Teaching
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Technical Interviewing (Fall 2023)

Technical Interviewing

I taught this class in fall 2023. It was loosely inspired by Stanford CS 9.

During this class, students learned about various data structures and algorithms, and practiced using them in technical interviewing questions.

Each week, the class focused on a different concept. The class met Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, where Mondays and Wednesdays were lectures, and Fridays were generally group discussions or activities. Weekly assignments included Leetcode problems and peer interviews.

Instead of a final exam, I met with every student individually for a mock interview, which I graded based on a rubric that I shared ahead of time.

Week One: Intro

Motivation Motivation

Some disclaimers and opinions before we dive into interviewing.

History History

A Brief History of Data Structures, Algorithms, and Tech Interviews

Resources Resources

Links and other resources for interview practice.

Week Two: Fundamentals

Picking a Language Picking a Language

What programming language should I use in a job interview?

Fundamentals Fundamentals

Your interviews might include a linked list, but they'll definitely include a for loop.

Complexity Complexity

How to measure time and space complexity.

Week Three: Arrays and Strings

Arrays and Strings Arrays and Strings

The most common data structures in interview questions.

Week Four: Maps and Sets

Maps Maps

When in doubt, put it in a HashMap.

Sets Sets

There can be only one.

Week Five: Stacks and Queues

Stacks Stacks

Last in first out.

Queues Queues

First in first out.

Week Six: Recursion and Dynamic Programming

Recursion Recursion

To understand recursion, first understand recursion.

Dynamic Programming Dynamic Programming

Remember calculations to improve efficiency.

Week Seven: Resumes and Behavioral Interviews

Resumes Resumes

Your first chance to make a first impression.

Behavioral Interviews Behavioral Interviews

Where do you see yourself in five years?

Week Eight: Catch Up

During this week, we revisited algorithmic complexity and talked about the process for applying to jobs.

Week Nine: Linked Lists

Linked Lists Linked Lists

One thing leads to another.

Week Ten: Trees

Trees Trees

Make like a tree node.

Week Eleven: Graphs

Graphs Graphs

It's all connected.

Week Twelve: Matrices

Matrices Matrices

Enter the matrix.

Week Thirteen: System Design

System Design System Design

Break the system down.

Week Fourteen: Machine Learning

This was a short week, so I gave an impromptu lecture on machine learning!

Week Fifteen: Wrapping Up

During this week, we had an informal chat about entering the job market, and then we talked about continuing interview practice after the class ends.