How to deal interviews

Ariel Isaac

 

aisaac@nearsoft.com

github.com/ariel-isaacm

Why is this important?

• Not taught in school
• The line between a good job and a sucky one
• You might be doing this several times in your life
• Interviewers/recruiters smell desperation

Before the interview

• Do you want to grow or just money?
• What are you "good" at?
• Do you wait for your school to teach you?
• Which options do you have based on your skills?
• Make some research about the company

Time to sharpen your skills

• Learn how to use Git
• Data Structures 
• OOP
• Sorting algorithms
• Unit Testing
• Continous integration
• Design Patterns
• FrontEnd/BackEnd

Time to sharpen your skills

• Databases
• Software engineering
• SOLID
• Big O Notation
• DevOps (maybe?)
• Your language core basics
• Frameworks

Ok... how?

• Open source
• Get a mentor
• Be part of a community
  (Csi pro, NodeSchool, Android School)
• Read books
• Read articles (tutorials, news, blogs)
• Hackathons, contests etc.
• Build something!!

Now the real deal

• Choose a company
• Research about your company
• Why do you want to join that company?
• Read their blog, read the vacancy profile, read the blogs from the people that work there

Is Not Personal

• The conclusions are not personal
• Don't be upset
• Did you pass? good but don't get too excited
• They need you as much as you need them
• Reach for an agreement

During the interview

• Your interviewer will try to break the ice
• Don't be yourself
• Keep calm and be honest
• You know it? say it
• You don't know? ask
• Brag about your work but stick to the truth
• How do you normally work?
• How do you learn?
• How do you stay up to date?

During the interview

• Your interviewer wants to know you
• You're not convincing your parents or teachers
• If he doesn't trust you your job-load will fall on him

Aftermath

• Demand feedback 
• They turned you down? ask why
• You need to know which areas need improvement
• Ask for books, websites, courses etc.
• Ask your interviewer how long would it take to try again
• You failed? it's not the end of the world
• Either way you will gain experience 

Final tips

• Your recruiter is your best friend
• Do not put selfies on your cv
• Nobody cares which kindergarden you went 
• Have a legit email account
• Avoid clichés
  “To grow with a company to which I can add value through my work.”
• You're not an expert
• Communication is the key
• Don't try to score with your recruiter

Books/Websites

Cracking the code interview

Being Geek

Pragmatic programmer

Codecademy.com

Codeval.com

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