Tech Interview Tips: Bagging that new grad job
By: Saloni Goel
Tags: Interview, Job Search, Job Interview, New Grad, Job Hunting

As an international student in the US, I’ve always had the urgent ambition for securing a job as soon as I graduate. In fact, the pressure started to build up in the second semester itself when I was expected to get an internship. Getting a job in the U.S. without any prior work experience has probably been one of the most difficult processes I have had to go through, and one of the most mentally consuming as well.

Initially I went for it straight. I applied to every job I thought I qualified for, and even some I thought I’d just pass for. I don’t have some fancy numbers saved, but I think for every 20 jobs I would apply for, I got one call for an interview. After several interview calls & days faded into nights, I finally got that one offer merely a month before the internship was about to start. Very high stress environment indeed.

Securing my second internship (which was actually a co-op) was much easier than the first, and my third was easier than my second. I worked in the non-profit industry, at a silicon valley startup where I was 1/17 of the company, as well as a huge bank on wall street where I was exposed to a new world. These internships taught me a great deal about myself and the corporate world, internships are like dry-runs for full-time jobs. Treat them like that!

Before the interview: Tailor your resume! Stand out in any way you can! This is your chance to put on paper all the work you have done and reap the rewards. Reach out to recruiters, let them know why they should hire you. Remember that it is actually their job to find the best talent, and if you do a good job at proving yourself, nothing stands between you and the interview. Cracking the Coding Interview & Leetcode are my holistic go-to’s for interview prep. Get your resume reviewed by several people, and choose the comments that reflect your style the most. Being truthful and honest is incredibly important in this whole process.

Applying for hundreds of jobs and interviewing for tens of them for internships taught me a great deal about interview styles and what sort of a situation I excel in. I had enough experience to know that I wanted to work at a tech company, a company whose business I would contribute to directly. It gave me the confidence to know that this time I would target my jobs, and not let them target me.

I applied to a total of 6 companies, interviewed at all 6, and got offers from 5 of them. How? Read below:

Either you can lead the conversation or they can. And… it’s best if you do it. They don’t know who you are or what is special about you, only you know that. So, decide what’s special about you. Don’t just think it, write it down. And then say it to them. Steer the conversation to showcase your strongest points. It’s best to tell them everything honestly to find the best long term fit for you. And for them. Building off of that, write down everything about yourself, down to your name, on a paper. Maybe even color code it if you’re into that. It’ll help you NEVER blank out in an interview. What’s more? Revisit this in X years when you’re looking for a job again, and see how your professional personality has developed over the years — and update it. It’s your version of your resume, meant only for your eyes. Without the one-page limit. An interview is just a conversation and it’s easy for it to get boring. Always have your talking points ready(general points) and when you have a specific company in mind, ask them your specific questions as well. At each talking point ask yourself “what am I gaining out of this question?” or “what quality of mine am I showcasing?” at least one of those should have a proper answer otherwise toss the question out. Your interviewer is just a person. Interviewing is very subjective. You need to do whatever you can to portray your truest self. Show your passion, ask your questions, get things cleared out in your interview itself. You don’t want a job where you realize on the job that it isn’t the best fit. Be prepared to answer behavioral questions about yourself. One thing that got me started on this is searching for “100 behavioral interview questions” and thinking of incidents that would fit in them, or what you would say if you were asked any of those. Cache those answers! Take notes if that is what you desire. Just getting started thinking about the “Tell me about a situation where…” questions goes a long way in recollecting these ideas in a high stress situation like an interview. It’s okay not to know everything. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. There’s a lot of companies out there, it’s a matter of finding your best fit. But there’s only one you. Each interview is a learning opportunity. You’re investing those 45 minutes in something larger than just a job offer, and you must get that return on investment. Your interviewer might push you and make you think about harder problems and you may not come to a solution in your X minutes to talk, and that is okay! They ask you hard questions to see how you think and how you take the next steps on a problem, so always think out loud and go step by step while creating a strategy or plan. In such situations I like to go with the obvious “biggest O” solution for the problem, and then revise with optimization/algorithmic improvements as time permits. Don’t be afraid to ask for a little nudge if you are stuck. Your interviewer would much rather help you a little and understand what you do with that direction than have you stress over a question for most of the interview. All is not lost in such a situation! Remember, it’s understood that in real world situations you will have access to resources like the internet & your peers to solve problems. As an early in career, you will be learning best practices for the first couple months (and years) of your career. An interview always goes both ways — you are going to be spending your golden years at the company. You are never going to get a “first job out of college” again. It’s totally in your hands as to how much effort you put in it! I cannot stress on this enough, ask questions! And don’t just ask questions to fill the “Do you have any questions for me?” section of the interview, ask them to actually know what is happening! I have had some very good conversations during interviews and they have all resonated the idea that you learn a little more with every interview you give. This point is crucial to aid you in the stage that comes after the offer, make sure to do it justice.

Those were my tips from what I found worked for me. Super interested to hear about what worked for you! You can find me on LinkedIn and GitHub.

EDIT: I had 2 offers from startups in San Francisco, 1 offer from a bank on wall street, 1 offer from Bloomberg, and the offer I picked was at Microsoft (: