Engineer Interviews

Engineer Interview Questions

Engineers are responsible for designing and building products. In an interview context, expect to be quizzed on your technical skills, and also evaluated for your ability to work as a part of a team to get things built. The specific questions you are asked will depend on what type of engineering position you are looking for such as a specific engineering discipline like software engineer, electrical engineer, or mechanical engineer.

Top Engineer Interview Questions & How to Answer

Question 1

Question #1: What is the most challenging engineering project you've dealt with, and how did you ensure it was successful?

How to answer
How to answer: This question requires you to give a specific example. Ideally, you're able to choose a project that mirrors the type of work you'd do in the role you're interviewing for. Even if it's not your most challenging project, make sure you describe your obstacle(s) and the successful outcome clearly and enthusiastically.
Question 2

Question #2: In your current role, what steps do you take to avoid making mistakes?

How to answer
How to answer: Whether you have a formal process or not, list any specific measures you employ (i.e., digital tools, consulting with colleagues, etc.). Make sure your answer demonstrates a commitment to quality control, efficiency, and safety.
Question 3

Question #3: Describe a time you dealt with a difficult client or stakeholder.

How to answer
How to answer: This one also requires a specific example that demonstrates patience and good judgment. An employer is looking for evidence that you're able to confidently and calmly stand by your decisions. Share an example with a positive outcome.

843,471 engineer interview questions shared by candidates

- Describe in detail your most involved and difficult project you've done in the past. - Difference between objects and classes in C++. - You're given two arrays of strings. Determine if all the strings in the first array are present in the second array, and return a boolean. Now assume both arrays have a million elements each. How would your answer change to improve efficiency?
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Software Engineer Intern

Interviewed at SpaceX

3.8
Feb 5, 2017

- Describe in detail your most involved and difficult project you've done in the past. - Difference between objects and classes in C++. - You're given two arrays of strings. Determine if all the strings in the first array are present in the second array, and return a boolean. Now assume both arrays have a million elements each. How would your answer change to improve efficiency?

There were several "brain teaser" sort of questions. The one that really stumped me was this: If you have an elephant and need to weigh it, but do not have access to any kind of a scale, sensor or balance beam, how do you do it?
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Vehicle Integration Engineer

Interviewed at SpaceX

3.8
Oct 4, 2017

There were several "brain teaser" sort of questions. The one that really stumped me was this: If you have an elephant and need to weigh it, but do not have access to any kind of a scale, sensor or balance beam, how do you do it?

Expectation for coding Questions: Must be sort of analytical questions testing knowledge of DS/Algos and problem-solving skills, that could be done in 65-70 minutes. Reality: Problem Solving tricky questions, I would say they are not really checking candidate's Data Structures knowledge. Standard DS/Algos can be used to come up with the sol, but again coming up with the optimised sol. is the challenging part, I feel. I though it could only be done in the given time frame with most optimised approach, only if candidate had gone through that kind of question in the past. Brute Force or Semi-optimised approach can be thought of, but coming up with most optimised approach in the given time frame, needs some serious practice and some luck too😅. According to me, either questions' difficulty level should be reduced or time can be increased.
avatar

Software Engineer II

Interviewed at Tower Research Capital

4.1
Sep 27, 2021

Expectation for coding Questions: Must be sort of analytical questions testing knowledge of DS/Algos and problem-solving skills, that could be done in 65-70 minutes. Reality: Problem Solving tricky questions, I would say they are not really checking candidate's Data Structures knowledge. Standard DS/Algos can be used to come up with the sol, but again coming up with the optimised sol. is the challenging part, I feel. I though it could only be done in the given time frame with most optimised approach, only if candidate had gone through that kind of question in the past. Brute Force or Semi-optimised approach can be thought of, but coming up with most optimised approach in the given time frame, needs some serious practice and some luck too😅. According to me, either questions' difficulty level should be reduced or time can be increased.

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