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If your goal is be employed by a large company with a "Google-esque" interview model, your time will be much better spent working on your interviewing than on l

by gervase 10y ago

If your goal is be employed by a large company with a "Google-esque" interview model, your time will be much better spent working on your interviewing than on learning a broad base of CS knowledge, because that's not what they're going to be testing you on. Cracking the coding interview is pretty good, but you'll go crazy if you just try to work through it straight without any other content to broaden your perspective. I'd suggest doing challenges on Topcoder, Hackerrank, etc. to help reinforce the concepts. These questions are very similar in format (if not content) to those you'll see in your interviews, so it's helpful to get thinking in these kinds of modes. If you're not already comfortable coding on a white board, or talking and coding at the same time, you'll want to work on those as well. Even some simple rubber duck programming will be useful. Note that the above is probably not going to be anything new to you - you've probably already read this in a bunch of other blogs you found while googling. I repeat it only to reinforce its accuracy.

rahimnathwani 10y ago
This is the best answer so far on this thread. I would add: if you have additional time, it's worth starting to learn about machine learning. More and more problems are being attacked with machine learning models, that a few years ago would have required with hand-coded algorithms/rules or basis statistical techniques. Learning about ML may not help you much with the core of the interview process (algorithms, data structures, and system design), but it will give you a better idea about the types of problems you might want to work on.
CyberFonic 10y ago
Great suggestion. Buy a whiteboard and a rubber duck and practise away. Take a video of yourself, review and polish. 4-6 weeks should be more than enough. So then you could treat yourself to a vacation.
dunkelheit 10y ago
Seconded. Learning basic CS concepts will be more useful in the long run but for the specific goal of passing google-style interview you are better off practising directly for that. All suggestions here are great but don't forget that whiteboard coding is the main part but not the only part of the interview. Practice answering architecture questions (conveniently, they can be practised without actually building any services) and other types of questions (find out which ones). Also think hard about your goal. "Getting into Google" is too abstract. Google has all sorts of teams, from the ones doing hardcore legacy maintenance to the ones doing some crazy cutting-edge stuff. The catch is that competition to get into more prestigious ones is crazy. Try to figure out (don't know how to do it though) if you have a chance of making a team that does something that you personally find interesting, or you are bound to be disappointed.
- pennaMan 10y ago
  > Practice answering architecture questions What are some good resources to learn about system architecture?
  - dunkelheit 10y ago
    (disclaimer: I haven't done the interview dance for quite some time.) I find suggestions in part 4 of this article: http://blog.triplebyte.com/how-to-pass-a-programming-interview http://blog.triplebyte.com/how-to-pass-a-programming-intervi... quite reasonable. The rest of the article is also excellent. And it is short! The key here seems to be breadth - even if you have designed a few successful systems yourself, your breadth may be inadequate to talk smoothly about a system design problem which is unfamiliar to you in an hour-long interview. So learn your building blocks, get some ideas from architecture talks and blog posts by tech companies and sharpen your talking and hand-waving skills.
  - dreistdreist 10y ago
    Microsoft Application Architecture Guide https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ff650706.aspx https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ff650706.aspx Domain Driven Design (The book is hard to read, but worth it I think) http://martinfowler.com/tags/domain%20driven%20design.html http://martinfowler.com/tags/domain%20driven%20design.html This uncle bob talk is not too bad https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpkDN78P884 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpkDN78P884 I think the microsoft guide is the most comprehensive, but don't limit yourself to it.
billhathaway 10y ago
The "talking and coding" point mentioned above is key. The interviewers want to hear your thought process and approach. Gayle McDowell (author of CtCI) has some videos for purchase[0] that show mock interviews including whiteboard coding and she gives good feedback. Certainly worth the $40 if you are unfamiliar with this style of interviewing and going for a dream job. [0]: https://www.careercup.com/video https://www.careercup.com/video

by gervase 10y ago

rahimnathwani 10y ago

This is the best answer so far on this thread. I would add: if you have additional time, it's worth starting to learn about machine learning. More and more problems are being attacked with machine learning models, that a few years ago would have required with hand-coded algorithms/rules or basis statistical techniques. Learning about ML may not help you much with the core of the interview process (algorithms, data structures, and system design), but it will give you a better idea about the types of problems you might want to work on.

CyberFonic 10y ago

Great suggestion. Buy a whiteboard and a rubber duck and practise away. Take a video of yourself, review and polish. 4-6 weeks should be more than enough. So then you could treat yourself to a vacation.

dunkelheit 10y ago

Seconded. Learning basic CS concepts will be more useful in the long run but for the specific goal of passing google-style interview you are better off practising directly for that. All suggestions here are great but don't forget that whiteboard coding is the main part but not the only part of the interview. Practice answering architecture questions (conveniently, they can be practised without actually building any services) and other types of questions (find out which ones). Also think hard about your goal. "Getting into Google" is too abstract. Google has all sorts of teams, from the ones doing hardcore legacy maintenance to the ones doing some crazy cutting-edge stuff. The catch is that competition to get into more prestigious ones is crazy. Try to figure out (don't know how to do it though) if you have a chance of making a team that does something that you personally find interesting, or you are bound to be disappointed.

pennaMan 10y ago
> Practice answering architecture questions What are some good resources to learn about system architecture?
- dunkelheit 10y ago
  (disclaimer: I haven't done the interview dance for quite some time.) I find suggestions in part 4 of this article: http://blog.triplebyte.com/how-to-pass-a-programming-interview http://blog.triplebyte.com/how-to-pass-a-programming-intervi... quite reasonable. The rest of the article is also excellent. And it is short! The key here seems to be breadth - even if you have designed a few successful systems yourself, your breadth may be inadequate to talk smoothly about a system design problem which is unfamiliar to you in an hour-long interview. So learn your building blocks, get some ideas from architecture talks and blog posts by tech companies and sharpen your talking and hand-waving skills.
- dreistdreist 10y ago
  Microsoft Application Architecture Guide https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ff650706.aspx https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ff650706.aspx Domain Driven Design (The book is hard to read, but worth it I think) http://martinfowler.com/tags/domain%20driven%20design.html http://martinfowler.com/tags/domain%20driven%20design.html This uncle bob talk is not too bad https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpkDN78P884 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpkDN78P884 I think the microsoft guide is the most comprehensive, but don't limit yourself to it.

billhathaway 10y ago

The "talking and coding" point mentioned above is key. The interviewers want to hear your thought process and approach. Gayle McDowell (author of CtCI) has some videos for purchase[0] that show mock interviews including whiteboard coding and she gives good feedback. Certainly worth the $40 if you are unfamiliar with this style of interviewing and going for a dream job. [0]: https://www.careercup.com/video https://www.careercup.com/video