Preparing for Your Thinkful Interview: Questions You Need to Know

Interviewing for a career-changing program like those offered by Thinkful can be an intimidating process. You want to impress your interviewers and show that you have what it takes to succeed in an intensive bootcamp environment.

The good news is that Thinkful’s admissions process is designed to be conversational and collaborative. The interview isn’t meant to stump candidates but to have an open discussion about your background, interests, and goals. Still, it pays to be prepared for the types of questions you’re likely to encounter.

In this guide we’ll cover everything you need to know to ace your Thinkful admissions interview including

• Why Thinkful uses interviews in the admissions process
• What to expect from the interview format
• Common behavioral interview questions
• Technical questions in engineering and data science interviews
• How to sufficiently answer ambiguous questions
• Tips for virtual interview success

Let’s get started!

Why Thinkful Uses Interviews

Thinkful programs like the engineering and data science bootcamps are rigorous. They require serious commitment, intense focus, collaboration skills, and a ample time dedication.

To ensure admitted students are prepared for the road ahead, the admissions process includes an interview with a member of the admissions team or a current mentor. This live conversation serves several purposes:

• Evaluating technical skills. In the engineering and data science interviews, candidates will be asked technical questions to gauge their current skill levels. This helps Thinkful form cohorts with learners at similar starting points.

• Assessing communication abilities. Much of the curriculum involves collaborative projects and peer-to-peer feedback. Interviewers want to get a sense of how applicants explain concepts and ideas verbally.

• Getting to know the real person. Interviews allow a more nuanced evaluation of a candidate beyond just transcripts and test scores. The discussion focuses on career motivations and goals.

• Determining fit. Thinkful’s programs are designed for driven, hardworking self-starters. The interview reveals whether applicants have the qualities needed to thrive in Thinkful’s rigorous bootcamp model.

So while the interview may feel intimidating, it’s not meant to stump or trick candidates. It’s an opportunity for applicants to showcase their potential to succeed in a Thinkful program.

What to Expect from the Interview Format

Thinkful uses a conversational interview format, either over video chat or by phone. The interviewer will have your application materials in front of them as reference, but the discussion is fluid and adaptable based on the flow of conversation.

Some key aspects of the Thinkful admissions interview:

• Timeframe: Interviews last around 30 minutes, give or take based on the conversation flow.

• Conversational style: The interview is discussion-based without overly rigid structure. You’ll be encouraged to ask questions as well.

• Technical component (for engineering/data science): Applicants for the technical programs will be asked to work through a coding challenge or technical question during the interview.

• Follow-up: If anything needs clarification, you may receive a follow-up call or need to submit additional materials.

While each interview varies based on the applicant’s background and interests, you can expect friendly but direct questions about your career motivations, strengths and weaknesses, technical aptitude, and soft skills.

Thinking through answers to common questions ahead of time prevents you from being caught off guard. Let’s look at some examples.

Behavioral Interview Questions

Behavioral interview questions ask about how you’ve approached work situations in the past to gain insight into your strengths, work ethic, and values. Examples include:

• Tell me about a time you faced a challenge with a team project. How did you handle it? This reveals your conflict resolution skills and attitude toward teamwork.

• Talk about a time you had to adapt quickly to a new technology or process. How did you approach the learning curve? This shows how you tackle new skills and handle uncertainty.

• Give me an example of a goal you worked hard to accomplish. What steps did you take to achieve it? This demonstrates your perseverance, planning, and motivation levels.

• Tell me about a mistake you made in a previous job and how you dealt with it. What did you learn? This provides insight into your attitude around failure and improvement.

The key is to use real-life examples from past internships, jobs, or extracurriculars. Be detailed in describing the situation, actions you took, and results. This shows self-awareness and analytical thinking skills.

Technical Interview Questions

Applicants to Thinkful’s engineering and data science programs can expect technical interview questions to evaluate their current skills. These may include:

For software engineering:

• Explain the difference between mutable and immutable objects in JavaScript. Provide examples of each.

• How does hoisting work in JavaScript? Provide some examples.

• Given an array of numbers, write a function to return a new array containing only the positive values.

• What is the purpose of Git? Explain the basic Git workflow.

For data science:

• Explain the difference between regression and classification machine learning models. When would you use each?

• What is overfitting in machine learning and how can it be avoided?

• Given a dataset, how would you handle missing or corrupted data?

• Explain what precision and recall mean in the context of classification models. How are they calculated?

The key is to demonstrate your thought process. Explain your understanding as clearly as possible. If you get stuck, outline how you would approach solving the problem rather than giving up.

Answering Ambiguous Interview Questions

Some common interview questions seem rather vague or open-ended. Examples include:

• Why do you want to change careers and join this program?
• What are your strengths and weaknesses?
• Where do you see your career in 5 years?

The key is to prepare 2-3 talking points for broad questions like these. But keep your responses authentic and conversational instead of rehearsed. For the strengths/weaknesses question, pivot quickly to your development plan for improving any weaknesses.

If you need clarification on ambiguous questions, don’t be afraid to ask for more context from the interviewer. They want to see how you think through complex questions.

Tips for Acing the Virtual Interview

With Thinkful’s interviews conducted remotely, these tips will optimize the video chat experience:

• Dress professionally and have a clean, distraction-free background.

• Test your tech beforehand to avoid any connectivity or audio issues.

• Take notes to jog your memory for any follow-ups.

• Ask thoughtful questions to show your engagement and interest.

• Make eye contact by looking directly into your webcam, not at your screen.

• Be authentic. Don’t be afraid to show passion and smile!

Preparation is Key

While each Thinkful applicant’s interview will be unique, keeping these common questions and techniques in mind will help you put your best foot forward. Show your passion, technical abilities, and potential to thrive in a rigorous bootcamp environment.

With diligent preparation and practice, you’ll be able to handle whatever questions come your way. We wish you the best as you take this exciting step toward a career transformation!