Hard Interview Questions: STEM Fields for Monte

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STEM interviews often feature challenging analytical questions that assess a candidate's ability to think critically and solve problems on the spot. Interviewers prioritize candidates' problem-solving skills over rote knowledge, using questions that require candidates to demonstrate their thought processes. Examples of such questions include scenarios about mobile phone calls and the implications of hydrogen-powered cars on sea levels. The discussion emphasizes that successful candidates must show initiative and the ability to communicate effectively, rather than simply providing correct answers. Overall, the focus is on evaluating a candidate's understanding and reasoning skills in real-world contexts.
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Monte_Carlo said:
While I know it may have to do with specific knowledge (like propulsion) I suspect even in aerospace they sometimes test applicants with generic diffucult analytical problems.

I guess I work in aerospace (defense side of things). I have only interviewed a few times but never been asked the generic analytical problems. It has always been more on past experience and specifically what I did on projects, what problems I encountered, how I solved them.

Right now I am in the process of trying to interview and hire several software engineers and those are the same types of questions I ask. Some people list projects they worked on (especially if they are large projects like say development of the F-22) but do not say specifically what they did. So the key is trying to drill down and find out what their experience really was: were they a bump on the log, did they really contribute, or were middle of the road. You can usually tell by how well they understand and can explain what they worked and to what detail they can go into where they fit in that scale.
 

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