Hey Fam, welcome back!
Today I am going to cover 5 good questions you can ask after your software engineering
interviews that will help you stand out.
If you are preparing for technical interviews then this video is for you!
Asking good questions at the end of an interview is important because that is one way that
you will differentiate yourself from other candidates
and demonstrate that you have a genuine interest in working at that company.
From personal experience, having been on both sides of the Software Engineering interview,
as an interviewee and interviewer, and having done extensive research
I’ve gathered five great questions you can ask at your next software engineering interview.
At the end of the video I will provide you with an additional 15 bonus questions, so
make sure to stick around.
Before we start, I’d like to welcome those who are new to our channel
My name is Itzel and I am a Senior Software Engineer at Pandora
In this channel, Dante and I share practical advice and knowledge to help you enter and
thrive in the tech industry.
Now, let’s jump right in!
At the end of every Software engineering interview, you will have a couple of minutes to ask any
questions you may have.
Since there are going to be multiple candidates interviewing for the same role,
asking good questions can be a deciding factor between what candidate moves on to the next
round of interviews or gets the job.
Not having any questions, signals to the interviewer that you are not interested in that company
or passionate about thar role.
So even if you did well in your interview, but you do not ask any questions at the end,
it will hurt your chances of moving forward.
Here is what interviewers are looking for in the questions that you ask
They want to see that you are genuinely interested in working at the company
They want to make sure that they address any worries or concerns that you may have about
the role and see that you have done research about
the company and came prepared
Asking questions at the end of your interview is a great opportunity to impress your interviewer,
and make a personal connection with them
Since you will be getting a sneak peek into what their experience has been like at that
company.
But interviewing is a two-way street
the company wants to learn more about you to see if you’re a good fit for them but
YOU are also interviewing them to see if THEY are a good fit for you
Asking questions is an opportunity for you
To learn what the current state of the company is
To see if the job responsibilities are interesting to you
and get a good sense of whether people like working at that company
There are a lot of interview questions and advice out there, and I think the more info
the better.
From personal experience, and having read over 10 articles on this topic, these are
the questions that I found the most valuable
When I’m interviewing, I usually have 5 questions prepared
3 that I want to ask, and 2 backup questions in case the interviewer answers some of my
questions throughout the interview.
A good strategy to follow is to end the interview on a positive note,
so I’ve arranged the following questions in the order that I would ask them in an interview.
Question #1: What resources are there for new engineers to get on-boarded and when they
have questions?
This question shows the interviewer that you are proactive and really thinking about how
you would ramp up if you got the role.
The response should provide you with information around what tools, mentorship opportunities,
and internal resources the company has for new employees to help them onboard successfully
If the interviewer mentions any of the following it’s a good sign that the company fosters
a supportive environment: When engineers have questions they’ll reach
out to their teammates or manager for help Every new engineer gets assigned a mentor
or buddy that helps them with onboarding There are slack channels, documentation, internal
forums, or office hours where engineers can get help with questions or issues they may
be facing
Question #2: What have you learned since you joined the company?
This is a great question because it gives you insight into whether people are learning
and growing at that company, which is one of the key things you should look for in any
job.
It also allows the interviewer to talk about technical and soft skills that they’ve developed
at the company, what opportunities they've had to step outside their comfort zone, and
how they’ve grown on a personal level.
An added benefit of this question is that it gives the interviewer an opportunity to
share advice, tips, and lessons with you, which can come in handy in your career.
If the interviewer doesn’t mention what kind of resources are available for engineers
to learn new technologies, a great follow-up question to ask is: What resources do engineers
have for learning new technologies at the company?
This follow-up question shows that you are driven, and invested in growing your skillset
which are traits of great engineers.
Asking this will also inform you about the culture of the engineering organization
In their response, you will find out what learning opportunities the company or team
offers, such as: Brown bags or lunch & learn sessions where
engineers can teach others how to start using new technologies
Whether employees have access to an education budget that they can use for conferences,
certificates, books, or online courses And if the company provides workshops or trainings
for employees to learn new skills
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thumbs up!
Question #3: What are some areas of improvement in the team where a new engineer can have
an impact?
This question translates to “what are some of the current challenges that the team is
facing and how can I help?”
This question shows the interviewer that you are someone who likes to take initiative,
which will help you stand out from other candidates.
This is one of my favorite questions because not only does it leave a memorable impression
of you, it also helps you learn how you can make a great impression on the team if you
join.
From my experience, I have seen that there are a lot of things that engineers want to
improve in the codebase or in the product but there is little time for us to work on
those things
because there are always new features that take priority so those enhancements stay in
the backlog for a long time.
As a new engineer, you have a lighter workload during your ramp-up months, which you can
use to make enhancements that will have an impact on the team
Question #4: What are upcoming projects that new engineers will be working on?
This is a great question to learn more about what work you will be doing if you join the
company and what projects the company considers priority.
If the projects sound interesting to you, then that’s a good sign that the role is
a good fit for you.
This question will also give you an insight into whether new engineers have the opportunity
to work on impactful projects
or if they are first placed on product maintenance like bug support, or addressing tech debt.
Question #5.
What do you like the most about working in this team?
I think this is a great question to ask to learn more about the culture of the team
I like this question because it’s more specific than asking, what do you like about the company?
You can read online about what perks that the company provides and see that most people
will answer that question by listing one of those perks which doesn’t provide you with
any additional information.
but by asking what the interviewer enjoys about the specific team that you will be joining,
you can start to paint a picture of whether that is an environment you’d be happy to
work in.
At the end of the day, interviewers want to see that you will enjoy working at that company
because people who like what they do produce better work and contribute to creating a positive
work environment.
you should be excited about your next role, but also be aware of the realities and expectations
of the job.
and these 5 questions have helped me evaluate whether a company is a good fit for me
I would love to hear what you learned from today’s video so please let me know in the
comments!
If you know of any other great questions to ask after the interviews please share them
down below
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whom you think can benefit from it.
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Thank you so much for watching, and we’ll see you in our next video!