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Stanford CS9: Problem-Solving for the CS Technical Interview

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Re: Stanford CS9: Problem-Solving for the CS Technical Interview

#131

Post by deepGem »

dietr1ch wrote: post #104
czardoz wrote: post #3

This is what I was afraid of. I always thought interviews were something where you present your abilities, experience and knowledge. It should not be something you "prepare" for because then you're not showing off your skills, instead you're just regurgitating what you are trained to do. I do somewhat blame the whiteboard culture, but I guess that's the one that has given the best results so far. I've no doubt that i…

I think it's rather silly to "prepare" for an interview, but IMHO what they expect at Google/Facebook/Amazon/Microsoft is not something you should really need to prepare for if you took the time to really understand the algorithms and general techniques you study as a CS undergrad. Rehearsing at a relaxed pace over a single weekend should be more than enough, particularly to get used to discuss your ideas and using a…

Wholeheartedly agree. These companies most likely are trying t o understand the 'why' behind your algorithm choices. Of course, there are exceptions but largely this is the case. Understanding the why only comes to you, if you really understand the algorithms and are able to map those algorithms to use cases.

Re: Stanford CS9: Problem-Solving for the CS Technical Interview

#132

Post by ksml »

tinokid wrote: post #55

Could there be a clearer sign that the quality of higher education in our time is in steep decline? If, one hundred years ago, Oxbridge had floated the idea of sanctioning a student to embark on a program of study designed to anticipate questions that might arise in a job interview, it would have been as preposterous as suggesting that the Queen should take her meals in a pub. And yet today, we have one of the preemi…

Oh, come on. I think you are exaggerating quite a bit here. This is a single pass/no pass unit out of 180 units required for graduation, and, as a Stanford CS student, I can assure you the other classes are extremely rigorous. I don't see a problem with a one-unit class designed to help build confidence and demonstrate your skills to an interviewer. If you think that such a class shouldn't be necessary, then blame the current interview system, not all of higher education. Higher education has its problems, but this is hardly grounds to claim it's in "steep decline."

Re: Stanford CS9: Problem-Solving for the CS Technical Interview

#134

Post by [deleted] »

SmirkingRevenge wrote: post #110
closeparen wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

“Interviews or exams” That you think interviews and exams are interchangeable concepts illustrates the problem. Nothing wrong with a rigorous filter at the gates of the profession, but lawyers don’t need to spend months studying for each company’s half-assed version of the bar exam each time they change jobs. Our industry is dysfunctional because, unlike law and medicine, no one trusts the credentialing mechanisms.

Our industry also has quite a lot of self-taught professionals, who can perform as well as their college educated counterparts, which is something you won't really get in professions like Law or Medicine. I think that's a good thing, when it comes to software.

[deleted]

Re: Stanford CS9: Problem-Solving for the CS Technical Interview

#135

Post by ksml »

mariopt wrote: post #40

What the hell? Shouldn't we focus on creating great engineers instead of training them to make a good impression on an interview? I think is completely immoral. Becoming good at something is a matter of consistent practice that brings experience and expertise over time. There is not other way around it. People might pass the interview but their hat will fall in a matter of weeks. This is PUA for interviews by a Unive…

This is a _single_ pass/no pass unit out of 180 required to graduate. Stanford absolutely focuses on creating great engineers (or computer scientists, for those more interested in the math or theory sides), but it still helps to have a small course pointing out tips and things to look for in the interviewing process.

Re: Stanford CS9: Problem-Solving for the CS Technical Interview

#136

Post by bitL »

motherdearest wrote: post #126
bitL wrote: post #109

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's a fitness test. Are you going to bring me value, or are you on the verge of burnout with outdated skills, trying to live off your past? "What did you do for me today?" is what matters for company to stay afloat and brutal competition is the way to achieve it. What kind of society it creates is another question.

I'm a proponent of whiteboard tests and am in charge of conducting for potential hires on my team. However I don't see how they guard against an outdated skillset? My company employees five Infor Sys21 RPG programmers who thought the term "web service" was synonymous with SOAP until I ran a workshop.4 out of 5 worked most of their career for IBM and all have bachelor's or masters in CS, EE, or Math. With a weekend of…

If you can afford to, take 6-12 months break, travel the world, meet new people, get some hobbies that are opposite of programming like model photography or playing/making music with multiple people. 14h/day behind the screen is pathological and you need to learn how to counteract it. You might get some peak off it, but it's short-lasted and won't help you in a career (if there is any long-term career in programming is another question).

Re: Stanford CS9: Problem-Solving for the CS Technical Interview

#137

Post by sidlls »

barry-cotter wrote: post #111
sjg007 wrote: post #71

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Right but she is licensed, this is the main issue.

Indeed. If it was illegal to work as a programmer without a Master’s degree in Computer Science with a GPA above 3.0 the interview process would not look like the current one.

The industry wouldn't look the same, either: it wouldn't be nearly as profitable or widespread as it has become, and nobody but CS academics would care about it.

Re: Stanford CS9: Problem-Solving for the CS Technical Interview

#138

Post by kramer1416 »

SmirkingRevenge wrote: post #110
closeparen wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

“Interviews or exams” That you think interviews and exams are interchangeable concepts illustrates the problem. Nothing wrong with a rigorous filter at the gates of the profession, but lawyers don’t need to spend months studying for each company’s half-assed version of the bar exam each time they change jobs. Our industry is dysfunctional because, unlike law and medicine, no one trusts the credentialing mechanisms.

Our industry also has quite a lot of self-taught professionals, who can perform as well as their college educated counterparts, which is something you won't really get in professions like Law or Medicine. I think that's a good thing, when it comes to software.

That implies CS degree is a hoax, which is not.

The bootcamp style of skilled labour generation is possible simply because of the demand-supply gap.

Re: Stanford CS9: Problem-Solving for the CS Technical Interview

#139

Post by UncleMeat »

School-Cotton wrote: post #129
UncleMeat wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

40 years ago, my mom took a one credit course in undergrad for her cs degree that was on resume writing, interviewing, and negotiation. Is this so different?

Did your mom go to Stanford?

No. Another american university. The point is that this sort of thing is neither new nor an indication that the education system is failing.
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