http://www.slideshare.net/gayle2/cracking-the-coding-interview-college
How to Get an Interview
Your Background
Education
Work Experience
Projects
Github / Online Profile
Make a great resume
Pull resume out of giant stack
Spot-check: companies, projects, etc.
Skim bullets to see if you’ve written real code.
“Glanced at,” not read. 15 seconds
How CS Resume Should Look
One Page Only!
Unless > 10 years exp.
A Real Resume Format
with organized columns
Short (1 – 2 line bullets)
Focus on Accomplishments
not responsibilities
3 – 4 Projects
Courses & independent
Finished or unfinished
List of Technical Skills
Short! Cut the “fluff.”
Talking to Recruiters
Show:
What you’ve done (mobile app? Show it!)
What you’re excited about
Have a “pitch” ready
Weird is okay
(arrogant is not)
Behavioral Questions
The Pitch / Resume Walk-Through
Shows of success
Prompt the interviewe
Hobbies
Your Past Work
1 – 2 Hard Projects
Hard / cool
You were central
Technical depth
All Past Work
Challenges, architecture, tradeoffs, mistakes, successes, motivations
What did YOU do?
Technical Questions
How did you do RELATIVE to other candidates on the SAME question?
It’s not about how quickly you solved the problem…
… it’s about how quickly you solved it relative to other candidates.
Knowledge Questions
Design/Scalability
Algorithms/Problem Solving
How do indices work in SQL?
If you list it, know it
If you don’t know it, admit it
Derive it if possible.
How would you design TinyURL?
How to approach
What u would do at work
Scope, Key components, identify issues, repair
Scope the Problem
Ask questions
Make appropriate assumptions
Define Key Components
Can be somewhat naïve
Identify Issues
Bottlenecks, tradeoffs
Repair & Redesign
Discuss Top-> Down
DRIVE
Lead the process
Be open about issues
TEAMWORK
Be open to feedback
Tweak as necessary
How to prepare
Read about design of major companies
Twitter, Facebook, Quora, Google, etc.
Think about WHY they’re designed that way
Learn/review key concepts
Task queues, databases, sharding, etc.
Practice questions
Algorithm Preparation
Problem solving, not puzzles!
How to… attempt to solve a hard problem
Closing Advice
Do projects
Study for your interviews
Chase interviews
… but don’t chase money
Check-in on your career.
Is this what you want to do with your life?
How to Get an Interview
Your Background
Education
Work Experience
Projects
Github / Online Profile
Make a great resume
Pull resume out of giant stack
Spot-check: companies, projects, etc.
Skim bullets to see if you’ve written real code.
“Glanced at,” not read. 15 seconds
How CS Resume Should Look
One Page Only!
Unless > 10 years exp.
A Real Resume Format
with organized columns
Short (1 – 2 line bullets)
Focus on Accomplishments
not responsibilities
3 – 4 Projects
Courses & independent
Finished or unfinished
List of Technical Skills
Short! Cut the “fluff.”
Talking to Recruiters
Show:
What you’ve done (mobile app? Show it!)
What you’re excited about
Have a “pitch” ready
Weird is okay
(arrogant is not)
Behavioral Questions
The Pitch / Resume Walk-Through
Shows of success
Prompt the interviewe
Hobbies
Your Past Work
1 – 2 Hard Projects
Hard / cool
You were central
Technical depth
All Past Work
Challenges, architecture, tradeoffs, mistakes, successes, motivations
What did YOU do?
Technical Questions
How did you do RELATIVE to other candidates on the SAME question?
It’s not about how quickly you solved the problem…
… it’s about how quickly you solved it relative to other candidates.
Knowledge Questions
Design/Scalability
Algorithms/Problem Solving
How do indices work in SQL?
If you list it, know it
If you don’t know it, admit it
Derive it if possible.
How would you design TinyURL?
How to approach
What u would do at work
Scope, Key components, identify issues, repair
Scope the Problem
Ask questions
Make appropriate assumptions
Define Key Components
Can be somewhat naïve
Identify Issues
Bottlenecks, tradeoffs
Repair & Redesign
Discuss Top-> Down
DRIVE
Lead the process
Be open about issues
TEAMWORK
Be open to feedback
Tweak as necessary
How to prepare
Read about design of major companies
Twitter, Facebook, Quora, Google, etc.
Think about WHY they’re designed that way
Learn/review key concepts
Task queues, databases, sharding, etc.
Practice questions
Algorithm Preparation
Problem solving, not puzzles!
How to… attempt to solve a hard problem
Closing Advice
Do projects
Study for your interviews
Chase interviews
… but don’t chase money
Check-in on your career.
Is this what you want to do with your life?
