Top Java 8 Interview Questions You’re Likely to Hear

In today’s job market, people who have web development skills command fantastic salaries and get to work on fascinating issues. One of the key languages to learn during your studies is Java 8, which sees usage in all kinds of applications and interfaces. Because of its popularity, you’re bound to get lots of Java 8 interview questions when you hunt for your first programming job. It’s essential to know the sorts of subjects you’ll cover in your interview so that you can prepare and ace the meeting.

Our guide looks at some of the most common Java questions you’ll run across in your job interviews. Java bootcamp gives you the knowledge you need to succeed in your work but having an idea of the topics hiring managers like to touch upon sets you up for success. In this article, you get questions that target Java 8 functions and help managers determine your skill level.

Explain Method References

Jobs in data science and software development use Java 8 all the time to accomplish tasks, so it makes sense to get knowledge questions that touch on method reference, which is new to Java 8. Expect to get some version of a question that asks you to explain method references in detail. Fortunately, method references aren’t difficult to understand; a little study on your part will give you confidence in the subject.

Method references reference methods without invoking it. This is handy when you work with methods and treat them as Lambda expressions. You can use a variety of references, including static method references, unbound method references, and static method references. This tool saves you time and allows you to treat methods as objects, which is a much more practical option than in previous Java iterations.

What New Features Are in Java 8?

Because Java 8 is so shiny and new, many old-school developers might not have a handle on all of the new components it contains. Hiring managers want to root out people who know Java but perhaps aren’t prepared to work with this version. That’s why it’s common to hear interview questions that challenge you to list the new features that Java 8 contains. If you can rattle off the recent additions to Java that came with the update, your chances of landing a gig improve dramatically.

Java 8 was shipped with a number of new and exciting features that add flexibility and power to the code. Among the new developments are:

• Lambda expressions
• Stream API
• The optional wrapper class
• Data API
• Default methods
• Method References
• The Nashorn JavaScript engine

Memorize these new features, and take a few minutes to study up on each one so you can explain them in depth. It’ll impress your interviewer to no end.

What Functional Interfaces Are in the Standard Library?

This question digs deeper into one of the new components of Java 8 and allows you to show off your knowledge of the standard library, which is the bread and butter of Java programmers. It should come as no surprise to hear this question in your next interview, so prepare ahead of time and come right back at the interviewer with confidence. Studying this topic is far from wasted time, as you use that knowledge every time you write code with Java 8.

You’ll find a number of different functional interfaces in Java 8. Some of the common interfaces are:

• Consumer
• Predicate
• Function
• UnaryOperator
• BinaryOperator
• Supplier
• BiFunction

As with all of Java’s new features, it benefits you to sit down and dig into each interface to get to know it well. A few hours of study will net you a ton of knowledge and goes a long way toward landing you a top programming gig.

Talk about Default Methods

We touched on default methods when we listed Java 8’s new features, and you can expect hiring managers to want to know more about the topic. That’s hardly a surprise—Java 8 gets good use out of default methods, so the more you know on the subject, the better the odds that you get a callback for a second interview. The night before your interview, go over default methods to avoid getting caught without a ready reply on the issue.

Put simply, default methods are methods that include an implementation. You’ll find them in interfaces. Default methods add additional interface functions and still provide class backward compatibility for existing interface implementations. This is a far better method than in previous iterations, which required developers to break all implementing classes before implementing the addition. 

And that’s the deal, people. Java 8 is the latest iteration of one of the most popular and common programming languages around. And, you can expect to get interview questions on the subject when you sit for your new software development interview. Our guide prepares you by letting you in on questions you’re certain to encounter.