So I just went through the third round of interviews for an internship with bloomberg. Keep in mind this was my first actual interview with a major company, so I may just be naive ..but... The first round was with a software engineer from the company. He was asking me pretty basic questions about c and c++. Easy. Next round it was with the same guy plus another. This time the questions were a little more tricky but I'm sure I passed the interview with flying colors. They called me back for a third interview for this morning. I go there and the only two people I talked to were two HR reps. With the questions they were asking me, it felt like I was applying for a manager position at the company instead of a software engineer internship. They kept on asking me if I had any questions for them, which I quickly made up some BS questions on the spot because I hadn't come prepared with.. questions. No way to tell if I did well or not because they didn't ask me any questions that had right/wrong responses. They said they'd contact me by next week. I'm pretty sure they were dissapointed in the amount of quetions I didn't ask. Anybody with some insight? Is this how all interviews go? Is the decision up to the HR people or do the software engineers at least get to vouche for me.

Quote: Original post by theMadHatter
So I just went through the third round of interviews for an internship with bloomberg. Keep in mind this was my first actual interview with a major company, so I may just be naive ..but... The first round was with a software engineer from the company. He was asking me pretty basic questions about c and c++. Easy. Next round it was with the same guy plus another. This time the questions were a little more tricky but I'm sure I passed the interview with flying colors. They called me back for a third interview for this morning. I go there and the only two people I talked to were two HR reps. With the questions they were asking me, it felt like I was applying for a manager position at the company instead of a software engineer internship. They kept on asking me if I had any questions for them, which I quickly made up some BS questions on the spot because I hadn't come prepared with.. questions. No way to tell if I did well or not because they didn't ask me any questions that had right/wrong responses. They said they'd contact me by next week. I'm pretty sure they were dissapointed in the amount of quetions I didn't ask. Anybody with some insight? Is this how all interviews go? Is the decision up to the HR people or do the software engineers at least get to vouche for me.

They are probably trying to judge your interest in working for the company, vs your interest in just finding a job. I usually have a lot of questions regarding benefits, "perks" and technical competence of the company. All of the questions on this list are pretty important for a development job. As well as things like technical book reimbursement, additional training and developer conference policies, dress code, work from home policies, etc.

Yeah looking back now I probably should have showed a tad more interest in the actual company.
The link you posted gave some tips, however I'm not sure they would help me learn much about this company. They are an international financial analysis company and are very well known on campus to have an extremely good internship program. I probably would accept the internship even if they barely paid me at all. (plus chances are if I get the internship I'd be working in the NYC office, big plus, never been, and they pay for housing).

Oh, right, internship. Most of the comments on benefits and policies don't apply then!

Quote: Original post by theMadHatter
Yeah looking back now I probably should have showed a tad more interest in the actual company.

Errr yea.

An interview is as much for your benefit as theirs. You should be asking questions regarding the company and it's processes. If it is an internship rather than a real job then questions on benefits don't apply but you can and should ask about how the internships are structured/operated, how they view themselves (the company culture) etc. Going a step further you can even ask more general questions which show that you have an overall interest beyond just getting the job/internship such as "Just as a general question, what do you see as the benefits for [company] to having an internship program".

Companies are like women - you can't (always) just bump into them and hope for the best. You need to ask them about themselves to let them know you are actually interested in them.

[Edited by - Obscure on February 25, 2010 3:39:36 PM]

It's funny. I have a university job that's normally fulfilled by just two people, but I've been solo for as long as I've worked at the university. My boss gets the applications and he quickly screens them and sends them to my office randomly. I assume it's not like this in the real world, but some people show absolutely no interest during interviews. I never get anyone like "yeah I really want to apply what I know in C# and use it for applications" or "yeah I've always wanted to create web software and thought this would be the place". They don't even ask to see the software they'd be maintaining or creating. I think they just look at it like a test even though I rarely focus on the technical requirements when interviewing them.

So yeah come prepared with questions. Show an interest (not saying you didn't).

In finance, people are hired to make money. Nothing more, nothing less, using any means as long as they are not an immediate and gross violation of the law in their particular state of employment.

They want to screen people who understand that, and the mechanisms involved in it. There is no engineering value as such, unless it is making money. Not necessarily earning - but making.

This is why such interviews are usually disguised psych tests that determine candidate's basic traits. Technical part is mostly just a filter.

Asking Joel's questions isn't really applicable here, it's not about being a cool PHP ninja or LISP guru and shooting nerf guns and eating pizza. This isn't Google or similar techie industry.

And another detail. Financial companies hire anyone that will not screw up, or anyone with PhD or similar. Then they are put on the job for 6 months/1 year. At the end, everyone is put into a spreadsheet, based on how much money they earned. Everyone but first 10 in that list are fired and replaced with new grads. Evolution of sorts.

Regardless of the outcome, don't sweat too much about it, it's never about you, because the important stuff about surviving such careers is what isn't taught in standard school curriculum, and is mostly a matter of coming in contact with proper peers that will show you the ropes of what matters to progress.

But if you do get in, either cash in on the job, or if it doesn't work out, on the reference it will give you. If you don't, you can still bluff with "deciding on offer from company X" when interviewing elsewhere.

It's just how corporate world is played. Or you might want to go a more geeky route with more tech oriented companies instead.

Quote: Original post by Antheus
And another detail. Financial companies hire anyone that will not screw up, or anyone with PhD or similar. Then they are put on the job for 6 months/1 year. At the end, everyone is put into a spreadsheet, based on how much money they earned. Everyone but first 10 in that list are fired and replaced with new grads. Evolution of sorts.

Not sure where you have worked, but that is NOT the way things are done. Do you have any idea how expensive turnover is? How much it actually costs to hire someone? If all these financial institutions are interested in is money, then they will make damn sure that they hire qualified individuals and attempt to minimize turnover. That is why showing an interest in the company is often seen as a good thing. If your interests align with those of the company, then you're less likely to just jump at the first chance you get to take another job.

Yes, this first interview experience was rough.
At least now I know what to expect and should be better prepared in the future.
Thanks.

Quote: Original post by tstrimp

Do you have any idea how expensive turnover is? How much it actually costs to hire someone?

It is even more costly to bet all hopes on a handful of individuals selected through an HR process, since everyone in recruitment knows how flawed interviews are with regard to actual performance.

So they settle on two general approaches to job board hiring. One is to overspecify jobs with lots of buzzwords, hoping to get perfect match. The other is to extend the interview process over longer period of time. The latter approach is not viable for full-time, regular employee with all the benefits and such, but can be applied to interns, students and even recent grads. Such approach allows a sink or swim style recruitment, hire those qualified as per references, then see who truly excels on the actual job.

Quote: If your interests align with those of the company, then you're less likely to just jump at the first chance you get to take another job.

This is what the interview determines. But actual performance on the job is something else. For example, hiring incompetent people who have no other options is a good way to make sure they don't jump ship.

Turnover happens. This is what yearly reviews do, just in less drastic manner. And while the techniques have become somewhat more refined, they are no different from what all large companies have been doing, especially those in IT.

But I agree that this isn't viable for most small and medium companies, those cannot afford the overhead costs. It is still how many of visible tech companies recruit today, in strong cooperation with university exchange programs and similar. Internships, afterall, are just that. Extended interviews and try-outs. No company is doing for the goodness of the CEO's heart, it's all an investment into future of the company.