Generic interview tips

Stand Out of the Crowd:

So let's pick up a generic question. What is difference between RISC and CISC processor.

Chances are, he has asked this question to multiple people. He is tired of listening to RISC stands for Reducted Instruction Set.

Same goes for any protocol. Or any IP/module. If someone asks you what were the signals in module, never mention clk and reset. Only mention the most specific signal and feature, the unique one. Not all the features. Just the one you are confident about. As a fresher, you might be tempted to showcase that you have done a lot of things. But that's not the goal. You are not supposed to be ONE MAN ARMY.

Inevitable Question for Interview :

One and only question for an interview which if not answered well, chances for you getting selected are doomed.

Question is: Walk me through your CV. Tell me about yourself. etc

One might wonder that you already have the CV. Why ask it?

But the interviewer wants to listen to why they should hire you.

If they ask you, tell me about yourself, make no mistake. Still the question is the same.

Does:

1. Tell about all the projects relevant to the role.

2. Start with most recent job responisibility.

3. Keep it enough long to open up room for questions.

4. Mention keywords in big and bold. Interviewers are busy and might be doing multitasking, might be tired etc.

Don't:

Don't tell about your family, your hobbies and all. Unless your hobby is competitive coding :)

Don't make it too long, Remember, an interview is not only about your skills, but about your abilities to work in a team and lot of soft skills too.

Don't mention the words expert/thorough knowledge unless you are very very sure.

Don't take more than 3 minutes.

Understand Interviewer Mindset:

Interviewers are humans too. Some might be okay, with your dress code. Some might be not.

He/She has loads of his/her own tasks to take care of. It's probably evenings/afternoon time. And you expect that the interviewer is as keen as you are on your achievements. He might have not heard of the IP/protocol/feature that you have worked on. Some might be eager to know. Others might initially try, but if you don't give a great picture that he can imagine, he/she will eventually give up.

Hence, it is very important to make them understand in more layman terms about what exactly "you" did in the project.

Always keep your answers open ended:

By open ended i mean, always leave the room for the next question. Never answer the question as Yes/No. For example, if you are asked, have you worked on coverage? Even if you have just opened a tool to check coverage, clearly mention that. "Yes, but i have done very basic stuff" and it should be followed by "I didn't get much opportunity to work on it but i have explored it a bit on my own. Hence, i was able to check some already existing bugs, be part of discussions,etc"

Make your answers interesting

Long ago i came across a research that stated that models and actors/actresses are immune to the world beautiful.

They hear this word so frequently that they stop feeling happy listening to it. Similarly, interviewers often listen to same kind of answers and they know exactly what to question next. Surprise them - by adding personal touch or example. The story where they can imagine the scenario in their heads.

Strike the balance of keywords

It is very important to not use too many jargons. If you are very sure about your answers, it feels fishy, hideous. If you are not sure about the answer and beat around the bush, it creates a negative impression. And people are mere humans, they do judge. Don't sound too naive, you might lose the charm. Keep the balance.