Coding interview: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 11:40, 6 May 2022

Revision as of 20:39, 7 May 2022

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{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2015}}

A '''coding interview''', '''technical interview''', '''programming interview''' or '''Microsoft interview''' is a technical problem-based [[job interview]] technique to assess potential employees. The technique was pioneered by [[Microsoft]], and subsequently developed by other large technology companies including [[Amazon.com|Amazon]], [[Facebook]], and [[Google]].<ref>[http://ifdefined.com/blog/post/Google-interview.aspx Applicants blog] after Google interview. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110313021040/http://ifdefined.com/blog/post/Google-interview.aspx |date=March 13, 2011 }}</ref><ref>[https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1405340 Job Interviews Get Creative, NPR 2003]. Retrieved from the World Wide Web on January 16, 2006.</ref> Coding interviews test candidates' technical knowledge, coding ability, problem solving skills, and creativity, typically on a [[whiteboard]]. Candidates usually have a degree in [[computer science]], [[information science]], [[computer engineering]] or [[electrical engineering]], and are asked to solve [[Mathematical programming|programming]] problems, [[algorithms]], [[puzzle]]s.<ref>{{citation |title=Programming Interviews Exposed: Secrets to Landing Your Next Job |author=John Mongan |edition=2nd |isbn=978-0-470-12167-2 |publisher=Wrox |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/programminginter00mong_0 }}</ref><ref name=ctci>{{Cite book|title=[[Cracking the Coding Interview|Cracking the coding interview : 189 programming questions and solutions]]|last=McDowell|year=2015|first=Gayle Laakmann|author-link=Gayle Laakmann McDowell|isbn=978-0-9847828-5-7|edition=6th|___location=Palo Alto, CA|oclc=913477191}}</ref> Coding interviews are typically conducted in-person or virtually.

==Innovation==

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The practice of asking these sorts of so-called [[lateral thinking]] questions was later formally discouraged at Microsoft.

== Modernization of the Code Interview ==

=== Competitive Realm & Third Parties ===

The standard interview of a large company quickly evolved to become a standardized process, thus it became both competitive and optimizable for potential candidates. Similar to college standardized tests, third party companies emerged in order to profit off the higher demand for successful interviews, as it would lead to a very high paying salary for a winning candidate. The first player in profiting from this new prep culture was [[Gayle Laakmann McDowell]] and her book: [[Cracking the Coding Interview]], which outlined strategies and study material for those wishing to receive offers from [[FAANG]], or large tech companies<ref>{{Cite web |title=Amazon software development engineer interview: the only post you'll need to read |url=https://igotanoffer.com/blogs/tech/amazon-software-development-engineer-interview |access-date=2022-05-06 |website=IGotAnOffer |language=en}}</ref>.

Meanwhile in recent years, companies like [https://www.algoexpert.io/ AlgoExpert], [https://leetcode.com/ LeetCode], and other sites promised candidates an edge in the competitive interview scene with a growing database of problems that could similarly match a question one would receive in a true interview. These new code-prepping platforms primarily focused on Computer Science [[Algorithm|Algorithms]], a tricky and dynamic abstraction of problems that may occur on an actual job site. Understanding efficiencies ([[Run-time complexity|Run-time complexities]]), and the coverage of [[Edge case|edge cases]] (points where the code may break) are two features that an interviewer will prioritize most in a suitable response; therefore, they are a primary grading criteria on these testing sites.

=== Virtual Interviewing ===

Kickstarted during the [[2020 pandemic|COVID-19 Pandemic]], the concept of a true whiteboard interview began to fade as interviewing in a virtual space proved to be more feasible to companies. They not only provided a safer interviewing interviewing environment for both parties, but also made interviewing multiple candidates more efficient for large companies. Similar to emerging prep-websites, other companies have also begun to provide services of online interviewing platforms, which allows code-sharing between the interviewer and interviewee as well as running the written code of the candidate for instant validation. One of the first to pioneer the space and be adopted by large fintech firms in New York City was [https://www.hirevue.com/ HireVue]<ref>{{Cite web |title=Campus Recruitment Sofware: Early Talent Acquistion |url=https://www.hirevue.com/solutions/campus-recruiting-software |access-date=2022-05-06 |website=hirevue.com |language=en}}</ref>.

===Interview resources===