6 Tips To Nail Your First Tech Interview

Tech interviews can be intimidating and it is natural to feel worried about your next interview and keep looking for the last tip that is going to click and you will nail all interviews, but as we all know you can only get the job if you actually deserve it. Many companies take candidates through multiple rounds of interviews, each with its own focus. And if you are fresh out of college or a Bootcamp and have no prior experience with interviews and job calls, your anxiety level can peak. But you don’t have to overdo the worrying part as you would only be asked the question that you should know is the most important tip anyone can give you. But as far as the ‘tech’ part is concerned, here we have some easy things you can focus on to get better out of your interviews.

1 Be Honest About Your Portfolio

If you say that you’re a coder with a particular focus on runtime performance, then you’d better possess that skill set and demonstrate proficiency with it. If you are just out of college or a Bootcamp, you must have all the things you learned there in your mind, partially at least. And even if you don’t have any experience, you must not lie about it because even if you are able to lie on your portfolio, you can’t fool the experienced interviewer who might have interviewed hundreds of candidates. So be honest about what you know and if you are good for the job, you will get it or you will get a good experience for the next interview.

2 Carefully Listen To the Questions Asked

You can easily misunderstand what the interviewer asked during technical interviews if you don’t pay attention. If you give a somewhat wrong answer or confess that you don’t know the answer is less damaging than not understanding the question and giving the right answer to the wrong question. Whether you’re interviewing to become a software developer, information security analyst, or IT manager, the process will likely include a technical interview. During this stage, the interviewer wants to understand your technical qualifications.  The technical interview is one of the most intimidating steps in a computer science interview. That’s partly because knowing how to prepare for a technical interview can be challenging. 

Depending on the company, the technical interview might be a phone or video call, a take-home test or problem set, or an in-person screener. You might also talk to multiple people during the technical interview.  Research common technical questions for your role. If the interviewer asks you to work through a problem, make sure to show your process clearly. The interviewer wants to see how you think and solve problems.

3 Don’t Answer The Question With A Single Word Answer

It’s no longer just about the technical skills that you have or where you went to school. Employers want to hire employees that are a good cultural fit with their organization. While skills like coding and programming are still important, having these skills alone is not enough to land you the job. No matter how technical the position is, it’s important for candidates to also have soft skills, like the ability to communicate and engage with others.

Hiring managers need to understand that the candidate will integrate with the team and existing ecosystem. That said, I believe it’s critical that employees understand the end customer and demonstrate empathy in the interview. Being able to relate to our customers and illustrating a passion to deliver the simplest, most effective solutions for the end user is what matters at the end of the day, whether it’s a role in development, sales, or finance.

4 Ask The Interviewer Some Questions Too

Again, it’s the eager personality and confident attitude that are the most desired by the companies so try to show some interest in the company and the interviewer. But do not overdo it, I am not suggesting that you should be very informal and talk like you are talking to your friends but you have to be cautious about what you ask.

Some general questions about how the company works and what is the role of the interviewer in the company would be fine. 

5 Relax And Try To Be Your Real Self

Don’t try to be a new version of yourself, though there is always a difference between the ‘work’ and ‘home’ attitudes of a person, but do not try to be a rigid person just to impose an impression of a confident person. You’ll set yourself up to play-act as the person who took the interview. That will likely cause problems later on. Honestly, it sounds exhausting, too.

You are a real person with your own set of friends. When you join a programming team, it’s just a different set of friends, and you should still be the same person no matter with whom you interact.

If your friends like you, surely so will the people who are interested in hiring, and for generally the same reasons.

6 Don’t Bring Up The ‘Money Part’ Yourself

While direct hiring, the HR is the last one who interviews the candidate, so if your job is not yet final, do not ask the interviewer about the money. Go with the flow and if the interviewer is the one who is going to decide your salary, they will bring it up themselves. And it gives a good impression that you are not interested in money about care more about the value you are giving to the company. 

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