Introduction
So, you’ve finally secured an interview, but unsure how to prepare. With low-level stuff, it’s a bit more difficult, as you can’t exactly start grinding LeetCode for hours on end until you hit a certain number of solved questions. Where do you start? How do you know if you’re on the right track?
Technical Interviews
You will almost definitely have at least one technical round during this process. It’s impossible to guess what type of questions you’ll get in an interview, as every interviewer/company has a different style.
Design/scenario type questions are pretty common, where I’ve been asked to design a circuit with certain specifications and the interviewer will keep adding onto it. They usually aren’t looking for the “correct answer”, but always want to see your thought process and how you’re able to break down a problem.
The best type of technical interview, is one where you’re asked about your resume experiences in very fine detail. The ball is in your court, so there are no surprises, and you can really go in-depth into something that you’re comfortable with. That being said, everything on your resume is fair game— don’t try to exaggerate anything because the interviewer will know exactly when you’re bluffing.
I wanted to make a compilation of all the questions I’ve gotten in an interview, grouped by type, but I think the resources below would be much more useful:
It’s really crucial to look at the job description and try to match your experiences to points you think will be relevant. For an intern role, you probably won’t hit all the points, but it’s important to spend more time talking about pieces of your experience that are more relevant.
Slide Decks
Something I’ve seen a lot (but have never tried myself) are candidates making slide decks to showcase their previous work. This is sort of life a portfolio, except you’re presenting live to your interviewer. It can be effective if you sell yourself well, but don’t spend too much time with fluff and always get straight to the point.
I find time is very tight with technical interviewers, which is why I avoid doing this, but if you’re confident and able to present your projects in a detailed (yet concise) manner, go for it!
Behavioural Interviews
Even if you never have a clear “behavioural” interview, its important to be able to vibe with and be memorable to an interviewer, even if it’s purely technical. Make sure to ask good questions about the team to make a memorable impression- this will show that you
Conclusion
At the end of the day, your interviewer is just another person, and were once in your exact situation. They’ll be able to tell when you’re trying to be someone you’re not, so just be yourself- don’t try to force anything. An excellent piece of advice I got was that no matter how bad you thought the interview went, you’ll always remember the bad parts rather than the good parts.
This probably doesn’t do the low-level interview process justice, so I’d highly recommend reading Monty Choy’s blog as well.