Technical Interviewing Guide for Engineering Master’s Students

Technical interviewing is an opportunity for candidates to demonstrate technical abilities with specialized skills to a potential employer. It provides employers with specific evidence of a candidate’s ability to do the work needed in the role and what future training may be necessary.  

Engineering Master’s students pursue a wide range of roles with technical interview components and for this guide to be helpful to more than one population, we’ll focus on two areas:

  • preparing for technical interviews
  • strategies for performing well in technical interviews

Some technical interviews may include a problem-solving test on a whiteboard
Image Credit: StockCake
You may be asked to explain your project work, showcasing design thinking to a panel
Image Credit: kate_sept2004 via Canva

Hiring for roles that involve programming usually come with a coding component
Image Credit: Yumi mini via Canva

When?

At any time. Technical Interviews can happen at any time in the search process and in multiple formats (phone call, video call, take home assignment, in-person interview, or in-person panel interview). Since there is no true “season” for technical interviews, we suggest two actions below to get and stay ready.

  1. Ask HR for details early. When a company requests an interview, use the opportunity to ask HR if they can provide more details about the type of technical interview to expect. This is a common request for interviewees to make and allows you to focus your time and energy in the right direction.
  2. Practice consistently. Add technical interview practice as a consistent part of your weekly routine to develop ease and confidence in performing well in these situations.  

Resources for Learning & Practice

  • Exponent: a platform focused on technical roles in software engineering, product management, data science, and machine learning. See short courses with information about relevant topics and interviewing, to practice technical interviewing with a peer, and review questions from top-tier technology companies in an interview library.
  • LeetCode and CodeSignal are standard platforms to practice coding skills.
  • For consulting and tech interview prep, RocketBlocks is a great go-to.
  • Both Coursera and LinkedIn have many useful options when you search technical interviewing, interviewing for xxx
  • Reddit and X (formerly Twitter) provide firsthand conversations about technical interviews with examples and solutions from people working in industry
  • Check out these books:
    • Crack the Coding Interview
    • Ace the Data Science Interview
    • Cracking the PM Interview
    • Case in Point
    • The Ultimate Guide to the Mechanical Engineering Interview

Steps for Success

Preparation

As you connect with industry professionals during informational interviews and at career events, ask about technical problems they are currently trying to solve. This gives you an idea of what is important to them at this moment and associated questions that might appear in technical interviews.

You can also ask industry professionals directly about the technical interview questions they encountered in their interview process to learn more examples.

While the interviewer probably has a deep technical understanding, you need clearly explain your logic and approach during the interview.

Take advantage of a 1:1 session with a Communications Consultants from the Graduate Communications & Intercultural Programs team. This team of communications experts work with Engineering Master’s students to enhance their communication of complex topics.

It’s highly unlikely you will be able to guess the exact question the interviewer will ask. Instead of focusing on the exact question, practice multiple questions in the category they typically use.

Is it a question about an algorithm? Will it be a case scenario involving a market size? Will it be a design question within a specific type of device?

Practice these to develop comfort with different approaches you can apply to any question asked.

Since technical interviews can happen in different environments, practice over the phone, on a video call, in take home assignment format, and in-person. We also suggest you practice with more than one person so you can experience different personalities and approaches from the interviewer.

During the Interview

Answer the question they intend for you to answer. You can do this by clarifying at the beginning. After the interviewer presents the question or scenario, take a moment to review it and then share back what you understand your prompt to be. If you misunderstand, the interviewer can correct you.

This is key. The interviewer needs to know your thought process and your logic. It may seem strange, but you need to talk through your process as you go.

  • If you have long pauses, it’s probably an indication that you should share what you’re thinking with the interviewer.
  • Explain why you’re making the decisions you are and what is influencing those decisions.
  • Ask the interviewer probing questions to give you more details as you move along in the solution.
  • You can also ask for feedback on your solution approach.

The interviewer may ask questions about your decisions or approach that can feel like they are challenging you. Know that this is part of the process and often they are trying to understand your approach fully.

Answer their question and perhaps ask your own in response if their challenge brought a question to your mind.

Follow-Up

Use the Correspondence topic guide. Follow-up is one way you show your motivation for the role and excitement for joining the team. Send a thank you email or LinkedIn message to your interviewers within 24 hours of your interview. Stand out by including something specific you connected with in the interview.

Useful References

Consider your strengths and these two questions:

  • How do I communicate complex information, and what strength can I harness to do this well?
  • What strength can I use to develop a consistent practice routing that allows me to develop comfort and skill with technical interviews?

Use AI in a variety of ways to prepare and to practice for your interview. Consider not only basic questions but how you can include the perspective of your persona.  

  • Inquire about categories of technical questions typically asked by particular roles or fields
  • Follow-up with how best to address questions like these incorporating [aspects of your persona like Strengths, years of work experience, etc.]