Tips for IT Technical Interviews — How to Answer Questions

Job interviews are often anxiety-provoking. The source of these concerns is usually a common reason. They’re often unnecessary, and candidates may easily ignore them. However, it’s natural to be worried when it comes to IT technical interviews. That’s why it’s quite important to prepare in advance to be more comfortable and appear confident in interviews. For example, being prepared in advance helps you to speak more fluently, but better understanding of why the job interviews are being held may be a good start for you to be more comfortable. So, let’s get started with that.

Understanding the Nature of Job Interviews

You may think that job interviews are only done to test whether you’re suitable for the position. However, this is only one side of the coin. Once you flip the other side, surprising facts about job interviews come to light. The questions in the interview may seem like they are being asked to measure your knowledge. But things are a little comprehensive. The main purpose of these questions is to reveal how you think. Although they do not have a perfectly correct answer, they’re designed for a purpose. Besides, these questions mostly serve to measure the way you communicate and reveal your human relations. In short, answering questions correctly in the interview may not mean that you are suitable for the job. Keeping this in mind, let’s move on to sharing tips on how to handle IT technical interviews.

Apply for the Job with a Well-Prepared CV

Your CV will be the biggest help for both you and the interviewer, both before and during the interview. Make sure that your CV is a maximum 2-page document containing only the necessary data. That is a good move not to bore the interviewer before even starting the interview. For example, you can start by removing your skills and work experiences from your CV that aren’t related to the position you’re applying for.

Make Sure You Understand the Question

Here we came to the exciting job interview. To answer a question correctly, you must first understand it well. There will be such a part of the interview that difficult questions will literally make you sweat. At these moments, instead of rushing to answer the question, try to understand it first. For example, do you have enough data to answer it correctly?
An interview question may be about software development or traversing a tree. Let’s suppose you are asked how to traverse a tree. These types of questions do not contain the necessary data for you to answer correctly. Also, rather than measuring your knowledge, their purpose is to reveal how you handle the problem and the way you communicate. When faced with such a question, do not hesitate to ask the interviewer for more data about the issue. What is the structure of the tree? Or what tools can you use to traverse it?

Do not Ignore Simple and Obvious Solutions

One of the most common mistakes candidates make in IT technical interviews are ignoring simple and obvious solutions. Do not forget that: Not every question in the interview is going to be difficult. Some may be intended to measure your judgment under pressure. So, stop thinking that the answer can’t be that easy.

Always Look for Opportunities to Optimize Your Existing Solution

Even when you give the best possible answer to a question, it may not fully satisfy you. Remember that this is not a query but an interview. So, you may ask questions too. Then, ask your interviewer questions about the topics that will help you optimize your solution. In fact, many interviewers are more concerned with whether you ask intelligent questions than with answers to technical questions. So as soon as you arrive at your initial solution, you may start asking things that can help you optimize it.

Be Ready for Live Coding

You can be sure that there will be no live coding session in the interview. However, keep in mind that the interviewer may ask you to perform simple coding tasks. So, before you go, it may be helpful to practice more to be prepared for such a request.

Do not Chase Perfect Solutions

What will you do when asked a difficult question during the interview? If you think you’ll have difficulty answering the question, stop looking for the perfect answer. That may cause you to mess things up. Therefore, in order not to lose your self-confidence in the continuation of the interview, search for a reasonable, if not perfect, solution. There will be many more questions that will give you the chance to show yourself.

Do not Leave Any Problem Unsolved

Let’s assume your meeting went very well overall. However, there was a question that you knew the answer to. But for some reason, you couldn’t solve it during the interview. After you left, while you were drinking your tea, it suddenly occurred to you. Now you know how to solve it. In this case, do not hesitate to send an e-mail to your interviewer. Explain your solution. And also specify why you were unable to answer it during the interview if possible. Even answering this single question can get you the job.

Repeat the Basics

When it comes to IT technical interviews, candidates make the most mistakes in basics. Because although the basics of IT are well known, they’re in the depths of our memory. So, when we need these basics, we need to remember them. It’s easy to recall them in a stress-free environment. However, it becomes difficult to remember even the most basic dynamics of IT under pressure. For this reason, do not forget to make short repeats on the most basic topics before going to your interview.

Tips for IT Technical Interviews, In Short

You may be employed at an institution or involved in a project with the team extension model. It really doesn’t matter. Because even the most experienced IT staff can break into a cold sweat in a job interview. However, some tips may help you turn the tide of this conversation in your favor. We’ve listed just some of these tips in this article. We hope this guide may help you get your dream job.