How to Rock Your Technical Interview

You’re ready to jump into the technical job market. Maybe you’re a network engineer, maybe you’re a brand-new coder, or perhaps you work in server support. Whatever your specialization, all technical interviews share some common aspects. Our guide shows you how to prepare ahead of time so you can rock your technical interview. A little advance work can make all of the difference and land you that job you want.

In this article, we walk you through the technical interview process from start to finish. You’ll learn about the different interview stages you can expect to go through, and we also give you advice on what to wear and how to present yourself. Job interviews can be fraught experiences, but planning ahead will give you the confidence you need to knock your interviews out of the park. Is everyone ready? Then let’s get crackin’!

You’ll Actually Go Through Multiple Interviews

It’s a bit inaccurate to describe your experience at a hiring company as one big interview. In fact, you’ll probably have several different interviews as you move through the hiring process. Think of the multiple interviews as hurdles you have to clear or as qualifying heats. At each interview stage, some people will fail to advance. By the time you sit for a final onsite interview, you’ll have cleared a number of bars and established yourself as a promising candidate.

You’ll likely have an initial phone interview to get the hiring process underway. This will be a technical interview for the most part and will gauge your qualifications and enthusiasm for the work. You might also get a second remote interview to test your skills ahead of an in-person visit. Then, you’ll have a final interview with the hiring manager and any other folks who have to sign off on you. Plan on answering technical questions at all stages, and project an enthusiastic and cooperative attitude, and you’ll be set.

Dress to Impress, and Bring Your Tools

You made it to the final interview, huh? Congratulations! Just getting to this point is a huge accomplishment, one that many of your peer couldn’t achieve. Now, all you have to do is make a positive impression on your interviewers. To do so, you’ll need to answer the technical questions to their satisfaction, but you’ll need a little extra to put you ahead of the other candidates. Fortunately, you can get a head start on impressing your future employers with a few simple steps.

Let’s start with your clothes. Naturally, you don’t want to dress too casually to your interview—leave your shorts and halter tops at home—but you can dress too formally, too. A good approach is to wear outfits that are one level higher than the company’s dress code. For example, if the company allows employees to wear jeans or shorts, come to the interview in business casual dress. 

You should also bring some basic tools, including a pen, a notepad, and your resumé. You might not need any of them, but having them on hand will impress your interviewer.

So that’s how the story goes, folks. When you set out to land a technical job, the interview process can be overwhelming. We’re here to help, though. Our guide shows you how to rock your technical interview. We give you some dynamite tips and advice to help ensure that your next technical interview ends with a job offer and handshake.