How do Software Engineering Candidates Prepare for Technical Interviews?

TL;DR

This paper investigates how software engineering candidates prepare for technical interviews, revealing gaps in authentic practice and educational support that contribute to stress and unpreparedness.

Contribution

It provides empirical insights into candidate preparation methods and highlights the need for improved educational resources and authentic practice environments.

Findings

Candidates rarely practice in authentic settings

Courses inadequately support interview preparation

Preparation gaps lead to increased stress

Abstract

To obtain employment, aspiring software engineers must complete technical interviews -- a hiring process which involves candidates writing code while communicating to an audience. However, the complexities of tech interviews are difficult to prepare for and seldom faced in computing curricula. To this end, we seek to understand how candidates prepare for technical interviews, investigating the effects of preparation methods and the role of education. We distributed a survey to candidates (n = 131) actively preparing for technical interviews. Our results suggest candidates rarely train in authentic settings and courses fail to support preparation efforts -- leading to stress and unpreparedness. Based on our findings, we provide implications for stakeholders to enhance tech interview preparation for candidates pursuing software engineering roles.