(Interview Clinic) Interview Preparation Tips for Fresh Graduates

Conducted to the undergrads of University of Moratuwa, Faculty of IT on 24th of January 2023.

Transcript

1. Interview CLINIC Faculty of Information Technology University of Moratuwa 2023
2. NISHAN WICKRAMARATHNA Senior Software Engineer 99x (Pvt) Ltd. THIRUNI JAYASIRIWARDENA Senior Software Engineer 99x (Pvt) Ltd.
3. Table of contents How to answer common interview questions Technical Knowledge How do they test technical knowledge relevant to a position First Impression How to give a good first impression to the interviewer What Do They Ask? Common Mistakes Common mistakes that interviewees (Fresh Graduates) do. 03 04 01 02 What Should We Ask? What sort of questions do we (interviewee) need to ask about the company and position? 05
4. Technical Knowledge 1
5. T-Shaped engineers became popular mostly due to agile principles (focus on self-organizing teams with cross-functional members) since a T-shaped engineer is an ideal candidate to be a cross-functional team member
6. CODE QUALITY SOLID Principles, Unit Testing, DRY, Clean Architecture DATABASES & CLOUD BigO, Recursion, Polymorphism SQL, NoSQL, Serverless, AI AGILE & COMMUNICATION Verbal & Written Communication, Agile/Scrum OOP & ALGORITHMS Main Focus
7. I know OOP! • Explain the concept of Constructor? • Can you specify the accessibility modifier for methods inside the interface? • Is it possible for a class to inherit the constructor of its base class? • Why do we need Polymorphism, and how is it used? • What is Compile time Polymorphism and how is it different from Runtime Polymorphism? • What is Object-Oriented Programming (OOP)? • What is the meaning of life? • Why are we here?
9. Do your homework, be prepared. This can be learned.
10. What if I don’t have technical skills? Go to YouTube, search for a crash course on something that you like to learn (React, OOP, .NET), create a small project and push it to Github. In one week, you can learn 7 frameworks. Create a portfolio from the work you do & host it on Github pages. You can use a free API if you hate backends. (e.g. - openweathermap.org/api)
11. Real World Problem Solving Use a real world software project you did to explain your experience, most of the time this is your level 2 project, Internship or Level 4 Research
12. • Frameworks used • Your responsibilities / contribution • High-level architecture • Teamwork • What’s an API • How you handled Authentication and Authorization • Databases used and why? • Problems faced and your solutions • Any design patterns or architectures used? • Exception handling • Cloud services
13. Then you can answer questions like… • What is the project you are most proud of, and how did you contribute to it? • Tell me about a time when you went above and beyond your expected tasks while working on a project. • How did your education prepare you for this job? • When is it appropriate to denormalize database design? • What is the role of continuous integration systems in the automated-build process?
14. Going Forward… ..in working with a specific framework Experience Experience ..in software industry Web Technologies/ Enterprise Applications/ Backend & Servers/ Cloud Services Experience ..in a Leadership role, code quality, customer communication 25% 50% 75%
15. Key Takeaways • Interviewers ask technical questions to learn your skill levels and how you process information. • Prepare to discuss your approach and explain your reasoning. • If necessary, ask for a moment to collect your thoughts. Ask clarifying questions if needed.
16. First Impression 2
17. Is it at the moment you enter the meeting room or Online call ? 1. At the moment you start your email thread with company’s talent acquisition team 2. At the moment you enter the company premises 3. At the moment you start the video call 4. During the Interview time
18. How can you make a great first impression Attire The way you respond (Eye contact , Body language ) The way you speak Show some interest Be Positive & Confident
19. What should you do to give Great first Impression 1. Be prepared with the Technical showcasing 1. Do a research about the company (Technologies , Culture , bit of history , JD ) 1. Practise for the known questions 1. Practise with your friend
20. How to Answer Common Questions 3
21. Attitude Leadership IQ Your Future plan What areas will be covered ? SWOT Extra curricular Activities Your Knowledge on career path
22. What Do They Ask? 3
23. We would like to know about you
24. What are your weaknesses ? How do you overcome that ?
25. How do you see yourself in five years ?
26. If you are a team lead ?
27. Do you have a plan for further studies? In which area ?
28. What do you think about current situation of the country ?
29. How do you got to know about 99x ?
30. Why did you apply for our company ?
31. Common Mistakes 4
32. Research their company Products and services, History, Values Poor body language Wear smart, sit up right, smile, be positive Not giving a weakness when asked Showing up late I don’t have any weaknesses because I’m the superman! Not knowing what’s on your CV Not prepared to ask questions from them Talking too little / too long
33. Demonstrating.. doubt · fear · hesitation · irresolution · uncertainty If you’re not confident about what you’re saying, we most definitely going to see that when you talk!
34. Not ready to give examples… …of when you have demonstrated skills essential to the role
35. Comes with internship, level 2 project Code that you have published on github Answers given in the interview Looking at your cv Answers given in the interview No experience? Read about Kendo UI before going to the interview Internship experience SE
36. Comes with internship, level 2 project When you answer questions like “What are your strengths” give examples that demonstrate these qualities QA
37. Comes with internship, self study Self study, internship UX
38. Lack of proof ! You should maintain a portfolio with the work you have done, not just UIs, including the frameworks, technologies used, your responsibilities, problems faced and solutions you provided
39. What is an interview? What do we want to know? What type of people we want in a role like this?
40. When you don’t know the answer
41. What Not to Say • Avoid saying “I don’t know”: You don't have to have a good plan when interviewers ask, "Can you specify the accessibility modifier for methods inside the interface?" but you need some kind of response. Saying, "I have no idea" is less effective than saying, "I’d try that out and see, because I have not come across a situation like that before.“ • Don't go too far: These questions are wacky, yes, but keep in mind interviewers may be using them to see your character and values. So, be true to yourself in responding, but skirt away from responses that imply you'd engage in unethical or illegal behavior. • Don't take it too seriously: Give a real response, and take the question seriously. But don't forget to have a bit of fun with it, too. Remember, the interviewer is well aware that this question is unexpected and hard to respond to.
42. Interviewers want to see unrehearsed responses. By posing unexpected questions, interviewers hope to see your thought process and personality. Talk it through. Unlike other interview questions, you won't have a polished answer in place for these unexpected questions, so don't be afraid to stumble through your thought process, even if it means giving a response that's less articulate than usual. Don't get flustered. Do your best to avoid seeming totally taken aback or annoyed by weird questions—instead, aim to have fun with it as best as you can!
43. Personal SWOT analysis Strengths What do you do better than anyone else? Weaknesses What tasks do you usually avoid because you don't feel confident doing them? Opportunities What new technology can help you? What trends do you see, and how can you take advantage of them? Threats What obstacles do you currently face at work? S W O T
44. Weakness Opportunity Strength I find it hard to say NO to people I always try to assess my capacity for the extra work. I’m looking for better ways that I can mitigate stress and maintain the work-life balance
45. What Should We Ask 5 Ask 2-3 smart questions to impress the interviewer
46. What’s the one thing that I can do in this role to help your business succeed?
47. Can you tell me more about the team I would be a part of in this role?
48. What are the plans for the company over the next 5-10 years?
49. What advice would you give to the successful candidate who wants to excel in the role?
50. What’s your favorite thing about working for this company?
51. What are the training and progression opportunities in the company?
52. Now when they answer your questions, show active listening skills. “Oh you mentioned ____ , can you elaborate more on that please?”
53. What do you think is the best impression? “I went to university for 2 years *, please hire me” “I have worked with these web technologies and I have proof. I can be trusted to get the work done” * I have 80% attendance
54. “The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.” ― Chinese Proverb
55. This is you. In few months.
56. Do you have any questions? NishanW@99x.io ThiruniJ@99x.io Thanks! You’re Hired