Mastering the Coding Interview: Essential Skills and Expectations

Introduction

The coding interview is a fundamental part of the hiring process at tech giants like Google , Amazon , Meta ; designed to evaluate a candidate's problem-solving and coding abilities through multiple complex challenges. Performance in these interviews not only determines whether a candidate receives a job offer but also significantly impacts the potential compensation package.The following section outlines what is expected from candidates in these interviews and offers guidance on how to effectively prepare for them.

Expectation from the candidate

Before we discuss how to prepare, let's first understand what interviewers are looking for in candidates. The goal of the interviewer is to gather sufficient data points on specific metrics to make an informed decision about a candidate's suitability. The key metrics used by interviewers to evaluate candidates include:

• Problem Solving: Problem-solving skills, often referred to as cognitive abilities, are crucial for evaluating a candidate's approach to tackle the issues. Preferred problems for assessing this skill set are typically ambiguous and open-ended, intentionally lacking necessary details. This design aims to test whether candidates fall into the trap of making assumptions without confirming the facts. Such questions usually have multiple solutions, and the time and space complexity of these solutions is often quite similar.
• Data Structure And Algorithm: This is the most crucial part of the coding interview, where candidates are expected to select the appropriate data structures and algorithms to solve a given problem. It is anticipated that the candidate possesses a strong understanding of complex data structures and algorithms and can effectively apply them. This skill set is developed through intuition, which is cultivated by solving a significant number of problems involving various data structures and algorithms. The interview aims to assess whether the candidate is well-versed in these areas.
• Evaluating Algorithm: The candidate is expected to have a strong understanding of time and space complexity. They should be able to accurately evaluate algorithms and comparatively determine which algorithm is more efficient based on these criteria.
• Programming: One of the expectations is that the candidate is proficient in at least one programming language and can write compilable, error-free code. The candidate is expected to implement the discussed solution with minimal or no errors. MAANG companies generally allow candidates the freedom to choose any general-purpose programming language for their interview. In contrast, product-based companies tend to be more selective, as they often work with specific technologies that are best suited to particular programming languages.
• Handling Edge Case amp; Dry Run: The implementation provided by the candidate should be robust enough to handle corner cases. Candidates are expected to come up with few edge cases, providing a dry run to demonstrate their solutions. Recent interview trends indicate that interviewers may also ask candidates to implement unit test cases in certain scenarios.
• Communication: The candidate is expected to clearly communicate their approach and solution during the interview. Interviewers expect candidates to explain their reasoning in a way that convincingly demonstrates the viability of their solution. Good communication bridges any gaps in understanding or detail that may arise during the interview.

Generally, interviewers assign points and comments to these key metrics based on their assessment of your performance during the interview. These metrics are shared and discussed among the interview panel while making hiring decisions. Some companies also use these metrics to determine the compensation package they can offer.