5 Tips to prepare for a coding interview

Finally, you got a response from all the resume you submitted? Now It’s time to prepare for your coding interview, they might introduce a coding challenge to you to solve it. It might be a front-end coding challenge (html, css and JS DOM) or a back-end coding challenge (Python, PHP, JavaScript, etc.). Even though you know you can pass it, it’s always a great idea to do some practice before you get into the interview.

We will discuss 5 tips that can help you prepare for your next coding interview.

Revise Key Data Structure, Terms & Algorithm

First thing first, I hope you already know about all the most used data types such as string, integer, array, boolean, null, object, etc. But you might have forgotten all of their methods in your programming language. For example, if you are preparing for a PHP coding interview then you can revise all those most used data type’s methods such as for array you got array_merge, array_values, implode, etc. and in JavaScript to divide a string you got split and much more other methods that you should revise before jumping into your coding interview.

And refresh yourself on algorithm such as sorting, searching, filtering and OOP techniques.

Do Last-Minute Problem Solving

To prepare yourself fully, you must at least solve 5-8 coding challenges just to makeup your mind for the interview and to be confident. Go to SkillSnip.com, you will find a lot of coding challenges in your preferred programming language and solve some coding challenges and go through other programmers solution on how they solved it to check if the codes you wrote could be better and optimized.

Revise the Common Libraries of your Programming Language

This part is the most simple one yet the most crucial, most of the time in coding interview they might ask you about libraries and their methods to solve a problem. So go through all the most common libraries used to make life easier, and just revise all their methods commonly used. For example, if you preparing for a Python Coding Interview then you could revise Panda if that relates to the interview, it really depends on which type of libraries you can expect from the interview.

Also, don’t forget to revise all the built-in functions to optimize your codes.

Review the Basic System Designs

If you are about to face an interview that’s for a senior or expert level, then it might be a good idea to go through all the basic system designs such as caching, messages queue, chunks, sharding, etc. Although, I highly doubt that the interview will ask you code something like this within the interview but they might ask you what your approach would be to achieve something like that if you were ever tasked with it. So be prepared for something like that.

Plan your Communication Strategy

This is the most important part, if your communication is not good enough then all of your coding experience might not satisfy the interviewer. Always take your time before answering, it’s okay to think before you answer. Practice to answer and explain your thoughts more clearly and logically.
It’s a good idea that when you are assigned the coding challenge then you should outline your approach before coding and talk through your solution step-by-step.
It’s okay to ask the interview questions if you are stuck anywhere while coding, but obviously your questions must not be regarding the solution of the challenge.

Bonus Tips

• Rest & Stay Confident: Sleep well tonight and approach the interview with confident, it’s just a coding interview.
• Be Comfortable: Wear something that makes you feel good and comfortable at the same time
• Stay Hydrated and Calm: Bring some water and take deep breaths if you’re feeling nervous.

That’s it for today, will see you in another article.