Job interview, technical test

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hairyjim
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Job interview, technical test

Post by hairyjim »

Hi all,

I have been called back for round 2 of job interviews for a company. They are looking for a php developer with 2+ years exp.

Now I believe this second interview is going to be some sort of technical interview based on my PHP knowledge.

Now this may sound stupid but my PHP knowledge/experience is tightly interwoven with the PHP manual, internet resources etc.

Without these tools I seem to be able to only speak in this sort of manner "Yeah there is a function that can print out the contents of an array" rather than being able to explicitly name syntax etc.

Without the manual and stuff I can only talk in pseudo code. Does anyone have any advice for a nervous job hunter?

Jim
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Chris Corbyn
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Post by Chris Corbyn »

Don't worry. *Most* employers who know what they are talking about will not expect you to revised the manual. Those resources are there for a reason - to use them.

I'm employed in PHP programming and there's no way I could get by without an internet connection for reading external resources and the PHP manual....

You could know the manual inside out and still not be able to write PHP code to any great ability. It's more about the way you think.... can you think logically about the structure of an application or how you would tackle particular problem? Then that's great! Pseudo code is how it all starts out in your head anyway, then you go away and use the manual to fill in the gaps.... you already have worked out what's needed to be done ;)

If I was employing someone I wouldn't turn them away if they forgot the name of a function, because I do it all the time. If you can think about things the right way that's the main thing I'd be looking for.

Good luck!
hairyjim
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Post by hairyjim »

Cheers for the words of wisdom.

I am just ploughing through some online tutorials, just to brush up and make myself feel better
alvinphp
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Post by alvinphp »

Though I don't expect people to remember obsure functions, I think a person should know the basics without having to look it up. Once you prove you know the basics that is usually only 30% of your interview. I feel scenario questions are the best where there is not always one right answer. This gives you sense of how they think. Putting in one impossible question is always great as you want to know how people react to things they do not know. Do they say it is not imporant, get irate, or just admit they do not know it, but give them 30 seconds on the internet and they will find the answer.
timvw
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Post by timvw »

I wouldn't expect to know a complete syntax (and variable order) by heart.. Certainly not PHP.. On the other hand, if you are already working 2 years with PHP, i would expect that the candidate knows the API a bit :) Meaby it's more important, when i ask him something, he's able to look it up in a short period of time (With all the resources he'll have at his workplace).

I would ask more "logical" questions. As in: How would you solve problemX? Basically, if you've helped a couple of people in the code forum, you know what kind of questions to expect ;)
hairyjim
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Post by hairyjim »

Can you believe it!

The job posted was for 2+ years development with PHP, with the candidate having being working in the web development arena for 3+ years.

Yeah cool, I fit the bill. I like the sound of the job lets apply.

Hits reply...goes to first interview...get a call back for the second interview (technical test)...failry straight forward.

Questions like, here is a class that handles student course data. Which of the following functions should not really be in this class....

Pass the test with flying colours, in fact I achieved a higher score than their senior developer! 89% pass score. Pretty chuffed considering that there were a fair few PERL questions in there.

Leave rather confident.

Get a phone call four days later, sorry we feel you are too over qualified for this position! WTF!
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Chris Corbyn
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Post by Chris Corbyn »

Ouch. You shouldn't get too disheartened about it thoigh. They turned you down because you were *too good*! Great... look for work with more £££ :)

It wouldn't surprise me at all if the senior developer had a big influence since you could have compromised his own position ;)
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