample papers, a treasure trove of information waiting for you to explore. You must practice as much as possible to score well on such tests.
5. Research the Hiring Team
As soon as you get an interview invite, you can get an idea of who is taking your interview. If the person's details are available, you can pull up the hiring manager's information on the internet or LinkedIn and get an idea of their previous work experience.
If you go through their past/current experiences, you can get a fair idea of their mindset and the questions they can ask you during an interview. While this is not a foolproof way of preparing a question base, it's an excellent method to add to your research list.
Easily Secure a Technical Job Online
To prepare for a remote coding interview, you must identify some possible questions and answers.
While preparing and applying for such roles, don't forget to look out for some of the common red flags, as there are quite a few scammers out there who promise to get you a job in exchange for a token amount. Beware of such fraudsters, as they can scam and dupe you out of your hard-earned money.
FAQ
Q: What Is the Difference Between a Technical Interview and a Normal Interview?
In a technical interview, you're asked questions about your technical skills and knowledge that are important for you to do your job, such as data structures, algorithms, programming languages, or specific technologies. You may also be asked to complete a coding exercise or whiteboard problem.
In a normal interview, you're asked questions about your experience, education, and soft skills such as communication, teamwork, and problem-solving. Basically, the employer is trying to find out what makes you stand out among other applicants and whether you are the right fit for the company. Simply put, you may be good at the role itself, but not the right candidate for that particular company.
Q: How Long Is a Technical Interview?
How long your technical interview lasts depends on the company, the position you're applying for, and the experience you have. On average, however, most technical interviews last between 30 and 60 minutes. If you're applying for a senior position or the interviewer is trying to get an in-depth understanding of your skills and abilities, you can expect the interview to take a bit longer than expected.