The Reality of Tech Interviews in 2025

https://newsletter.pragmaticengineer.com/p/the-reality-of-tech-interviews

by neilv • 1 year ago

6 5 1 year ago

newsletter.pragmaticengineer.com

neilv3• 1 year ago

This is mostly an advertorial for someone's interview prep service, but I figured it might prompt this month's state-of-hiring discussion.

roland352• 1 year ago

Having gone through the interview game this year after being laid off on Thanksgiving, this article rang true to my experience. I would add:

- I had much more success with getting interviews at big companies versus small companies. I barely got any responses from startups.

- Behavioral questions are indeed very important for senior level. It's easy to ignore prepping this. Be sure to focus on exactly what your impact was. I had success practicing my answers with Gemini which was nice because I had a chance to verbally say my answers and get feedback.

- Bar is up. I didn't get all coding questions correct in 2022 but passed all my rounds. In 2025 I somehow pulled 99% of Kahn's algorithm out of my butt, but it wasn't enough!

- Remote is especially tough. Almost all my offers were in California or Seattle.

Good luck out there...

neilv3• 1 year ago

Thanks. Sounds a bit rough.

Personally, I refuse to do the Leetcode interviews, on either side of the desk. (When I'm on the receiving end of that nonsense, I can't afford the months to prepare for the hazing ritual. And, if the employer is doing things like they're Google circa 2010, how full are they of people who are thinking and working in a way that's self-sabotaging in every other time and place.)

roland352• 1 year ago

I understand leetcode is a grind. I was unemployed so I had time to do it, but if you're looking to interview while working full time it certainly is overwhelming!

I haven't learned too much from my studying, but as a non-cs background engineer it did help in a few ways, plus I think the structured practice of problem solving is helpful for any coding interview, whether practical or algorithm based.

The Reality of Tech Interviews in 2025

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