SFW Junior Analyst Programmer interview questions

The interview process consisted of a screening call, a technical interview, and an interview with senior management. The technical interview started with a paper-based test. The test asked six technical questions about basic algorithms, databases, html, source control, and object oriented design. The questions were fairly basic, and were treated more as a basis for discussion rather than a test where your exact performance was measured. I got the sense that I was being judged more on my ability to explain my answers, to spot my own errors, or to work out the solution when given a bit more information. For example, I was asked a question about how a specific relationship should be represented using databases; I have no experience with databases, but the interviewer explained a bit about them, and I was expected to work out how the relationship might be implemented from that information. The interview with senior management was more focused on determining whether I would be a good cultural fit within the company. I was asked about my motivations for applying for the job, but also about my motivations for choosing my degree subjects and about how I made other major life/career decisions. I was asked about what I liked to do in my free time; one company value is "balance," so they're keen to evaluate whether you've got interests outside of work. In general, I found the interviews to be very thorough, but much more natural that you often experience with graduate schemes. They asked natural, but probing questions about my background, education, experience, and technical knowledge to try to get a sense of what skills I had, and who I was as a person; some graduate interviews will ask lots of really open-ended, competency-based questions. This interview process felt much more geared towards discussing my own experiences and how those demonstrated my strengths and skills---the questions were much more specific to my CV and answers to previous questions. I was extremely impressed by how quick and professional the whole process was. After each stage, I was given a decision (on whether to progress to the next stage) at least the next day, if not later that same day. The whole process took about a week; that's pretty impressive compared to some of the other interview processes I've experienced!

The interview process was very laid-back relative to the norm. Primarily, they are looking to get to know you and see whether/how you would fit into SFW. The interview consisted of some competency-based questions as well as a run-through of the CV (educational and work background, etc). They give you a mini-test at the beginning to assess your knowledge but it's really just to see how much they would have to train you; many of the staff here (including me) do not have computer science backgrounds. The process consists of 2 interviews, the first of which is mainly a get-to-know-you and the second of which is seeing where you would fit in. They give you ample opportunity to ask your own questions within the interview. It was a positive experience overall.